[WARNING: The following contains mild spoilers for Only Murders in the Building Season 4.]
Oliver Putnam (Martin Short) has told plenty of wild stories on Only Murders in the Building. Starting in the series premiere, he’s spun yarns about frenzied nights drenched in revelry, not-safe-for-work romps with A-listers, and more than one incident that took place under the influence of less-than-legal substances. But setting aside all of the glamour — and questionable truthfulness — we have a clear favorite: his love story with Loretta Durkin (Meryl Streep).
By and large, romance has never fared well at The Arconia. Oliver and Loretta, however, have made it this far… and because they’ve made it this far, we’re hoping they’ll make it to the end. Here’s why we’re well and truly “rattle-dazzled” by their romance.
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A Heartwarming Tale of Second Chances
By the time the show’s third season rolled around, Oliver and Loretta had both given up on love, albeit in different ways. After his ex-wife’s long-ago affair with Teddy Dimas (Nathan Lane), Oliver never remarried. While his longtime friend Charles (Steve Martin) pursued relationships with oboist (and unbeknownst to him, murderer) Jan (Amy Ryan) and with his former makeup artist on Brazos, Joy (Andrea Martin), Oliver stood on the sidelines. Mabel (Selena Gomez), too, fell in love a few times and then saw those relationships fall apart — but Oliver never stepped into the dating pool. Not until he met Loretta… who, as it turned out, was looking for a love of her own.
The show doesn’t delve much into Loretta’s dating history aside from a manipulative director who took advantage of her, but it would’ve been reasonable if she swore off love after that traumatic event. Instead, it seemed Loretta poured her affections into and devoted her heart to acting — but for most of her life, acting never loved her back.
She tried, again and again, for a big break that never came… not until Oliver. While she’d originally auditioned for Oliver’s play as a way to reconnect with her son, Dickie (Jeremy Shamos), Oliver’s belief in her acting abilities and encouragement of her performance eventually led to her getting multiple Hollywood offers and moving out to LA to live her dream, for real. Because he believed in her, Loretta took the stage that gained her recognition and acclaim, and she was able to build a meaningful relationship with Dickie. And, of course, she found romantic love, too. It all worked out for her!
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It’s Never Too Late
While stereotypical silver-screen romances are nothing to scoff at — who doesn’t love Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) on Outlander, for example? — there’s just something special about later-in-life love stories that leave us teary. Oliver and Loretta had both experienced massive heartbreaks, again and again and again, in both their personal and professional lives. Despite that, they never became so jaded or guarded that they couldn’t open up to each other. In fact, their “date” in Season 3 is one of the show’s most swoonworthy moments.
We’d challenge anyone to watch their first kiss and not feel weak in the knees or to see Loretta and Oliver sitting beside each other at the piano during the Season 3 premiere and not be overwhelmed by their chemistry. They’re both quirky, but in complimentary ways; think The Office’s Michael (Steve Carell) and Holly (Amy Ryan), or The Good Place’s Jason (Manny Jacinto) and Janet (D’Arcy Carden).
The fact that they’d apparently been in some of the same social circles without ever connecting just lends the whole thing an air of fate. Neither of them had much luck in love throughout their lives, and it’s a bummer to consider how their happiness might’ve started earlier if they’d bumped into each other. Perhaps they were always each other’s person, but it was never the right time. Or, as Season 3 seemed to suggest, perhaps they met exactly when they were meant to. After all, true love isn’t about youth — it’s about building a genuine, meaningful connection. Loretta and Oliver certainly have that.
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Heading Toward Marriage?
As is often the case with established fictional romances, once the will-they-won’t-they is out of the way, Oliver and Loretta face new obstacles in Season 4. Because she’s gone out to LA for work and Oliver’s remained in New York City, they’ve had to go long-distance. To put it mildly, Oliver’s struggling. He constantly frets about Loretta’s attractive male costars. He made a “finsta” (a fake Instagram account where someone poses as a made-up person) to interact with Loretta in secret, only to delete it after his friends rightly pointed out how boundary-crossing and invasive that was. (Come on, Oliver. Do better.) We’ve not heard much from Loretta’s side at this point, but we’ve been given no reason to believe she’s being anything but faithful to Oliver. In fact, she asked him to move out to LA with her, which would’ve been a huge step. Unfortunately, Oliver wasn’t ready to take it.
What is Oliver ready for? Maybe… marriage! During a loaded conversation at a swanky Hollywood party in the Season 4 premiere, Oliver stumbled his way into almost popping the question to his soon-to-be superstar girlfriend. Based on her expression, Loretta was shocked but not closed off to the idea.
And here’s where things could get tricky from a plot standpoint. If Loretta and Oliver marry by the season’s end, will the show bring her character back to New York? Would Streep be willing to stick around for more seasons and potentially join the podcast crew? It’s possible that Loretta could get an acting job in the city, and she and Oliver could stay together that way. We highly doubt Oliver would exit. He’s already made it clear that he’s not a fan of the City of Angels, and the show leans heavily on the dynamic between him, Charles, and Mabel. As a result, we just don’t see him leaving The Arconia.
Unfortunately, on a show about murder, the possibility must be floated… could tragedy strike at Loretta and Oliver’s wedding, and the Season 5 murder investigation revolves around her? We sincerely hope not. Season 4 has been emotionally resonant given Charles’ personal connection to victim Sazz (Jane Lynch), but killing off Oliver’s love just as they’re set to be married might be too tragic for an otherwise feel-good cozy mystery.
Our hope is that Oliver and Loretta manage to make things work long-distance and that they either make it safely down the altar or agree to continue their relationship as it is. And if tragedy does strike, there’s always the too-sweet rumors that Streep and Short just might be an item in real life.
Only Murders in the Building Season 4, Tuesdays, Hulu