Only Murders in The Building (Season 2), Episode 6 Recap and Ending Explained: Welcome back to The Arconia. Last week’s episode of Only Murders in The Building provided us with yet another suspect for Bunny Folger’s murder. This week, we got more, but from an unexpected place. Also, many old characters returned to signal that things are heating up.
Only Murders in The Building (Season 2) Episode 6 “Performance Review” Recap:
Cinda Canning returns with the production of another episode of Only Murderers in the Building. It focuses on a theme of the stories that humans tell themselves, the words that serve as fiction to help them adapt to reality. We also get introduced to Canning’s personality and her behavior towards Poppy White will make you loathe her.
The moment the “stories” line plays out on screen, the episode cuts to Alice, who is in Mabel’s apartment. Cara Delevingne’s character says she is working on a surprise.
We then proceed to Charles Haden Savage and Jan. It is here, where we see that Amy Ryan’s character is a crazed psycho who just wants Steve Martin’s character. She even went as far as to get him to apologize. In Oliver’s story, we see him overcompensate and try to live up to the episode’s theme as he sits at a DNA test.
Following the end credits, a few older characters return. We see Lucy and Sazz and hear about Detective Williams offering her services for a matchbook DNA test. Subsequently, we see and then learn that the trio has received a message from Detective Kreps. It’s very surprising that the police just walk into a residential apartment. Has Mabel left them a key? She didn’t seem surprised that they were waiting for her there with Cinda Canning and Poppy White.
Canning drops a hint about the depths to which she would go, justifying how an unhinged murderous beauty would be way more tantalizing. Kreps orders both parties to not drop episodes as it is hampering his investigation, but we all know how that is going to play out, right?
Another exchange between Mabel and Poppy set the tone for what was about to come as it further drove in Canning’s disrespect and Mabel’s imploring statements about Only Murderers in the Building’s next guest, i.e. Jimmy Russo. It was extremely demeaning to witness Cinda whistling to her producer (assistant) and equating her to a dog.
In the next scene, Mabel, Charles, and Oliver follow up on Williams’ offer but learn that Williams is in Denver on maternity leave and can’t meet face to face. However, when the number they think is Williams messages them a drop location, they smell a rat and set a trap.
The trio then sets up a glitter bomb at the drop-off and Oliver plants it in the trash. The individual who does appear isn’t Detective Williams. Unfortunately, the trio misses it as they are focused on Charles’ situation with Jan. On foot; they lose the suspect and Mabel strides away in solitude. Once at Alice’s apartment, she sees that Alice has turned it into a set and is filming her version of Bunny’s murder.
She leaves in a confused and blurry state and then gets a call from Poppy White, who realizes that her boss will stop at nothing. This spilling of the beans comes after Canning dismisses White’s path for career progression. Also, Charles uses Sazz to break up with Jan, as he seemed incapable of doing so himself. This may have purely been written in to provide Jane Lynch some screen time in Only Murders in the Building’s sophomore season.
Only Murders in The Building (Season 2) Episode 6 “Performance Review” Ending Explained:
The ending saw a frustrated Mabel just walk away and look to travel. However, once in the underground, she ran into the victim of the glitter bomb. When Poppy White spoke to Mora, she warned her about the lengths to which an individual would go for content. This made one assume that it would be the end for Mabel. Why would the individual approach Mabel in a public space? This means that said individual didn’t want to finish her off.
When the camera showed us the septuagenarians, they saw the video of Mabel stabbing another man on camera. This video proof is evidence of the content within Canning’s latest podcast release and just proper proof that the Only Murders in the Building trio may not be able to stop. Mabel is indeed deranged!
Oliver and Charles will have their hands full, with Mabel having to go on the run. They may even question their teammate, as Occam’s Razor would imply that she was the killer as she went down from the rooftop. The identity of the man in glitter, and whether he was Cinda Canning’s stooge, will come to light soon. Also, we can expect more on the Greek vs Irish debate and see Jan’s reaction to getting dumped. A big focus will center around Alice’s backstabbing and using of her friend. It could even see Mabel trust Oliver and Charles as they saw red flags way back.
Performance Review is the first episode where we have progressed to the end credits without a regular Arconia resident cast under the spotlight. Moving suspicion to one of the leads is a bold move that opens up the avenues of internal mistrust (which would explain how sensitive items keep finding their way into each other’s apartments). It could fracture the group and weaken them. By adding yet another name to the hat of suspects, Only Murders in the Building sets up for a wild final four episodes that could see any thread come together. Hell, even Canning could be the guilty party, as she fits the idea of a killer who will not go far from their work, and she would get rid of the podcast competition. Additionally, her devious mind would help her gain more content and money as well.
Canning? Alice? White? Someone else? Many killers working in tandem? It’s all heating up and based on Oliver’s words of “four episodes” this could imply that something from Performance Review will pop up in episode 10.
For now, though, what did you make of Episode 6 of Season 2?
