Murderville is a new Netflix show and if you enjoy improv comedy, this series is for you. Will Arnett stars and brings in some truly hilarious guests!
For fans of improv comedy, boy do I have a show for you. It is called Murderville and it stars Will Arnett, who plays a detective that can’t seem to keep a partner. Each episode brings in a new celebrity guest, who has no idea what they are in for. Literally. They are not given a script and must help Detective Terry Seattle solve a murder. At the end of the episode it is up to them to use the clues given and accuse the killer, but the best part is the journey.
The first six episodes features some truly hilarious guest stars — Annie Murphy, Conan O’Brien, Ken Jeong, Kumail Nanjiani, Marshawn Lynch, and Sharon Stone. I have my fingers crossed that this show continues because there is a long list of celebrities that would be fantastic on this show, including improv masters Ben Schwartz and Thomas Middleditch. These two have improv specials on Netflix already, so it is not a far stretch.
While it is fun to pay attention to all the clues and try to solve the murder as a viewer, the best part of this show is hands down the improv comedy. Terry makes his guest partners do the most ridiculous things — just wait until you see Kumail’s walk and Conan’s reaction to Terry’s reaction to magic. There is so much about this show that is bonkers, but in the best way possible.
Of course some episodes are better than others, and you can probably tell which just by looking at the name of the guest star. Many of these people are seasoned comedians, some are not. Still, the entire concept here is so ridiculous that it just works, and every episode has its moments.
Related: Middleditch & Schwartz: What The World Needs Right Now
Murderville isn’t a perfect show, and it probably isn’t technically a good show, but it is truly a joy to watch for those enjoy silly, off the wall comedy. While each episode can be considered a stand alone, as they all have one murder to solve with a conclusion as to who did it in the end, the episodes do come together cohesively.
Terry can’t keep a partner because he is always so worked up about the partner he lost years ago, Lori Griffin, and this is mentioned in all of the episodes. It is something that helps to connect the episodes together, while still allowing each one to be enjoyed as its own thing.
For those who enjoy a good murder mystery, wrapped up in silly and ridiculous comedy, Murderville is for you. This is the perfect show to put on after a long day and just laugh at. Sure, it is fun to try to figure out the killer. The clues are fairly easy to figure out and I didn’t guess wrong once. The joy here is the ridiculous things that Terry makes his guest star partners do and say in order to investigate the case. All of them are good sports and dive into it head first, making for some great entertainment.
Rating: 3 out of 5
About Murderville
Meet Senior Detective Terry Seattle (Will Arnett), Homicide Division. For Terry, every day means a new murder case and a new celebrity guest star as his partner. But here’s the catch: each episode’s guest star isn’t being given the script. They have no idea what’s about to happen to them. Together, the guest star and Terry Seattle will have to improvise their way through the case… but it will be up to each celebrity guest alone to name the killer.
Join them as they punch a one-way ticket to Murderville. The six-episode procedural crime comedy premieres globally on Netflix on February 3. Based off the BAFTA award winning BBC3 series Murder in Successville by Tiger Aspect Productions and Shiny Button Productions.
Celebrity Guest Stars: Annie Murphy, Conan O’Brien, Ken Jeong, Kumail Nanjiani, Marshawn Lynch, Sharon Stone
Main Cast:
- Will Arnett as Detective Terry Seattle
- Haneefah Wood as Chief Rhonda Jenkins – Seattle
- Lilan Bowden as Medical Examiner Amber Kang
- Phillip Smithey as Detective Darren ‘Daz’ Phillip
Murderville hits Netflix on February 3rd, 2022.
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Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.