After Episode 7 of the second series, '
Flipping the Pieces (2022)', I speculated the show was turning into a melodrama. I stand corrected: as of Episode 8,
Only Murders in the Building (2021) is closer to pantomime - in the British meaning of the word.
The dwellers of the Arconia are plunged into the dark, as the Upper West Side suffers a power outage; hence the episode title 'Hello, Darkness'. Charles (
Steve Martin), Oliver (
Martin Short), and Mabel (
Selena Gomez) return to the building, having just learned that Charles's not-quite-adopted-daughter Lucy (
Zoe Colletti) is inside, while the murderer remains on the loose.
One may expect a sense of urgency - after all, this is a literal matter of life and death. There's none. The episode meanders along, unconcerned with any questions previously posed by the show. (What was the meaning behind the painting of Charles's father? Is Oliver biologically related to Will? Somewhere within the Arconia, there are
Amy Schumer and
Cara Delevingne, with their plot-lines suspended. Not that I miss those characters, exactly; however, the great
Shirley MacLaine - who briefly appeared as Bunny's mother - definitely does not deserve such neglect.)
The building stairs are revealed to be the true enemy. Martin Short bravely carries the bulk of the episode (and a bag of dips) on his shoulders, while the show continues to be largely well-acted and so, so poorly written.