Line #19 Recap/TheGoodPlaceS1E07TheEternalShriek


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tgp_e7.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350: "Again, I am not human. I can't die. I am simply an anthropomorphized vessel of knowledge built to make your life easier."]]
3
4	->''"Well, Janet's been murdered. That's a nice capper to this wonderful day. I don't really know what happens now because Janet has never been murdered before... only today, here on my watch, while I was distracted with a party that Tahani was throwing for me, which I didn't want."''
5	-->-- '''Michael'''
6
7	Michael announces that he will be "retiring", which will consist of eternal torture. Rather than tell the truth, Eleanor decides to deactivate Janet because only she can initiate Michael's retirement. She and Chidi argue over activating Janet's killswitch and Chidi ends up pushing the button while trying to stop Jason from doing so. Chidi agrees to keep their secret, even though it will make him miserable. Meanwhile, Tahani plans a somber retirement party for Michael; Michael then blames Tahani for distracting him from Janet but soon apologizes. Janet is rebooted with no memories and operates at diminished capacity. Michael announces he will remain in the neighborhood to investigate Janet's murder, which he says means there is a problem beyond himself. Eleanor tells Chidi she loves him, then admits to everyone that she is the problem because she was brought to the Good Place by mistake.
8
9	In flashbacks, Chidi fibs that he likes a coworker's unattractive boots; he obsessed over the lie for three years and finally confessed after the coworker survives a difficult surgery.
10	----
11	!!Tropes:
12
13	* AccidentalMurder: Chidi killing Janet.
14	* BigRedButton: Janet's killswitch is a big red button. [[ManChild Jason]] is [[WhatDoesThisButtonDo tempted to press it]].
15	* BrutalHonesty: When Michael announces he's leaving the Good Place, Janet bluntly says it will not affect her in any way. Which is true, since she's an anthropomorphized construct with no real emotions.
16	* CharacterDevelopment: Eleanor's comes to a head here, when she ultimately steps up to the plate and confesses that she doesn't belong in the Good Place.
17	* {{Cliffhanger}}: The episode ends with Eleanor confessing to her being a fraud.
18	* CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon: Michael's description of the convoluted torments he expects to face is a darkly comic moment.
19	* DivingSave: Subverted. Chidi pushes Jason out of the way to avoid the latter pushing the button and killing Janet, but pushes the button in the process.
20	* DramaticallyMissingThePoint: Michael concludes that ''he'' is the cause for the problems in the neighborhood, and decides to retire himself for it.
21	* EveryoneHasStandards:
22	** Eleanor is horrified by Michael's description of the Eternal Shriek.
23	** Despite knowing that the photo of Janet's "children" is just part of her automatic failsafe to avoid being rebooted, Eleanor still can't bring herself to press the button while Janet is holding said photo and begging Eleanor not to shut her down.
24	* HighFiveLeftHanging: Chidi disapproves of Eleanor's plan to shut off Janet and lets her high-five hanging.
25	* IHaveAFamily: Janet tries to dissuade Eleanor from pressing the killswitch by producing a photograph of her children and asking who will take care of them if she's gone. It's just another part of the failsafe, the photo is actually of random children at the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards, but Eleanor is still unsettled enough to back away from the button.
26	* LyingToProtectYourFeelings: When a coworker asks Chidi if he likes his boots, Chidi tells a white lie and says they're great as to not hurt his coworker's feelings. He proceeds to obsess over it for years afterwards.
27	* MidSeasonTwist: The episode ends with Eleanor confessing that she doesn't belong in the Good Place.
28	* MyGodYouAreSerious: When Chidi says he's going to confess, Eleanor laughs in his face then says a FlatWhat.
29	* ObliviousGuiltSlinging: Whenever Chidi tries to come clean to his friend about his white lie regarding the red boots, the friend will say or do things which make it impossible for Chidi to go through with his plan.
30	* ThePasswordIsAlwaysSwordfish: Played for laughs. In order to activate the new Janet, Michael has to provide a four-digit pin. It turns out to be "0000", his birthday which coincides with the beginning of time.
31	-->'''Michael''': [[LampshadeHanging I've got to change that, it's too obvious.]]
32	* RunningGag: People telling Chidi, "This is why everyone hates moral philosophy professors" when confronted with his boot obsession.
33	* SarcasmBlind: Eleanor tells Chidi they should go help Tahani with Michael's goodbye party.
34	-->'''Chidi''': Sure. That will more than make up for all the pain and misery and lying.\
35	'''Eleanor''': Yes! Now you're getting it.
36	* SkewedPriorities: Chidi's reaction after telling a minor white lie to his colleague about the colleague's boots is a dramatic "MyGodWhatHaveIDone".
37	* TitleDrop: Michael describes the Eternal Shriek.
38	* WellIntentionedExtremist: Eleanor proclaims that killing Janet is justified by the outcome.
39	* WhamEpisode: Eleanor confesses that she doesn't belong in the Good Place, which throws the whole neighborhood for a loop.
40	* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: Eleanor's justification for shutting Janet down (and effectively temporarily killing her) because Janet isn't human and doesn't operate on any moral principles.
41	* WillNotTellALie: Chidi ''can'' tell a lie, but he'll obsess over it for a long time.

Context Recap / TheGoodPlaceS1E07TheEternalShriek