Netflix’s latest series, The Residence, embraces the recent revival of the TV whodunit with a colorful cast, comical chops, and a dutiful, yet peculiar, detective. Produced by Shonda Rhimes and created by Paul William Davies, the eight-episode limited series delights in the strength of its cast and quick, witty writing.

Borrowing from the iconic film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, episode 2 finds Cupp questioning the large suspect pool, sectioning three interview areas across the spacious house. The inconsistency of eyewitness testimony is apparent as not one guest recalls the same perspective of the night’s events. One thing is for certain: not one staff member had anything coarse to say about A.B. Wynter.

Cupp first questions the man wearing Wynter’s shirt. The individual is David Rylance (Brett Tucker), the Australian Foreign Minister and one of three premier guests of the State Dinner. Rylane explains how he accompanied Wynter in the kitchen and witnessed the Chief Usher exchange heated words with the House Chef, Marvella (Mary Wiseman), over the night’s menu. Marvella threatened to kill Wynter. Later, Rylance sought the chef to apologize. But this was just an excuse to act on their sexual tension. As he and the chef moved outside, Marvella headbutted Rylance in the heat of the moment causing a nosebleed. Wynter exchanged shirts with Rylance despite them being completely different sizes.

During their shirt exchange, Rylance says Wynter received a phone call in his office which caused him to say: “I am going to be dead at the end of the night.” While an uncommon phrase, it doesn’t necessarily mean Wynter knew he was going to be killed. Described as “old-school,” A.B. was respected and revered but was under extreme stress. Lilly, the Social Secretary, says he was miserable, blaming the staff and the numerous incidents Wynter had to manage; from move-in day to a terrorist attack.

With this revelation, Cupp has Australian Prime Minister Stephen Roos (Julian McMahon) coerce President Morgan (Paul Fitzgerald) into holding all guests for questioning. The next comical montage displays the varying eyewitness accounts of who was where with what and when. Carpenter Eddie Gomez looked for engineer Bruce Geller (Mel Rodriguez) and allegedly overheard Harry Hollinger arguing with Wynter in his office. Hollinger swears this isn’t true but many relayed he was missing from Kylie Mingoue’s performance for 20 minutes. Bruce the engineer states he was fixing the toilet of Tripp Morgan (Jason Lee), the president’s brother and family black sheep who was not invited to the dinner. President Morgan’s husband, Elliott (Barrett Foa), refuted the rumor that he hated A.B. but stated his husband regularly clashed with the former Chief Usher.

During her questioning, Cupp discovered that Marvella and Rylance were not the only ones outside that evening. A secret service car crashed on the grounds, prompting an investigation, while A.B. allegedly argued with Hollinger. Next, the call he received that night was traced back to the White House greenhouse, where Cordelia finds a shard of glass that was found at the scene of the crime.

Finally Cordelia, on the hunt like a falcon, orders Wynter’s body to be brought through the front to inspect how the various suspects react. Amongst the 200-plus staff and guests, one individual stands out as our detective’s next prey.

Episode two extends our mystery with great skill, introducing several new characters. Again, each cast member delivers, making each scene a riot. Aduba’s silent interrogation of the carpenter reaped several laughs, followed by the hilarious eyewitness montage. And the constant joke about the troubled calligrapher landed every time. Great writing extends the mystery amidst the humorous moments, interjecting a bit of drama when necessary. The tone is strongly balanced for an exceedingly enjoyable episode.

Rating: 8/10