Season 1 of ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Is Clever Yet Predictable

Photo courtesy of Hulu.

Only Murders in the Building premiered its first episode on Hulu on August 31, 2021. The series follows 3 strangers who are all obsessed with true crime and become wrapped up in a murder that takes place in their apartment building. The trio agrees to work together to solve the crime and encounter many obstacles along the way. I watched season 1 so I wanted to share my thoughts with all of you.

The series stars Steve Martin as Charles-Haden Savage, Martin Short as Oliver Putnam, and Selena Gomez as Mabel Mora. The supporting cast includes Aaron Dominguez as Oscar and Amy Ryan as Jan.

Charles is a semi-retired actor who starred in the hit 1980s detective drama, Brazzos. Oliver is a financially challenged Broadway director who comes up with the podcast idea and becomes the director of it. Mabel is a young woman who lives at the Arconia, along with Charles and Oliver, in an unfinished apartment supposedly owned by her Aunt.

This trio is something I never expected but these actors have great chemistry together. It’s funny because when I first I heard about this show, I didn’t have access to Hulu.

Honestly, this show is the reason I have the streaming service. Selena Gomez is the reason why I have Hulu. Let’s talk about Mabel for a second. She is the highlight of the entire season and series for me. I don’t know what it is about the characters that Selena portray but they all become instant comfort characters. The last time I saw her in a TV show was Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney Channel. Mabel is such an interesting and complex character. She’s someone that you want to be friends with but also someone that you can’t entirely trust.

I found both Charles and Oliver to be quite annoying most of the time. They just weren’t likable characters for me.

I love Oscar and I wish we got to see more of him especially a deeper dive into his backstory. Jan is alright. She was pretty boring. She didn’t really have a personality which is why she worked so well with Charles.

When I watched the trailer for the first time, I was immediately drawn to the premise. I love murder mysteries and the fact that this is also a comedy is a huge plus for me.

There were some points where I found some of the comedic dialogue not funny. Maybe I just didn’t understand it.

The series develops its plot by each episode so I won’t be spoiling anything here. I do have to say that I loved Mabel and Oscar. Their chemistry felt so authentic and real.

The writing was pretty good. The cinematography was simplistic but there were many shots that I loved like the zoom-out shots of the Arconia. I loved the birds eye shots. The direction was present throughout.

Overall, I enjoyed season 1. It was funny and the plot was interesting yet somewhat predictable. I loved Mabel. I’m glad we get to see her again in season 2. For those of you who also love the show, Hulu renewed it for a second season.

I’m still recovering from the ending of the finale. Season 2 should be interesting. I’m honestly not sure what’s going to happen.

 

 

Only Murders in the Building is streaming exclusively on Hulu.

Creators: Steve Martin, John Hoffman

Cast: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Amy Ryan, Aaron Dominguez

Producers: Dan Fogelman, Jess Rosenthal, Jamie Babbit