Loner Criminals in the Building it’s a joy on many levels, from the joy of a cool crime thriller, to the joy of playing a crime-buster, to the delight of the amazing chemistry of its novice sleuths. But one of the funnest things is watching longtime friends and colleagues Martin Short and Steve Martin mercilessly taunt each other in character and on the press tour.
As Oliver and Charles (or Short and Martin) face each other, you can feel the deep bond of brotherhood that has spanned decades from back in the 1986 comedy gem. Three Amigos. And in the latest episode of Only Killersthey come out of the real world of their friendship for an emotional moment.
Charles and Oliver fight and act in Steve and Martin’s way.
Credit: Hulu
In Season 4 episode 9, “Escape from Planet Klongo,” Charles and Oliver enter the a lot public fight on the set of Ron Howard’s latest film. Pushed to the brink by Oliver’s demands for a high-class bachelor party, Charles dumps him, calling him “intolerable” – while they both don mo-cap suits in front of the backstage crew and production crew. Soon after, however, Charles apologizes and the two go to lunch at a Chinese restaurant called the Red Dragon Palace.
“You know we’ll be friends until the end,” Oliver offers once they’re seated. Charles can’t handle emotional honesty, so the two hide behind their menus while diving into this vulnerable heart-to-heart. As Oliver assures Charles that they’re friends for life, he confidently says, “We can get colonoscopies together.”
There’s just something Martin and Short (or Steve and Martin) do together in real life.
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Martin Short and Steve Martin throw colonoscopy parties together.
Credit: Hulu
In a fascinating 2014 biography of Short, I Should Say: My Life as a Humble Comedy LegendA brief description of this tradition, which takes place every year. He, Martin, Tom Hanks (who is featured in this episode), and producer Walter Parks meet for a purposeful slumber party at Steve Martin’s home. They spent the night playing poker, eating Jell-O and broth, and spending a fair amount of time in the bathroom cleaning their systems for the test, which was scheduled for the next day. In the book, Short specifies that they are not in the same room when the test takes place. But they all drive together to their coordinated appointments and go out for lunch and margaritas afterward.
In 2018, Martin and Short talked about this Jimmy Kimmel Live. Short said the downside to this connection is that Martin’s home only has one bathroom. “At 10 p.m. the bathroom looks like the 14th day of a Carnival Cruise.”
If you think this sounds familiar, but somehow missed Martin’s autobiography, Kimmel’s appearance, and both waves that made it online, maybe you saw “Join the Club,” an episode of Max’s. Hacks when fictional comedian Deborah Vance is invited to a colonoscopy party for older male comics, whom she loves (or is jealous of). That seems to be the motivation point of the show, or maybe the idea has caught on with older comedians who want to care about health and support all kinds of shit (literally).
All this means that this small discussion about colonoscopies in Only Building Killers it’s not an idle punchline. It harkens back to the real thing in the enduring friendship between two legendary comedians, whose bond translates well on screen. Who needs friendship rings?
Loner Criminals in the Building Season 4 is now streaming on Hulu, with a new episode every Tuesday.