Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 Review: Another Masterpiece Season of Hulu
Cast: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Michael Cyril Creighton, Meryl Streep, Paul Rudd
Creators: Steve Martin, John Hoffman
Streaming Platform: Hulu and Disney+
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4.5/5 (four and a half stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 just concluded on Hulu. The final episode of the show starring Selena Gomez, Martin Short and Steve Martin was streamed on the platform on October 3, 2023. If you’re already abstinent from their true crime podcast, don’t worry, because in the meantime Only Murders in the Building has already been renewed for a fourth season. Only Murders in the Building is a television series that follows Mabel, Oliver, and Charles. Three residents of the luxury Arconia condominium located in New York who are passionate about true crime podcasts, end up moving from theory to practice due to a series of circumstances. What is initially just a pastime for the trio of friends, due to some crimes that occurred in the building where they live, turns into a real commitment, aimed at unmasking the culprits behind each crime.
After a first season that was won over thanks to fun and light-hearted, but never superficial, writing and a second season that re-proposes the winning narrative structure without ever getting boring, scoring a hat-trick seemed difficult. Difficult, but not impossible. Only Murders in the Building manages, once again, to amaze and leave you breathless. A now well-established characteristic of the series which, not surprisingly, enjoyed a weekly release on Hulu from the end of August until the beginning of October. Now in its third season, Only Murders in the Building proposes the same narrative structure that made it famous, but with the addition of elements that manage – once again – to make viewing enjoyable without ever boring and a perfect cast.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 Review: The Story Plot
The second season ended with a cliffhanger that left fans of the series curious until the release of this third wave of episodes, namely the murder of Ben Glenroy during his Broadway debut. A murder that is different from previous ones due to the location: why, despite the title, was the victim killed outside Arconia? The solution is as simple as it is ingenious and is the perfect summa of this third season which adds a further element: theatricality. We leave Arconia to move to a Broadway theater, Only Murders in the Building manages to renew itself without, in fact, changing. There is everything: a director who wants to demonstrate to the public and critics that he is great, the legend of a ghost that haunts the theatre, a strict producer except with her beloved son, a protagonist hated by everyone with a questionable career behind him, arguments and competitiveness, hidden trapdoors and propitiatory rituals.
But, above all, Only Murders in the Building manages to break out of its mold and propose a new theme. Alongside friendship, dreams, the need for fulfillment, and following one’s path, this last season talks about family and the relationship between mother and son. The second season of the TV series Only Murders in the Building focused on the murder of Bunny Folger, the cynical administrator of Arconia who in the end turned out to be a nostalgic sentimentalist. The more human side of her, initially known only by a few close friends, was not enough to prevent her from coming to a bad end but was useful to Mabel, Oliver, and Charles to unmask her killer and bring her justice. Becky Butler aka Poppy White, the workaholic assistant of the well-known podcaster Cinda Canning, is finally revealed to be behind Bunny’s murder.
After changing her identity to hide her past, Becky begins working in Cinda’s agency to become a professional like her. However, Cinda exploits Becky as a jack of all trades without giving weight to her commitment and skill. The girl ends up killing Bunny just to impress Cinda, thus unknowingly offering her a new case for the podcast to take credit for, as she is the architect behind this crime. But things ultimately don’t go as hoped for Becky and she is unmasked and arrested. After the closing of yet another bad chapter, the trio of aspiring detectives made up of Mabel, Oliver, and Charles seem to have found their tranquility. But the peace does not last long because it is soon interrupted by a new mystery. When Oliver finally debuts his new Broadway show, the star Ben Glenroy suddenly collapses to the floor and dies instantly while performing on the stage. The second season of Only Murders in the Building ends with another unexpected death to the general shock of everyone present including Mabel, Oliver, and Charles themselves.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 Review and Analysis
The third season of Only Murders in the Building reconfirms some key elements of the TV series which, instead of being monotonous and repetitive as often happens in other shows, make it its strong point. One of these cornerstones concerns the cliffhangers present in both the finale of the first season of Only Murders in the Building and in the second. A closing with a dead end in both cases, which on the one hand leaves the viewer at the very best, on the other, creates a certain suspense while waiting for future episodes. But in addition to the crime component present in the TV series Only Murders in the Building, there is also the humorous aspect that makes the story flow more smoothly between one crime and another. The first season of the Hulu TV series, after the case of Tim Kono’s death is solved, ends with the murder of Bunny Folger. The same dynamic is also repeated in the second season of Only Murders in the Building which ends with the death of Ben Glenroy after Bunny’s killer was previously brought to justice.
This sort of essential routine also arouses amusement in the audience. As spectators, it is easy to imagine every time that Mabel, Oliver, and Charles will find themselves involved again, despite themselves, in crimes with which on a personal level they have nothing to do. The classic misfortune of always being in the wrong place at the wrong time, although paradoxically in the end it is thanks to the three of them that every case is solved. Of course, the three protagonists themselves also play an important role in the winning formula present in Only Murders in the Building. Three completely different people who, despite living in the same condominium, almost don’t know each other. But they ended up becoming an excellent team thanks to their shared passion for true crime podcasts. A passion that automatically puts everything else aside to make room for the common desire to do the right thing. But also, to obtain personal gratification that allows Mabel, Oliver, and Charles to have more confidence in their abilities, proving first of all to themselves that they are worth something.
Another typical feature present in each season of Only Murders in the Building is the inclusion of different guest stars in the cast who manage to integrate perfectly into the story regardless of their role. In some cases, these are artists who play themselves, as was the case for example with Sting in the first season of the TV series. Other times the special guests play new characters created for the occasion just like Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd in Only Murders in the Building Season 3. In both cases, the presence of these characters creates tragicomic situations that prove to be effective for the story of Only Murders in the Building. Sometimes we see the protagonists Mabel, Oliver, and Charles get excited like children at the presence of the star of the moment in the Arconia condominium. At other times it is possible to see actresses of the caliber of Meryl Streep (aka Loretta) get excited about taking part in shows of an “anonymous” Oliver Putnam.
In the third season of Only Murders in the Building both Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd, like all the guest stars who preceded them, give a great performance, immersing themselves perfectly in their roles. And in this specific case going “from Hollywood to Broadway”. Both actors, who in reality are two established and very versatile stars, in Only Murders in the Building become aspiring theatrical stars in the show put on by Oliver. And it is precisely their pretending not to know how to act that ironically makes them perfect in the parts of a clumsy Loretta Durkin and the megalomaniac Ben Glenroy. Only Murders in the Building Season 3 also introduced an interesting innovation compared to previous seasons: moving the crime scene outside the Arconia condominium. All the murders that occurred before Ben Gleroy’s death always took place inside the historic building that serves as the main location of the Hulu show. In Only Murders in the Building Season 3, the primary scenario of crimes, investigations, intrigues, and unexpected discoveries becomes the theater in which Oliver puts on his show.
The pretext behind this change is to ironically make the viewer understand that bad luck continues to persecute the trio of protagonists. In fact, after a few years during which Oliver is no longer able to create a successful work, when he finally has a new opportunity, he dies (again), and everything goes to ruin again. But reading between the lines of Only Murders in the Building Season 3, that of the theater is a sophisticated metaphor, designed to indicate a place that is already fictional in itself where there are people who play a part. In such a context, for the three protagonists and the viewers of Only Murders in the Building Season 3 themselves, it is not easy to understand who a simple professional actor is, who continues to be one even outside the spotlight and who instead immerses himself in a role on the surface only to mask his guilt. Significant differences, however, in the show created by Oliver are not so evident at first glance. Both on and behind that stage, the characters are all part of the same Broadway musical ready to go on stage to enchant the audience.
A perfectly successful performance in the finale of Only Murders in the Building Season 3, despite the tragic death of Ben Glenroy on that same stage. A character, the one played by Paul Rudd, who even “from the afterlife” manages to be a protagonist like the others until the end, giving a standing ovation duet at the end with Meryl Streep in the role of Loretta. Ben’s drama brings to the stage the drama experienced by anyone who is forced to pretend to be different from who they are. In the spotlight – like those in life itself – you must be able to meet other people’s expectations, never make mistakes, be able to please everyone, and prove that you are worth something. But when the curtain falls, you are left alone with your doubts and fears and it is not easy to “go into the dressing room and be kind to ourselves”.
As we have partly illustrated in the previous paragraph of this review, the third season of Only Murders in the Building Season 3 is full of different meanings and messages hidden by metaphors. But the Hulu TV series has almost tiptoed into introducing another very important current theme into this new season of the show. The so-called “sick love” of which newspaper reports are unfortunately full because, in reality, it is never about love but rather about a dangerous obsession. In Only Murders in the Building Season 3, some characters show worrying attitudes towards themselves or others, committing actions that they believe are justified because they are moved by love. Joy continues to buy fish, forcing them to live in a confined space, and then isolates a single fish who in her view is he (and not her) who has behaved badly towards the other fish. Jason begins to abuse drugs for fear of not being up to the level of the show and above all of disappointing his partner, Howard. Ben himself, in addition to abusing a mix of drugs, punishes himself after giving in to the temptation of sweets, considering himself a terrible person.
But the clearest example of sick love is the one between Donna and Cliff. A mother who continues to have incestuous behavior with her son which she considers harmless only because Cliff is homosexual. The latter is lovingly defined by Donna (as producer) as her best product, a phrase that highlights her possessive side. Donna comes to make drastic choices believing she is protecting Cliff and doing what is good for her, without worrying about the consequences for others. Cliff for his part is so dominated by his mother that he cannot distinguish what is right or wrong. And failing to break that umbilical cord which has existed since its birth ends up pouring out its anger on third parties.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 shows different situations, but they are all united by sick love. Starting from the murder that occurs in every season, for reasons behind which one tries to “do good” to oneself or to someone one “loves”. Passing through psychological violence, where people are forced to live in a glass bell, deciding everything for them. And ends with those who hurt themselves, often punishing themselves, because they feel like a wrong or unsuitable person or more simply to be accepted by others. The truth is that any form of violence towards anyone is always wrong regardless and there is no love behind such actions, but rather quite the opposite.
Only Murders in Building 3 Maintains the Formula of its Success?
With its third season, the TV series Only Murders in the Building proves that it has not lost its luster and returns with determination by putting on a show within a show. The three protagonists Mabel, Oliver, and Charles, despite another crime disrupting their daily life again, this time while trying to solve the new mystery are determined to move on with their lives, without being influenced by yet another bad adventure. In Only Murders in the Building Season 3, there is no shortage of the usual twists and turns between fake crimes, returns from the past, and new characters with bizarre habits and questionable lifestyles. Even in this third season of the Hulu TV series, not everything is really as it seems at first glance and once again it is not easy to immediately find the key to the problem. Every time the three protagonists Mabel, Oliver, and Charles believe they have understood who the murderer is, as expected the situation reverses, calling everything into question.
In conclusion, don’t expect anything less from the third season of Only Murders in the Building than the previous ones, but on the contrary. This TV series still has a lot to tell and it shows as it continues, growing in level and daring more and more. To maintain the key elements that have always distinguished it but renew them from time to time so as not to end up in a long and obvious repetitive cycle. Selena Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin continue admirably to keep the bar high between never-banal gags and moments of sincere friendship, where they demonstrate that they care about each other but – as Charles would say – without becoming “too saccharine”. Because even in this third season there is nothing that repeats itself, and if it seems that it does it is only an illusion to catch us off guard.
The dynamics between the characters, the evolution of the story, and the solution to the case change every year, also demonstrate the fact that it is not obligatory to always do the same thing to please the public. On this, honorable mention of the season for the “white room” in which Charles ends up he becomes anxious and then “awakens” amidst horrified looks at the foul language he heard. And if we have already praised the three protagonists and the other recurring characters (in particular we love Howard) in previous reviews, we believe that in OMITB 3 a significant part of the success should be attributed to the aforementioned guest stars. Jesse Williams is an excellent supporting character, who here demonstrates that he has a top-level comic register but let us once again underline the immense skill of Meryl Streep, capable of giving real life to a character like Loretta who is far from his character.
Streep sings, seduces, laughs, and makes people laugh, moves and makes us move, and all in a role that we would define as secondary if we weren’t afraid of offending her. Only Murders in the Building Season 3 therefore confirmed all the main qualities of this series: it is funny, it is intelligent, it is masterfully written and acted, and you can see that every single performer is perfectly at ease in the part. We know that Steve Martin has promised to retire from the scene when this TV series ends, so let’s hope we see many, many more seasons. For now, the danger has not arisen thanks to the combination of well-established peculiarities – so much so that they have become true cornerstones of the series that have formed its identity – and the desire to break the mold, a perfect balance that confirms Only Murders in the Building as the most interesting comedy thriller series of recent years.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 Review: The Last Words
Only Murders in the Building Season 3, like the previous ones, continues to convince thanks to the consolidated formula of its success which has remained unchanged. The team of main protagonists Mabel, Oliver, and Charles never lose their luster, an intriguing and exciting new mystery to solve and brilliant guest stars who give noteworthy performances. Only Murders in the Building confirms itself to be a light, funny, and exquisitely self-deprecating series that remains true to itself. Like all respectable comedies, nothing changes and everything, even after the most daring and bizarre vicissitudes, returns to how it was before. With a new murder on the horizon and a new season already confirmed, the only curiosity that remains is how good the writers will be at pulling the strings before this dynamic starts to get boring.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10 Review: Another Masterpiece Season of Hulu - Filmyhype
Director: Steve Martin, John Hoffman
Date Created: 2023-10-03 13:05
4.5
Pros
- The trio of protagonists continues to convince
- New crime scene outside of Arconia
- Exceptional performance by Meryl Streep and Paul Rudd
Cons
- Little space for the character played by Jesse Williams
- Every season always ends too soon
