Only Murders In The Building Season 3 Episode 2 Takes A Wry Shot At Paramount+

Contains Spoilers for "Only Murders in The Building" Season 3, Episode 2 — "And the Beat Goes On"

"Only Murders in the Building" is a clever show that knows exactly what it's doing when it winks at the audience. Characters have literally broken the fourth wall during the course of the show's first two seasons. So it's not a big surprise that they've made a knowing nod to their lives as characters on a streaming network.

During the second half of the brilliant Season 3 double-episode debut, "And the Beat Goes On," Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) insists to Charles Haden Savage (Steve Martin) that he can persuade anyone into doing anything with his charm. Oliver reminds Charles of how he talked him into subscribing to Paramount+. "I wanted that!" Charles insists. "Did you?" Oliver slyly retorts. That's naturally a quick but fond jab in the ribs at one of Hulu's major competitors. 

That definitely isn't the only time the show has had fun breaking its own fourth wall and engaging in a little bit of knowing patter with its audience. In fact, "Only Murders in the Building" often directly engages its audience by making knowingly humorous references. And they definitely aren't the only show that's managed to get a laugh out of the ongoing streaming war launched by rival companies in the entertainment platform space.

"Only Murders in the Building" has become known for its fourth wall breaks. Whether it's having Theo Dimas (James Caverly) directly address the audience during an episode entirely centered on his life in the building or having the show's various murdered characters narrate montages of the investigation that takes place after their deaths, the dramedy has become fearless in its decision to play about with its own conventions. A cardinal example of this: during Episode 5 of Season 2, "The Tell," Oliver Putnam says to Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez) that he can either rush and complete something well or do it fast and render it poorly. She tells him to do it quickly and he replies, "I won't be blamed for the reviews." That appears to be a jab at audience and reviewer complaints that the show's Season 1 finale felt rushed.

The streaming wars themselves have become prime content for clever writers' rooms across Hollywood. Whether it's "Futurama" making jokes about its arrival on Hulu — "Fulu" in the future — or "South Park" venting about the difficulties of creating constant streams of content in "The Streaming Wars," jokes about these rivalries are likely here to stay as long as the competition remains in place. And it won't matter whether they're kidding about the competition or telling truths about their home platforms.