S01.E10: Open and Shut

[Grundoon59]

While thinking about it off and on today, I am wondering if Bunny became the next victim because of something she heard through the vents.  Presumably she had been disliked/feared for quite some time and the Why Now question needs to be answered.  Also wondering why Charles and Oliver were arrested - it must have been something in the tip off that led the police to be there since they didn't have time to do anything to help Mabel even if they had wanted to do so. 

Agree with all the unanswered questions listed above and am already looking forward to next season even though it will be quite a wait I am sure.  It is kind of like waiting for next book in a mystery series - you are so eager to get it in your hands that you devour it quickly only to start waiting again.  I may have to take up a new mantra - I will be patient, I will be patient............  Maybe I should try finding Oscar's yoga studio and take a beginner class. 

[dovegrey]

The episode was good, and I enjoyed it. It was a little Bond villain expository with Jan and Charles, and Oliver and Mabel going down to the basement to figure out the vents and have one last stand-off with Jan seemed unrealistically silly. Those two parts didn't work for me. I liked the initial poignancy with Tim's POV and would have liked more of that. But I enjoyed it, and some of the physical gags were pretty funny.

I'm also not sure if I like that Episode 1's first scene was apparently completely unrelated to Tim's murder. Of course, season 2 could tie it all together and keep the thread going, but, as it is right now, that feels gimmicky to me. (I still think there's something up with Tim's packages being misdelivered and one of them ending up with Bunny. So maybe there will be a season 1 connection with season 2's mystery.)

My big question is why it seemed as if a full SWAT team stormed the building and centered in directly on Mabel's apartment. Obviously, someone called in a report to her apartment, as if Mabel was swatted. But if Bunny stumbled into Mabel's apartment, and Mabel was only in her apartment by happenstance (and was otherwise hanging out on the roof), then how did the person who called the police (1) know Mabel would be in the apartment, (2) know Bunny would stumble in there or be able to stumble in there (locked door?), and (3) arrange the police response so quickly once it happened (or even before it happened)?

Does this place have something called "security cameras"? I imagine it'd be fairly easy to exonerate Mabel, if so.

Here's to season two! :-)

[Turtle Wexler]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Maybe when the show comes back they'll wrap up the murder of Bunny in the first 10 minutes and then reveal a new murder mystery.

Hope so, otherwise they’d end up spending most of the season in prison!

Edited October 20, 2021 by Turtle Wexler

[Lilac2000]

19 minutes ago, dovegrey said:

Does this place have something called "security cameras"? I imagine it'd be fairly easy to exonerate Mabel, if so.

They saw Nathan Lane and his son on some sort of camera which cleared them from Tim's murder. But there doesn't appear to be cameras in the hallways.

[dovegrey]

1 minute ago, Lilac2000 said:

They saw Nathan Lane and his son on some sort of camera which cleared them from Tim's murder. But there doesn't appear to be cameras in the hallways.

It was a Ring doorbell camera, I think they said. I figure more people would have installed something like that. At the least, I would expect the building would have installed hallway and/or elevator security cameras after having two murders in ten years (Zoe, Tim) as well as a person getting stabbed and the Dimas crime family getting arrested. The Arconia doesn't seem quite safe.

I really don't like storylines where the protagonists are in jail or falsely suspected of a big crime, so I'm holding out hope for an easy rule-out of the team. Even better - and please, everyone, just let me have these straws to grasp at - that the detective has faked out their arrest and is taking them to witness protection after receiving a tip or a threat or something. It's odd that all three were arrested...and crammed into the same police vehicle. But what I expect is that season 2 will focus on the trio trying to clear their own names while out on bond and/or Mabel is awaiting trial for part of the season. ☹️

[shapeshifter]

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Maybe when the show comes back they'll wrap up the murder of Bunny in the first 10 minutes and then reveal a new murder mystery.

2 hours ago, Turtle Wexler said:

Hope so, otherwise they’d end up spending most of the season in prison!

I guess not?:

4 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

An interview said they wanted to keep it to one murder per season.

But I'm not sure a quick flashback in the first episode couldn't take care of it, if they decide to go in a different direction. 
Otherwise, maybe they'll be out on bail? 

Or--

2 hours ago, dovegrey said:

...so I'm holding out hope for an easy rule-out of the team....

--they are quickly cleared and then spend the season sleuthing and podcasting while they find the real murderer who tried to frame them.

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by shapeshifter

[Corgi-ears]

4 hours ago, apollonia666 said:

Or was she already there? What if it turns out that Cinda's podcasts are all about murders she committed herself?

It's more likely the case that Cinda's assistant, Poppy, commits the murders; Cinda just takes credit for them.

[emma675]

I didn't realize how much I hated Cinda until she was just magically there for the trio's perp walk.

What a great finale! Steve Martin should win all of the awards for his performance, I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. And Selena Gomez's flat affect plays well against Martin Short's over the top antics. 

I wonder what loose ends Mabel was referring to on the roof? It's obviously something big if Bunny was stabbed over it. I could see Bunny snooping around for dirt to get the trio kicked out again, running into someone who is also out for them, and getting stabbed in the process. I would kind of love it if it's the psychiatrist who now takes cryptocurrency.

[Cotypubby]

Steve Martin in the elevator and in that chair is the hardest I’ve laughed in a while!!

[SlovakPrincess]

Ok, that was great -- and I need the second season now!

I really didn't want the murderer to be Jan for Charles' sake ... but she was pretty great as a villain in this episode, and you could tell the actress had fun with it.  And apparently Charles took it quite well, lol.   

I'm just so relieved the body in the tie-dye hoodie at the end wasn't Oscar.   I'll miss the Bunny actress - she was a great curmudgeon - but I'm sure we'll see her in flashbacks next season, and I'm just so glad it's Bunny and not one of the likable characters.  

Funniest moments for me:

"One, two ... go, Mabel, go!"  And then his scream when he hit the door.

"Good one, Brazzos - now let's go get your stomach pumped."

Charles giving a heartwarming speech ... but apparently only understandable in his head.

And something about "Fields of Gold" playing gently in the background while Charles flopped around on the ground and then got squished by the elevator doors was hilarious to me. 

[DoctorAtomic]

I was hoping the resolution would be more convoluted, but I can't call bs on it either. It holds up. I'm not entirely clear on why or when Jan decided to kill Charles because she killed Tim for thinking he cheated on her. Their make out in the elevator was hilarious.

Unless she was put off that Charles went to the concert anyway. It looked to me she came over there with the intent to kill him, and not decided once she got there since she had to have the poison teed up. Or she figured the team got Dimas so it was only a matter of time before they solved Tim's case. 

I thought they were going to end on 'it's not what you think,' but I'm glad they carried it one more scene. I guess the next question is who sent the text. Clearly, there's no way Mabel killed Bunny. It was hilarious she was wearing the sweatshirt. I'm leaning toward the cop too; it has to be someone we know. The guys would have known if Mabel texted them. 

Thoroughly entertained. 

[saltylemon]

Really loved this season! My wild theory is that Bunny’s killer is one or more of the podcast fans that was outside the building. They may have also been responsible for the text to get Charles & Oliver out of the building. Motive? To give the crew a new murder to solve & keep their fave podcast going. Anyway, wild speculation, but can’t wait to see where they go with this next season. 

Edited October 20, 2021 by saltylemon

[Irlandesa]

11 hours ago, chaifan said:

Oh, that was fabulous!  Great wind up of (almost) everything.  And I love that it's set up for Season 2.  Yeah, it will be a while.  (Anyone know for sure?)  That's ok.

All I know is that, according to Steve Martin, they're going to start filming Season 2 next month.

The ending was a bit too pat because it relied so much on newly introduced, last minute evidence but she was a bit suspicious.  I absolutely loved their interplay where Charles tells her he has been taking stage sips only for the poison to be in the handkerchief.  There's another show I watched recently that had a similar switcheroo.  It's funny how that happens sometimes. 

Another moment I loved is when Oliver and Mabel were getting in the elevator after learning that Jan was still at the concert.  And she says "you know what that means" and he grunts in acknowledgement (that they're going to search her apartment.)  I think this duo was the revelation of the series for me.  They play off of each other so well.  [And I'll admit it, the shipper in me would have been all over this if there weren't a 40 year difference between them.  I own it.]

I wonder if some of the loose ends will be addressed next season because they did mention there were some loose ends. 

Overall, it was such a fun series and it pleasantly exceeded the hype I had built in my head around it when that kind of thing usually lets me down.

Edited October 20, 2021 by Irlandesa

[twoods]

Makes sense the murderer wanted to frame Mabel since the whole building heard her say to Bunny that she was now the most hated bitch in the building. For a second when I saw the sweatshirt I thought Oscar died but glad they didn’t go that route. 
 

I’m still giggling over the elevator door opening and closing on Charles’ poisoned body, and how they shoved his body in the dog cart. I have to go back and watch it again because I was so worried about Jan killing the three of them that I couldn’t relax and laugh at all the good bits.

[CraftyHazel]

Oh, Lord…how I have missed Steve Martin doing physical comedy, and I didn’t realize how much I missed it until this episode.  The flopping around the hallways, getting stuck in the elevator doors, the ride in Winnie’s stroller, the speech he made to Jan that turned out to be only in his head, the faces he made that reminded me of “Ruprecht” from “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”!  The man is a legend for a reason.

I love Selena Gomez for reasons I don’t even understand, and she was very good in this.  I have never been a big Martin Short  fan, but I do believe this show changed my mind.  I really think there is no one else who could have been Oliver.

I think the detective is on their side, honestly.  I’m sure she told them not to say a word to help them out.  She could have sent the text…and we don’t know that Mabel didn’t get a text, too.

Just about anyone could have killed Bunny.  I just hope it isn’t Oscar…after all, he knows about Mabel attacking with a knitting needle, since she jumped him that way.  He could be hiding a slow, simmering rage against Mabel from the Hardy Boys days.

Strange to see the podcast’s fan club watching the trio’s perp walk with slight smiles on their faces.  Salty Lemon could be right…it would be interesting if they actually killed Bunny just to get another season of the podcast.  None of them seemed to be quite “all there”, just based on what we’ve seen.

I don’t dislike Tina Fey as some here do, but I don’t really see much point in her character yet, either.

Edited October 20, 2021 by CraftyHazel

[7-Zark-7]

23 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Apparently Sting took the Police break-up really hard!

Maybe Every Breath You Take was a warning to the rest of the band. 😃🤨

[AnimeMania]

Mabel seems to have some sticky fingers, she seems to enjoy the rings that Tim Kono acquired a little too much for my taste. First the engagement ring, then the emerald ring. I wonder what she did with the rest of the jewelry? 

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, saltylemon said:

My wild theory is that Bunny’s killer is one or more of the podcast fans that was outside the building. They may have also been responsible for the text to get Charles & Oliver out of the building. Motive? To give the crew a new murder to solve & keep their fave podcast going.

3 hours ago, CraftyHazel said:

Strange to see the podcast’s fan club watching the trio’s perp walk with slight smiles on their faces.  Salty Lemon could be right…it would be interesting if they actually killed Bunny just to get another season of the podcast.  None of them seemed to be quite “all there”, just based on what we’ve seen

At the very least, the Only Murders podcast fans will be our (the audience’s) prime suspects for the next season——even if that turns out to be a red herring.

[stonehaven]

Loved this episode and thr conclusion and to see where it all goes.

Been giggling at Steve mumbling "I need help" to have it play "Fields of Gold"...

I will say this, I watched "All of Me" with Steve and Lily Tomlin last week and found myself laughing a lot at Steve's physical comedy. That's one to rewatch in my opinion...

[Haleth]

14 hours ago, chaifan said:

Jan's poison of choice

And she uses a labeler!

The symphony's youngest first bassoonist dodged a bullet.  As did Sazz.  I thought for sure she'd be a victim since she looked like Charles.

[judyri]

So what was the story with Tim's garbage bag and the suicide notes? Must be old age but I'm not remembering how that was resolved

[mostlylurking]

This was amazing!  Steve Martin and all the physical comedy was gold, his face while riding in the dog stroller made me laugh so hard.  I think the detective will be on their side, that’s what she meant by telling them not to say anything.  There were so many good moments!  Martin, Short, and Gomez were awesome together.

I also liked that we got resolution to the original mystery, while simultaneously starting another one for next season.  This was just a delightful show, there are so few around anymore. Loved it all and can’t wait for next season. 

Edited October 20, 2021 by mostlylurking

[AnimeMania]

4 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

At the very least, the Only Murders podcast fans will be our (the audience’s) prime suspects for the next season——even if that turns out to be a red herring.

I hope not, that would mean that they would have to leave the building to investigate and I rather they stay almost completely in the building.

14 minutes ago, judyri said:

So what was the story with Tim's garbage bag and the suicide notes? Must be old age but I'm not remembering how that was resolved

Jan invited Tim Kono over to pick up the stuff he left behind in her apartment and for one "last" drink. She had packed his belongings in a garbage bag, Tim Kono didn't even look at it, he just threw it away.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, judyri said:

So what was the story with Tim's garbage bag and the suicide notes? Must be old age but I'm not remembering how that was resolved

45 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

Jan invited Tim Kono over to pick up the stuff he left behind in her apartment and for one "last" drink. She had packed his belongings in a garbage bag, Tim Kono didn't even look at it, he just threw it away.

So the notes were desperate pleas from Tim Kono to Jan not to break off their tryst?

 

[Milburn Stone]

Amy Ryan is a fine actress, but "nice" (IMO) is not one of the things she does well. I never bought her in The Office; she was almost a dealbreaker for me in that show, because her portrayal of Holly Flax had no there there. I'm glad Jan turned out to be batshit crazy evil, just to give AR something in her wheelhouse.

Edited October 20, 2021 by Milburn Stone

[jmcd44]

I really did not think I would love this show this much. I laughed so hard at Steve Martin's elevator/boiler room comedy. And everyone ignoring him in the elevator was hilarious. I'm so glad it was mentioned upthread that it starts filming again next month. 

Here is something we didn't see resolved (I think)-who left the note on Jan's door? Could it be the person who killed Bunny/sent the text? Since no one else was with her, it doesn't make sense she would leave for herself.

How are they not selling the tie dye hoodie anywhere??

[Seelouis]

33 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

So the notes were desperate pleas from Tim Kono to Jan not to break off their tryst?

 

No. Jan wrote them and gave them to him in the bag. To make it look like suicide. Charles figured out she was the killer by matching the handwriting on the notes to the note she sent him asking him to dinner.

1 minute ago, Seelouis said:

 

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by Seelouis

[Sakura12]

42 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

So the notes were desperate pleas from Tim Kono to Jan not to break off their tryst?

Jan wrote the notes to make it look like Tim committed suicide. Charles saw that the handwriting was the same on the note she wrote him. 

[khyber]

Steve Martin's physical comedy was gold. It made me think of this:

https://youtu.be/nE58ZtIpNSo

[Mrs. Stanwyck]

Quote

Or was she already there? What if it turns out that Cinda's podcasts are all about murders she committed herself?

I just assumed Cinda has a police scanner and heard about cops being dispatched to the Arconia.  Given everything that has happened there, it makes sense to me that she would want to know what was going on there now.

[sjankis630]

16 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

Steve Martin in the elevator and in that chair is the hardest I’ve laughed in a while!!

That was truly shades of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. As much as I like this show and and hard nosed as New Yorkers are doesn't it seem that there would have been a whole lot more security/fear in the building after an unsolved murder occurred there? I have seen how people react to just having a major crime in their neighborhood say nothing of it happening in the building  you work in .

I know it was for comedic effect but Bunny telling the supposed murderer to "Stop murdering!" was a little much.

 

[Ilovepie]

22 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Are we sure? 
Possible variations involving Mabel's Chekhovian Knitting Needle:

1. Bunny was already stabbed by Mabel's knitting needle before she even showed up.
2. Bunny was already stabbed NOT by Mabel's knitting needle, and then, when Mabel opened the door, Bunny fell on the knitting needle that Mabel was holding for protection.
3. Bunny was poisoned and, when Mabel opened the door, Bunny fell on the knitting needle that Mabel was holding for protection.

Maybe when the show comes back they'll wrap up the murder of Bunny in the first 10 minutes and then reveal a new murder mystery.

I'm thinking maybe Bunny went to talk to Mabel for some reason, and the murderer was in there (possibly for the green ring?) lying in wait for Mabel to return and got surprised when Bunny came in instead and stabbed Bunny with the knitting needle because it was close at hand? I just cannot fathom why Bunny was wearing the Podcast sweatshirt.......

I am wondering if we will hear the podcast "Only Murderers in the Building" from Cinda's perspective next season? Either way, I hope our group gets cleared quickly and is out of jail early.

Got a good laugh at Siri playing"Fields of Gold" by Sting when Charles couldn't talk. Of course it was Sting. Love everything Steve Martin did this episode. The elevator stuff was hilarious. The speech about their friendship he gave only he understood. Even him simply deleting his name from the text made me laugh. So good.

I kept thinking it was too simple for Jan to be the murderer, but I wasn't disappointed in the way it played out. Mabel got to use her fighting skills for good this time! I hope they can keep up the quality next season. It can't come soon enough!

[dovegrey]

21 minutes ago, Ilovepie said:

I'm thinking maybe Bunny went to talk to Mabel for some reason, and the murderer was in there (possibly for the green ring?) lying in wait for Mabel to return and got surprised when Bunny came in instead and stabbed Bunny with the knitting needle because it was close at hand? I just cannot fathom why Bunny was wearing the Podcast sweatshirt.......

I like this! Alternatively, it made me think that someone may have been waiting for Oscar, since he seems to sleep at Mabel’s quite a bit, saw the tie dye sweatshirt, and thought it was him until it was too late to see Bunny’s face. 

(Cutter? Or are the Dimas’ out on bond yet?)

[Milburn Stone]

26 minutes ago, Ilovepie said:

I am wondering if we will hear the podcast "Only Murderers in the Building" from Cinda's perspective next season?

This makes me realize that if Martin and Short were younger, there would totally have been an actual Only Murders in the Building podcast coinciding with and promoting the show. I'll bet somebody ran that idea past them and they said, great idea, but nah, we have other things we'd like to do in the time remaining.

[Ilovepie]

34 minutes ago, dovegrey said:

I like this! Alternatively, it made me think that someone may have been waiting for Oscar, since he seems to sleep at Mabel’s quite a bit, saw the tie dye sweatshirt, and thought it was him until it was too late to see Bunny’s face. 

(Cutter? Or are the Dimas’ out on bond yet?)

Ooooh - good thought! It would certainly make sense since Bunny is wearing that sweatshirt.

[sharifa70]

On 10/19/2021 at 5:13 AM, Abra said:

I thought Charles flopping around his floor lobby/the elevator would be the funniest thing in the episode, until I saw him being smushed and pushed in Winnie's stroller. When I tell you I cackled.

That part had me laughing out loud. His *face*! 

[ajsnaves]

1 hour ago, Milburn Stone said:

This makes me realize that if Martin and Short were younger, there would totally have been an actual Only Murders in the Building podcast coinciding with and promoting the show. I'll bet somebody ran that idea past them and they said, great idea, but nah, we have other things we'd like to do in the time remaining.

Here’s the one I listen to.

https://www.strawhutmedia.com/onlymurders

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

10 hours ago, stonehaven said:

I will say this, I watched "All of Me" with Steve and Lily Tomlin last week and found myself laughing a lot at Steve's physical comedy. That's one to rewatch in my opinion...

Steve Martin comes across as so droll these days, but he was a master at physical comedy in a lot of his older movies.  Even more serious roles like "Parenthood" had some hilarious physical comedy - when Steve masquerades as a cowboy at his son's birthday party when the wrong hired help shows up. 

 

[sharifa70]

8 hours ago, khyber said:

Steve Martin's physical comedy was gold. It made me think of this:

https://youtu.be/nE58ZtIpNSo

He’s so brilliant in that! I just watched the clip with the sound off and just about died laughing.

[dovegrey]

19 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The ending was a bit too pat because it relied so much on newly introduced, last minute evidence but she was a bit suspicious. 

I'm not 100% pleased that Jan was Tim's killer, but I'm still finding tiny clues that link Tim and Jan when I have time to put an "old" episode or two (i.e., an asthmatic leaving his window open long enough for a cat to come inside [to hear Jan playing the bassoon, like Charles, the night he died]; the bassoon playing in Episode 1 when Charles had his window open and shortly before Tim was murdered [and it sounded like background music rather than someone playing...I thought it would exonerate her, just like Jan thought]; Jan having safe word sex with boring Charles [while Tim had a box of kinky sex toys]).

What I don't understand is why Jan tried so hard to throw the team off the Dimas-killed-Tim track, and/or why she stabbed herself when they never, ever suspected her. I had some theories in the speculation thread, but it seems like she was just really trying to throw them off her (invisible!) scent. Without that one miracle piece of Ring camera footage of the Dimases outside during the fire alarm, the detective likely would have charged them for Tim's murder, and the court of public opinion would have convicted them, even if a jury didn't. All the forensic evidence was either cremated (I think?), shipped to Japan, and/or inadmissible due to chain of custody issues (like the detective giving Tim's phone to three randos). Those two plot points, and especially Jan stabbing herself, seem like last minute shenanigans to me.

Edited October 21, 2021 by dovegrey
spacing issues

[Kiddvideo]

5 hours ago, Ilovepie said:

I'm thinking maybe Bunny went to talk to Mabel for some reason, and the murderer was in there (possibly for the green ring?) lying in wait for Mabel to return and got surprised when Bunny came in instead and stabbed Bunny with the knitting needle because it was close at hand? I just cannot fathom why Bunny was wearing the Podcast sweatshirt.......

I am wondering if we will hear the podcast "Only Murderers in the Building" from Cinda's perspective next season? Either way, I hope our group gets cleared quickly and is out of jail early.

Got a good laugh at Siri playing"Fields of Gold" by Sting when Charles couldn't talk. Of course it was Sting. Love everything Steve Martin did this episode. The elevator stuff was hilarious. The speech about their friendship he gave only he understood. Even him simply deleting his name from the text made me laugh. So good.

I kept thinking it was too simple for Jan to be the murderer, but I wasn't disappointed in the way it played out. Mabel got to use her fighting skills for good this time! I hope they can keep up the quality next season. It can't come soon enough!

It might be a continuity error or it might be a clue, but Mabel was wearing a longish, camel-colored coat when they were toasting on the roof. She wasn’t wearing the coat when the guys found her with Bunny.

[DoctorAtomic]

1 hour ago, dovegrey said:

Those two plot points, and especially Jan stabbing herself, seem like last minute shenanigans to me.

That's fair, but Jan did point out that she wants to be needed, so just getting away with it wasn't enough. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Kiddvideo said:

It might be a continuity error or it might be a clue, but Mabel was wearing a longish, camel-colored coat when they were toasting on the roof. She wasn’t wearing the coat when the guys found her with Bunny.

Oo. Good catch! So Mabel was likely inside her apartment when Bunny "fell in."
I'm hoping an autopsy will reveal that Bunny was already mortally wounded when she fell on Mabel's knitting needle.

[Blue Plastic]

16 hours ago, stonehaven said:

I will say this, I watched "All of Me" with Steve and Lily Tomlin last week and found myself laughing a lot at Steve's physical comedy. That's one to rewatch in my opinion...

I freakin’ saw “All of Me” in the theater when it originally came out (just dated myself), and this episode with poor poisoned Charles rolling himself around totally reminded me of that movie.  It was so funny when Mabel and Oliver were trying to get Charles’ phone to open with facial recognition.

It was a little bit disappointing to me that it was Jan, although I’m not sure who else would be a very strong or interesting suspect once Nathan Lane and son (blanking on characters’ names) were ruled out.  There really wasn’t anyone it could be that would be an “OMG” surprise.  I wavered back and forth between thinking it was Jan and thinking maybe it was Cat Guy or something.

Overall I enjoyed the show but didn’t care for the slapstick with Evelyn’s frozen body, had trouble being interested in/following the stuff with the green ring, and was hoping for more of a twist.

[judyri]

On 10/20/2021 at 1:35 AM, CraftyHazel said:

the speech he made to Jan that turned out to be only in his head

That was genius.  My husband and I are huge theater fans of our local theaters (Brown MFA program first, URI second) and we always say you can tell a truly great actor if they can do comedy believably.  It is the hardest to pull off.   Sounds like an oxymoron but it is seriously hard to do comedy.

[kirkola]

Let me first say, I am pretty sure I watch way too many mystery/detective series.  That said, figuring out who the killer was felt too easy, mostly because it wasn't something in the episodes themselves, but the shows credits that gave it away.  There were only five main cast members, 3 in every episode and 2 who were not.  Now clearly it wasn't likely to be Charles, Oliver or Mabel--though that would have been interesting.  Which left either Oscar or Jan as viable suspects.  And we set about clearing Oscar's good name from his "kill".  So it had to be Jan. And the fact that she wasn't in that many episodes, sorta cemented it.  Though, I admit, I had doubts when she revealed the crazy face at the end of episode 9.  I mean, that could have been the final red herring. 

That being said, the entire thing start to finish was just a joy and a delight that I can't really be mad about it.  I am not usually a fan of physical comedy, but for some reason when it's Steve Martin, I laugh--really way to hard at all the rolling around and the big dramatic speech that was in his head.  In fact, I loved it so much, I don't care that the gas in the fireplace and Oliver's save in the basement may not have made much sense to technical people. 

Count me in as one who "can't wait for season 2".  I'm already trying to work out all the various pieces of information.  Like who sent the text?  How did the cops get there that fast?  Did they have advanced notice?  Did Jan write the note to herself (I'll admit I didn't catch Charles' clue about the handwriting) or was it the new killer?  Was Bunny the intended target or was it someone else (Mabel or Oscar or ?)?  Was the frame job on Mabel intentional?  There were enough clues on the podcast that framing any of our trio would be easy and we already know the entire building was listening to the podcast.  So much to think about until next season.

 

[cardigirl]

1 hour ago, kirkola said:

Count me in as one who "can't wait for season 2".  I'm already trying to work out all the various pieces of information.  Like who sent the text?  How did the cops get there that fast?  Did they have advanced notice?  Did Jan write the note to herself (I'll admit I didn't catch Charles' clue about the handwriting) or was it the new killer?  Was Bunny the intended target or was it someone else (Mabel or Oscar or ?)?  Was the frame job on Mabel intentional?  There were enough clues on the podcast that framing any of our trio would be easy and we already know the entire building was listening to the podcast.  So much to think about until next season.

 

I've been thinking about all of the notes.  I think the notes that Charles used to "nail" Jan as the killer were her note to him asking him out, and the notes they found in the bag of trash that they thought were practice suicide notes from Tim.  That means the note on Oliver's door and the note on Jan's door were from someone else.  SOMEONE else poisoned Winnie the dog (and possibly Evelyn the cat) and Jan didn't admit to either of those poisonings, so with Bunny dying (and possibly poisoned too) there's still evil afoot in the Arconia. 

 

[DoctorAtomic]

Jan speculated that the cat licked up the poisoned blood from Tim. It is the simplest explanation since the cat went into everyone's apartments. 

I don't know why she'd poison the dog though unless she thought the group would back off the case, but in the end she decided to get in there firsthand since they already uncovered Dimas' crimes. 

Edited October 21, 2021 by DoctorAtomic

[dovegrey]

1 minute ago, DoctorAtomic said:

Jan speculated that the cat licked up the poisoned blood from Tim. It is the simplest explanation since the cat went into everyone's apartments. 

I don't know why she'd poison the dog though unless she thought the group would back off the case, but in the end she decided to get in there firsthand since they already uncovered Dimas' crimes. 

Well, since Evelyn went into everyone’s apartment, then it’s feasible Evelyn licked the same sprinkle poison that was used on Winnie’s bone and then went to Tim’s apartment. Evelyn was on Oliver’s floor after the Beats moment elevator scene in Episode 1…who are his neighbors?

Along the lines of what I posted upthread, I don’t see Jan trying to keep the podcast going longer by arguing it wasn’t Dimas but also being the person who tried to stop the podcast with the note and poison. Why would she leave a note for herself, too?

Emma or Lucy also writes in block letters, similar to the door notes… Always thought that was odd for a kid. :)

[shapeshifter]

7 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I don't know why she'd poison the dog though unless she thought the group would back off the case,

Jan poisoning Oliver's dog in hopes that the group would back off the case seems logical based on this last episode.