Lucky for fans, this week Hulu released three new episodes, instead of just one, of Only Murders in the Building season 5. The streamer gave just enough to satisfy our excitement for the return of the series, while building enough suspense to remind us to tune back in next week.
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for the Only Murders in the Building season 5 episode 2.
To jog your memory, in Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 1, Charles, Mabel, and Oliver found a severed finger on a shrimp cocktail tray shortly after the “accidental death” of doorman Lester was announced. The trio visited The Godfather house for a meeting with a possible mob wife, Sofia Caccimelio, returning with no leads to her husband's whereabouts or the death of Lester. At the very end of the episode, Oliver haphazardly discovered a second dead body: Sofia’s missing husband!
The peculiar connection in all of this is that the podcast trio previously suspected the missing husband and mobster, Nicky Caccimelio, to be the murderer of doorman, Lester. While we haven’t ruled that out, this could also point to another killer. The doorman was definitely mixed up in some deadly mafia activity somehow! As for the severed finger, Only Murders in the Building season 5 episode 1 did not yet reveal the owner. Let’s dive into episode 2!
Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 2 takes us back to Lester’s first day on the job
Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 2 takes us through a time lapse of about 32 years prior, when Lester was first hired. We get to meet young Lester, who had dreams of being a movie star. Those dreams may have fallen short, but he took his role as doorman seriously and served with pride. His boss instilled in him that paying attention to the details and anticipating tenant needs were the most important parts of the job. The most important tool he receives for his job is an elevator crank, which will make an appearance again later.
We get to see Lester’s first encounters with some of the most prominent tenants of the Arconia, including the three famous podcasters. We see the beginning of a strained relationship with Oliver. Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 1 alluded to the fact that Lester didn’t like Oliver much, and we see why in episode 2. Oliver is a money-hungry scammer to say the least (at least future Oliver isn’t so bad).
Young(er) Charles appears in his glory days, as the character Brazzos from his one-hit-wonder television show. In a surprise cameo, we briefly see Shazz, who died in Only Murders in the Building season 3, accompanying Brazzos in the building. We also see baby Mabel and the day that Lester met her mom. As Mabel grows, Lester becomes a guardian figure for her. In a heartwarming moment of the episode, Lester meets his wife Rainey, and from there it’s pretty much a love-at-first-sight story.
Finally, we meet the infamous Nicky Caccimelio—a younger version of course. We find out that Lester’s former boss "promoted" him to work for Caccimelio specifically. Caccimelio assures Lester that, “not all the work is legal, but nobody’s getting hurt” (a little bit of irony knowing what we know 32 years later). His former boss also gave him a fair warning that, “the less you know, the better”.
The time hop in Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 2 shines light on the present investigation
Close to the end of Lester’s career as doorman, viewers witness an argument between Lester and Caccimelio about Lester wanting to take off work for his wife’s anniversary. The argument explains the connection and tension between Nicky and Lester. Lester wanted to retire when the demands of mob business began to take a toll on him and his personal life, but Nicky held Lester’s turn-the-other-cheek mentality over his head as blackmail.
Nicky threatened Lester by saying he couldn’t retire until the Caccimelio legacy was finished at the Arconia (so basically never). Could this be motive for Lester to murder Caccimelio, causing another murderer to seek revenge on Lester?
The final scene of Only Murders in the Building season 5, episode 2 is a flash forward to the day of Lester’s death. We see that he was fumbling with the elevator crank he was given on his first day on the job, and then…someone hit Lester across the head (the blow that killed him) with the elevator crank. With that ending, you have to watch the next episode to see if we get more clues about the mystery killer and the owner of the severed finger. In between episodes, check out the official podcast of the Only Murders in the Building series on YouTube.
Only Murders in the Building airs on Tuesdays on Hulu.
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