The twist reveal in the finale of the first season of The Good Place helped to make an already great show even better. Even before learning that Eleanor and the others are actually in The Bad Place, watching her and Chidi scramble to cover up that Eleanor isn’t supposed to be there is an interesting story. Each main character of The Good Place is very distinct from their fellow major characters, and the explanations behind them being in The Bad Place make perfect sense while still managing not to be obvious.

Right from the beginning of the show, the world that The Good Place establishes is vibrant and engaging. The neighborhood is an interesting setting, and the show does a good job of balancing conflict with a world that’s supposedly supposed to be perfect. The Good Place‘s twist ending makes season 1 better, but it would be a strong first season even if it was exactly what it first appeared to be. However, many of the moments of conflict in The Good Place‘s first season make even more sense with the truth behind the neighborhood.

The Good Place Season 1 Gave Us Plenty Of Hints That They Were In The Bad Place

Looking Back At The Good Place’s First Season, The Twist Makes Perfect Sense

Season 1 of The Good Place does a great job of creating moments that, at first glance, look like they are just the show struggling to set things up as well as they would like to, but in reality are specifically designed to screw with the neighborhood’s residents. The season is full of hints about the truth behind the neighborhood, which is why Eleanor is able to follow the clues about The Good Place‘s twist and put together what’s been happening by the end of the season.

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The fact that there are multiple people in the same neighborhood who aren’t supposed to be there is one huge piece of supporting evidence, as they make it seem like it’s a completely unusual thing to have happened. In addition, many of the details of the neighborhood seem slightly off if it’s supposed to be a utopian environment. The dramatic amount of frozen yogurt is one such clue, as if this really was The Good Place, Michael might have realized that his residents wanted ice cream and could have worked to make that happen.

In addition, the amount of stress that the four residents are under throughout their time in the neighborhood is another clue. Even if the twist isn’t immediately obvious, the fact that Eleanor’s presence in The Good Place is torturous for her becomes clear very quickly. Michael clearly identified that wrongly being in The Good Place would be just as agonizing for her as anything else The Bad Place could do to her. Though The Good Place isn’t immediately obvious as a version of Hell, it’s very quickly clear that it’s become one for Eleanor.

Michael Was A Walking Red Flag In The Good Place Season 1

Michael Acted As A Huge Hint That Something Was Wrong

Though he mostly does a good job of keeping his true motivations under wraps, Michael is clearly reveling in the chaos of what’s going on in the neighborhood. While Michael could just be enjoying himself because he enjoys his job as a neighborhood architect, he is in reality enjoying watching Eleanor and the others struggle to pretend they belong in The Good Place. He sets things up very carefully, so while eventually things go wrong for him, it is at first very satisfying for Michael to see his plan for a fake version of The Good Place torturing people so successfully.

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Michael kicking a puppy into the sun is also a huge hint. Evil moments like this are played off as humorous, showing just how well The Good Place manages to balance everything it’s juggling. The first season of the show has to balance humor and plot, but it also has to balance making the audience and characters think this is The Good Place while also foreshadowing the twist somewhat and not having it come completely out of left field.

Despite All The Clues, The Good Place’s Big Twist Is Not Easy To Figure Out

The Clues Are Only There If You Know To Look For Them

While it can be great to go back and look for these moments in hindsight after finding out the truth about The Good Place, it’s not very obvious for first-time viewers. Part of the reason the twist works so well is that it’s so completely unexpected. The Good Place does a fantastic job of making it appear as though the problem with the neighborhood isn’t the setting itself but the characters living in it. The twist isn’t at all immediately apparent because the show reinforces the idea that everything going wrong has been because of Eleanor’s presence.

The lack of immediate obviousness makes The Good Place a great TV show to rewatch, as it’s only upon a rewatch that the clues are obvious. The Good Place‘s twist ending is great because they set it up in a way that is satisfying and makes it work really well, but it takes audience members completely by surprise. A lot of things about The Good Place seem off, but there’s no reason to suspect that it’s the whole neighborhood itself that isn’t what it appears to be.