The Good Place recap: Season 4, Episode 6, “A Chip Driver Mystery,” Aired Oct. 31, 2019
Happy Halloween, benches! Sit down, put your feet up, and relax with this recap of The Good Place.
We opened in Bad Janet’s cell. Michel came in to tell her a story, one that at first seemed to support her perspective on humanity. The humans didn’t get along so well in this episode, but Michael, the optimist he is, reminded us (and Bad Janet) to give humanity the b-b-benefit of the doubt.
Humans are “b-b-bad to the bone”
Brent started out the episode making strides. He was acting nicer, even if his motivation was still corrupt. Like Michael said, first they change the behavior, then work on motivation.
A huge problem was that Brent’s behavior constantly reaffirmed Simone’s snap judgments about him, and that kept them both from becoming truly better people. Team Cockroach pretty much repeatedly failed at getting through to Brent, but it’s then I remember Michael’s wise words. They just need to choose to get a little better every day.
Six Feet Under Par: A Chip Driver Mystery
Brent wrote a book, which he showed Chidi and Simone. The novel told the story of Chip Driver and Scarlett Pakistan (aka Tahani). It was highly offensive, which would surprise no one because it is extremely Brent-y.
The bigger issue with the book came when Brent refused to apologize for his intensely problematic story when he was confronted with constructive criticism about the language and content. Chidi tried to make an ethics lesson out of the situation, and he and Brent got into an actual, physical fight.
“Oh, my Gaga”
Tahani wasn’t the only character featured in Brent’s book; Chidi found himself in a character with glasses “who never did anything fun.” To get Chidi out of his head, Jason and Chidi partook in a bit of a dance party, which, of course, John, the gossip, walked in on.
Now it’s up to John to keep Jianyu’s secret. It’s hard for him, as he has a lot of pent-up gossip that’s just overflowing. John keeping the secret would be a huge points gain, and to his credit, he really is trying his best.
One more chapter…
It was pretty clear all the humans lost quite a few points in their spats, so Team Cockroach had to figure out a way to get the experiment back on track. It’s all about forcing the humans to do something good without them thinking about it. It’s been a long process, but, hey, good things come to those who wait, right?
In the end, Michael’s story didn’t move Bad Janet to optimism, but rather than marbleizing her, he sent her home as his chosen act of trying to be just a little bit better. It really was a nice note to end on, even with Bad Janet sassing her way out the door.
I’ll see you forkers next week for more absolute shenanigans in The Good Place.
What did you think of “A Chip Driver Mystery”? Let us know at @PureFandom on Twitter!
The Good Place airs Thursday nights on NBC at 9:00/8:00c.
(Image: Colleen Hayes/NBC)
