I have always been a fan of the so called “cozy murder mysteries”, which I think is the term for those- I cannot believe this is what my brain is telling me to write- feel good murder mysteries, where there aren’t vulgar references to sex, no gruesome murder scenes, no dark international political conspiracies. Just some good old, again, feel good mysteries, in a local setting, talking about ordinary people and their everyday secrets and tendency to poison/shoot/stab their fellow human beings out of spite/jealousy/hatred, you know, the emotional spectrum. My obsession with mysteries started with Enid Blyton’s Famous Five, Secret Seven and The Five Find Outers, later Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys and the works, then Sherlock Holmes, and ultimately moving on to the queen of mysteries, Agatha Christie.
Life had been pretty boring since I finished the last Christie book. Sure, there were others which gave the same vibe, like The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, Magpie Murders, Moonflower Murders, The Thursday Murder Club and the worst of the lot, Sophie Hannah’s Agatha Christie re-creations. Now, having the same vibe isn’t good enough, life asks a lot more than just similar vibes.
Get to the review already!
See, it is important to know the reviewer well, before trusting the person’s review of any form of art. Not just beauty, almost all appraisals pretty much depend on the beholder’s senses. It is very important to get a context before you decide to trust the review. After all, you are reading this review to decide whether to spend precious time on a long series which has two seasons. Right? If not, maybe you are trying to find a kindred spirit to share your views on the series? It has got to be either of the two.
The reviewer who is writing this review is, as explained in the first two paragraphs, a fan of cozy murder mysteries. She approves of Only Murders in the Building because she finds the vibe very similar to the vibes of the popular cozy mysteries, with the added bonus of having Martin Short and Steve Martin associated with the series.
Agatha Christie’s mysteries often takes place in a quaint village or a town, in a large manor house or houses with maids and butlers, in a typical community where everyone knows everyone else. Only Murders tried to go for the same-pardon the overuse of the word-vibe in a modern setting, with a large apartment complex with quirky tenants who had been tenants for a long time. Someone gets murdered, and an unlikely trio of two old men and a young lady, united by their passion for true crime podcasts and life trauma, delves into the mystery hoping to solve it through their own podcast.
Three main characters: A once-famous-now-decrepit actor played by a charming and lovable Steve Martin. A broadway playwright and director with boundary and money issues, played by a quirky Martin Short. A mysterious interior decorator played by adjective-less Selena Gomez. I liked all three but if I have to pick a least favourite it will be Selena Gomez, but that is a choice I will make only under gunpoint, so for now, I will stick with my approval of the three actors playing their parts well.
The dialogues are witty and funny, the mystery is gripping, the setting has- have I mentioned it before-vibe and the series is nicely wrapped up. I watched the first season just as it was being aired. I binged the second season. I liked bingeing it more, helped me get the- vibe more clearly. This is important in a review. Binge-watching a series and watching one episode a week gives different experiences. If you have a life, I mean a busy/exciting/happening/happy/content life, maybe binge-watching is not your style. It is totally my style so whenever possible, I binge.
The first season ends with another murder, which is solved in the second season, which ends in another murder, which points to a third season, which makes me really, really happy.
Abrupt endings are my thing, so I stop here.
A Cosmic Void 