Good Season 2 Anticipation, Predictions, Speculations & Wishes

[Kromm]

This all assumes there WILL be a Season 2, of course.

[CofCinci]

Speculation -- Michael is in the Bad Place as a resident too, but just hasn't realized it yet. His workplace was my version of Hell: kid boss, annoying worker who doesn't know the orange carafe is decaf, big pitch is interrupted by a demon, dimly lit place....  Then, his big idea is ruined by this Bizzaroworld version of Scooby Doo. 

[withanaich]

I do think it's telling that Michael's workplace was so dark and depressing. And yet, even if he had a cruel agenda, he seemed like a pretty optimistic guy, even in the flashbacks. He was so happy to get his first big assignment, and he was willing to try something new. Even if he's quite possibly evil, I don't think he was pretending all the time. Some of his joy at experiencing tiny human things seemed to be real. Maybe eventually, after spending enough time among them (because remember, the architects don't do that), he'll want to help the humans he's supposed to be torturing?

[calliope1975]

I think there's a lot of different places S2 (fingers crossed) can go without simply resetting/redoing S1. Janet could be a key. If she's evolving and learning when rebooted, she could figure out things quicker and/or upend the system. If there is a higher being running all of this, they could step in when seeing how Eleanor and Co. are changing and becoming better people. I'd still love to see a regular bad place/good place. 

In short, I'm really hoping for a renewal. 

[cpcathy]

I think Michael being middle management in The Bad Place is really important, he has more layers than just being evil, when we thought he was good he was also prone to getting flustered and frustrated. I think Eleanor and the others will try to convince him that he's good in season 2.

[withanaich]

48 minutes ago, calliope1975 said:

If there is a higher being running all of this, they could step in when seeing how Eleanor and Co. are changing and becoming better people.

I'm hoping that's endgame. Like, they have a hands-off approach and don't even know what the architects have been doing, and step in when they realize what a clusterfork it's become. It seems like the architects are pretty disdainful of humans, and have a lot of honestly petty reasons for taking away points and sending people to the Bad Place (liking The Bachelor doesn't make you a good person but I don't know if it should count toward eternal damnation), so it stands to reason that they don't think any humans are worthy of the Good Place. But maybe that's not the way it was supposed to be.

[Traveller519]

I like that end game idea. Everyone realizes that your life doesn't end with the end of your mortal body, and you can grown into a better soul. There's something beyond eternal reward or punishment. And the whole thing becomes a social commentary on Prison Reform

[ParadoxLost]

I wonder how many hidden clues there are to the next season (if there is one) there are in Eleanor's second introduction to the "Good Place".

Everything isn't fine.  Its Great!

Eleanor isn't as inquisitive. Her reaction to the house is glossed over.  How much is for time and how much is a hint that maybe erased isn't totally erased.  I wonder if they are accumulating points in the Bad Place and if that carries through and changes the next version.

Seems like they intend to stop Eleanor from confessing by distracting her with mailman abs soul mate.  Which is hysterical that they are using one of her bad deeds as the inspiration for her soul mate.

Also, all the yogurt places were replaced with pizza places.

[Mabinogia]

Maybe this all is really just a test and the reset is because they failed this round. Jason and Eleanor stole the train to go run away, Chidi still couldn't make a decision, this time which woman he actually loves. And, I'm less sure on Tahani, but she did still seem pretty obsessed with being perfect and better than everyone. So they got reset to see if they will make the right choices this time.

I don't care what they do, I think the reset is brilliant. It will be fun for me to see how these characters come back together this time, with them getting different soul mates. Will Jason still be Jianyu? Will there still be a "real" Eleanor. (I kind of love that the real Eleanor is really the fake Eleanor. That kind of stuff amuses me which proves this show is perfect for me.) I can't wait to see the changes made to the Good Place. How will Michael act this time? Will that dog still get kicked into the sun?

Please come back, show, I need you!

[MadyGirl1987]

Rewatching the ending from the reveal through and something stuck out at me. When Michael is working to convince Shawn to reset the memories, Shawn mentions that if things go sideways again, Michael is finished. I wonder how that could play into the dynamic. Could Michael end up helping them to keep everything under wraps when/if they start to figure stuff out again? How much will not wanting Shawn involved motivate his actions?

[Kel Varnsen]

I am interested in seeing Michael  next season publicly be the guy we have seen, then switching to evil Michael behind the scenes as it were.

[cpcathy]

I just had a horrible thought, what if The Good/Bad Place is now going to be with new characters (save for Michael and Eleanor)? We got a new soulmate for Eleanor, how can we bring in Tahani, Jason and Chidi? I'm VEXED!

[wilnil]

It's still Michael's project for torturing the four of them. They'll still be in the neighborhood, just with more "diabolical" soulmate pairings, and have to be destined to meet each other so they can get back to unintentionally tormenting each other.

[Dots And Stripes]

21 hours ago, cpcathy said:

I just had a horrible thought, what if The Good/Bad Place is now going to be with new characters (save for Michael and Eleanor)? We got a new soulmate for Eleanor, how can we bring in Tahani, Jason and Chidi? I'm VEXED!

The clue Eleanor left for herself was "find Chidi" which is a pretty good indication we'll see him again. Finding him will be the first step, but then Eleanor and Chidi will need to figure out why they needed to find each other. I assume the 4 are still there and we'll see them all, just maybe not as quickly.

I said in the episode thread I thought Michael keeping Janet was a mistake for his agenda. He stole one Good Janet, why not steal another one that hasn't learned as much? At the very least, keep a tighter leash on Janet. Michael didn't know about the note to stop its delivery, but it does show that he's not up on what Janet is doing. That bodes well for Eleanor's chances of success.

The Janet from round 1 wasn't really interested in figure out what was happening. She responded to specific requests but she wasn't concerned with whether things were off around her. There would need to be a big change from her reboot for her to become more inquisitive (and there would have to be nothing in her protocol to prevent it).

I want to know if the age of the deceased will come into play. I had wondered if our characters had died older and just reverted to younger appearances for the Good Place or if they really died young. It appears they did die young. Does that have significance?

FInally, I definitely want to see real forces of good come into play. I think Schur is too optimistic to just keep condemning "medium" people to torture over and over again. I'm excited to see that journey.

[Notwisconsin]

You know what I want to see as a Season two opener: Michael being confronted by his boss, saying: "This is the FIFTH time these four bozos have defeated you...."

[Dots And Stripes]

I wonder if gender is going to come into play. Michael, Trevor, and Shawn are all male. The Good Place representative we saw from Mindy's video is female. I know there was at least one woman in Michael's office so I don't think it's a complete gender divide, but I assume the choice for Mindy's video was intentional. 

Continuing in that line of thought, when we do see more architects or other beings in charge of the Good Place, I need Amy Poehler to make a guest appearance. 

[Kromm]

From the S01.E12: Mindy St. Clair / S01.E13: Michael's Gambit topic: 

 

@rue721 said:

Quote

They weren't bad people. They just didn't score enough Good People Points to make it into a real Good Place.

Here's my thought. Why are we trusting ANYTHING Michael said about what the Good Place is or what it takes to get into it?  We can't trust anything we've been told.

Maybe the Point System is just part of the torture. I mean it was ridiculous. So maybe the lie isn't just that they scored badly when the illusion was removed, but maybe the entire system explained to them isn't the real one. 

3 hours ago, Dots And Stripes said:

when we do see more architects or other beings in charge of the Good Place, I need Amy Poehler to make a guest appearance. 

How do we know that position really exists? Or even that Place?

[JustaPerson]

Well we know the Middle Place exists because Janet (who is not a part of Michael's experiment) is the one who told Elenor about it. So going off that we know that, we know Trevor really is an Bad Place architect and Beadie (the Good Place architect) is real, as are Good Places.

[Lebanna]

I was thinking about how it's always been made clear from the beginning that Michael wasn't an angel, and something stuck me.

There's one person in this reality who is everywhere throughout the entire afterlife, can appear on a whim, literally has already died for the sins of others and come back and knows everything about everything...

I'm calling it now. She's not a girl. She's not a robot. Janet is God.

[MrSmith]

8 hours ago, Lebanna said:

I was thinking about how it's always been made clear from the beginning that Michael wasn't an angel, and something stuck me.

There's one person in this reality who is everywhere throughout the entire afterlife, can appear on a whim, literally has already died for the sins of others and come back and knows everything about everything...

I'm calling it now. She's not a girl. She's not a robot. Janet is God.

That's an interesting theory.

[cpcathy]

Michael explains why they are not in heaven and what the deal is with God, in the extended cut of the pilot. I can't remember the specifics, so if anyone is doing a rewatch, do advise.

[Lebanna]

Good point. Although what we know for sure is; Michael is a liar.

[cpcathy]

Also good point!

[whiporee]

12 hours ago, Lebanna said:

I was thinking about how it's always been made clear from the beginning that Michael wasn't an angel, and something stuck me.

There's one person in this reality who is everywhere throughout the entire afterlife, can appear on a whim, literally has already died for the sins of others and come back and knows everything about everything...

I'm calling it now. She's not a girl. She's not a robot. Janet is God.

And the point of all this is redemption.  

Eleanor's a better person; Jason was willing to go to the bad place, Chidi's finally understanding consequences and Tahani was sincere about her motivations.  They all improved and worked toward becoming the best versions of themselves, perhaps making the overall point that no one actually belongs in a Bad Place for eternity.  

But it's going to hinge on a revelation Eleanor hasn't had yet.  She rejects other people out of reflex, and that made her life a kind of hell, and it's taken her dying to be willing to change that just a bit. So I'm going to place my long-term bet that all of them -- Tahani, Chidi and Jason -- are constructs too, all to the overall point of allowing Eleanor to feel connection with someone else and allow her to let other people in.  

Also, she's not dead. She's in a coma, and this is God, in the form of either Michael or Janet, working through her Scrooge tendencies to find a better way to be.  And when she wakes up and understands, she'll run into Chidi. Or Tahani. Or someone who looks like Michael. And she lives happily ever after, because Michael Schur is, at his core, and optimistic, joyful and hopeful dude.  

Let's hope we get the chance to find out whether I'm right. 

Edited January 23, 2017 by whiporee

[Big Mother]

I think that Janet will end up being the one to spill the beans. Even when she's rebooted, she does retain *some* memory of what she knew in previous iterations. So unless she went through a complete factory reset, she might end up blurting out something like, "Before my reboot, Eleanor, you mentioned that..." etc.

[possibilities]

If Janet is God, I guess Jason is a monk after all!

The thing about the reset that I don't understand is that, if the 4 friends were put together because they perfectly fit for mutual torment based on their particular issues, how does keeping the 4 apart work for them continuing to torture each other?

[Kromm]

2 hours ago, possibilities said:

If Janet is God, I guess Jason is a monk after all!

The thing about the reset that I don't understand is that, if the 4 friends were put together because they perfectly fit for mutual torment based on their particular issues, how does keeping the 4 apart work for them continuing to torture each other?

My guess is that Michael is scrambling... so he substitutes lesser forms of emotional/moral/mental torture and downplays the fact that this undermines his whole original concept.

If Janet is a computer, I wonder if she has a backup drive somewhere she can restore (or Eleanor could do it). Further speculation: what if Eleanor and the others memories are backed up too (and could be restored)?

[CofCinci]

5 hours ago, Big Mother said:

I think that Janet will end up being the one to spill the beans. Even when she's rebooted, she does retain *some* memory of what she knew in previous iterations. So unless she went through a complete factory reset, she might end up blurting out something like, "Before my reboot, Eleanor, you mentioned that..." etc.

Yes. Her love for Jason is/was real.  Perhaps they'll fall in love again. 

[Johnny Dollar]

Why was a show with such a pedigree of people like Ted Danson, Kristen Bell and Mike Schur only given twelve episodes?

Anyway, my prediction for future seasons is that evil architect Michael will become so affected by the inherent good nature of his four subjects (although Jason has a long way to go) that he will somehow turn against the Good/Bad Place hierarchy in an attempt to protect his new human friends. 

[Mabinogia]

I almost wish that next season would be from one of the others POV. Like, we had Eleanor's evolution. She changed dramatically being in the faux good place. This next time should be Chidi's story. Then Jason, Tahani. They all have to go through the reset until all four of them have fully evolved. But I'm fine even if it doesn't do that. So long as we get our foursome back together sooner rather than later.

I just hope that if they get the next season, it remains a shorter season. I think most shows work better with shorter seasons, less pressure to draw things out. As much as I want this show on all the time forever, I don't want the quality to suffer from spreading itself too thin.

[DrScottie]

4 hours ago, Mabinogia said:

I just hope that if they get the next season, it remains a shorter season. I think most shows work better with shorter seasons, less pressure to draw things out. As much as I want this show on all the time forever, I don't want the quality to suffer from spreading itself too thin.

I agree. Far better to have 13 stellar episodes than a dragged out season. 

[ParadoxLost]

On 1/24/2017 at 1:02 AM, possibilities said:

The thing about the reset that I don't understand is that, if the 4 friends were put together because they perfectly fit for mutual torment based on their particular issues, how does keeping the 4 apart work for them continuing to torture each other?

This was always less about the mutual torment and more about Micheal and his co-workers getting to participate in the fun of torturing the four residents.

I do not think they intend to keep them apart.  They intend to keep them distant enough to stop them from forming the bonds that fouled things up the first time, reinforced by the new soul mates reinforcing behavior counter to what went wrong before.  But I think they will still interact.

They will just be at odds instead of cohorts until they figure things out.

[Mabinogia]

12 hours ago, ParadoxLost said:

I do not think they intend to keep them apart.  They intend to keep them distant enough to stop them from forming the bonds that fouled things up the first time, reinforced by the new soul mates reinforcing behavior counter to what went wrong before.  But I think they will still interact.

Yes, Michael mentioned a "slow burn" this time around. So I think he intends them to still meet and drive each other crazy, but in a different way. I am curious if he will make Chidi and Tahani soul mates, since Chidi is so terrified of committing to anything that it would drive Tahani crazy.

I am curious how Hot Mailman will react to Eleanor telling him the truth about herself. We know that everything that happened was because Michael didn't have control over Chidi's reaction, but he does have control over Mailman's. So Eleanor could end up freaking out about Mailman ratting her out.

Michael may try to make Jason Chidi's ethical dilemma instead of Eleanor thinking that Chidi won't go quite as far for Jason as he did for Eleanor. Eleanor will still feel inferior to everyone. Oh, I can't wait to see what happens. I'm as giddy as Michael anticipating suspenders!

[Kromm]

On 1/24/2017 at 5:55 PM, nosleepforme said:

I'm kind of interested in how the dynamic will shift. Like, what will Eleanor's and Chidi's relationship be like now that they're no longer supposed to be soulmates? Without Chidi's influence, will Eleanor be more susceptive to Jason's charms? 

What charms? He's a total dolt.

[Affogato]

On ‎1‎/‎24‎/‎2017 at 4:36 PM, DrScottie said:

I agree. Far better to have 13 stellar episodes than a dragged out season. 

In general I'm not sure, some really stellar television, say Deep Space Nine (Your mileage may vary) can really benefit by the extra time spent on different characters, while police procedurals just go on forever for no apparent reason (Your mileage may again vary).  This is a pocket universe, though. They don't have a real world purpose to propel them along and provide the storylines for non arc episodes. So I think thirteen episodes makes sense. 

On ‎1‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 6:33 PM, whiporee said:

And the point of all this is redemption.  

Eleanor's a better person; Jason was willing to go to the bad place, Chidi's finally understanding consequences and Tahani was sincere about her motivations.  They all improved and worked toward becoming the best versions of themselves, perhaps making the overall point that no one actually belongs in a Bad Place for eternity.  

But it's going to hinge on a revelation Eleanor hasn't had yet.  She rejects other people out of reflex, and that made her life a kind of hell, and it's taken her dying to be willing to change that just a bit. So I'm going to place my long-term bet that all of them -- Tahani, Chidi and Jason -- are constructs too, all to the overall point of allowing Eleanor to feel connection with someone else and allow her to let other people in.  

Also, she's not dead. She's in a coma, and this is God, in the form of either Michael or Janet, working through her Scrooge tendencies to find a better way to be.  And when she wakes up and understands, she'll run into Chidi. Or Tahani. Or someone who looks like Michael. And she lives happily ever after, because Michael Schur is, at his core, and optimistic, joyful and hopeful dude.  

Let's hope we get the chance to find out whether I'm right. 

This is convincing, Whiporee. 

[BoogieBurns]

They're baaaaaaaack.

ETA: Real Eleanor is a fox. I hope she is a regular this season. 

Edited May 12, 2017 by BoogieBurns

[Mabinogia]

I just did a rewatch of the first season. This show holds up very well. It's not as shockingly funny as the first time, because you know what is coming, but it is so charming it doesn't matter.

I hope that the "townsfolk" from season 1 are still there, Bambajohn, the lady who got hit in the face with a turkey, the swinging couple, etc. There were some great background characters. I hope that at least one or two of them get hooked up with our core four, like Bambajohn could be Tahani's soul mate this time around, etc. Wonder who Chidi will get. Michael was right that it was a mistake not to pair each of them up with an in the know soul mate, in order to better control them.

I'm very interested in how this is going to play out because it's kind of like Groundhog Day but not really, because there is an architect manipulating everything, so things could end up being completely different than the first time around.

[DEM]

On 5/12/2017 at 10:49 AM, BoogieBurns said:

Real Eleanor is a fox. I hope she is a regular this season.

Hahaha, this could get confusing. My immediate reaction to the photo (without reading below) was, "Oh my god, fake Eleanor!"

(Yeah, I know how she's credited, but after 1x13 my mental map immediately shifted. heh)

[Notwisconsin]

Quote

Real Eleanor is a fox. I hope she is a regular this season.

Perhaps, but she won't be REAL Eleanor. Remember that plot twist at the end of season one. She's assistant devil #136 and always was. I expect that if it's go-round #2 instead of go-round #27, then it'll be about the ONLY Eleanor figuring out what's what again, but with we, the viewers being in on the joke.

 

I'd love for Ms Bell to do an Orphan Black schtick and play a dozen characters.

Edited September 4, 2017 by Notwisconsin

[BoogieBurns]

On 9/4/2017 at 5:51 PM, Notwisconsin said:

Perhaps, but she won't be REAL Eleanor. Remember that plot twist at the end of season one. She's assistant devil #136 and always was. I expect that if it's go-round #2 instead of go-round #27, then it'll be about the ONLY Eleanor figuring out what's what again, but with we, the viewers being in on the joke.

 

I'd love for Ms Bell to do an Orphan Black schtick and play a dozen characters.

I just meant the actress! I want more of her on the show. I liked her a lot.

On 9/3/2017 at 1:17 PM, DEM said:

Hahaha, this could get confusing. My immediate reaction to the photo (without reading below) was, "Oh my god, fake Eleanor!"

(Yeah, I know how she's credited, but after 1x13 my mental map immediately shifted. heh)

Well Kristen Bell is foxy too, so you could interpret it either way! 

[cpcathy]

I still think Danson is the foxiest fox around!

[DrScottie]

On 9/4/2017 at 6:51 PM, Notwisconsin said:

Perhaps, but she won't be REAL Eleanor. Remember that plot twist at the end of season one. She's assistant devil #136 and always was. I expect that if it's go-round #2 instead of go-round #27, then it'll be about the ONLY Eleanor figuring out what's what again, but with we, the viewers being in on the joke.

Right, Vicki was assigned to that role after our Eleanor confessed as Michael grossly underestimated Chidi's influence on her. Fortunately,  Tiya Sircar (Vicki) is back, but we don't know what role she'll have. 

As for the ending of the first season, I was always puzzled by one thing:

Eleanor correctly realizes that they are in the Bad Place. She argues because they are already there, no train would actually bring them to the Bad Place.  However, they are in what is a very aesthetically pleasing neighborhood despite being a filthy dumpster of their worst anxieties as she calls it. This echoes Sartre's No Exit: "Hell is other people." That is their torture. mental and emotional and, in Chidi's case, physical too.   

Clearly, there's worse versions with more physical torture even from the descriptions as Michael, Trevor, and Vicki point out. A train could have taken them to a different neighborhood like the ones Trevor and Vicki were from.