19/23
Steve Martin plays the concertina in several scenes
Chronology
Three strangers, living in the same New York City apartment building and sharing an obsession with true crime, suddenly find themselves involved in a murder. He is actually a very talented and gifted musician. The viewer learned in the first episode that CHS lived above Oliver, who lived above Mabel, with that elevator scene. BUT the first episode shows CHS in an apartment on the seventh floor, Oliver on the eighth, Mabel on the ninth, in reverse order and well below CHS’s actual floor in the series. Featured in AniMat’s Crazy Cartoon Cast: The Mouse of All My Dreams (2020). Season 1 (10/09) When this series first came out, my girlfriend wasn’t particularly interested.
Soon they’re researching and podcasting
I’m a big fan of mystery comedies and I loved Steve Martin when I was younger, but her enthusiasm for both is moderate. But after five minutes I had to stop and force her to watch it, because we’re New Yorkers and this show captures New York in five minutes. The odd relationships with passersby, the artistic types, the justified paranoia—it was all there and immediately hilarious. The show is about a trio of murder podcast fans who come together to solve a real-life murder in their luxury apartment building. But they’re also keeping secrets from each other in a wonderful mystery-within-a-mystery structure. Everyone has secrets, the show says, and investigating them is a fascinating exercise.
The cast is fantastic
Martin is quietly funny, Short, who I’m usually indifferent to, is very funny as a flamboyant theater director, and Selena Gomez does well as a hilariously sarcastic temporary tenant. From what I can tell, this show was a box office hit (my friends (and fellow New Yorkers) certainly love it), so I was surprised to see the number of user comments who either hated this show or thought it was mediocre, to the point of insisting that all the favorable reviews be paid for. This response is inexplicable to me. The show is amazing. When a new episode came out, we watched it immediately. It’s so, so, so, so good.
But oh my god
Ignore the naysayers, this is a must-watch. Other seasons: Season 2 (8/10): A little weaker than the first season, but still excellent. Season 3 (6/10): What the hell happened? In season 3, Steve Martin played his character like a complete idiot, and after two great seasons, Selena Gomez became mediocre: sadder and less sarcastic. And when the mystery was solved, oh my god, these were the most absurd reasons you could imagine. Sure, there were still good moments, good guest stars, surprisingly enjoyable songs.
Probably the second best season after the first
Season 4 (9 stars) To my relief, season 4 was a return to form: Martin was no longer an idiot and Gomez’s delightful sarcasm was fully restored. There are some funny and famous guest stars; particularly funny is Eva Longoria playing herself as a truly horrible person; The mystery is solid and keeps you guessing, the plot twists are satisfying, and it’s all extremely entertaining. Watch our recap of “Yellowstone” Season 5, Part 2, “The Squid Game” Season 2, and more of the most anticipated new and returning series coming to TV and streaming.
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