‘Only Murders in the Building’ Episode 3 Recap: Is Howard the Killer?

The first two episodes of Only Murders in the Building Season 4 made it hard to put too many theories together. After the premiere flew the characters out to Hollywood and the second episode tossed us back into New York, we were left with two very distinct groups of suspects: the ones involved in the upcoming movie adaptation of the trio’s podcasts, and the ones who live in that mysterious building next door.

Thankfully the third episode, “Two for the Road,” brings the two groups together, and now the possibilities seem endless. It helps reestablish my theory that these three celebrities aren’t just fun guest stars but actual characters, AKA potential murderers.

It also subtly brings the Brothers sisters under suspicion for the first time. Those are the two directors, played by Siena Werber and Catherine Cohen, who were introduced in the premiere as “identical sisters” even though they clearly aren’t. (The fact that producer Bev Melon can’t tell the difference between them also makes her a suspect for a lot of fans, as mentioned in last week’s recap.)

“The Brothers sisters thought it’d be a good idea if we followed you for a day,” explains Eva Longoria at the start of the episode, and it feels awfully convenient. So they were told to just pop into the middle of the trio’s investigation and tag along? Without any warning or heads up, giving the trio no chance to reject them before they’re already there?

Sounds like one of these three is either an unwitting mole or a killer themself; either way, they each spend the episode enjoying a good long look into an investigation that could’ve otherwise been kept under wraps.

Of the three celebrity suspects, Eugene Levy once again comes across the most suspicious here. He spends the episode buttering Charles up, telling him how cool and interesting he is, even to the point of pretending as if a book titled “The History of Wood” is exciting. He also reveals himself to have an encyclopedic knowledge of Charles’ detective show Brazzos, and refers to him as an “American idol,” despite the series’ running gag that Brazzos isn’t super well-known. While it seems increasingly unlikely that Sazz was the intended target, and therefore Levy couldn’t have killed her for the role, Levy’s over-the-top friendliness still feels too good to be trusted.

On the bright side, Levy and Charles’ side quest into the apartment of Vince Fish (Richard Kind) helps to vindicate the lonely eyepatched neighbor. Turns out, Fish really does have pink eye, not a black eye from the recoil of a sniper’s rifle. And as for how he’s always looking at Charles with a scowl on his face? Well, turns out he’s just socially awkward, much like Charles himself. The two share a heartwarming hug; Charles may have lost one friend this season, but maybe he’s gained another.

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Probably the biggest point against the “Levy is the killer” theory is his behavior at the end of this storyline. Levy appears to have a genuine realization that Charles is more of a relatably sad coward than a compelling enigma, which he says will help him play the role. (In other words, that early flattery might’ve come from a healthy place, not a hyper-obsessive one.) He also points out to Charles the group picture of the Westie neighbors, which features a mysterious figure with their face scratched out. (That’s gotta be Sazz, right? More on this in the clues section.) If Levy was up to no good, why would he make sure Charles sees this potentially vital bit of evidence?

The second biggest suspect of the three celebrities is Longoria, who’s revealed to be surprisingly reckless and self-centered; in the early scene around the suspect board, she keeps declaring people the killer with little evidence, much like Jan did with Howard back in Season 1. And then Longoria barges into the apartment of Christmas Guy/Rudy (Kumail Nanjiani) before Mabel can even get there. She ruins any chance of Mabel being able to discreetly reel out information from Rudy, instead making sure Rudy knows straight away he’s a suspect and allowing him to figure out a strategy before Mable walks through the door.

Admittedly, this strategy seems to help: Rudy’s vindicated with the revelation that he actually hates Christmas, so there’s no way he would’ve killed Charles over that petty Christmas tree dispute. It’s also fun how Kumail Nanjiani gets to finally use his Marvel physique again. Nanjiani famously got buff to play a superhero in Eternals only to get 20 minutes of screentime, followed by no sequel; Rudy’s backstory of being a fitness guru, complete with him getting to show off his rock-hard abs, feels like the writers throwing the actor a bone. It’s a fun meta gag of the show saying, “See? That exhausting, dysmorphia-inducing Marvel workout routine finally paid off, sort of.”

Bottom on the list of celebrity suspects is Zach Galifianakis, if only because he’s such a jerk in this episode that I’d rather him turn out to be the killer’s next target. We’re used to characters insulting each other in this show, but Zach lays into Oliver with such joyless, effortless cruelty that there’s nothing all that funny about it. Making him even less suspicious is the way Zach doesn’t seem interested in the case at all; Howard (Michael Cyril Creighton) is the one given all the casework, while poor Oliver tries in vain to get Zach to like him.

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But speaking of Howard… There’s been a growing theory among the Only Murders fandom that Howard is a Moriarty-esque killer who’s been hovering around the trio the whole series. The gist of the “Howard’s a killer” argument boils down to how Howard has subtly ingratiated himself into the group, to the point where he’s acting this season as the honorary fourth member. Oliver trusts Howard to sit through a day’s worth of ham radio chatter this episode, which begs the question: Should he be trusting Howard with such an important task? How well does he know Howard, really?

Another bit of evidence against Howard this season is his introduction of his new dog Gravey in the premiere, which seemed a little too convenient given what was going on with Sazz at the time. Mabel also received a text from Howard back when they were in Sazz’s house, just as they were about to investigate a strange noise they heard in the home. Could Howard have been texting them because he was the one who made the noise, and he wanted to get them out of there before they caught him?

I’ve been a huge doubter of the Evil Howard theory, but when he walked into this episode with another pet on his leash—this time the pig from the Westie apartment—it definitely gave me pause. The pig is almost certainly a key to unlocking this season’s mystery, and he just so happens to have it now?

Casting even more doubt on Howard is the revelation that he, not Oliver, is Zach Galifianakis’ true double. This season is one defined by doppelgangers, so the decision to give Howard his own bearded sweater-loving diva to feud with definitely feels calculated. Did the writers do this simply because Howard and Zach’s battle of wits is comedic gold, or is there something deeper going on here?

Either way, I think it’s worth giving Howard his own spot on the fandom’s suspect board this time around. We should be asking questions like: Is there anything from the ham radio chatter he didn’t write down? Did he write anything down that wasn’t on the radio? How does this man have the free time to drop everything and dedicate his whole day to listening to the radio? Why was he banned from buying a new cat? What ever happened between him and Jonathan, his love interest in seasons 2 and 3?

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If Howard is a killer, this has the potential to be one the scariest, most thrilling reveals of the entire series, which is appropriate for a season that’s been uniquely dark and intense so far. Not only that, but it’s in line with a season that seems far more willing to use elements established in previous seasons; the first reference of the ham radio chatter came from Sazz in Season 3, for instance, just as so much of the plot in last week’s episode relied on Jan, a character from way back in Season 1. It may seem foolish to return to past suspects, but this season is all about returning to the past.

Sure, fans have also suspected Howard of killing Ben in Season 3, Bunny in Season 2, and Tim Kono in Season 1, but all those previous theories were examples of delusional paranoid speculation. This time, though? I think I’m onto something.

But assuming the series is reluctant to throw in a twist this massive, it’s worth reflecting instead on the family of Westie neighbors we met last week. In the opening scene, Detective Williams (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) tells the trio that they were playing cards during the night of the murder when they heard a gunshot.

The story checks out admittedly, but how come the trio doesn’t bother checking back in with Ana, Inez, and Alfonso? The whole family was completely ignored this week. Given how most of the show’s past mysteries have played out (with the big early suspects turning out to be red herrings), the family’s absences this episode indicate that one of them is the likely killer.

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The episode ends with Mabel squatting in Dudenoff’s apartment in an effort to draw the man back to New York. During the subsequent housewarming party with Oliver and Charles, they figure out the secret channel on the ham radio, where they talk to a mysterious woman who tells them that the last person asking questions about this subject ended up dead. Who is this woman? I can’t place her voice, but it’s possible that she’s Inez or Ana talking in a different accent. It’s unlikely she’s the killer, but finding her is sure to be the next big step in uncovering this massive conspiracy.

Clues From the Crime Scene:

• So, that picture in Fish’s apartment. I strongly suspect the crossed out person in Sazz. A lot of this is simply due to the similar height/build, and it’s also due to the prominent fan theory that Dudenoff is Sazz. Most of what we’ve learned these past two weeks indicates that Sazz bought the apartment to figure out the conspiracy around Charles, and she’d made friends with the surrounding neighbors in the months before her untimely demise.

• In a season filled with doppelgangers, it’s worth pointing out that you can’t suspect Sazz of being in the photo without also suspecting the characters who canonically look like her. Therefore, it’s possible that Scott Bakula is the guy with the crossed out face.

• In Detective Williams’ talk with the trio, a lot of attention’s drawn to the fact that the mysterious Dudenoff is supposedly in Portugal. I have no idea what to make of that, except that it reminded me of the flight ticket on Sazz’s desk, with HELGA written on it. Of all those notes, the flight ticket is one of the few left that doesn’t appear to reference anything familiar, so it’s definitely worth keeping in mind.

• We learn that the bullet that killed Sazz was shot from a hunting rifle, so fans should be keeping an eye out for hunters in the coming weeks.

• This is a total stretch, but I noticed that Howard’s “compliments” of Oliver this week strongly mirrored Bev Melon’s “compliments” of the whole trio in the premiere. Do the writers simply enjoy the humor of this sort of dialogue, or is this a sign that Howard and Bev are in murderous cahoots?

• We find out that the mysterious tinsel in Dudenoff’s apartment isn’t tinsel at all. So what is it? Much like how the bassoon cleaner was assumed to be a sex toy back in Season 1, it’s possible that figuring what this tinsel-esque item actually is will be huge. (Maybe it’s cut-up aluminum foil? But I’m not sure how that could be relevant to the murder.) Whoever can think of a tinsel-esque, nonflammable item that the murderer could use, they’ll likely be the first to solve this whole mystery.

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