Sarah Guirguis It’s about time we reviewed yet another highly anticipated series, and this time the verdict is up on the first season of ‘Only Murders in the Building’, starring Selena Gomez, Martin Short and Steve Martin, who you most probably remember as Inspector Jacques Clouseau from The Pink Panther film series. Apart from an IMDb rating of 8.2, we should also tell you that this series is definitely worth your time. (Warning: few spoilers ahead!)
At First Glance
A marvelous combination of crime, comedy and drama, the series follows three neighbours who live in The Arconia apartment building in New York, as they team up to solve the murder of one of the residents – Tim Kono. Their common obsession with true crime podcasts brings them together the night of the murder and they decide to launch their own podcast, covering their investigation of this alarming event.
Rich Character Development
This is probably my favorite thing about the whole series. I loved the way there were always new mysteries to discover about the main characters, (a little bit like ‘This is Us’), and how the thrill didn’t only revolve around emerging details regarding the murder. Upon first impression, you could tell that each of the three neighbors clearly had a whole backstory that they were keeping secret. Mabel seemed very edgy and closed off, and you wanted to understand why. The more you learn about her past friendships and how they affected her, you begin to relate. And then, I loved how she clicked with Charles, who became like an older friend who she can trust and slowly open up to. It was heartwarming to watch. Of course, Charles has his own story that explains his lonely lifestyle. He begins to get along with Oliver, as well, who eventually becomes a close friend who barges into his home anytime he wants. The relationship dynamics will definitely keep you on your toes, and you will be entertained by the awkward interactions between their distinctive personalities.
An Amusingly Weird Ending
We have to talk about this because very few of the viewers actually guessed who the murderer really was until the last episode. A real plot twist to say the least, but we won’t drop the name here, in case you haven’t watched the series yet. We will only say, we can’t wrap our heads around the weird cliffhanger at the end, where (spoiler!) all the main characters get arrested at the end after they had just solved a murder that the police couldn’t.
Season 2 is said to premiere next year, and we’re definitely looking forward to watching how the writers will pick it up from the final scene we witnessed in Season 1.
