Summary
“Grab Your Hankies” finally introduces the musical elements to the new season as Oliver writes and performs his latest musical production. This intriguing angle is elevated by a stunning musical number, which will give you goosebumps.
We recap the Hulu series Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 3, “Grab Your Hankies,” which contains spoilers.
Theater director Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) wants to turn his cursed Broadway play into a musical, but first, he needs to convince the cast, the crew, and the producers of his daunting new vision.
In “Grab Your Hankies,” Oliver starts to write and rehearse his musical, ready for his big pitch. While Mabel (Selena Gomez) explores Ben’s penthouse with a new friend. And Charles (Steve Martin) searches for the trio’s first suspect, investigating the missing hankie.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 3 Recap
Having landed on his epiphany, Oliver gets to work right away on his musical, brainstorming ideas with Howard that night. He needs to impress the producers with an outstanding pitch though, or else he won’t receive any of their funding for the show.
Oliver pitches Death Rattle Dazzle! the musical. Cliff loves the idea, but his mother, Donna, thinks it could be too expensive. She tells Oliver that he needs to create an addictive showstopper, although he only has three days in which to persuade them to agree to the show.
READ: Will there be a Season 4 of Only Murders in the Building?
Meanwhile, Charles and Mabel inspect their chalkboard of suspects. Mabel has only shortened the suspects’ list down to all of the cast and crew at this point.
They all have their own individual reasons for hating Ben. Mabel and Charles agree that the killer must have tried to poison Ben first and then returned for a second time to finish off the job.
Somebody hated Ben so much that they practically killed him twice.
Why is Mabel banned from rehearsals?
Charles decides to investigate the missing handkerchief first, starting with the crew. The person without a handkerchief could technically be the killer. Charles is then summoned to Oliver’s rehearsal. Mabel has been banned due to her ongoing investigation. Oliver doesn’t want her to ruin his musical with her sleuthing. She chooses to snoop around Ben’s penthouse instead.
The cast gathered for Oliver’s first rehearsal. Charles awkwardly asks to see the cast’s handkerchiefs before Oliver makes his big, motivational speech. He announces that he wants to restart the play as a musical. The cast is less than enthused.
They practice Oliver’s showstopper. Loretta shows up late, though. She’s now being managed by Dickie, who has gotten her an audition for a network series.
Loretta is devoted to the musical but has other options now. The first run-through goes terribly, Oliver calls it a day.
At the same time, Mabel heads to Ben’s penthouse. In the elevator, she meets Ben’s cameraman Tobert. He’s also heading up to the penthouse suite but for equipment. The pair are obviously up to no good, snooping around the house in secret.
When Dickie shows up, they hide in a closet together.
Why is Tobert at Ben’s penthouse?
In the dark, they get to know each other a little better. Tobert admits that he was after his film footage from the night of Ben’s death. He wants to follow the story further to see where it all leads. Mabel flirts with Tobert and steals his hard drive of footage.
Mabel needs a password to access the footage, though, so she meets up with the cameraman again. Tobert thinks that Gregg, the crazy stalker, is still the killer, but Mabel persuades him that the mystery is very much unresolved.
Together they look through the footage. In it, Ben argues with an unknown assailant. This might seem out there, but my money is on him arguing with a plate of cookies.
After the rehearsals, Charles and the cast criticize Oliver’s musical in private. Charles continues to bring up the handkerchiefs, but they’re more interested in getting the musical canned first.
Meanwhile, Oliver and Loretta get a little more intimate.
Oliver shows Loretta one of his quieter songs called The Nanny’s Lullaby, which is titled Look for the Light in the closing credits, a song co-written by Sara Bareilles (Girls5eva).
Loretta is then told that she got the TV role, and they’re starting filming next week. Loretta chooses the network series over Oliver’s musical.
Angered by this betrayal, Oliver forces her to stay under contract.
Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 3 Ending Explained
Later, Oliver apologizes for his outburst. He tells Loretta that he won’t be forcing her to stay on. As one last favor, he asks Loretta to perform the lullaby for the producers.
This will be his final pitch to them. Loretta performs the song, with Kimber joining in at the end. Even on the first go, you can see that it is a certified hit.
Cliff is blown away by the performance, and he talks his mother into agreeing to fund the production. Oliver is over the moon to have saved the musical. He thanks Loretta for her performance. Loretta agrees to stay on and kisses Oliver.
Why is Kimber their first suspect?
The episode ends with Charles asking Kimber for her handkerchief. She admits that she has lost it. All signs are now pointing towards Kimber, their first lead suspect.
What did you think of Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building Season 3 Episode 3? Comment below.
