Review | Third season of ‘Only Murders in the Building’ leaves this Arconiac disappointed

While the core trio of amateur crime podcasters remains a bright spot, the third season of “Only Murders in the Building” pairs a disjointed supporting cast with a lackluster murder mystery to create a forgettable season. Photo collage by SIMRAH AHMAD, Staff Photographer

How many murders does it take to shut down a luxurious Upper West Side apartment building? While we’ve yet to reach that answer, the three seasons of Hulu’s hit show “Only Murders in the Building” has taught us that it’s more than five (plus one cat). Seriously, why do people still live here?

At this point, it feels as if the tenants of the immaculately-designed Arconia luxury apartments are simply used to the yellow caution tape and the high jinks that ensue from the beloved trio of amateur true crime podcasters. Much like the Arconia residents, the direction of the show has gotten unusually comfortable after a couple of murders. With fewer laughs and more predictability, season three fails to capture the emotional rollercoaster of an effective murder mystery that made the first two seasons of “Only Murders in the Building” so enthralling. 

The show is centered around three Arconia residents — aimless millennial artist Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez), semi-retired actor Charles Haden Savage (Steve Martin) and disgraced Broadway director Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) — who bond over their shared love of true crime podcasts. After the initial murder in the first season, the police rule the death a suicide, but the three aren’t so convinced. They launch their own true crime podcast called Only Murders in the Building, which garners a small crowd of devoted fans, self-proclaimed as Arconiacs. 

The end of season two leaves us on the opening night of Oliver’s return to theater with his show called “Death Rattle.” The trio has cracked their second case, and things are looking up until Oliver’s leading man Ben Glenroy (Paul Rudd) collapses on stage. But since this show isn’t called “Only Murders on the Stage,” Ben is, of course, miraculously revived until he’s killed again in the Arconia to kick off season three. Something about this building just attracts death. Maybe it’s evil spirits. Maybe it’s a Hollywood writers' room catering to their fans. A bit contrived, don’t you think?

The rest of the third season follows Oliver reworking his play into a musical, meaning we retain the cast of performers who are all considered suspects in Ben’s death. Mabel develops a relationship with unfortunately-named documentarian Tobert (Jesse Willams) as they team up to find Ben’s killer. Meanwhile, Charles wrestles with a lost love and securing his part in the musical after being threatened with a replacement — none other than Matthew Broderick. 

Each season delivers a colorful cast of new characters, and while season three might be the most star-studded, it doesn’t necessarily result in the most successful bunch. 

The biggest detriment to my viewing experience was Rudd delivering an eye-roll-worthy performance as a douchebag actor. Considering Rudd’s real-life reputation as a nice guy, I was intrigued by the casting choice, but his attempt at a megalomaniac celebrity meant checking my phone before the next plot point came along. He’s nowhere near convincing, and he hardly garners any laughs either. 

The rest of the “Death Rattle” cast is full of one-note characters who feel more like caricatures. Perhaps the structure of a half-hour, 10-episode show doesn’t leave time to flesh everyone out, but many of them were only there to pay off a few jokes before disappearing into irrelevance once cleared of suspicion. However, that doesn’t mean there weren’t a few bright spots. 

To nobody’s surprise, Meryl Streep delivers the strongest performance of them all as Loretta Durkin, an undiscovered talent who becomes Oliver’s muse. Aside from the earnest emotions she’s able to convey, Streep gifts the audience with a resounding musical performance of an original song called “Look for the Light.” Jesse Williams is also a standout with his endearing humor, and Michael Cyril Creighton, who plays series regular Howard Morris, is given much more time to shine as the Arconia-resident-turned-stage-assistant. 

Oliver’s musical, “Death Rattle,” proved to be an enticing element of the new season as well. The fictional piece is set in Nova Scotia as a detective recalls a case where a woman was choked with a baby rattle and thrown off a lighthouse. The only people in the room during the crime were a set of infant triplets. It’s only a matter of time before this actually gets made. 

There are many entertaining moments of simply watching this absurd musical come together. It also allows for a multitude of great songs from Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, Sara Bareilles and Marc Shaiman — one of which is the “Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?” song performed by Martin that has been stuck in my head since hearing it. And since I’m not a thespian, it also taught me what a patter song is. 

There are pros and cons to the details, but this show is, first and foremost, a murder mystery at its core, and this season did not deliver in that regard. From the beginning, it’s hard to get fully invested in the Ben Glenroy investigation because he’s established as such an abominable antagonist. To this point, all three seasons have followed the same pattern as to how many perpetrators are involved in each killing, making the ending a bit predictable.

Even if the ending is seen from a mile away, it's more about the journey. But the motions of this murder mystery have also started to feel formulaic. It’s become obvious that the characters who are suspects in episodes one through seven aren’t the killer, and it feels like the writers make little attempt to convince you otherwise. The mystery takes a back seat to the character drama, and once that’s all resolved, the show’s finale hands you an incredibly piss-poor attempt at a dramatic climax on a brass platter. It plays like a thriller without any of the thrills. 

There are still great moments between the Mabel-Charles-Oliver trio as they poke fun at one another and piece together clues. They’re such an unusual trio, but there’s no denying that it works, and the writers have developed a mastery for their voices. I missed the Arconia, I missed the humor and I missed the heavy focus on their podcast. But their warm and familial dynamic will keep many viewers, including myself, watching for future seasons despite the rather glaring flaws. 

Speaking of future seasons, the show was renewed for a fourth on Oct. 3 after an exciting cliffhanger to cap off season three. The death of a recurring fan favorite will hopefully lead to a return to form and finally convince some of the residents that an impeccable interior design is no reason to stay put in that murder building.