God Friended Me Season 1 Episode 9 Review: King's Gambit
Lizzy Buczak
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It's never too late to mend the past.
On God Friended Me Season 1 Episode 9 we see it in action not only with Arthur and Miles but also with the friend suggestion of the week, Graham and Aleksander.
By now we know that there are absolutely no coincidences when it comes to the God account.
Cara wanted to avoid Miles but found herself working with him on one of the most emotionally raw cases.
And they even brought back New York's finest private investigator, Ray, from God Friended Me Season 1 Episode 3 to help them solve the case.
Miles, Rakesh, and Cara wouldn't have been able to tackle tracking down Graham's new name all by themselves without Ray's P.I connects!
However, Miles and Cara didn't necessarily need to rely on Arthur to figure out Graham's backstory -- they could have easily Googled it.
But it was nice to see Cara officially meet Papa Finer.
It's a major step in their relationship!
Plus, if Arthur didn't geek out about the chess player in the first place, seeing him watch their rematch, in the end, wouldn't have been as effective.
Graham: The truth doesn't change what happened.
Miles: But it could change what will happen.
We've never seen the God account send Miles a suggestion by liking a specific page, but I guess if a person in need of Miles' help and guidance doesn't have a Facebook account, the God account will find a way.
On any other show, a ten-year disappearance would surely result in some tragic death, but that's the beauty of God Friended Me -- it only brings light, love and a good life lesson.
When they found Graham, he was very much alive, although, he wasn't in the best of spirits.
You'd never imagine one loss in a chess game would affect someone so much but for Graham, it was a huge blow to his confidence.
After thinking he was undefeated for most of his life, losing to Aleksander took away from his love of the game.
But after finding out Aleksander had pancreatic cancer, he couldn't just sit around and feel sorry for himself anymore.
I didn't expect Aleksander to confess that he'd cheated to beat his best friend, but it made sense why he finding Graham before he died was such an urgent matter.
What about you? God give you any leads?
Ray
Finding out the truth proved that Graham was truly undefeated, but it didn't give him back all the time he lost.
But Aleksander needed more than just forgiveness; he wanted Graham to be his daughter's chess teacher after he passed.
Since Annabelle wasn't forced onto Graham -- he found her playing chess and approached her all by himself -- it seemed more like fate than anything else.
When it was revealed that she was Aleksander's daughter, the moment was that much more powerful, primarily when he referred to her as a God-given talent, the same phrase used to describe Graham in his heyday.
How could Graham refuse to bestow his knowledge onto another player as his grandfather did to him?
It's almost as if this was Graham's revised legacy.
Sometimes, you just need a little push in the right direction and to believe that your legacy can be altered and changed.
Speaking of pushes in the right direction, Ray played a significant role in illuminating truths for everyone from Cara to Arthur.
Cara didn't seem excited about her relationship with Eli from the moment she told her sharp-eyed work bestie things were going "good."
I couldn't have said it better than Ray, "good" ain't great.
Cara has spent more time shrugging off all the people who commented on her chemistry with Miles than she did actually accept it.
She spent way too much time trying to avoid Miles and not enough time excited about her new relationship.
That should tell you everything you need to know about her "future" with Eli.
Cara: I'm actually back together with my ex, Eli. Things with him are good.
Ray: Well, kid, I don't know much, but I do know this: "good" ain't great. "Great's" what you're shooting for. You know, when it comes to affairs of the heart, "great" is what knocks you on on your ass and lets you know that you can stop looking. Miles aside, if you're happy with this Eli gine, fine. But if you're just buying time waiting for "great" to come along, you should do you both a favor and keep looking.
Her reason that now isn't the right time to get together with Miles is just a cheap excuse that keeps her from confronting her true feelings.
When is the right time if not when they are connected by this God account that allows them to work together and help each other out on a daily basis?
As for Arthur, it wouldn't have been as effective if Miles tried to convince him that the work he was doing because of the God account was important and life-altering.
Ali tried to make that point to Arthur, and he again brushed it off as story device Miles was using for his podcast.
When a stranger told him that Miles was doing the equivalent of God's work, something Arthur can surely relate to he finally understood its gravity.
The God account isn't a joke.
Miles is more like his father than either of them are willing to admit.
Nia: What if you stop getting friend suggestions?
Mikes: Your point?
Nia: I know how much you like helping people. Getting the truth might end your journey. Maybe you can stand a little agnosticism when it comes to the God account?
We're closing in on Falken, whom Rakesh believes is behind the God account, with each passing episode.
But as we've asked all season -- do we even want to know?
It seems as if finding out is inevitable at this point. There's no way Rakesh is going to drop something that he's been pursuing since day one.
He knows Falken's name now: Henry Chase.
Is it a coincidence that they've been chasing him and his friend suggestions down this whole season?
If Falken really is behind the God account, then he wanted Rakesh and Miles to figure it out because he knew Graham would eventually spill his real identity.
Does Henry want to be found?
Nia telling Miles that just because he'll find his answers about the God account's identity one day doesn't mean he should give up helping people seemed a lot like foreshadowing.
Miles is in this for the long haul, even if the God account mystery wraps itself up. He enjoys helping people find their way.
Despite everyone shipping Miles and Cara -- including the characters on the show -- Nia is an incredible addition to Miles' life.
As he put it, "She's pretty amazing."
Ray's advice about not settling for just good will eventually resonate with Cara, and when she sees Miles and Nia together as an actual couple, she won't be able to suppress her jealous.
When she tells Miles her true feelings, it's going to makes his eventual choice between the two that much more difficult.
For now, he believes the choice is simple because he thinks Cara is happy with Eli and nothing is standing in his way.
The writers know what they are doing.
Nia is kindhearted; she's gone through struggles and has overcome them, and she naturally enjoys helping people and giving back.
She's also opposite of Miles which benefits him.
As she said during her interview on the Millenial Prophet, she's an agnostic, a person who claims neither faith or disbelief in God.
She's the happy medium which challenges Miles' way of thinking and ultimately, makes him see other viewpoints.
Going back to Ray's point -- does Miles want good or great?
Which woman is "great?"
God Friended Me has done it again by delivering another heartwarming episode.
If you're ever feeling a little down, you have to listen to one of Miles' Finer speech and watch God Friended Me online!
Let us know what you thought of the episode in the comments section below!
Lizzy Buczak was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in June 2021..
