Murderville Review: Will Arnett Goes Off Script to Make Solving Murders a Joke

Netflix has so many shows that it has more shows than it has scripts for shows. Ever see Middleditch and Schwartz? Two guys just got on stage and made stuff up while a camera rolled! Not a single script in sight. The new comedy Murderville — a murder mystery cop show starring Will Arnett as homicide detective Terry Seattle — goes partway there, giving a script to everyone on the show except one, a celebrity guest who solves the crime. It's a format originated on the British series Murder in Successville, and, like all improv projects, will have its fans and haters. The simple litmus test to figure out if you'll like it boils down to whether or not watching funny people trying their hardest not to laugh is enjoyable to you. For me, it worked.

Each episode follows a similar formula, with Arnett's pathetic, incompetent, and in-the-middle-of-a-divorce detective getting introduced to his new partner — which includes Conan O'Brien, Marshawn Lynch, Kumail Nanjiani, Annie Murphy, Ken Jeong, and Sharon Stone in Season 1 — and a new murder case plopping down on Terry's desk. From there, they interview three potential suspects to get clues, some improv gags and games are thrown in, and the celebrity guest reveals who they think dunnit. Case closed!

6.5

Murderville

Watch at Netflix

Like

• Will Arnett has created an enjoyable character that you want to see more of
• Improv humor!
• David Wain does magic

Dislike

• The episodes aren't consistent in quality
• Improv humor!

The six episodes of Season 1 take a different tone based on the guest, as Arnett feels things out and acts appropriately to keep things moving. With guests who are natural on-their-feet comedians, like O'Brien and Nanjiani, he'll bounce off of them or set them up for jokes, and with others who are more passive, he'll go full Terry Seattle and take the lead. Arnett's fantastic in this, diving in and out of the scripted and improv comedy seamlessly and fully embracing Terry's mix of professional cockiness and personal misery (his tough boss is his soon-to-be ex-wife). As such, some episodes are considerably better than others, with those with better guests rising to the top, but every episode has its moments. 

Murderville's inventive format allows for a different breed of comedy that's a hybrid of scripted and improv, but the way the show is set up, it doesn't feel like two different parts of the same show. That's key to its success as it's never, "OK, we're entering the improv portion of the episode!" because the silly humor and Arnett hold things together. It's funny but not brilliant, making it an easy weekend binge if you want to pass three hours.    

Premieres: Feb. 3 on Netflix (all six episodes)
Who's in it: Will Arnett, Conan O'Brien, Sharon Stone, Kumail Nanjiani
Who's behind it: Krister Johnson (Medical Police)
For fans of: Thinking on your feet, terrible murderers, a cop at his breaking point
How many episodes we watched: 4 (of six)