Only Murders in the Building kicked off its fourth season at the end of August, but the identity of the murder victim was only a mystery to the core trio—Charles Hayden Savage (Steve Martin), Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) and Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez). 

The identity of the victim, Sazz Pataki (played by Glee’s Jane Lynch) was known to the fandom at the end of season 3, as we saw her get shot by a bullet coming from outside of Charles’ apartment. While we saw her bleeding out on his kitchen floor, when the fourth season commenced, the body was nowhere to be found, indicating that the suspect—the mystery that we all need to solve—had access to Charles’ place to clean up the mess as if nothing ever happened. 

This is the first time that the podcastin’ trio doesn’t have access to the body—and while I’m 99% certain that Sazz is dead based on the metal bone replacements found in the incinerator when Howard’s retired cadaver dog, Gravey, led them to the scorched body, there’s always that 1% that is inclined to believe that if there’s no body, there’s no murder.

Still, someone is taking responsibility and it’s up to the sleuths to figure it out once again… as dead bodies just keep landing at their doorsteps. 

Unlike in previous seasons, we don’t automatically have a list of suspects at the ready either as the kill happened in the dead of the night. It’s possible the intended target was Charles, as Sazz was dressed like him and in his apartment, but there’s a chance someone wanted to eliminate Sazz, which begs the question—why? Who were her enemies?

And do any of the Hollywood executives, like, let’s say Bev Melon (SNL’s Molly Shannon), have anything to do with it?

The trio stumble upon a series of receipts while visiting Sazz’s place, which may or may not provide a lead in the future, but for now, they weren’t very helpful. It’s possible Sazz was investigating something—or, she was planning to pitch a movie based on the podcast herself and was taken out by someone at Paramount Studios. 

This is one mystery that has everyone stumped from the beginning, but as new episodes premiere every Tuesday, on Hulu and Disney+ at 12 a.m. ET / 9 p.m. PT till the finale on October 29, 2024, we’ll hopefully inch closer and closer to learning the truth once and for all. 

Do you have any working theories? Could it be Charles ex Jan (Amy Ryan) as she had a prior connection to Sazz? Or is it Bakula? Share them with us in the comments as we update this post on a weekly basis! 

Which one of the Pickwick triplets did it? That was essentially the question haunting the final episode of Only Murders in the Building Season 3, except swap Pickwick triplets for someone from the production of Death Razzle Dazzle. 

Mabel, Oliver, and Charles’ investigation coincided with the opening night of Oliver’s Broadway musical, which was fitting since the plot of the musical paralleled this season’s murder mystery, specifically, how far would a mother go for her child?

The trio confirmed—with ease— that Donna did, in fact, poison Ben Glenroy with a cookie right before the first opening night, in an attempt to protect her baby boy, Cliff, from the worst review about his first production ever. She didn’t intend on killing Ben, she simply wanted to knock him out for a bit. The trio was quite surprised by her straightforward confession, but honestly, there was no need for her to drag it on any further or try to weasel her way out of it… the facts were right there staring her in the face, and with supposed stage 4 lung cancer, she didn’t have much to lose. 

But there was still the question of Ben’s actual murder as we know the rat poison didn’t actually kill him. Donna confessed to pushing him down the elevator shaft after Mabel showed her the handkerchief with her lipstick on it, and while everyone was happy that they got the confession on tape and could move on to focus on the show, Mabel wasn’t convinced. Something just didn’t sit right with her about the whole situation, and it wasn’t until she witnessed Loretta’s confession to Dickie about being his mother—and he already knew, he always knew—that she realized it wasn’t just a mother protecting her son but a son protecting his mother. 

The real killer was Cliff, who had a run-in with Ben right after he got his lab results and learned of the poisoning. Since he was fasting that day, he was easily able to connect it back to Donna, and when he promised that she’d go to jail for a really long time, Cliff kind of just lost it. It was definitely accidental, but it doesn’t change the fact that he’s lied about it this whole time. 

Will There Be a Season 4 of ‘Only Murders in the Building’?

And thus, Death Razzle Dazzle was the death of the mommy-son duo that was a little too close for comfort since the beginning anyway. 

The celebrations were underway shortly after as Oliver not only produced the show and received rave reviews this time around, but he also served as the stand-in when Jonathan took too many pills and found himself out of commission. 

There was so much anticipation building up to this Broadway spectacular, that admittedly, I was slightly more excited about seeing it all come to life than I was about cracking the murder. 

And, as usual, the final moments of the episode set the stage for yet another murder. One might wonder how in the world are they going to pull off another murder in the Arconia, but they somehow did it in a way that not only made sense but built intrigue, not just about the killer but why the intended target was Charles! 

In his dark apartment, a bullet pierced through the window hitting someone in the chest and knocking them to the ground. Initially, it seemed like Charles, but it was revealed to be Sazz, who was dressed just like him. 

It’s unclear who might have a vendetta against Charles but there won’t be a shortage of suspects, including Matthew Broderick (mhhm!). My immediate go-to thought was that Jan got out of prison early and wanted revenge, but that’s too easy, right?

Sazz did want to talk to Charles about something, and if they don’t find her before she bleeds out on his kitchen floor, we’ll never know what it is that she wanted to get off of her chest. But it’s possible it was somehow related to the shooting.

At this point, they don’t have to look far for their next murder as it hits way too close to home. This time, it’s personal.

And while that’s good for the podcast because there’s no shortage of material, I swear, I would be high-heaving it out of the Arconia the moment a fourth murder occurred. Maybe it would just be better for the trio to take a break in Los Angeles, a sunny place free from the dangers lurking in NYC… one would hope. 

LA became a topic of conversation as Loretta and Oliver discussed the next phase of their relationship, which means Meryl Streep may stick around for the foreseeable future, though she’ll likely be busy pursuing her blossoming acting career and establishing a relationship with Dickie. 

As for Mabel, she offered to visit Tobert in Los Angeles, so he might also be around next season. You don’t even understand the sigh of relief I let out when it was revealed that Tobert had absolutely nothing to do with Ben’s murder. Mabel finding a good guy who wants to pursue things further? All I have to say is, hold onto that, girl! 

So, that’s where we leave off this season—Ben’s murder solved, everyone’s relationships thriving, and a new murder plaguing the lives of the core three?

What did you think of this season of Only Murders in the Building? Are you still enjoying the concept?

Who Is Ben’s Killer on ‘Only Murders in the Building’ Season 3?

Only Murders in the Building concluded its third season on Oct. 2, 2023, leaving fans wondering if we’ve reached the end of the road with Mabel (Selena Gomez), Charles (Steve Martin) and Oliver (Martin Short), the dynamic murder-mystery-solving-podcasting trio. 

It would be a shame to wrap up a series with a cast that has such a genuine bond and chemistry, and the good news is that the murderous fun is over just yet. 

On Oct. 3, 2023, the official social media pages for the show announced that the series will be coming back for a season 4. “Let the investigating begin,” the caption read alongside a photo of the iconic trio laughing and celebrating.

https://twitter.com/OnlyMurdersHulu/status/1709225551683047887?s=20

No release date has been announced just yet, but we’re hoping that a summer 2024 release isn’t out of the picture. After all, it was the perfect summer show to get invested in this year. 

The third season ended on a major cliffhanger by introducing a new murder victim—who fans initially thought was Charles, though it turned out to be his lookalike stand-in Sazz (Jane Lynch). Sazz was hit with a bullet (and it’s unclear if it was rogue or intended for her or Charles) in Charles’ kitchen before collapsing to the ground and whimpering as she bled out. 

There were also some development in terms of the trio’s personal romantic relationships, with both Oliver and Mabel establishing that they want to continue seeing love interests Loretta and Tobert, respectively, meaning that Meryl Streep and Jesse Williams may appear in the future season in guest spots as the trio potentially ventures outside of NYC to visit LA, a sunny place they can only handle in “small doses.”

All in all, there’s plenty of fan interest in the show along with fresh mysteries to keep it going—and we’re absolutely thrilled about it. 

You can catch up on all of our OMITB reviews here.