In the latest episode of “Only Murders in the Building,” titled “Valley of the Dolls,” the show continues to deliver thrilling content after last week’s success.
While Episode 6, “Blow Up,” brought a lot of investigation and suspense, this episode leans more into the characters’ relationships, and their emotions, and adds a lighter comedic touch. It proves that even when the investigation slows down a bit, the charm and entertainment of the show remain intact.
Mabel, Oliver, and Charles Take Refuge at Doreen’s House
The episode begins right where we left off in the cliffhanger of Episode 6. After receiving threatening text messages, Mabel (played by Selena Gomez), Oliver (played by Martin Short), and Charles (played by Steve Martin) decide to get out of the Arconia building for their safety.
The trio chooses to hide out at Charles’s sister Doreen’s house, located on Long Island. This is where things get a bit wackier.
Doreen, played by the ever-hilarious Melissa McCarthy, welcomes them into her home. Right from the start, it’s clear that she has a quirky personality, and her house reflects that. She has an obsession with dolls, and not just any dolls – there are porcelain baby dolls, life-size mannequins, and more.
Oliver even notices that one of the mannequins eerily resembles Loretta (Meryl Streep), which adds to the unsettling vibe. This doll obsession is key to understanding Doreen’s character and reveals her deeper loneliness, as she lives alone after her children have grown up and her husband has left.
Tension Between Charles and Doreen
In addition to Doreen’s strange collection, we also get more insight into the relationship between Charles and his sister. It turns out that they aren’t very close. There’s a significant age gap between them, which is part of the reason.
As the episode progresses, we learn that Charles feels responsible for an accident Doreen had when she was a child. This guilt has haunted him over the years and has contributed to the emotional distance between them.
But despite this distance, Doreen misses her brother deeply. She reveals that he doesn’t visit her often, and she masks her loneliness with her doll collection. Throughout the episode, we witness the siblings working through their strained relationship, setting the stage for a heartwarming reconciliation by the end.
Unwanted Visitors
Just when Mabel, Oliver, and Charles think they’re safe at Doreen’s house and can finally focus on solving the case, the peace is disrupted. Early the next morning, Bev Melon (played by Molly Shannon) shows up at the house.
It turns out that Howard (Michael Cyril Creighton), the ever-gossiping Arconia resident, has been telling everyone where the trio is hiding. Bev arrives in a panic, asking Charles if the Brothers sisters are the killers.
She’s concerned because if they are, she’ll need to fire them from the show she’s working on. However, if there’s only a possibility without proof, she can still spin the situation and keep them on board.
As if Bev’s sudden appearance wasn’t enough, the actors from the play also show up shortly after, angry that they were left behind with a potential murderer on the loose. Mabel tries to reassure them, telling them that the murderer isn’t after them.
However, Zach Galifianakis’s character dramatically lifts his shirt to reveal a bullet wound, proving otherwise. Despite her reservations, Mabel allows them to stay – but only under one condition: they must give up their phones to ensure the house remains as safe as possible.
Loretta’s Return
Loretta, played by Meryl Streep, is another unexpected visitor who shows up at Doreen’s house, adding even more chaos to the trio’s supposed “safe house.” Loretta’s arrival isn’t random, though. We learn that she’s come to confront Oliver after he broke up with her through a text message on the way to Doreen’s house.
Oliver had turned his phone off for safety reasons, so he missed all of Loretta’s responses. Unbeknownst to him, when Loretta received his breakup text, she jumped on the first flight she could get and headed straight to him.
But when she arrives, she finds Oliver in what appears to be a compromising position with Doreen. In reality, Oliver had just gotten caught in Doreen’s sweater while trying to stand up, but it leads to an awkward moment. Loretta, however, isn’t one to back down easily, and the two finally have a much-needed conversation.
Oliver and Loretta Talk Things Out
Throughout the season, we’ve watched Oliver agonize over his relationship with Loretta. In this episode, they finally sit down to clear the air. Loretta asks Oliver why he thought it was acceptable to break up with her over text, and he explains that he had previously called her and poured his heart out, only to receive an underwhelming “Ugh” in response.
But as it turns out, Loretta doesn’t remember this phone call. She asks Oliver what time the call happened, and when he says it was around lunchtime for her, she starts laughing.
For the scene she had been filming that day, both she and her stand-in were wrapped in gauze, and the production assistant must have mistakenly handed the phone to the stand-in. It’s a classic mix-up that adds a humorous touch to the episode.
The two laugh off the misunderstanding and seem to patch things up – at least for a while. But then Doreen steps in again. After drinking too much vodka, Doreen tries to seduce Oliver one more time. She even dons pigtails in her attempt, but Oliver remains loyal to Loretta.
This leads to a sweet conversation between Oliver and Loretta, where he admits that he had considered proposing to her during their time in Los Angeles. It’s a tender moment that deepens their relationship.
However, Oliver, being his usual self, takes things a step too far. He reveals that he created a fake account to get close to Loretta, which deeply upsets her.
Loretta explains that she had developed a connection with “Ronnie,” the fake persona Oliver had used, and had even taken screenshots of their motivational conversations. This betrayal causes Loretta to step away for a moment to process her feelings.
Doreen and Loretta’s Hilarious Fight
Loretta isn’t the only one upset by Oliver’s actions. Doreen, feeling embarrassed after her failed seduction attempt, tries to apologize to Loretta. But the apology quickly escalates into a fight, with Doreen taking the first swing.
Loretta, having learned stage combat from her acting career, fights back, leading to a hilarious showdown between the two women. The scene becomes even more comical when Eva Longoria, playing herself, begins shouting stage directions at them from the sidelines.
Despite the chaos, the fight serves as a cathartic release for both Loretta and Doreen. By the end, Loretta and Oliver manage to work through their issues, and we get to see Oliver’s more vulnerable side.
He admits that it’s been over a decade since he’s been in a serious relationship, and he fears that Loretta won’t be able to handle his chaotic life. But instead of running away, Loretta surprises him by proposing. Of course, Oliver happily accepts.
Charles and Doreen Reconnect
It’s not just Oliver and Loretta who experience growth in this episode. Charles and Doreen also have a heartfelt moment of reconciliation. Throughout the episode, it becomes clear that Doreen’s doll obsession stems from her loneliness. Her children have grown up, her husband is out of the picture, and she’s been feeling isolated for a long time.
In a touching conversation, Doreen opens up to Charles about their difficult childhood. She reveals that their mother wasn’t always the best parent, often distant and emotionally unavailable. However, she vividly remembers one particular moment when their mother held her hand during Charles’s first play.
It was the first and only time their mother showed such affection, and it left a lasting impact on Doreen. She admits that she feels abandoned by Charles as well and wishes he would visit her more often.
Charles, feeling guilty for not being there for his sister, promises to make an effort to visit her more frequently. This scene provides a touching resolution to the tension between the siblings and adds depth to Charles’s character.
The Actors Solve the Mystery
While Mabel, Oliver, and Charles are dealing with their personal issues, the actors at the safe house are busy working on the case. The actors, feeling left out of the investigation, decide to take matters into their own hands. They create a “murder wall,” complete with all the clues they’ve gathered, and claim to have solved the mystery.
Their big revelation is that the case goes all the way back to Season 1. They point out that the trio never thoroughly investigated who poisoned Oliver’s dog, Winnie, because they assumed it was Jan (Amy Ryan), the killer from Season 1.
Additionally, the threatening note that was left on their door in Season 1 – the one that read “End the podcast or I end you” – had to have been written by someone left-handed, as there was a smudge on the paper. However, Jan was not left-handed, as evidenced by the way she held her bassoon.
The actors also note that the text messages Mabel, Oliver, and Charles received in Episode 6 are similar to the notes from Season 1.
Charles realizes that his friend Sazz had pieced all of this together before her death. She had left behind clues that pointed back to these same revelations, and Charles believes this is what she had been trying to tell him – that the trio has been targeted since the very beginning.
The True Killer is Revealed
While the trio is hiding out at Doreen’s, Howard is back at the bodega, continuing his own investigation. He’s trying to figure out who has been cashing the checks in Milton Dudenoff’s name. As he examines the signatures, he notices that they are all different, but the phone number listed on each check is the same.
Suspicious, Howard manages to get the surveillance footage from the bodega, and to his surprise, he sees five familiar faces: the Westies.
Howard calls the phone number on the checks, and Vince Fish (played by Richard Kind) answers, pretending to be Milton Dudenoff. This confirms Howard’s suspicions – the Westies have been cashing Dudenoff’s checks. Howard promptly hangs up, knowing that they’ve been found out.
