Felicia Nickens
The following recap contains spoilers for Only Murders in the Building S5E1, “Nail in the Coffin” (written by John Hoffman, Steve Martin & Taylor Cox, and directed by John Hoffman)
I am beyond thrilled that my favorite Trio is back and with a new mystery to solve. I admit that I haven’t been following any OMITB news lately, so I went into this episode completely blind. I was excited to see some of the guest stars in this episode and am looking forward to what the show has in store for the rest of the season.
Goodbye, Lester & Hello, Finger
Our favorite trio is back, and so is the chaos. After the events of the Season 4 finale, Oliver (Martin Short), Mabel (Selena Gomez), and Charles (Steve Martin) find themselves with a new mystery to solve: the death of their doorman, Lester. Was it natural causes or something more sinister? The gang begins brainstorming what could have happened to Lester, but their session takes a wild turn when Oliver, enjoying some leftover shrimp cocktail from his wedding, discovers a surprise ingredient: a severed finger.
The gang heads downstairs to Lester’s memorial. Mayor Tillman (Keegan-Michael Key) is there giving a speech. He admits he didn’t know Lester, but reminds everyone to vote for him in the coming election. Oliver and Mabel head over to Lester’s wife, Lorraine, hoping to get information that can be useful to the case. Charles opts for a less subtle approach. He attempts to open Lester’s casket during the service, leading to a comedic misunderstanding that has everyone convinced he’s acting inappropriately with the corpse.
Later, Oliver is looking over a photo of Lester at his wedding. In it, Lester is speaking to mobster Nicky Caccimelio (Bobby Cannavale). This is the same Nicky that Sophia (Tea Leoni) declared missing in the Season 4 finale. This discovery prompts the gang to head to Sophia’s home. The trio arrives in a taxi, where Charles compliments Mabel on her clever use of a Stanley cup to discreetly transport the finger. Sophia’s sons, surprisingly, are less “intimidating mob enforcers” and more “enthusiastic podcasters.” While they sing their podcast’s theme song, Mabel knocks over her cup, sending the finger flying. Panic ensues as everyone scrambles to recover the rogue digit.
Sophia informs the gang that her husband is only a wannabe mobster and that real mobsters died years ago. She also confirms that the severed finger can’t belong to her husband, as his hands are so hairy that they have to get them permed. As the trio is leaving, Sophia stops Charles and hands him a deck of cards. The cards that belonged to Nicky were left on the nightstand the day he disappeared. She tells Charles that Nicky always carried the cards with him.
Back at the Arconia, Charles discovers that one of the cards is magnetic and has a hidden map on it that is only visible when viewed through a wine glass. He runs into Mabel, who has been mapping the security camera blind spots. The map on the card matches her findings, and together they uncover a secret passage in a storage closet. The playing card acts as a key to a hidden door, revealing a 1950s-era gambling room with an envelope full of cash that belonged to Lester.
Meanwhile, Oliver decides to do something nice in Lester’s memory. He takes Lester’s uniform hat to the dry cleaners. The sign says they are closed, but seeing that the door is unlocked, Oliver helps himself inside. It’s not long before he discovers a dead body hanging with the dry cleaning. Yep, it’s the body of Nicky Caccimelio.
With the discovery of Nicky’s body, the trio is left with a fresh set of questions. Who killed Nicky and Lester, and who does the severed finger belong to? The mayor’s sudden interest in the podcast and a potential partnership with the gang raises suspicions, as no character is ever introduced without a purpose. Sophia’s motivations also remain unclear; what was her role in Nicky’s death, and why did she involve the trio instead of the police? As always, we can expect plenty of laughs as the team works to uncover the truth.
