Only Murders in the Building Season 4 Episode 4 Review: The Stunt Man

Critic’s Rating: 5 / 5.0

5

Oh Hell! It’s not even Halloween, and Only Murders in the Building Season 4, Episode 4 just gave us a darkly comedic treat!

From Charles’s creepy, fog-infested dreams to a surprising twist that wasn’t Paul Rudd’s reappearance, “The Stunt Man” served up some seriously macabre vibes.

(Disney/Patrick Harbron)

Rats, Hell’s Kitchen, “faces,” and snappy dialogue set the tone, weaving together clues from earlier episodes. And now, we might be getting closer to figuring out who killed Sazz — if Sazz is really dead, that is.

Plus, did we just catch a hint that Mabel might be headed down a darker path?

Selena Gomez recently teased that her character becoming a murderer would be “fun.” With Mabel now living in the west building surrounded by the “weirdos,” could she be on her way to becoming a “different kind of weirdo” — like, maybe a murderous one?

There’s so much to unpack, so let’s dive in!

Back to Paradise

Charles was having trouble interpreting his dream about Sazz, but when Stubbins knocked him out, it finally jogged his memory about what “Paradise” meant.

But if you look at it as a whole, isn’t it a bit suspicious that Glenroy’s double was the one to trigger Charles’s flashback about Sazz wanting to open the Sazz Pataki Impact Academy — especially with the way things played out at the end!?

Between that, Loretta’s mystery man, Dr. Maggie (and her memory-inducing chiropractic techniques) as well as Eva Longoria giving Mabel a bed that just so happened to be placed in front of a secret compartment in Dudenoff’s apartment — something fishy is definitely going on with these guest stars!

The more I think about it, the more convinced I am that neither Glenroy nor Sazz are actually dead.

This could easily be some wild movie plot cooked up by Bev and her crew, designed to capitalize on the trio’s podcast success. Honestly, everyone — Sazz, Gilroy, even Loretta — could be in on the whole thing!

There’s a chance Loretta might not be involved in this whole scheme, though.

Charles’s offhand “if she’s alive” remark could be some sneaky foreshadowing that Loretta might be next on someone’s hit list, which would eliminate her from my conspiracy theory.

(Hulu/Patrick Harbron)

I know it sounds a bit out there, but what if the movie’s producers actually want her gone? Maybe they’re worried a romance between her and Oliver could derail the plot.

Or — plot twist — what if Loretta isn’t who she says she is? Okay, it’s a stretch, but with everything this show throws at us, wild speculation is practically required!

As for Sazz, she told Dr. Maggie she was planning to retire, which is something she conveniently hadn’t mentioned to Charles.

So, the idea of her faking her own death while leaving Charles with a Hollywood movie project makes a lot of sense. 

She might think the movie is a sort of parting gift, and in the end, they’ll all have laughs about it. But that is definitely a wacky theory and a wacky way to say goodbye to your friend.

Sweet Dreams Are Made of This

Even though Dr. Maggie mentioned Sazz wanting to get out of a bad relationship with Charles, I don’t think it’s as deep as Charles imagined. She probably just wanted to step away from the whole business altogether.

And let’s not forget the wrap party for the musical back on Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 10, which offers some support for my “Sazz isn’t really dead” theory.

Why did Sazz go out of her way to grab Charles’s Malbec back at his apartment? What was she investigating? We still haven’t figured that out.

(Disney/Patrick Harbron)

She was also a ham radio hobbyist, so she could’ve easily helped Bev cook up this “murder” plot involving the Westies to spice things up.

I mean, throwing in a bunch of “weirdos” for extra flair and depth makes sense, right? They want a blockbuster, not something that’ll fade into obscurity on some random streaming service!

And who knows? Maybe Mabel moving into the west building is all part of the plan, too.

Hitting the Rent Jackpot

$200 a month for an apartment in New York? That’s like hitting the housing lottery! And since Mabel’s basically homeless at this point (what’s going on with Theo?), she couldn’t say no to such a sweet deal.

Even if this whole thing is wrapped up in a movie-making conspiracy, it’s the only place where she can be independent right now.

But — here’s the kicker — moving in with the Westies, even though we still don’t know a whole lot about them, could change her, and probably not for the better.

(Disney/Patrick Harbron)

When Vince called the Westies “weirdos,” he told Mabel she’d become “a different kind of weirdo” if she moved into Dudenoff’s apartment.

Now, that could mean many things — or nothing at all. But if Only Murders in the Building keeps Mabel in the west building, there are tons of ways her character arc could twist — including her turning into a real killer.

Honestly, with her past accidents and setups, it wouldn’t be that much of a leap.

And if that happened? It would take the show and Mabel’s character in a wild new direction, and I’m all for it. That would be a blast!

But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. I bring all this up because of Oliver and his Finsta account, which he used to track Loretta.

Finsta, Baby!

Oliver is finally dropping his “face” — it’s about time!

If you remember my review of Only Murders in the Building Season 4, Episode 3: “Two for the Road,” I talked about his habit of “preparing a face to meet the faces that you meet.”

Well, that mask totally came off when he opened up to Mabel about Loretta. For once, Oliver was real, letting his vulnerability show as he confessed his fears that Loretta might be seeing someone else. 

(Disney/Patrick Harbron)

Naturally, Mabel, being the voice of reason in the trio, thinks it’s a terrible idea (because, duh, if Loretta finds out, it’ll wreck their relationship).

But, quick sidebar: I totally relate to Oliver’s tech struggles. Watching him fumble with the brightness on his iPad had me in stitches.

And Mabel’s patience with these two tech-challenged “geezers” is so endearing. No sarcasm, no snark — just sweet understanding and patience. 

Also, can we talk about “finsta”? I had to Google it, and when I realized what it was, I laughed so hard. It was a total “Okay, I might not be as old as Charles and Oliver, but I feel you” moment. 

It also made me appreciate Mabel even more — she’s like the cool, patient kid dealing with her out-of-touch parents. It reminds me of my own kid, who’s got an endless amount of patience when I struggle with what he thinks is simple tech stuff.

Anyway, back to Oliver.

(Disney/Eric McCandless)

In a surprising twist, he admitted to Mabel that he planned to propose to Loretta in Los Angeles.

It wasn’t a shocker that he wanted to pop the question (we all saw that coming on the veranda ), but it was surprising that he actually shared it. Progress, Oliver!

And did anyone else notice the trio talking about “faces” right after the bartender at Confessions called them that? I totally nailed the “faces” observation!!

Just so you know, I have access to screeners for Only Murders but I watch them episode by episode just like any fan, so I had no idea that was coming.

As for Oliver and Loretta’s relationship? It’s way too soon to call, but wouldn’t it be wild if that mysterious arm we saw belonged to Ben Glenroy? 

I don’t see their romance going the distance, and however it ends, it’s gonna hit Oliver hard. Despite all his bravado, the guy really does love her.

Luckily, he’s got Charles and Mabel to lean on, and there’s no doubt those two will help him through it. One thing’s for sure, though, he — or any of our trio – can’t count on Howard!

A Rat is a Rat is a Rat

I can’t even begin to express how disappointed I am in Howard!

I really wanted him to be a permanent part of the team. Sure, Mabel stuck him in her apartment to keep an eye on things (and the pig), but hey, that still counts, right?

But now? Ugh, he’s a total traitor! A rat! As my mother-in-law used to say, “Go scratch your ass.”

That’s exactly how I feel about Howard. He turned on our trio so fast, and I honestly can flip on him just as quickly.

(Disney/Patrick Harbron)

The selfishness is just unreal — though it’s not all that surprising. Maybe backstabbing and deception are just part of the Hollywood playbook. 

But the fact that he got turned down for the role of playing himself in the movie should’ve sent him crawling back to our trio, tail between his legs.

He didn’t even have to admit he auditioned, and let’s be real, even if he did, the trio would’ve forgiven him.

But now? He’s clearly mixed up with the Brothers sisters and Bev. They’re not “nurturing” him for no reason. And then, he takes Mabel’s pig, right after pulling off his sneaky little stunt? Yeah, no doubt that’s all connected.

To tie it all together, remember how Stubbins told Charles he’d go into the back room to question Dr. Maggie? He said to just think of him as a “rat” in the background. It’s kind of like what Howard is doing right now with our trio.

And here’s another wild thought: Is Stubbins really just Stubbins, keeping an eye on Charles under the orders of someone else? Or could he be Ben Gilroy in disguise — you know, the “face” of Stubbins?

It totally makes sense because how else would Bev have known about the trio heading to Sazz Pataki’s Impact Academy? That was a total shocker, right?!

And quick side note — the whole “rat in Hell’s Kitchen” thing? Hilarious.

I’ve mentioned before that in real life, the Westies were an Irish mob operating out of Hell’s Kitchen, and one of their guys, Mickey Featherstone, eventually turned into a — you guessed it — rat! Gotta love those parallels.

Alright, Arconiacs, your turn! Were you as shocked by these twists as I was? Do you think Sazz and Glenroy are still alive? Could this all be one big movie hoax? And what’s Loretta’s role in all this?

Hit the comments below and share your theories!

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