The renowned murder mystery show Only Murders In The Building, starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, recently released its first two episodes of season three, with eight more on the way. However, many plotlines left viewers confused. Here are the top unanswered questions from season one and two of OMITB. Spoilers for season one and two ahead!
1. Who poisoned Winnie?
When Winnie, Oliver Putnam’s bulldog, was poisoned in season one fans were concerned. Both Putnam and the fans assumed that poisoning Winnie was a warning to stop the podcast – just like the stabbing of Jan was a warning to Charles-Haden Savage. However, we later found out that Jan stabbed herself to throw the trio off of her trail, but she never confessed to poisoning Winnie. Some fans may assume it was her, but who knows who poisoned Winnie? Maybe it was Howard Morris, the renowned cat person, or Mrs. Gambolini, Bunny’s bird, getting sick of other pets. Either way, fans are very eager to know who poisoned this lovable dog.
2. Why were Poppy and Cinda at the Arconia the night of Bunny’s murder?
Those who finished season two know that Poppy stabbed Bunny in Mabel’s apartment, which explains her presence, but why did Cinda appear at the Arconia? We know Cinda doesn’t value Poppy’s opinion or Poppy as a person, so what did Poppy say to get Cinda to show up?
3. Why did Poppy send the “Get out of the building now!!!” text to Charles, Mabel, and Oliver?
It doesn’t make sense for Poppy to send the trio out of the building if she’s trying to frame Mabel, Oliver, and Charles to put them at the scene of the crime. One theory is that Poppy wants them to be seen fleeing the scene of the crime, raising suspicion to send them directly into the arms of the police. Another theory is that she wanted to send them out so that she could plant evidence in their rooms, like Oliver’s knife and the painting in Charles’ house.
4. Who left the note on Jan’s door?
One of the main theories for this plot hole is that it was an overarching villain who has been planning everything since the beginning, and has a vendetta against one of the characters. Maybe this villan is blackmailing Jan, or she’s working for them. Either way, she looked relatively scared when she found the note. This could be the same person who poisoned Winnie, and who wrote one of Tim Kono’s suicide notes. If you look at both of the notes, one matched Jan’s handwriting, but the other didn’t.
Another slightly sillier theory to answer this question is that it was Howard Morris. In season two, Howard tells Charles that he knew Jan was the murderer by episode eight of the podcast, and Jan gets the note in episode eight of the show. Maybe Howard just wanted Jan to know that he was onto her? The last theory is that Jan left the note for herself, but if she did, why did she look so scared when she found it?
5. Who is the “her” Charles mentions at the end of season two?
When Charles is threatening Ben at the end of season two, he said, “Be smart. Stay away from her.” Which female character is he talking about? It could be Mabel, who seems to be too young for him, but would probably be around Ben a lot since hangs out with Oliver and Charles. It could be Joy, Charles’ girlfriend, or Jan, Charles’ ex-girlfriend. One of the best theories, although unlikely, is that Ben is Lucy’s stepdad, who she has mentioned not liking. Charles, as Lucy’s father-figure, is naturally going to be protective of her, even to the point of threatening a more famous actor than him.
After all of these unanswered questions, one might wonder if the show writers even have a plan. “We like our loose ends,” said John Hoffman, co-creator and executive producer, “I don’t mind carrying loose ends from season one to season two, from season two to season three.”
OMITB seasons one, two, and three are available to watch on HULU today.
