Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Takes Us Out of The Arconia and Into the Theatre: Review
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The post Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Takes Us Out of The Arconia and Into the Theatre: Review appeared first on Consequence.
The Pitch: While Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina filled the murder-comedy gap in our hearts with Peacock’s Based on a True Story this summer, Hulu’s OG trio of podcasters are officially back on the scene. Season 3 of Only Murders In the Building, which returns on August 8th, picks back up immediately after the cliffhanger of the Season 2 finale.
As you might remember, it’s opening night for a new play directed by Oliver (Martin Short), and the gang is glittering at the Broadway theater: Charles (Steve Martin) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) are in attendance, and everyone is excited to see film and TV star Ben Glenroy (Paul Rudd, always a treat) take the stage for some good, old-fashioned stunt casting. Naturally, things go wrong pretty quickly, as they’re wont to do in this show — as was shown in the trailer, Glenroy appears to drop dead onstage.
Per usual, to quote another iconic Selena Gomez program, everything is not what it seems.
Curtain Up, Man Down: The best part of this third outing with Bloody Mabel and her two favorite guys is the fact that despite the name of the show, we are no longer restricted to The Arconia. Only Murders has consistently done a solid job of making that set piece feel as expansive as an entire New York City block, but the decision to place some of the action in the theater feels fresh.
Not only is the location change fun, it also pushes the narrative fully into a world previously only alluded to through Oliver’s career. The in-jokes and references to the Broadway community have never been stronger, and a plethora of guest stars, from stage favorite Ashley Park to the legendary Matthew Broderick and iconic Mel Brooks, help round out this setting tremendously.
Michael Cyril Creighton is back as Howard, this time bravely taking on the role of Oliver’s assistant, while newcomers include Jesse Williams as a documentarian named Tobert (not a typo!) who had been following Ben Glenroy’s Broadway journey. Then, there’s Meryl Streep in one of the most inspired casting decisions of all time: Loretta is a working New York City actress, but she never quite made it. The idea that there’s a universe out there where such a person could be Meryl Streep — Meryl! — is unfathomable, making it all the more fun to see her as the jumpy, quirky character.
Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
The Show Goes On: While Season 3 doesn’t feel anywhere close to as lifeless as any of this show’s murder victims, there’s a definite deflation happening here. This outing went the route of the second season of fellow Hulu original The Bear by pushing each of our characters into their own narratives, but it doesn’t land quite as well: The most joyful moments in the show are those that play off the central dynamic between Charles, Oliver, and Mabel, and separating all of them for long stretches of Season 3 may have been in an effort to freshen things up, like the location change, but their banter is sorely missed.
We have to give props to Selena Gomez, though, whose character Mabel manages to find someone new and gorgeous to kiss and scheme with each season — where Season 2’s sparks flew with Cara Delevigne, Season 3 sees Jesse Williams slide effortlessly into the role of confused but charmed suitor. When Mabel’s friend and former neighbor Theo returns to check in on the action, he comments to Mabel that she hadn’t warned him about how gorgeous his eyes are. (Real!)
Only Murders In the Building (Hulu)
Quick and Quiet and Clean: Granted, of the eight episodes shared with critics (the full season will be 10), the mystery is absolutely not solved — the momentum might pick up in the home stretch; we’ll have to wait and find out together.
Everyone is still doing great work here throughout, but these individual storylines just aren’t as thrilling as the bumbling and bickering we get from Short, Martin, and Gomez together. Oliver branches off with Loretta for a fun, flirty storyline; Charles is busy with his makeup artist turned girlfriend, Joy (an enthusiastic and game Andrea Martin). Even Mabel seems to miss having all three folks together as she investigates with Tobert.
However, Streep and Rudd are absolutely the breath of fresh air Season 3 very much needed — who wouldn’t love to see Paul Rudd as a slightly ill-mannered and fairly self-centered actor who burst to fame through an action-superhero franchise? Without getting into details, it’s a shame he’s not around just a bit more often.
The Verdict: It’s not that Season 3 of Only Murders is anything close to bad — it’s just that they’ve shown us in previous seasons how great this concept, and the chemistry within, can be. By separating the cast as much as the show does, a touch of that magic is missing.
Even so, we have a murder to solve, people, and we do have a bright new crime scene to explore. The show goes on, and this show is still worth tuning in for.
Where to Watch: The Season 3 premiere arrives on Hulu on August 8th. Watch the trailer below.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Takes Us Out of The Arconia and Into the Theatre: Review
Mary Siroky
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