The Big Picture
- Season 3 of
Only Murders in the Building
gave us a clue early on to the identity of Ben’s killer. Tobert’s handwriting matches the message on Ben’s mirror, making him a likely suspect in the murder investigation. - We should be suspicious of Tobert due to his ability to lie convincingly and his uninvestigated connection to Ben Gilroy.
- There are signs that Tobert may have a parasocial relationship with Mabel and a fascination with true crime, suggesting a motive for his potential involvement in the murder.
With Season 4 Only Murders in the Building in production and due to hit our screens in the near-future, it’s worth revisiting the hit show’s third season and what made it so good. While the first two seasons were set in the Arconia, Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and (Selena Gomez) find themselves embroiled in a Broadway murder mystery.
The season’s mystery revolved around the death of actor Ben Gilroy (Paul Rudd) and the arrival of actors like Loretta (Meryl Streep) and Kimber (Ashley Park). Amidst the production of Oliver’s play-turned-musical, Death Rattle and later Death Rattle Dazzle, the show was clever about what clues it had dropped so far. And here’s a big one you may have overlooked.
Only Murders in the Building
Three strangers share an obsession with true crime and suddenly find themselves wrapped up in one. When a grisly death occurs inside their exclusive Upper West Side apartment building, the trio suspects murder and employs their precise knowledge of true crime to investigate the truth. Perhaps even more explosive are the lies they tell one another. Soon, the endangered trio comes to realize a killer might be living among them as they race to decipher the mounting clues before it’s too late.
- Release Date
- August 31, 2021
- Creator
- John Hoffman, Steve Martin
- Main Genre
- Comedy
- Seasons
- 4
Tobert’s Handwriting Is a Big Clue
Throughout the first half of the season, the biggest clue we have from the killer is them finding “Fucking Pig” written on Ben’s mirror in his green room. This makes Oliver, Mabel, and Charles realize the killer wrote it. While the early episodes seem to indicate it was Joy (Andrea Martin) or Loretta who was behind Ben’s death, in reality, the writing is actually far more similar to Tobert’s (Jesse Williams)!
Upon discovering a sign-in sheet within K.T. Knoblauer’s (Allison Guinn) office, Mabel realizes that the group has successfully obtained handwriting samples from the entire Death Rattle Dazzle cast. She then connects that these samples can be employed for a comparative analysis with the writing on the mirror. However, with Oliver working overtime to hide all the evidence showing Loretta’s involvement, the playwright wipes the writing off and leaves the sign-in sheet in Ben’s office. If Mabel had thought about taking a picture of the mirror, it would have negated any worry of Oliver covering for Loretta (and possibly created a funny scuffle to get rid of said picture), but this leads to a fight between the trio and Oliver finally learning of Charles punching Ben. In any case, the picture would have been useful, as when Tobert writes Ben’s doctor’s name on the murder board, his writing matches the writing on the mirror.
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We Should Have Kept a Close Eye on Tobert
While you might be lost in his blue eyes, like Mabel and even Theo Dimas (James Caverly) were, there are plenty of reasons why Tobert is a highly suspicious character. First, it’s shown that he can lie convincingly, his story about not rescuing elephants in Botswana had us and Mabel convinced. Secondly, despite his close involvement in Ben Gilroy’s life as his documentarian, he wasn’t one of the first investigated. If anything, the constant focus on Loretta possibly being the murderer and even Joy being considered makes him not being investigated, an obvious omission, with him now being the only love interest left who hasn’t been investigated.
Up until this point, we knew shockingly little about Tobert, given what a principal role he’s played in the investigation. There’s a strong possibility he is a true crime junkie. We see shades of this in Episode 7 when he hands Mabel a Bloody Mabel fanart that he is eager to center a podcast series on. There’s also the possibility that he created it and is attracted to Mabel Mora partly due to a parasocial relationship he built in his head. This is similar to Alice (Cara Delevingne) in Season 2, who is entranced by the idea of Bloody Mabel (with Alice going as far as to stage an art exhibit where she is dressed like her, and covered in blood). Unfortunately, this doesn’t end well as it led to the demise of Mabel’s relationship with Alice.
Adding to the suspicion, Tobert knows who Theo Dimas is the first time he sees him in Episode 7, making it clear that he knows quite a bit about the lives of the people the trio covered on their podcast. Those who have finished the season are aware of the third season’s twists and turns, but at this point in the show, there’s plenty of evidence that Tobert should be at the top of the list for Ben’s murder.
Seasons 1 through 3 of Only Murders in the Building are currently streaming on Hulu.
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