Success hasn't spoiled "Only Murders in the Building," which returns with bigger guest stars (Meryl Streep! Paul Rudd!) and a foot in Broadway theater that plays to its eccentric strengths. While the concept would seem to come with a built-in expiration date, credit the producers with finding a way to reinvigorate the Hulu series in this third season, both inside the building and beyond it.
Season 2 ended on a particularly cliffhanger-ish note, with Oliver (Martin Short) directing a play, only to see his leading man, Ben Glenroy (Rudd), abruptly drop dead on stage.
Yet that's just the beginning of the strange occurrences, which, thanks to flashbacks, create an opportunity to witness all sorts of clues regarding what happened, as well as the ongoing process of whether the show really must (or can) go on. And in an inspired bit of casting, Oliver's understandably confused company includes Loretta (Streep), who wows him at the audition, before making some more questionable choices as the production progresses.
Having screened eight of the 10 episodes, the stage setting provides plenty of amusing asides for the New York theater-going crowd, as well as an opportunity for Steve Martin -- whose one-time TV star Charles isn't at home treading the boards -- to strut his stuff. That leaves Mabel (Selena Gomez) a bit as the odd woman out, a dynamic that the show plays with in a way that threatens to shake up the unlikely relationship among the central trio.
The backdrop not only enriches the humor but fuels the mystery, setting up motives and red herrings in equal measure among the various players. The series also deftly draws upon previous seasons to add color to its tapestry and inside-showbiz references -- a riff on the Streep character's facility (or not) with accents is particularly inspired -- while again relying on the chemistry between longtime collaborators Martin and Short as an anchor to hold it all together.
Indeed, while many older stars have answered the siren song of streaming in the last few years, few have enjoyed a more flattering transition than Martin (who co-created the show with John Hoffman) and Short, receiving perhaps his best showcase this time around, with Oliver very much in his element among theater folk.
Given that, to answer the question raised by Glenroy's unfortunate situation, the show doesn't necessarily have to go on. But if "Only Murders" can sustain this kind of inventiveness and energy until the curtain comes down, it sure looks like it could.
"Only Murders in the Building" begins its third season August 8 on Hulu.
