Only Detectives in the Building
Only Murders in the Building
2021, Season 1, Episode 8 Director: Cherien Dabis
Starring: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez
Murder mysteries have been an important, engaging genre in film and television for many decades. Notable, fictional sleuths include Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe, and Frank Columbo; two of these are hard-boiled detectives; the third is an unassuming and unlikely hero.1 In addition, we often encounter dilettante investigators that brilliantly outwit seasoned detectives and crack difficult whodunnits. Examples are Jessica Fletcher, Nick and Nora Charles, and Veronica Mars.2 In “Only Murders in the Building,” a mystery comedy-drama miniseries, Charles-Haden Savage (Martin), Oliver Putnam (Short), and Mabel Mora (Gomez) are three improbable amateur sleuths who connect over their desire to solve a homicide.
The trio lives at the Arconia,3 a large, elegant apartment building in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Charles and Oliver are aging show-business has-beens, both seeking to be admired and remembered for their minor accomplishments in TV and the theater. Mabel is a millennial artist-slacker, who needs to get her life together.
In the first season of the series, a tenant, Tim Kono (Julian Cihi) is discovered dead in his apartment. Charles, Oliver, and Mabel become friends and bond over the unfortunate circumstance. When NYPD Detective Donna Williams (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) closes the case, ruling it a suicide, the trio doubts the rushed, official pronouncement. They decide to examine the many clues of his demise and believe that Tim was murdered. They then work together to unravel the crime and discuss their findings in their eponymous podcast, “Only Murders in the Building.”
In episode 8, entitled “Fan Fiction,” the podcast is a success and groupies start gathering in front of the Arconia, awaiting a new episode. They sit at the building’s entrance and wave signs, “Who killed Tim Kono?” and “Oh no, Kono!” They also speculate as to who the murderer might be and begin to idolize the three new celebrities. Many of the tenants are certainly suspicious, and sorting through them is a big job for the trio. In fact, it is too big and they ask their fans for assistance.
Two possible suspects are residents Teddy Dimas (Nathan Lane4) and his son, Theo (James Caverly). Teddy is a successful entrepreneur; he owns the Dimas Deli chain and also sponsors the podcast. When Charles and Mabel break into their apartment, they discover a room with funeral urns. A search at a funeral home leads Oliver and Mabel to realize that the father and son are secretly stealing jewelry from the dead. Additionally, some time back, Theo argued with a girl on the building’s rooftop, which led to her accidental fall and death. Tim Kono witnessed the event, which causes the sleuths to believe that the Dimases silenced Tim by killing him. In their podcast, they accuse the Dimases of the crime, which leads to their arrest. One of the podcast fans wonders why the family would sponsor a show that would expose them. A very good question!
Later, a toxicology report on Tim’s body reveals that he was poisoned and then shot. Moreover, a time-stamped security photo of the Dimases proves that they were not in the building when Tim was murdered. So, then, our dynamic trio fingered the wrong people! How embarrassing! They also rushed to complete their investigation, making a terrible mistake. Their error is a refreshing change from the typical, effortless solutions delivered by amateur sleuths on TV and film. And this unexpected faux-pas is not only logical—after all, they are beginners who lack the necessary training and important clues—it is comical. . . mortifyingly comical.
So, will the trio actually solve Tim’s murder? Can their listeners absolve them from such a blunder? Will we find out in the following episode?
Copyright © 2026 by Rosi Prieto, Ph.D.
All Rights Reserved
Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe were played by Humphrey Bogart in “The Maltese Falcon,” 1941, and “The Big Sleep,” 1946 (and, later, by other actors). Frank Columbo was played by Peter Falk in the TV series, “Columbo,” 1971–1990.
Jessica Fletcher was played by Angela Lansbury in the TV series, “Murder, She Wrote,” 1984-1996; Nick and Nora Charles were played by William Powell and Myrna Loy in “The Thin Man,” 1934, and other films, Veronica Mars was played by Kristen Bell in the TV series “Veronica Mars,” 2004-2019.
The fictional Arconia building is actually called The Belnord. It is a 13-story, Renaissance Revival structure with a central courtyard in Manhattan built between 1908 and 1909: https://www.belnordlandmarkconservancy.org/the-belnord-inside-the-real-life-arconia-featured-in-only-murders-in-the-building/
In “Only Murders,” we discover a dark side to Nathan Lane, who frequently plays charming, likeable characters in comedies. He received an Emmy award for his role on the series: https://www.goldderby.com/tv/2023/nathan-lane-only-murders-in-the-building-emmys-guest-repeat/