Spoilers ahead for the Halloween episode of Elsbeth Season 2.
Elsbeth celebrated the spooky season in the fall 2024 TV schedule with a Halloween episode that featured Carrie Preston in an iconic costume from start to finish. Elsbeth wearing a Breakfast at Tiffany's-inspired outfit wasn't the only way that that this episode, called "Devil's Night," differed from the norm, however. Instead of giving away the culprit of a murder in the opening minutes, viewers were as in the dark as the investigators for much of the hour. And based on what executive producer Jonathan Tolins told CinemaBlend's Riley Utley at New York Comic Con, more surprises are on the way.
Jonathan Tolins, who previously broke down the Season 2 premiere cliffhanger, shed some light on the plans for the current second season. (You can revisit the full first season now with a Paramount+ subscription.) When asked by CinemaBlend about crafting a plot line that isn't what we typically see on Elsbeth, he shared:
Well, I will say that starting with the finale last year, we're breaking form, looking for variations, just to keep the audience from ever feeling like you've seen one, you've seen them all. So in that one, you see a murder, but you're certainly not getting the whole story, and you are having to figure things out along with Elsbeth. We have others coming up where we do more surprising things. And I don't want to give anything away, but we were having a lot of fun letting ourselves be a little free. Before this job, I watched every Columbo and people think they were always the same. But they weren't. They actually also would play with things and fool you.
Tolins didn't go into any spoilery details about the "more surprising things" that are on the way, but it sounds like fans shouldn't count on a full season of Elsbeth following the exact same format week in and week out. Using Columbo as inspiration bodes well; after all, Peter Falk's title character is a pop culture icon and easily made our list of the smartest TV detectives.
Plus, after Elsbeth shouted out her honeymoon with her husband in the Halloween episode, I can't help but wonder if he'll never been seen on the show just like Mrs. Columbo was never shown. Sure, her ex-husband appeared occasionally on The Good Wife, but The Good Wife and The Good Fight aren't required viewing for Elsbeth. (Carrie Preston's real-life husband Michael Emerson joins the cast in December.)
It remains to be seen if Elsbeth will start churning out surprising episodes sooner rather than later or parcel them out as Season 2 continues, but the next installment certainly looks fun and continues the show's trend of casting big names for key roles. After Nathan Lane was the first of the second season, Vanessa Williams is up next. Check out the promo for the next episode:
With "Elsbeth's Eleven" as the title for this upcoming episode, I know I wouldn't be mad if it includes some nods to Ocean's Eleven, even if Carrie Preston's wardrobe isn't an homage to the film like her Audrey Hepburn costume was in "Devil's Night" on Halloween. Keep tuning in to CBS on Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET for new episodes of Elsbeth Season 2 directly after Matlock at 9 p.m. ET, or stream them with a Paramount+ subscription.
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