Diksha Sundriyal
The plot thickens as the fourth season of Hulu’s ‘Only Murders in the Building’ takes a step toward solving the mystery of Sazz Pataki’s murder. The previous episode brought Charles, Mabel, and Oliver to Paradise, New Jersey, where Sazz had planned to open an academy for stunt doubles. However, instead of answers, they find more questions there. One major clue they receive to push their investigation forward is the revelation that the murder is connected to the movie being made about them. But that is not the only revelation they have. It turns out that they might have been looking at the whole thing with a fractured lens, and they need to correct it before it’s too late. SPOILERS AHEAD
The Movie Adaptation Begins
At the beginning of this season, the podcaster trio of the Arconia discovered that Hollywood was interested in making a movie about them. What they didn’t know is that the movie has been connected to the murder even before they knew about it. This episode begins with Marshall, a young writer who is struggling with self-esteem and has to wear a fake wig and fake glasses to see himself as a writer. Of course, he also needs a great script for that, and this is where the murders come into the picture. He is the only one who adapted the podcast into a movie script, which was then brought to the attention of a Hollywood executive named Bev Melon.
Now, the same Bev Melon is found in the shed on the land owned by Sazz Pataki, pointing a gun at Charles, Mabel, and Oliver. While it might seem sinister at first glance, it soon becomes clear that this is just a huge misunderstanding. Bev clarifies her alibi, revealing that she had been at a high-end party the night Sazz died. Interestingly, close to the time before she was murdered, Sazz called Bev several times. When she couldn’t reach her, she left a voicemail telling Bev that something was off about someone working on her movie. The identity of the person is not revealed in the voice-mail, but it’s clear where Charles, Mabel, and Oliver should go next.
The Two-Murderer Problem
Charles, Mabel and Oliver visit the Brothers sisters’ apartment, where they try to take pictures of everyone, hoping to find some clue that will help them track down the person Sazz was talking about. The only person they find worthy of investigating is Marshall, who turns out to be an awkward writer suffering from impostor syndrome. Considering that he is not a suspect anymore, he is let in on the investigation, which he is happy to do as it will help him refine the script and the characters. When Charles shows him their murder boards, Marshall immediately notices a huge miss in the investigation. Considering the timeline, which accounts for Sazz wandering out alone and getting murdered within 10-12 minutes, Marshall counters that it seems a bit difficult for one person to have pulled off this job.
The said person has to be in the best shape of their life to shoot Sazz from the West wing of the Arconia, then enter the building to come to Charles’ apartment, find the body, dispose of it in the incinerator and clean up any trace of a murder from the apartment without anyone noticing them. While Charles tries to explain it away, and Oliver goes as far as to try and prove the theory despite clearly not being up to it, it becomes clear that Sazz’s murder was a two-man job. One person shot her from the West Wing, and the other person showed up at the apartment to dispose of her body. It takes some time for Charles to accept it; he does, and this turns the investigation into a whole new direction.
Did the Brothers Sisters Murder Sazz?
While trying to take pictures of the people from the film’s crew, Charles ends up taking a lot of pictures of the floor and a couple of shoe prints, one of which is similar to the print they’d found at the window sill of Dudenoff’s apartment. At the photo shoot of the movie, they find a way to track people’s footprints using a sticky mat, and this is when they discover that the prints match the pattern of the boots worn by one of the Brothers sisters. Suddenly, it all makes sense to Charles and Mabel. They tick the relevant boxes related to the killer. They are working on the movie; they are a duo known for dividing their duties in collaboration, and above all, the boot print matches.
While Charles and Mabel start to connect all the dots and how the Brothers sisters might be connected to it, Oliver is busy posing for pictures with Zach Galifianakis and his new body double, Glenn Stubbins. Strangely enough, at the same time, one of the directors goes out of sight, and a gunshot rings through the room, sending everyone into chaos. It’s clear that the killer has struck again, and the timing of the shot, with one of the Brothers sisters out of the picture, seems very suspicious indeed. However, is it enough to prove that they had something to do with Sazz’s murder? Considering that there is still a lot more to unravel with four more episodes down the line, the directors appear more of a red herring, but one that will push the protagonists in the right direction.
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