'Only Murders' doesn't change at all in Season 4. Maybe that works for you!
If you didn't like "Only Murders in the Building" before, the latest episodes aren't going to change your mind.
Hulu's hit murder-mystery comedy, about amateur sleuths and podcasters investigating an uncanny number of killings in their Manhattan apartment building, returns for a fourth season that is nearly identical to the first three. For some viewers, that's the best news they can hear. But for anyone hoping for a little more nuance, a little more comedy, or just a little more depth from the Emmy-nominated series, as I was, it's not encouraging.
But who can blame producers John Hoffman and Dan Fogelman for keeping things copacetic? The series has coasted on vibes alone for four straight seasons and garnered praise and Emmy nominations. As long as it has the main trio of Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez), a revolving door of A-list cameos and a murder mystery, nothing can go wrong. Unless the audience gets tired of them.
"Only Murders" Season 4 (streaming Tuesdays, ★★ out of four) can be a bit tiresome, just as its third season was. But unlike that dull outing about the murder of the star of Oliver's big Broadway play, Season 4 has a little more zest in the proceedings. Yes, it is all Martin, Short and Gomez mugging for the camera with over-the-top physical comedy and generation-gap punchlines as they try to solve a very serious crime. But there are some very funny gags from this year's parade of celebrity guest stars including Eva Longoria and Molly Shannon, and maybe an interesting mystery to solve. Perhaps that's enough to forgive a few too many bad jokes from Short and dull line readings from Gomez. Maybe.
The new episodes revolve around the murder of Sazz (Jane Lynch), Charles' former stunt double and friend. It's unclear if Sazz's death is related to the Arconia building or has something to do with a forthcoming movie based on the trio's podcast. That film is moving fast, shepherded by Hollywood honcho Bev Melon (Shannon, as usual, a delight) and starring Longoria, Zach Galifianakis and Eugene Levy as the trio (the actors are playing themselves, something in which Longoria particularly delights). Charles, Mabel and Oliver are stuck in the middle of a Hollywood production, a criminal conspiracy in the building and their own personal and romantic failures, all while trying to figure out what happened to Sazz.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
How to find it:'Only Murders in the Building' Season 4: Release date, time, cast, where to watch mystery comedy
But four murders in four years in one apartment building? At this point, even the characters are pointing at the uncanniness. It's just one of many self-referential bits. Some in-jokes are great, but "Murders" crosses too far into meta-references and self-congratulatory cameos and nods. By the time Melissa McCarthy shows up as Charles' much younger sister with a crush on Oliver, the series has gotten close to jumping the proverbial shark.
But it's a good thing Longoria is there to be a better Mabel than Gomez ever was (sorry, Selena fans), and Galifianakis is willing as always to portray himself as a jerk. And now that the murder victim is someone close to Charles, Mabel and Oliver, they care a little more. It's harder to be flippant about death when you're holding the urn.
In the seven (of 10) episodes made available for review, it's clear that the series isn't deviating from its usual path. That recipe is actually quite simple: Take a murder in the same gosh darn building for some reason; add at least one celebrity pretending to be an unflattering version of themselves; add a motif (Season 4 is cinema; last year it was Broadway); a half-baked third-act twist; and, bam! You've written a new season of this show.
I might be oversimplifying, but am I? Formulaic doesn't necessarily mean bad, but it can get stale. Your appetite for more is entirely dependent on your taste for the three main performers. If you can't get enough of Gomez, Martin and Short's kitschy humor, then you probably would be happy to see dozens of people killed in that apartment building in many more seasons to come.
But if this particular shtick is starting to get old, well, Season 4 is a mystery you don't need to be solved.