With the trailer dropping for the much-anticipated second season of Hulu‘s Only Murders In The Building, fans got a glimpse of what they can expect next from their favorite intergenerational true-crime trio. The comedic whodunit series is back on June 28th and will find Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short), and Mabel (Selena Gomez) attempting to solve the murder of Bunny (Jayne Houdyshell), the condo board president at the Arconia. There’s only one problem though–they’re the prime suspects.
The first season left fans with more questions than answers, so it would be prudent to remember a few key things before jumping headfirst into another case. As Brazzos says, “it might just send the investigation into a whole new direction.”
The Gang Solved Not Just One But Two Murders
When Charles, Oliver, and Mabel started their Only Murders In The Building podcast, they set out to investigate the suspected murder of their neighbor, Tim Kono (Julian Cihi). They eventually succeeded, finding Tim’s jilted ex-lover Jan (Amy Ryan) guilty of the gruesome murder, however, the trio didn’t get it right the first time.
Initially, they implicated fellow neighbors and podcast investors, Teddy Dimas (Nathan Lane) and his son Theo (James Caverly). The Dimas men were seen on camera outside the building before the fire alarm that signaled Tim’s death even went off. They were found guilty of another crime though–the murder of Mabel’s friend Zoe (Olivia Reis) and the subsequent framing of Oscar (Aaron Dominguez).
The Mysterious Text Message
At the end of season one, Charles, Oliver, and Mabel are on the roof of the Arconia celebrating with a champagne toast to their success. Despite their satisfaction, Mabel remarks, “Does anyone feel like there’s still a couple of loose ends?” Charles and Oliver brush her off, insisting that they celebrate what they’ve achieved. Mabel then pops down to her apartment to grab more champagne.
In her absence, Charles and Oliver receive a mysterious text message from an unknown number warning them to “get out of the building now!” They rush to find Mabel and are met with a shocking sight. Who sent the text, and why did they want them to flee?
Mabel Is Found Hunched Over Bunny’s Body
When Charles and Oliver burst into Mabel’s apartment moments after they receive the mysterious text telling them to flee, they find Mabel covered in blood, hunched over Bunny’s dead body with Mabel’s knitting needle plunged into her chest.
Mabel insists that “it’s not what it looks like” and tells them that Bunny just stumbled in when she opened her door. She is cut off by police barreling through the doorway and the trio is led out in handcuffs in front of the whole building. She couldn’t really have done it… could she?
Mabel Has A Thing For Knitting Needles
At the start of the season, Mabel explains how dangerous it can be for a single woman in New York City and ponders the recurring dream she often has of stabbing an intruder with a knitting needle. Then, when Oscar is stalking her down the street, she turns on him and tries to attack him with a knitting needle before realizing who he is.
She later tells him that she’s “always wanted to kill someone with my knitting needle.” She is then of course found with a dead Bunny who has Mabel’s weapon of choice protruding from her chest.
The Tie-Dye Hoodie
Poor Bunny is found seemingly stabbed to death by Mabel’s knitting needle. But what she is wearing is equally intriguing. Bunny has an Only Murders In The Building podcast tie-dye fan hoodie on. The tie-dye hoodie originates from an early suspect dubbed “Tie-Dye Guy” who is later revealed to be Oscar.
The podcast fan club makes their own tie-dye merch hoodies before Oliver decides to make an “officially licensed” version, which he attempts to sell at a building meeting for $49.99. It is no secret that Bunny hates the podcast and all it has done to the building’s reputation, so why would she be wearing a fan hoodie?
No One Really Likes Bunny
Bunny has a tough gig as condo board president, constantly chasing residents for their building fees. Oliver is one such resident, and his inability to pay his bills eventually gets him evicted by Bunny. At Tim Kono’s memorial, she doesn’t seem to care all that much and just wants to get it over with. Some residents even refer to her as a real-estate tyrant.
When the trio stops Jan from killing everyone in the building with a gas leak, Bunny advises them that “there’s been a reversal in sentiment regarding their tenancies” and they will no longer be evicted. Mabel then asks how it feels to be “the most hated person in the whole building” and calls her a “cranky old bitch.” Did someone hate Bunny enough to murder her?
Tim Kono’s Wayward Mail
Before Tim is found dead, Charles, Oliver, and Mabel overhear a phone conversation he has with what appears to be Bunny on the other end. His packages keep ending up in her apartment instead of his, and he is rather annoyed about it. It is later revealed that these packages are the black-market jewelry Tim has been gathering to prove that Teddy Dimas is a grave robber and that he covered up the death of Zoe at his son Theo’s hand.
Charles and Mabel break into Bunny’s apartment at the start of their investigation to find the diamond ring that leads them to believe Tim was involved before he died. Why did Tim’s packages keep ending up with Bunny? Was it accidental or something more sinister?
The Notes On the Door
Oliver comes home to a rather frightening note taped to his door that reads “end the podcast, or I end you.” Another one of these notes is taped to Jan’s door right before she is found stabbed in the back. This one says “I’m watching you.” They are both written in the same handwriting and delivered the same way.
It is later implied that Jan wrote the notes because the writing is similar to a note she wrote Charles at the start of their courtship. However, when Jan finds the note on her door, she seems genuinely shocked and scared even though no one is around to see her reaction. Perhaps it wasn’t Jan who left the notes. Perhaps it’s the same person who sends Charles and Oliver the mysterious text.
Cinda Canning Presents Only Murderers In The Building
The gang was initially inspired to start their own podcast after learning that they were all fans of Cinda Canning’s (Tina Fey) All Is Not Okay In Oklahoma true-crime podcast. Cinda eventually gets wind of the Dimas Chicken Wraps Presents Only Murders In The Building podcast, remarking that even Brazzos has his own true-crime podcast to Jimmy Fallon.
When Charles, Oliver, and Mabel are marched out in handcuffs in front of all the building residents, Cinda is there with her assistant who suggests a title for a new podcast called “Only Murderers In The Building.” Cinda runs with this, insisting she came up with it and the trio becomes the subject.
A Little Help From Detective Williams
Initially, Detective Williams (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) is not a fan of Charles, Oliver, and Mabel. She calls them “true-crime numb-nuts” and dismisses Tim’s death as an open and shut case. But when she realizes she missed sending off for a toxicology report, which ultimately reveals that Tim was poisoned and then shot, she seeks out the trio for help.
The detective covertly sends Mabel Tim’s mobile phone, which leads them to a big break in the case. She also shares the findings of the toxicology report and other details surrounding the investigation that wouldn’t normally be shared with civilians. You even see her warning the gang not to say a word when they are arrested for Bunny’s murder. What’s at stake for Detective Williams, and why has she been so helpful after her initial distaste?
