Only Murders in the Building season 2 had plenty of surprises for audiences. What will the trio (and Paul Rudd!) get into in season 3?
Spoiler Warning: Only Murders In the Building Season One & Two
On Tuesday, season two of Only Murders In the Building concluded with a satisfying, twisting, and surprising finale. It had the elements of a bottle episode during its “killer reveal party” that was a delightful double entendre. It had bits of unexpected twists, a killer reveal, and lots of great acting -- from within the show itself and the killer reveal party. But, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let's break down season two.
It’s been two months since the season started on June 28, 2022, and the show has been hitting heavy with some significant storylines along the way. Each character was given a B-story, and each worked extremely well to provide depth and nuance to each character. Our acting trio seemed to relish the story and playground they created. Steve Martin’s Charles Haden-Savage was able to return to his acting career and put the glasses and fedora of Brazzos back on. Charles could also close the chapter with Jan (Amy Ryan), the woman and killer from season one, that had captured his heart and continued to do so for half of this season.
Martin Short’s Oliver Putnam was able to rekindle his love of theater by helping his son with the direction of a children’s school play. Naturally, Oliver took it to extremes at times, but his methods worked, his knowledge proved valuable, and it helped solidify his relationship with his son. Speaking of which, the C-story, or maybe a congruent B-story to Oliver’s B-story, about what makes someone a father to another, was treated with such care and patience that the final moments of resolution felt earned and essential.
Selena Gomez’s Mabel Mora explored who she was, who she wanted to be, and allowing herself to be more vulnerable and open with people. This was especially relevant with the new character, Alice, introduced as a love interest and friend outside of the story-bound Arconia and ultimately an untrustworthy person we could consider a suspect.
Mostly, they used the tertiary characters well this season, especially Howard (Michael Cyril Creighton). He was given a chance to become more integral to the core character set and room to grow. And, of course, the mystery of who killed Bunny (Jayne Houdyshell) stretched much farther than the beginning of the season suggested. It was a long story with a few critical underlying elements that tied together our main trio, Tina Fey’s terrific true-crime-podcasting Cinda Canning, and the mystery of Rose Cooper (played with glamor and skill by the wondrous Shirley MacLaine).
Related: Steve Martin Says He's Done Acting After Only Murders in the Building Finishes
It was the twists that kept the season fresh and unexpected right up until the very finale.
Only Murders In the Building season one left us with the bloody cliffhanger of Mabel covered in Bunny’s blood. Confusion abounded, and uncertainty surrounded our trio. While the evidence was missing to tie the trio to the crime, their loose alibis and corroborative testimonies kept them in the spotlight as suspects for the police and Cinda during the entire season. We thought we kept getting closer to the truth, and while it would have worked better for the show to spend more time on the trauma that Mable had suffered. The blackout stabbing on the subway seemed simply brushed away for the sake of continuing the story.
However, that subway interaction was pivotal because it extended the mystery of “glitter guy,” which was a thrilling addition to the season's overarching plot. While season one was hyper-focused on Tim Kono’s (Julian Cihi) death, season two introduced a multi-layered mystery that interlaced many characters. It was easy to forget some of the earlier twists in the season.
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Like many stories of this style, the second season always ups the game, increasing the complexity and detail of the story. This was certainly the case with Only Murders In the Building, and while it may have felt like it was juggling too many balls sometimes, it eventually stuck the landing, catching everything in the air for a big finish.
If the show’s “killer reveal party” didn’t surprise you with its many red herrings, including the dramatic show that Alice put on, then the twist to jump forward a year and straight into Oliver’s return to Broadway surely did.
Paul Rudd’s cameo was perfect, playing out of character for himself and embodying more of an arrogant and conceited lead for the show. Enough hints of animosity, angst, and conflict between him and Charles (who, in another pleasant surprise, seems to be the second leading part in the show) laid the groundwork for what comes next. But, even more surprising was his fate as the curtain raised. Mabel’s reaction, the audience’s confusion, and Charles’s shock left such an anticipatory feeling for the next season that it felt like a perfect ending.
The Arconia has been such a great playground for our trio and cast of extras for the past two seasons, and the storylines that brought the trio into the broader area of New York were such a welcome treat. Knowing that the show has a year’s worth of story that it can play with to fit into season three (it’s happening, and Paul Rudd will be back!) is excellent news for fans of the show. We can only speculate about the animosity between Paul Rudd’s Ben Glenroy, but the audience knows it’s about “her” -- but who is it? Mabel? Lucy? Joy (Charles’s make-up artist on Brazzos)? Charles seemed like a protective father, but if there’s one thing we’ve learned from this show, it’s that the obvious assumption is far from the right one.
Creators Steve Martin and John Hoffman will have their work cut out to stay in the lanes of success and standards they’ve established, but fans will eagerly await the show to return in season three.
Michael Robert has a background in journalism, history, and film. He writes about movies, tv, music, and comics when he isn't busy being a dad.