There is something alluring about crime series / movies, no matter how many narratives we’ve been exposed to already; although, admittedly, tinkering with new compelling elements is a prerequisite at this point, so as to stand out in a conglomeration of mystery stories. We are at liberty to question whether the hit Hulu series Only Murders in the Building (created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman) is nothing but a clever gimmick or happens to be an actual novelty – and it turns out it may be both at the same time.
There are numerous factors contributing to the show’s appeal, the most obvious ones being its mixture of mystery and comedy, and its diverting self-referential nature (which will be looked into shortly). The action takes place in New York, mainly in an extravagant apartment building called Arconia (supposedly based on the real-life Ansonia), where two of its residents are murdered throughout the first two seasons (the show having premiered last year, in 2021). One such spot would have never been the talk of the town if other three residents hadn’t sensed something dubious about the first murder and planned to inspect it in their own newly-formed true-crime podcast, having the same title as the show itself. Those three protagonists are Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin), Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) and Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez), whose daring decision, taken on the spur of the moment, was the result of their common interest in (or rather obsession with) true-crime podcasts, particularly one called All Is Not OK In Oklahoma.
Pondering over the details of the two murders would be useless and, most of all, unnecessary in one such review, for the viewers are to relish the nitty gritty on their own. What we can safely turn our attention to, instead, is how our main characters interact with one another and deal with the unravelling of their mysteries. It doesn’t take us too long to find out snippets of each person’s history; Charles is a former TV star (who played the hero cop in the 1990s series called Brazzos) and something of a one-hit wonder with a rather fruitless life and an asocial behaviour, still clinging on to lines and catchphrases from his show in virtually any conversation. Oliver is a former theatre director, struggling to stay afloat within every aspect of his life, apparently surviving only on dips of all kinds and occasionally trying to take a dip into someone’s life, like the extroverted figure he is. Mabel is an aspiring painter whose inscrutable expression and reserved attitude may lead you to question whether she is a killer, a victim or a key witness (and whether these instances are by turns or simultaneous is, indeed, an excellent question).
On a more serious note, it is significant to mention that these characters do not necessarily give the impression they could ever spend time together; the contrast is striking from their introductory monologues, as well, which sound as if they ought to reveal chief characteristics about them, but they still remain mostly hazy, leaving us itching for more right away. While Charles points out that New Yorkers have “a special [to be read as direct] way of communicating”, as they are “packed in tight and stacked on top of each other” (like those who live at the Arconia), Oliver sees the city inhabitants as “orphans, struggling to find [their] places, (…) always trying to find some new way to bounce back up again”. As for Mabel, besides admitting that New York can be a lot, she confesses (seemingly out of nowhere) that she has a recurring dream where she pictures herself killing a threatening man with her knitting needle. (And that’s all we learn about her at that point. As she walks down the streets of New York with her Beats headphones, maybe Mabel could give a listen to Selena Gomez’s song Kill Em With Kindne– ah, wait…) If we don’t receive a clearer portrait of our characters yet, at least we have some sort of a “cultural sketch” of New Yorkers; to survive there, you’ll need some tough skin (Charles) or an over-the-top persona (Oliver)… or be detached from your surroundings (Mabel). And those are the three characters that briefly end up in the same elevator in Arconia, after they share their monologues – and it’s a mini clash straightaway. We are wondering furthermore how they will become closer, given how differently they “manifest”. (Perhaps a musical format would have had them chatting earlier on, at more ease; just imagine our three future podcasters coming up with a tune like That’s The Life from the 1996 movie James and the Giant Peach, each stating the lifestyle they would expect out of New York. It may be preposterous – but fun – to envisage Charles as the Grasshopper, Oliver as the Centipede and Mabel as the Spider – roughly. Surely it would all work somehow under Oliver’s guidance.)
But once again, on an even more serious note, it’s the fascination with true-crime podcasts that brings the trio together (as indicated earlier in the post), followed by the first death in Arconia, ruled out merely as a suicide. What Charles, Oliver and Mabel are chasing all of a sudden is the truth, being certain that the respective person’s death was at the hands of someone else. If facts are what they’re after initially, the three characters do diverge every now and then and (unconsciously) fabricate dramatic twists and turns, straying from the right path. They eventually acknowledge that both murders have been “designed” by people who wanted not just an act of killing, but a story – and viewers will sense that the creators of the Only Murders in the Building podcast are keen on doing the exact same thing: create a story. From a certain stance, this is not an aspect to be condemned, for the three protagonists do represent distinct types of storytellers. This is also where the show gets full-on self-referential. If we think we are here just to see how the puzzling cases are solved, we may have to reconsider everything, since we have precious access to the behind-the-scenes moments, the ways in which a story can take shape out of a real event. The process is undeniably fun, despite the fact that, at the core of it, lives are at stake. As the trio searches for clues and records their impressions on their phones, Oliver harks back to his years of directing and asks his partners to rephrase their lines or deliver them once more, with extra gusto. Charles gladly dusts off his acting skills, only to be “reproached” that he has not yet reached a professional level for voiceover acting (for this is a situation where a story needs to be “sold” precisely through an engaging and convincing voice). Mabel, on the other hand, carries on being slightly more private, which ties into her secluded (and preferred) medium of expression: painting. She’d rather decorate her entire apartment (and dedicate an entire wall to painting some Arconia residents) than connect to two older men (or other random people, for that matter) and let them glimpse into her troubled past. In time, it is disclosed that she either knows a lot of background information about the murdered person in Season 1 or is the only witness to the crime in Season 2 (and she is also suspected to be the brand new killer). Regardless of her younger age, Mabel does have the most weight to drag around and she’ll take some time to properly understand that driving people out is not the best solution. And this is a lesson equally applicable to Charles and Oliver.
What Only Murders in the Building does is bring forward a small “convention” of three avid (day)dreamers and artists, and an even larger group of loners who choose to appear stern and unaffected, but would find it more useful to open up to fellow neighbours. The show’s victims are no longer just the dead people, but pretty much every single character. The loneliness that prevails across the series is the natural outcome of an unsatisfactory life (or a couple of choices and mistakes that have led to an unfulfilling existence). No wonder why Charles, Oliver and Mabel devise an elaborate story through their podcast and add in more “ingredients” than required. This is the comedic piece of the show, wherein accusing the not-so-friendly-neighbour Sting of a crime, for example, is not scandalous, but more of a typical, amusing publicity device. The small (but growing) fanbase of the trio’s podcast gets to have its own say at times (for have I mentioned that the show is indeed meta?!), praising the creators’ riveting story construction, but also critiquing their periodic slacks and cheap accusations, which hinder the storytellers from gaining closure. It may look like postponement, a temporary inability to deal with reality as it is, but this is where the audience steps in and provides some feedback on the go, as episodes are released gradually – and the fans even pick up on valuable pieces of evidence that Charles, Oliver and Mabel might have completely missed or neglected for a while. Talk about constructive criticism!
I started off this review saying that the show is a combination of familiar and new elements. The suspense will be recognizable, it being imperative in mystery stories. The overall build-up, distractions and call-backs will ensure the freshness that we all crave. And what can lure people of all ages in is the generational gaps that are bridged beautifully. Plenty have commended the way in which Charles, Oliver and Mabel go beyond their age difference and bond very well (although it’s still entertaining to watch how different their references and texting styles are or how flabbergasted all three of them can be with teenagers’ speedy vocabulary or fixation with TikTok and self-diagnosing). What deserves the same amount of appreciation is how the series taps into a subtle, continuous exploration of father – child relationships, falling under the same generational issue. Those family ties are more prominent in the second season, where many characters, not just the protagonists, evaluate their responsibilities as fathers or sons (predominantly, the only exception being Mabel as the daughter of a father she wishes she knew and understood better). Apart from taking on something as serious as crime solving, Mabel, Charles and Oliver unveil their own backstories and fathom what they lack and what prompts them to act the way they do. In the previous paragraph, I attributed the title of “daydreamer” to them – and rightfully so. The podcast may have begun as an insane endeavour, but it has actually helped the “wacky detectives” to fill in holes from their personal lives. In a way, they do have to first amplify the plot devices they are already given and see themselves as part of an outrageous tale, with vital roles to play, before divulging the truth. They do have to visualize themselves in grander positions in order to compensate for their current deficiencies. They go to such an extent that the “orphans” whom Oliver refers to are also given a chance to prove their worth; it’s also Oliver who has this exhilarating trance at one point, in which he pictures himself uncovering one of the killers on a theatre stage, through a casting call which involves the Arconia residents. Solitary orphans brought together.
While Only Murders in the Building treads on thin ice more or less, by indirectly posing a probable consequential question (“how entitled are you to exploit someone else’s tragedy and turn it into your product?”), it still has other more noticeable targets. The main one would be bringing a new delicious take on mystery stories, intelligently fused with comedic stunts, grunts, affronts and clue hunts. The story’s structure in both seasons is also ingenious (even though the second season does have an infamous slower pace, right after Oliver happily asserts that he and his partners are sharper and quicker on their toes – “You can tell it’s our second season!”). Additionally, contrary to what a secondary character proclaims – “the truth is that people don’t wanna spend their commutes hearing about run-of-the-mill tragedies” – the audience will actually look forward to as many insights into the characters’ lives. Those run-of-the-mill stories will have Charles, Oliver and Mabel runnin’ up that road, runnin’ up the hill, runnin’ up that buil– ah, hold up, that is another show with *stranger things* occurring. But either way, our new favourite crime podcasters will keep on running up and down in the Arconia building – or step beyond its doors and secret passageways. So you’d better catch up with them till next year, when Season 3 is bound to be released. (*stomps one foot and utters in an Oliver-like manner: “God, are they good!”*)
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