Only Murders In The Building is back with another season, and this time, we will see the amateur sleuths solving the mystery behind the shocking and sudden death of Ben Glenroy. Oliver was making his big comeback to Broadway (after the failure of “Splash The Musical”), and he was very excited about it because he felt that it would revive his career and bring him into the limelight once again. Oliver somewhere knew that he was not the first choice for the job and the producer, Donna, was bringing him on board as a replacement.
Mabel, after the death of Ben, believed that they could once again begin their podcast, though she knew that because Ben had died on stage, his case did not qualify as it violated one of the cardinal rules, which was that they would only investigate cases that happened in the building and not otherwise. There were a lot of people in the play who didn’t like Ben, and Mabel knew that his murderer could very well be someone from the cast itself. So let’s find out what Charles, Oliver, and Mabel are up to and if they are able to make any progress and get closer to solving the mystery.
Spoiler Alert
What happened between Oliver and Loretta?
There was chaos and mayhem after Ben Glenroy fell on stage and was pronounced dead by the experts, who immediately came to check on him. Still, he was taken to the hospital, but Oliver Putnam knew that the damage had been done and that the opening night of his play, “Death Rattle” was ruined. The fun fact was that, in a very stereotypically showbiz manner, people seemed to be more worried about what would happen to the play than caring for the deceased. Oliver told his assistant, Howard, to tell everyone that all of them would meet at his house, as planned, for the afterparty.
Charles, who was standing nearby with Mabel Mora, told Oliver, together with Howard, that they didn’t think that anybody would be in the mood to party, but Oliver was adamant, and he was still hopeful that he would be able to get over this debacle and once again start the show with a new actor at the helm of affairs. But Oliver’s bubble burst, and he was made privy to reality by the producers of the show, Donna and Cliff. They told him that Ben Glenroy’s name in the cast made sure that people bought tickets and that every show was housefull, and now, after his sudden demise, they didn’t want to proceed with anything unless and until they were sure that they would be able to make some profit from it.
Oliver got reminded of how he had put so much effort into assembling a spectacular cast, and it took him back in time to when he had seen Loretta Durkin for the very first time. Loretta’s name was not on the list of actors who were supposed to audition that day, and she was a last-minute entry. The casting director told Oliver that, though she was a bit of an oddball, she was good at what she did. Oliver hadn’t found a suitable actor who would fit the role of the nanny, and he just felt that there was no harm in seeing one more audition. Oliver was amazed when he saw Loretta perform, and he immediately took her on board.
Finally, the casting was complete, and the entire cast and crew of the play, Death Rattle, met for practice in Only Murders In The Building, season 3, episode 1. Loretta was trying some improvisations that didn’t come off as she would have expected, and it made Ben Glenroy question her credibility. Ben didn’t like Loretta, and he wanted Oliver to give the role of the nanny to someone else. But Oliver just couldn’t do that. Oliver knew the kind of potential the woman had, and he even went up to her and told her that he would always have her back.
Loretta knew that she had goofed up during the table read, and she assured Oliver that she would get rid of her nervousness and not disappoint him on stage. Oliver told her that she didn’t need to worry about anything and that she should just focus on her performance. After Ben was taken to the hospital, Oliver met Loretta at his house party, and it was clearly evident that they both had every intention of crossing the professional boundary and having a meaningful relationship with each other. Loretta was glad that Oliver reciprocated her feelings, and it did feel like she was not only unaffected by Ben’s demise but somewhat relieved that she wouldn’t have to bear with him anymore.
Is Ben Dead or alive?
Ben was a big star, and he loved all the attention he got and how the world revolved around him. He came for the practice, and we realized that he was an extremely narcissistic individual who pretended that he loved everybody and was generous and big-hearted, but in reality, he was just a self-centered and insecure man. It was no hidden fact that Loretta and Charles despised him, but they knew that they couldn’t do anything about it since he was the crowd puller and the producers wanted him at the helm of affairs at all costs. At the end of episode 1 of Only Murders In The Building, to everybody’s surprise, Ben crashed the afterparty and declared that he was still pretty much alive. He said that in those moments, his subconscious mind made him privy to things that he otherwise never noticed. Ben knew exactly what everybody thought of him, and he passed a few harsh comments, stating how there were a few people in the room who would have been happy to know that he had died.
Meanwhile, Mabel, who had wanted to start a podcast around the mysterious death of Ben, had now made up her mind that she was going to move to another place. Her aunt had sold the apartment she was staying in, and apart from that, too, there were many reasons why she felt that she should do something to secure herself financially and take responsibility for herself. Charles, Oliver, and Mabel were going down on the lift when once again, something untoward happened. The ceiling started making a creaking noise, and blood started dripping from there. The trio ran out as soon as the door of the elevator opened, and Ben’s body came crashing down. Ben had probably been killed, and we think that this time, he won’t come back from the dead like he had previously. Oliver, Charles, and Mabel stood there shocked, not able to decipher what was happening or how he had died a second time, just moments after he had announced his return so emphatically.
In the upcoming episodes, we will get to know what actually happened with Ben Glenroy, who had killed him and why, and if Mabel, Charles, and Oliver are able to solve the mystery or not.
