It's been seven weeks since "The Answer" aired and left us with precious few actual answers.
But the excruciatingly long wait is over, and tonight The Good Place is finally back with an episode entitled "You've Changed, Man." With any luck we will finally find out about Chidi's plan to save the universe, and what it means that "Eleanor is the Answer."
Kristen Bell posted an image to Instagram last night, reminding us of the cryptic note that Chidi retrieved from Janet at the end of the last episode. It has left us wondering—for nearly two months—in what way is Eleanor Shellstrop "the Answer."
The series has followed the self-described "Arizona trash bag" through four seasons of growth and personal development. She has been instrumental in uncovering centuries of secret torture and fighting for a just reform of the afterlife system, but now our favorite neurotic moral philosopher—with the benefit of perfect hindsight—has been tasked with a mission to reshape the structure of the universe for the rest of all bearimy. If he can't invent a more just system, then everyone and everything on Earth will be erased from existence, and the only hint we have so far is the note that insists "THERE IS NO 'Answer'/But Eleanor is the Answer."
What could this mean? What does Eleanor mean to Chidi? The obvious answer is love. Chidi and Eleanor love each other and have rediscovered that love through multiple lifetimes. The concept of soulmates has been repeatedly teased and dismissed throughout the series, but the persistence of love between Chidi and Eleanor seems like strong evidence that there might be some truth to the idea. Perhaps Chidi has a plan in mind to pair each human with a particular kind of soulmate—someone who challenges our flaws and pushes us to grow. Maybe it's his contention that if everyone on Earth had someone who could do for them what Eleanor does for him, then the whole of humanity could begin the process of growing and improving enough to earn entry to The Good Place.
It's not quite clear how this would solve the problem of civilization's complexity and the unintended consequences that have been confounding the point system, but one of the things we love about The Good Place is its ability to deliver satisfying twists. More than once a sudden revelation has reshaped the whole show, so with only four episodes left—including the hour-long series finale—we should be prepared for anything.
Will the demons from The Bad Place interfere with Chidi's plan? Will Michael be "retired" to eternal torture on the surface of a sun? Most importantly, will Janet and Jason ever get around to making some weird, half-magic babies? Tune in to NBC tonight at 8:30 to find out.
