Editor’s Note: This article contains spoilers for Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building.”
Jumping onto the true-crime bandwagon, Hulu introduces its brand-new comical series “Only Murders in the Building.” The show follows three true-crime podcast enthusiasts who find themselves solving a murder that happened in their residence building — the Arconia.
The murder case centers around the suspicious death of Tim Kono (Julian Cihi), a young man who lived in the large and run-down apartment building in New York City. Despite the cops concluding his death as a suicide inflicted by a gunshot wound to the head, Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) suspect that Kono was murdered.
Taking it upon themselves to solve his mysterious death, they attempt to seek any trails of hidden clues based on the knowledge they have learned from their favorite murder podcast — “All is Not OK in Oklahoma.” Their obsession over the murder case prompts them to start their own murder podcast called “Only Murders in the Building,” where they share their findings and theories with their growing fanbase. As every episode unfolds, they find themselves entangled in a web of lies and come to realize that they should be questioning one another instead.
Charles is an ex-actor who is widely known for his role as the main character “Brazzos” in a ‘90s cop show with the same name. Oliver is an unemployed theatre director who is head over heels in debt. Mabel is a talented artist who seeks for meaning in life. Other than living at the Arconia and liking the same murder podcast, they have nothing else in common.
Throughout the series, the audience is gradually fed with the backstory of these three main characters but withholds just enough to leave room for mystery. Through an analytical cinematic lens, this contributes to the suspenseful ambience surrounding the entire series as readers are left in the dark to discover who the real murderer is, which keeps them at the edge of their seat. What makes the show lovable is its successful attempt of capturing suspense without the conventional gore and foreboding elements. Since the show is also a comedy, it does not necessarily put emphasis on a sense of urgency or danger, but rather on its goofy characters and their amateur solving skills.
At first glance, it is difficult to pinpoint the interplay that would take place between these polar opposite characters. Even though Charles and Oliver are close in age and worked in the entertainment industry, Charles’ soft-spoken demeanour contrasts strikingly with Oliver’s brazen personality. Meanwhile, Mabel is a young woman in her early 20s who appears to be closed off and private. So how did this unlikely trio manage to successfully bring delight to the screen?
Any die-hard comedy fan knows Martin and Short are icons in show business. Funny enough, Martin and Short are real-life best friends who have co-starred in numerous movies together, such as “Three Amigos (1986)” and “Father of the Bride (1991).” More recently, they starred in their own Netflix special, “Steve Martin and Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life” in 2018, which earned them four Grammy nominations. Their close bond is clearly visible and well-translated into their characters on-screen, which continues to entertain the masses and future generations to come.
While it was a surprise that they both agreed to star in “Only Murders in the Building” together, it was even more unexpected when they would be joined by Gomez, a former Disney Channel star and worldwide pop sensation. However, their chemistry proves to be brilliant and gratifying as they portray a unique millennial-boomer friendship. In Episode 6, Charles uses the term “shook,” in which Oliver appears perplexed until Charles tells him that Mabel taught him the teen slang. Later in the episode, Oliver struggles to refresh his browser until Charles tells him that he can’t due to being in airplane mode, further highlighting their generational gap with Mabel under a comical light.
Besides taking part in a morbid hobby, what unites these amusing characters together is their shared experiences in loneliness. Later in the series, we learn bits of Charles’ previous romantic relationship with a woman and her child, who have since moved out of his apartment many years ago; though, the reasoning behind their separation remains unknown. Oliver’s debt and ego has driven his business colleagues and loved ones away from him, including his own son. Mabel has remained as a lone-wolf ever since her friend group fell apart years ago, which Tim was a part of. This theme of isolation is evidently intertwined within the genre of true crime, whether it be the victim’s untimely and lonely death or a detective’s solitary journey into solving the murder. “Only Murders in the Building” takes up this theme and adds color and friendship into the mixture to beautifully illustrate how true crime can be fun and bring people together.
Whether you are looking for a show to laugh your frustrations out, sink your teeth in or maybe even to seek company in, Charles, Oliver and Mabel will surely not disappoint you in this brilliantly-written show.
Annabella Johan is an Entertainment Intern for the fall 2021 quarter. She can be reached at ajohan@uci.edu.