Spoilers below for the first two episodes of Only Murders in the Building, so please be warned if you haven’t watched!
Every whodunnit lover with a Hulu subscription is no doubt celebrating this week for the long-awaited arrival of Only Murders in the Building’s third season. Okay, maybe it hasn’t been that long since Season 2’s twisty finale revealed Bunny’s killer and introduced Paul Rudd’s seemingly killed-off actor Ben Glenroy, but the mystery-comedy hit’s return is gladly received all the same. Especially since the first two episodes not only dropped a couple of big and shocking twists for Rudd’s character, but also introduced the instantly obsession-worthy GirlCOP.
Ben’s Not Dead! Wait, Now He Is!
Only Murders in the Building only SEEMED like it was setting up a Season 3 mystery tied to Ben’s on-stage death in the midst of Oliver’s new play Death Rattle, but that wasn’t meant to be. For even though half the episode went by with everyone on-screen and off- thinking that he was a goner, the first major shock of “The Show Must…” upended such expectations by revealing Ben wasn’t actually dead! Well, at least not permanently.
Paul Rudd’s standoffish lifelong actor dropped the bombshell that he had such a severe case of food poisoning that it left him clinically dead long enough to fool the authorities and EMTs that transported him out of the theatre. Which didn’t seem medically sound to me, as far as him being able to just pop back up and go tell others about it, as opposed to being partially brain dead. But that’s a plot for a different show. Maybe there was an episode of Brazzos about it.
Ben seemed to be a different person after returning from the dead, promising to stop at least some of his harsh and dismissive behavior regarding all the new Only Murders characters, save for Meryl Streep’s struggling actress Loretta Durkin. Their backstory has yet to be explored, but Episode 2 revealed that Charles was responsible for getting an 8-year-old Ben fired from a promising Brazzos role, causing irreparable mental damage. Which makes both of them potential suspects for Ben’s actual death!
Because Ben actually died! Again, but also for the first actual time! At the end of the Season 3 premiere, after Charles, Oliver and Mabel stepped into the previously malfunctioning elevator, their ride was cut short by Ben’s corpse falling through the top of it. But only after Charles got bled on for a bit, which is possibly the most disturbing aspect of either episode.
When it comes to twists, I do love a shocking death turned into a surprise not-death leading into a real death. Although at this point, I won’t be overtly surprised if the season finale pulls off a triple-dipple-doo-dah to reveal that Paul Rudd’s Ben faked his own death the second time to frame somebody. Although I guess I hope that’s not the case, now that I may have already spoiled it for myself.
All Hail GirlCOP!
Okay, so I know I'm going a little overboard by already calling GirlCOP my favorite show-within-a-show of 2023, but I think it's obvious to anyone who watched why it would be. Or maybe not, since it looks like a crock of shit, and barely anything was set up beyond the very basic premise of a young girl being a cop. But does it need to be more? Hell to the nahhh.
The show's premise appears to be some kind of parody of 21 Jump Street, as far as cops and backpacks and characters pretending to be younger, for the sake of undercover operations. Only it also seems like Caitlin Hammond's titular character is actually a younger teen playing an adult, while Paul Rudd's frosted tips somehow make him look older than he usually does. It doesn't help that their signature handshake/slap would be embraced by grade-schoolers. And that's why I need to watch more, because I want to understand this universe.
As if anyone needed further proof that GirlCOP merch is necessary, and that Hulu is dead to me if it doesn't create some, Selena Gomez's Mabel is all up into Girlcop for seemingly no reason. And she's pretty smart and artistic. Ipsos brazzos, that must mean that GirlCOP is also smart and artistic. Mic drop. Mic cop. GirlCOP. It's the answer to all things.
But let's be real, if we get to see a lot more of Cobro, I may have to swap my allegiance. BUT ONLY IF.
The already critically acclaimed new season of Only Murders in the Building streams new episodes every Tuesday on Hulu, so keep those magnifying glasses and clue boards handy. There's a murder to sol...wait...wait...okay, now there's a murder to solve!
