Is there a more enjoyable show on TV right now than Only Murders In The Building? The Steve Martin and Martin Short-led crime caper was a surprise hit when it debuted in 2021, with Selena Gomez providing the perfect foil to the iconic comedy duo as they investigate a grisly murder in a swanky New York apartment block for the purposes of their popular podcast. Where fellow prestige US drama Succession was a peek at privileged ghouls, and The Bear a stressful look inside Hell’s kitchen, Only Murders… offered something different: a twisty plot, sharp comedic timing and wry, but not always mean, analysis of obsessive true-crime fan culture. Oh, and Short’s quite dazzling scarf collection.
The show’s second season, out last year, was equally pleasing, using big-name cameos (Amy Schumer) and another knotty narrative to resolve any lingering questions. Gomez’ Mabel Mora, the crew’s “resident young person”, had an on-off affair with art dealer Alice (Cara Develigne), while the backstories of actor Charles-Haden Savage (Martin) and theatre director Oliver Putnam (Short) were fleshed out. They used the next batch of episodes to tie up several plot arcs, but never struggled for new material: the trio’s chemistry strengthening over time, Martin and Short ceding space for Gomez’ deadpan deliveries amid their hysterical, self-involved dramatics.
Season three, which premieres on August 8, reaches new heights. It addresses the delightful cliffhanger that ended the last series’ final episode: director Oliver is back on Broadway with new production Death Rattle, his first following exile from the industry but – shock! – its leading man, played by Paul Rudd, is struck down on opening night, apparently poisoned. This sets up a pleasing reset, placing the action in the flamboyant, back-stabbing reality of theatreland. Breaking a leg would be the best-case scenario, really.
The show’s writers find an ingenious way to allow their locale, The Arconia – the setting for all of these unfortunate ends – to be a part of the action and make the whole ordeal “eligible” for Charles, Oliver and Mabel’s podcast. That narrative device merely accentuates the thrill of the sleuthing, hilarious flashbacks of Death Rattle’s production and sets each main player up as a suspect while digging into their potential motive. Meryl Streep is cast as a theatre newbie whose backstory and methods cause suspicion, and the loutish role of Ben Glenroy allows Rudd a rare opportunity to act the douche. Both characters are predictably not to be taken at face value, however.
Not everything has changed, mind. Charles remains the calamitous stooge and Oliver’s name-dropping only gets more obscure and egregious (he claims the last laugh against writers Norman Mailer and Betty Friedan this time). There’s ample meat on the bones of this mystery for our part-time gumshoes to hypothesise about – and enough for fans to form theories of their own too. In lesser hands, Only Murders… could have become just another statistic in the cosy crime boom; instead, we’re treated to a must-watch mystery romp.
‘Only Murders In The Building’ season three releases its first two episodes on August 8 on Disney+. Following episodes will be released weekly