Only Murders in the Building #2: Episodes 7 & 8.

Tonight is the night. Tonight, we find out once and for all who killed Bunny. 

I’ve been reviewing the episodes in pairs and so my review of episodes 9 & 10 will be published later this week, but I thought that I would save my review of episodes 7 & 8 until today. 

I can confirm, I finally have guesses. 

I’ve said it before, but I will say it again, I felt season two had a more intriguing mystery. 

It took me longer to form guesses about who the killer could be. 

I think season one was better at adding certain details. Season two involved some doubling back over nights we’ve already seen and adding more things. A clear example of this was the show telling audiences that Lucy was actually in the hidden passage the night Bunny was killed. 

I liked the detail although it felt a little backtracked. This is just my opinion of course. 

Let’s dive into episode 7, Flipping the Pieces. 

This episode gives audiences an insight into Mabel’s personal life. We learn about her father and this window into her past allows us to have a better understanding of how Mabel handles things now that she is an adult. 

I like the idea of everything being like a puzzle piece in Mabel’s mind. It might be a little on the nose, as far as metaphors go, but Mabel only remembers pieces of the night of Bunny’s murder. She needs them to all come together to form a clear image, this is the only way she can fully know what happened that night. 

I like that the episode showcased Mabel examining herself and trying to remember that night more clearly, because Mabel is obviously struggling with the fact that she does not fully remember. It has shaken her confidence and it has shaken her belief in herself. She knows she didn’t do it. She believes she never would do it, but the fact that some things are a blur throws her off. She questions could she do that? Is she capable of something like that? 

She even says it is something that she would do. She would grab a knitting needle or anything that she could defend herself with if she came home to find a stranger in her apartment. 

In a show that is very satirical, and very self-aware, this episode’s storyline felt really realistic. 

If you’re being accused of murder and you don’t fully remember what happened, I think it’s really plausible that you would question yourself and fear the worst. 

This episode also brought us the unlikely pairing of Mabel and Theo. 

I really enjoyed their scenes. I like that Mabel and Theo found some common ground. 

Theo is the one who helped Mabel and got her home safely after the subway incident. 

The two try to communicate in the best way possible and I really liked the fact that this episode highlighted some of Theo’s struggles. Mabel does not know American sign language and as the episode goes on (and in the following episode) she attempts to start learning it so she can communicate with Theo properly. The two share the same fear. Theo thinks back to the night of the party very often. He asks himself over and over, did she fall? Did I push her? 

It must be awful to be haunted by such dark memories and questions. 

We get to see some brilliant Steve Martin and Martin Short scenes. They truly are a dream team. 

Charles and Oliver are very worried about Mabel as they don’t know where she is, and two fumble when they are faced with questions from Detective Williams. 

I love Detective Williams. Da’Vine Joy Randolph is wonderful. Detective Williams is no nonsense. She’s direct. She does not take any messing, but she’s kind. She’s understanding, and she is possibly the only one in the NYPD who is on the side of our trio.  

Theo and Mabel find themselves at Coney Island, and here they start flipping the pieces. Mabel sees the man who was on the subway, the man who got away from their trap. Glitter guy. The killer, or the person who is most likely the killer. 

The episode ends with Mabel having a breakthrough. She didn’t stab Bunny. She found Bunny in her apartment. Bunny was bleeding. Bunny came to Mabel, needing help, which is how Mabel became covered in her blood. Mabel can finally breathe easier knowing that she did not do it. 

The episode ends with our trio in the diner. Charles and Oliver are thrilled to see Mabel, and she is delighted to see them. Theo is looking in from the outside. He is happy for Mabel. Theo was a standout for me in this episode. I really enjoyed the fact that he and Mabel bonded and hopefully, the pair can become friendlier since they’ve discovered that they share common ground. 

The end of episode 7 sets us up perfectly for episode 8. Charles is on the phone to Lucy, who is in his apartment alone when the call dies due to a blackout. Charles is very concerned about Lucy as she is now all alone in his apartment in the dark and Mabel found pictures of Lucy in the possible killer’s bag, suggesting that she could be in a lot of danger. 

Episode 8 is going to be a blackout episode. We know this now, and this intrigues me because things are about to be done in the dark. Now, I’m not sure who originally said this, but I’m a fan of the saying that things done in the dark eventually come out in the light so we’re getting so much closer to finding the killer. 

Let’s jump into episode 8. 

Episode 8 introduces audiences properly to Marv. Marv is a fan of the trio and their podcast. He also has his own theories about who killed Bunny. Marv’s narration tells us about the “sixth avenue slasher”. Marv thinks that this mysterious killer could be the one who killed Bunny as this killer was never caught. He brings his theory to the trio, but their main concern at the moment is getting to Lucy and making sure she is safe. 

This episode is a strange mix of funny, a little bizarre, yet also quite touching. 

Marv’s narration is interesting, if at times a little grating. This is a personal opinion. I like Marv as a character, I just didn’t love his style of storytelling, however he did make some great statements. One statement that always rings true is that nothing brings people together like a crisis. Everyone in the city is dealing with the blackout. Everyone is frustrated. The fact that this episode shows everyone in crisis mode meant that we got to see snippets into other lives in the building. 

There are two sub-plots in this episode. Howard has a crush on a new resident, Johnathan, the handsome Broadway performer. He’s getting his flirting game going in the dark. What is a better pick up line than asking whether or not someone has any batteries for a torch? Clearly his new neighbour has similar conversation starter ideas as he asks Howard for the exact same thing. The pair ditch the battery ideas and decide to light some candles and get to know each other. It’s cute. 

The pair also start an apartment-wide sing-song of The Sound of Silence. It is a little bit far fetched, but I do like the idea of everyone being there for each other so I’ll give it a pass. They sang it well so good for them. 

We also get to see Nina again. She is exhausted and trying to get her newborn baby to sleep. While it was not really a crucial plot point, I felt that this little snippet with Nina and Lester the doorman was really important. Nina is very rude to Lester at first. She makes the older man who has been the doorman at the apartment building climb many, many stairs with her packages because the blackout means no elevators. I understand that she is an exhausted new mother who just wants to get her baby to sleep, but the baby swing could have waited until the elevators were working again. Just a thought. Their chat was very sweet though as Nina talks about how much Bunny taught her. She wishes that Bunny’s killer would be found as she’s devastated at the thought of someone hurting Bunny. Nina is a modern woman. She is a thinker. She wants to improve everything, however after talking with Lester and at last apologising for being rude, she does admit that while moving forward is important, it is also important that we don’t lose human connection. This little snippet was very poignant in fact, as Lester tells Nina that he thinks about Bunny a lot. Something that haunts him is the idea that on the night of Bunny’s murder, he most likely opened the door for the killer and let him walk right passed him. This moment was a really endearing little snippet. I also thought it was very clever writing. It can be so easy to skim over people or assume that things don’t impact them for whatever reason, but Lester’s story reminds audiences that everyone is going through their own stories and things impact everyone in different ways. 

The key plot of this episode is Lucy is in danger. The killer bangs on the door of Charles’ apartment and a terrified Lucy flees to the hidden passages. The killer is not deterred. He’s after her, and our trio is climbing the stairs as fast as they can. 

Everyone playing an important role in their own way is a theme of this episode. Marv overhears that Charles is worried about Lucy so he does what he can to help. He also goes to the passageways and by doing so, he scares the killer away. 

A blackout must end with the lights coming back on. I don’t make the rules, that’s just how it is. Watch your sit-coms, pay attention, enjoy the shenanigans in the dark and then take a deep breath with the characters when the lights come back on at just the right moment. 

The episode ends with Detective Kreps showing up. Oh Detective Kreps, arrogant, cocky, mannerless Detective Kreps. As he is chatting to Mabel, it becomes obvious that there is glitter on his neck… he is glitter guy!! Is Detective Kreps our killer? Mabel thinks so. Her eyes widen as she sees the glitter too and this discovery leads us straight to episode 9. 

I enjoyed this episode. I also like the idea that perhaps Detective Kreps is crooked. 

Here’s my initial thoughts. I think it could be a little too obvious if Detective Kreps is the killer. He has always disliked our trio. He’s brash and he definitely gives off the vibe that he abuses his authority. He’s involved. The glitter proves that he’s the one who ran away from the glitter bomb, but I think he’s a little too close to home if he is the killer. 

I know from watching a lot of crime shows, both true and fictional, that sometimes those who commit crimes return to the scene, however Kreps strikes me as the type of guy who would brag about it. The fact he did it and got away with it would give him a gigantic ego boost and mannerless Kreps would have to gloat that he’s the smartest. He’s involved, but is he the mastermind? Let’s see. 

I am so excited to watch episode 10 later tonight. 

If you follow me on Instagram @katelovesliterature, then you’ll see my #watchtvwithme updates. 

I do have guesses. These guesses formed more solidly after I watched episode 9. 

I will talk about this more in my next review as I will be finishing the season by discussing episodes 9 & 10 together. I’m planning to write my next review tomorrow, immediately after viewing the finale so stay tuned because my final discussion should be published very soon as I am so excited. 

Have you been watching Only Murders in the Building? 

Did you prefer season one or season two? Do we think there will be a season three? 

Let me know, and if you’re watching the finale later like me, enjoy!

Kate xo.