Only Murders In The Building finally hits its stride

Any episode that gets Molly Shannon to smoothly deliver the line “The Jonk jonk’d my jonk till I jonk’d” as Martin Short looks on aghast is an automatic winner. And luckily, it’s one of many reasons Only Murders In The Building’s latest installment works. Another is the emergence of an interesting new suspect in Sazz’s murder. In “Adaptation,” it finally feels like the case has snapped into focus and the action has picked up. Plus, there’s a neat nod to early OMITB with those glorious outfits returning (I’ll always want Selena Gomez’s yellow fur jacket). At its season-four midpoint, the show starts to put its puzzle pieces together, with this half-hour ending with a banging cliffhanger. But let’s go over everything that happens before the “three Olivers” are seemingly shot at.    

The episode opens with Bev pointing a gun at the trio, with Oliver ironically saying death has come for him in his prime. They’re all still at Sazz’s “poverty cottage” in Paradise, New Jersey, where we left them at the end of episode four. Bev’s all-too-convenient explanation for knowing Sazz is that on the night she was killed Sazz called Bev and left an urgent message about a problem with the OMITB movie. Did Sazz want a stunt gig or was there truly something serious she wanted to discuss? Bev tells them she thinks Sazz’s killer might be working on the movie now. (Um, doesn’t Bev technically count, too, then?) This information expands the suspect list, but luckily, the production office has set up shop in the Arconia itself. This gives Charles, Mabel, and Oliver easy access to a bunch of potential murderers, with my number-one suspect being a shifty Marshall B. Pope (Pachinko’s Jin Ha), the movie’s writer, not the twin directors, as the trio believe.

So far, Marshall has lingered quietly in the background, observing his protagonists to understand how to best depict them. Why did he specifically choose the podcast’s first season about Tim Kono’s death as his subject matter? We still don’t have an answer. What we do know is, like any writer who’s ever existed, Marshall says he suffers from imposter syndrome. “What makes a real writer?” he asks in his voiceover. One aspect for him is his looks, he adds. Marshall wears a fake beard and glasses to appear more worldly (but not self-important!), and he’s the kind of writer who can quote both David Foster Wallace and Ace Ventura.  

While it may seem like he does this to give the impression of confidence, a different way to think about it is that he’s a fraud. He’s lying about his appearance and possibly his experiences to get ahead, so he’s clearly untrustworthy. It’s worked for him because Bev enjoyed and green-lit his OMITB script. (She’s desperate for a hit after passing on Barbie.) Still, in this episode, we learn Bev keeps giving Marshall notes. It’s unnerved him. That’s why he’s flustered when Mabel, Charles, and Oliver approach him, as he thinks they’ve got notes too. But no, they want to talk about why Marshall is acting suspiciously around them and what he’s observed so far. 

Instead of questioning Marshall, they surprisingly bond with him. Charles is particularly impressed with how Marshall has written his character. They warm up to him so fast that they don’t verify his alibi. I was screaming in frustration when they didn’t want to see the video of him allegedly performing stand-up on stage the night Sazz died. Come on, guys, you’re smarter than that! It’s unlike them, but let’s give them the benefit of the doubt because the trio gets swept up in Marshall’s inputs. Still, the fact that we don’t get confirmation of his whereabouts during Sazz’s murder (not to mention how quickly he gels with Mabel, Charles, and Oliver) is extremely eyebrow-raising. It reminds me of season two’s Poppy White, a quiet killer who also thought she could lurk around and disarm the podcasters without worry. 

Marshall gets a glimpse into the trio’s investigation process and murder boards. He points out that their timeline of Sazz’s killing is wrong. There’s no way anyone would’ve managed to shoot her from Dudenoff’s apartment in Arconia West, get down, cross the street, enter Arconia East, go up to Charles’ apartment, and transport the body down to the incinerator in a mere 12 minutes—not even if they’re incredibly fit. The only solution is, as Charles deduces, that they’re looking at two killers: one who fired the gun and another who was close by to clean up the bloody mess. If true, I love this twist because it levels up the stakes. 

So who might have teamed up? Well, the shoe pattern found on Dudenoff’s radiator matches the footwear worn by the artsy, eccentric directors of the movie. The Brothers sisters have climbed up our suspect list, so I’m guessing next week’s episode will delve into their backstory. But it feels like a classic diversion to me. Yes, the twin siblings are weirdos, but “Adaptation” successfully plants the seed for Marshall’s lies. I hope it pays off. As for who his partner in crime might be, I’m looking at you, Bev. 

Meanwhile, Oliver’s budding insecurity about his long-distance girlfriend Loretta hits another low point. He learns that the muscled man in her Instagram photos is Jack Jonk, her swimmer-turned-actor love interest on the Grey’s Anatomy spinoff. And yes, this man is known for using his jonk, if you catch my drift. OMITB uses this to push Oliver’s buttons. He’s not sure how to deal with even the idea of Loretta cheating on him with a younger, hotter man. He’s determined to prove his youthfulness, hence the retracing of the killer’s steps from Arconia West to East that he hopes to complete in 12 minutes (It takes him 37). So what if Loretta might get “Jonk’d”? Oliver’s also had a steroid phase, even if it was in the form of medicine for his sinus infections. It doesn’t assuage Oliver’s insecurity though when Zach Galifianakis confirms to Oliver that he’s heard rumors of Jack’s sexual prowess. (Again, I want to shake Oliver out of this because has he even met Loretta? That woman is so into him! No Jonk can compete.) 

The episode ends with everyone coming together at the movie’s promotional photo shoot. Charles, Oliver, and Mabel are dressed in the exact same outfits as the OMITB series premiere, as are Eugene Levy, Galifianakis, and Eva Longoria, who wear identical outfits to the people they’re playing. Also donning the same fits are the stuntmen, including Glen Stubbins (Paul Rudd), who gets hired to double for Galifianakis. It’s too bad that before cameras can roll, someone shuts off all the lights and pulls the trigger as the Olivers take center stage. Who was the target: the real Oliver Putnam, The Hangover star, or the recent Irish addition to the team? Are any of them even injured? All I know is, Martin Short’s character better be safe and sound. OMITB can’t afford to have its funniest cast member out of commission. 

Stray observations 

• • Bev never mentions how she knew about the cottage’s location in New Jersey. I’m sorry but that’s suspicious. 
• • Oliver gets so many great throwaway one-liners in this episode:
  “My hair guy is in a home now so it’ll take some paperwork to get him out.”
  “I’ve sunk 20 grand into these knees.” 
• • Glen Stubbins when he meets Zach Galifianakis: “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Anaphylaxis.” 
• • Glen also confuses Marshall for Mabel when he sees the writer hanging out with Charles and Oliver, asking him, “When did you grow the beard, lassie?” 
• • Charles, Oliver, and Mabel are ecstatic over finally getting the checks for their life rights. We still don’t know the amount, but it’s enough for Mabel to invest in her “business” as a podcast producer. 
• • Da’Vine Joy Randolph is crushing her two-minute appearances in each episode. She’s just so damn funny as an exasperated yet helpful Detective Williams. I hope her role increases now that the photo shoot was interrupted by gunfire. 
• • Howard’s audition for the movie didn’t pan out so he’s working as an assistant on the set, doing tasks like grabbing everyone’s juices or taking orders from Eva Longoria. 
• • How did Martin Short, Zach Galifianakis, and Paul Rudd keep a straight face during the “weiner-to-weiner” part of the photo shoot, I’ll never know. I was completely cracking up. Ditto at Short in his tennis clothes when Oliver rushes from one building to another, yells at a kid, and is loudly reprimanded by John McEnroe. 
• • There’s a bunch of symbolism in this episode about facsimiles. The obvious ones are the possibility of two killers and an emphasis on the twin sisters, who at one point say, “Doubles, illusions, so cliché.” But the promotional photo shoot is all about the trio looking into mirrors to see various versions of themselves. I’m filing that away for later.