Only Murders in the Building Review: Fan Fiction (Season 1 Episode 8)
Mabel, Oliver, and Charles learn that you can’t rush an investigation on Only Murders in the Building Season 1 Episode 8, “Fan Fiction.” While everything may appear to be neatly wrapped up, you have to check all your boxes and rule out all other possibilities first.
Teddy and Theo are guilty of a lot of things, but killing Tim Kono does not appear to be one of them. Now, we’re back to square one, trying to figure out who else had a motive… and if Jan’s attack is connected at all.
Jan’s attack is a bit random. She came into the scene rather late, and if the note was left on Charles’ door, then that would’ve made more sense. It would be like how Oliver was threatened and his dog paid the price. But who all knew Jan had recently joined the investigative team?
The Arconiacs are a great source of humor during “Fan Fiction,” and they also bring the season full circle by harking back to Mabel, Oliver, and Charles’ fan days. Sure, our trio didn’t sit outside of Cinda Canning’s office with signs like groupies, but the Arconiacs are still a fun bunch.
The roundtable discussion with our trio, the Arconiacs, Jan, and Oscar is fantastic.
We get to dive in and focus on the investigation, rehash what we know, and point out the lingering questions and things that don’t quite make sense. All in all, it’s a lot of fun, and it’s something that Mabel, Oliver, and Charles really haven’t gotten to do recently.
As much as I love our core trio, we don’t get a lot of scenes with bigger groups of people and exploring all of those dynamics. “Fan Fiction” gives us that. We get to experience characters meeting for the first time — Jan and Oscar — as well as discovering that some people don’t get along that well.
Oliver and Mabel have clearly reached the next level of friendship by bonding over a mutual dislike of someone. You can tell they simply don’t want to share their investigation with Jan, and it doesn’t help that she jumps right in, claiming to be a big part of it.
For as much detective work we get during the roundtable discussion, there’s one spot where Only Murders in the Building appears to have missed the mark — figuring out who sent Tim Kono’s phone.
It would have been much better to see Mabel, Oliver, and Charles figure out that the detective is the one who sent them Tim’s phone. Instead, Mabel simply declares that they should go talk to the person that sent it, and they magically know it is the detective.
Obviously, it came from someone in the police, but there isn’t anything that suggests it was the detective. And while we know she’s the one who sent it to the three of them, it doesn’t make sense that Mabel, Oliver, and Charles randomly figured it out.
It’s a big jump to make, and it is strange that we don’t see Mabel, Oliver, and Charles reach that conclusion themselves. Now, what would have been hilarious is if they assumed some other random person sent it to them, and somehow the detective had to somehow interject and steer them on the right path.
What did you think of this episode of Only Murders in the Building? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Critic Rating:
User Rating:
New episodes of Only Murders in the Building premiere Tuesdays on Hulu.
Follow us on Twitter and on 
Instagram!
Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!
Allison Nichols
Allison is in a love affair with television that doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Slightly damaged fictional characters are her weakness. She loves to spend her free time curled up with a cat and a show to binge-watch. Allison is a Tomatometer-approved critic (Rotten Tomatoes).