The Good Place Season 4 Episode 9 Review: The Answer
Rachel Foertsch
at
.
Everything comes full circle when Chidi drops his fork in the garbage disposal on The Good Place Season 4 Episode 9.
He may have used the phrase as a metaphor for his brain, but it turns out that every problem Chidi has goes back to one crucial moment in his childhood.
With only a number of episodes left on the show and the experiment at an end, viewers experience the life and death of Chidi Anagonye.
Chidi finding a way to stop his parents from getting divorced was enough to make him believe that there is no problem that can't be solved.
He researched, wrote up an entire report, prepared a presentation, and felt as if the books he read were what made his parents love each other again.
There's no question that this is why Chidi struggled with romantic relationships for his entire existence.
Chidi's parents were the most important people in his life, and if their problems could be solved with research, why couldn't his own?
If there's a problem with our relationship there is an answer that will solve it. So, let's hit the library.
Chidi
People do tend to form relationships similar to the ones their parents have, after all.
When Chidi spoke to Eleanor during The Good Place Season 2, he explained to her that his brain sounded like a fork in a garbage disposal.
This was also when Eleanor confessed her feelings for him, and Chidi wasn't sure whether or not he reciprocated them.
It's no coincidence that, when Chidi did put a fork in the garbage disposal, it was after his girlfriend ended his relationship and accused him of being unable to feel.
Even Chidi's professor worried that, although his paper exemplified a great mind, it lacked both heart and guts.
The greatest works of moral philosophy are emotional. They make an argument about how the world is and ought to be. There is a great mind at work in here. But where is the heart? Where are the guts?
Professor Radja
Philosophy may be Chidi's passion, but it's destroyed almost every relationship in his life.
Chidi had been so blinded by his parents' resolution that he couldn't see what his obsession was doing to those around him.
After he explained it firsthand, Chidi's indicisiveness became more understandable.
It wasn't rational, by any means, but it did make sense of why he's so terrified of having choices. Whether it's something as simple as choosing between a red or a blue hat, there is a correct answer.
It took dying and meeting Eleanor for Chidi to realize that he was doing life all wrong.
I kinda wish cute little Chidi just got to be a kid. Rather than a miniature professor trying to solve all the world's problems.
Eleanor
The note he wrote before he chose to have his memories erased was there to remind him that while there is no "answer" to life, the answer is Eleanor.
Although it could be interpreted several different ways, the note's meaning seems fairly obvious.
Eleanor is always there to help Chidi through the hard times. When his brain sounds like a fork in a garbage disposal, she's there to bring him back.
It seems as if Chidi may be realizing that, although there isn't an answer to all of life's questions, Eleanor is his solution. She's what makes him feel better about the unknown, and she's the one who gives him an entirely new outlook on life.
Chidi: Janet, can I have my note, please?
Janet: If you know that you wrote a note, then you know what it says.
Chidi: I do, but I'd still like to it again, please. I think it might be some of the best writing I've ever done.
Chidi spent his time on Earth contemplating the existence of soulmates, and while Michael didn't believe they truly existed, he helped Chidi realize that soulmates could be made.
Michael telling Chidi that it wasn't his research that kept his parents together was what Chidi needed to hear.
If soulmates do exist, they're not found. They're made. People meet, they get a good feeling, and then they get to work building a relationship. Like your parents. They didn't magically stay together because you proved they should.
Michael
Undoing that crucial moment was the only thing that would ever let Chidi be satisfied with being unsatisfied.
He might not ever get the answers to the universe, but that's only because there aren't any.
Now that Chidi's awake and has his memories restored, it's up to him to save everyone on Earth and in the afterlife.
But since Chidi has accepted that there is no right answer, will he still be able to build a point system like Team Cockroach needs him to?
If only he could have learned that lesson a couple minutes later.
Stray Thoughts:
- Janet's kiss in Chidi's cheek was adorable. It was great to be able to witness what could have been a final moment between friends.
- Chidi had a stomach ache at birth. Why are we not surprised?
- I can't be the only one who's thankful that Jason spilled his "cocktail." Dead or alive, no soul could survive drinking that.
- Learning about Chidi's life was interesting, but does anyone else feel as if everything is dragging? I took 22 minutes for the audience to witness one second pass. We want answers already!
- Child Chidi was precious. His presentation to his parents and his speech to Uzo may have been a bit extreme, but there's no denying how incredibly intelligent Chidi was at a young age.
- The late-night study-session kiss between Eleanor and Chidi was just as cute as we hoped it would be. Although we had seen a quick glimpse of it during The Good Place Season 3 Episode 13, it was even better with context.
It's your turn, TGP fans! What did you think of the episode?
Will Chidi be able to find the answer to the point system? Or will his new outlook on life prevent him from it?
Do you believe Eleanor is his answer? Or does his note mean something else?
Drop a comment down below and let us know your thoughts and predictions!
And don't forget that if you missed the episode you can watch The Good Place online right here at TV Fanatic!
The Good Place airs Thursdays at 9/8c on NBC.
