History Series / Whodunnit

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/01d5adc0d4fcb3ffe4ba84a4c974d8cc_4594.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Are you the Killer's most worthy adversary?]]

Made by the creator of ''Series/{{CSI}}'', ''Whodunnit?'' is a murder mystery RealityShow that premiered June 23, 2013 on Creator/{{ABC}} and ended on August 18.

Thirteen contestants are invited to a cursed mansion called Rue Manor. Each week, at least one of them is "killed," and the others must solve the mystery while trying to figure out [[TenLittleMurderVictims who among them]] [[TheMole is the Killer]]. After collecting evidence, the contestants stand one at a time in the library and reconstruct the murder as best they can. The person whose theory is farthest from the truth becomes the next victim.

The evidence-collection phase of each episode has two stages. In the first stage, the contestants gather clues by examining the room where the body was found, the body itself in the morgue, or a relevant third location (usually somewhere the victim had been shortly before the murder) -- but each contestant may visit only one of the three locations.

The second stage is a treasure hunt: the contestants are given a clue which leads to another clue and so on; the first person to follow the chain of clues to its end finds the murder weapon and gains an insight into the murder method -- and ends the hunt before anyone else gets to complete it. Thus, it is not possible for any one person to find all the available clues, and strategies for gaining truthful information from other contestants can be key to a successful solution. The last contestant alive gets to unmask the Killer and wins $250,000.

''For the long-running British mystery game show, see Series/WhodunnitUK''.

''For the {{Pinball}} game from Bally, [[Pinball/{{WHO Dunnit}} click here.]]''

----
!!Examples:

* ThirteenIsUnlucky:
** There are thirteen contestants to begin with.
** In one episode, a clue in the murder weapon hunt requires contestants to find a flight of thirteen steps that the victim fled down, and the Killer's note says that in this case thirteen was unlucky for the victim.
* AmateurSleuth: Most of the contestants aren't homicide detectives in real life.
* AnnoyingLaugh: Lindsey without a doubt. In one congratulatory message the Killer gave her on her performance, they even noted how annoying her laugh was. [[spoiler:She hinted in her "post-death" interview that it's why the Killer put an arrow in her throat.]]
* ArtShift: The murder scenes are shot more cinematically compared to the rest of the show.
* AnyoneCanDie: It's a pseudo-reality show so, yes, everyone is up for grabs (except Giles).
* ArtisticLicense: Let's just say that liberties have been taken when it comes to how most murders worked, starting with more than one instance of a poison working faster than it does in real life and going from there.
* AsTheGoodBookSays: A riddle in the first episode refers to 2 Kings 13:17, a passage about "shoot through the east window" as a clue to the murder. (The contestants looked at Ezekiel 13:17 first because they missed the "2 Kings" part and that's what the Bible in the house was open to, but it didn't seem to mean anything.)
* AtLeastIAdmitIt: Part of Kam's MoralMyopia is his insistently calling the others 'lying backstabbers'; he makes no secret of only being out for himself, and claims the others are hypocrites for wanting to hedge their bets as much as possible.
* BackForTheFinale: The Killer "resurrected" their victims in the final episode to run the challenge tasks and congratulate the winner as they exited Rue Manor.
* BigRedButton: One with a bomb on it was on the remote the Killer used to blow a victim up.
* BratsWithSlingshots: [[spoiler:The first murder weapon.]]
* BreakThemByTalking: Melina, being [[spoiler:the last person outside of Kam's alliance still left alive]], turned into a complete badass in the next-to-last episode by single-handedly deducing many of the details of [[spoiler: Ronnie's ]] murder, just by how well she knew the victim. She then went and confirmed her suspicions by telling the other alliance nearly every single piece of information they knew that she shouldn't, and stunning them into silence.
* BriefcaseFullOfMoney: The winner is presented with one at the end of the finale.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: Do NOT let Lindsey's AnnoyingLaugh and bubbly personality fool you, she's worked as a chemical engineer, [[spoiler: she knew Cris was the Killer the whole time, and she came within less than a minute of beating Cam and winning the whole thing]].
* TheButlerDidIt: "You don't think ''I'm'' the Killer, do you?" [[spoiler:He wasn't. His employment contract, which the players had to read to prove his innocence, stated [[ReadTheFinePrint he wasn't responsible for any murders in Rue Manor.]]]]
* CartoonBomb: In the death-by-explosion episode, the first clue for the murder weapon hunt arrives in the form of a cartoon-style bomb with fuse fizzing.
* CluelessDetective: The eventual winner proves to be one, as they never correctly identified the Killer at any point in the show - during the finale, they even named ''Giles'' as the Killer when prompted, as they'd missed Giles' instructions to ReadTheFinePrint of the contract they were to get. The win came mainly came from succeeding at primarily-physical challenges, not any kind of deduction. The finalist that ''did'' suspect the Killer correctly was killed off due to finishing the challenge last. It just goes to show how the show treated the identity of the Killer as essentially an afterthought.
* TheComicallySerious: Giles starts becoming this in the later episodes.
* CondensationClue: Left on a mirror in the victim's suite during the pilot episode.
* ConfessionCam: As is par for the course for a reality competition.
* ContractualGenreBlindness: The players get this when they've been eliminated and it's time for their death scenes. Glaring example: the third elimination; the player in question knows he's been marked for death, the others are begging him not to go off alone, but he blows them off and leaves anyway.
* CosmicPlaything: Implied in the books as to why the games are happening: [[DesignatedMonkey Giles]] is cursed by the first killer [[spoiler: so that whenever job he takes, it turned out to be for/hijacked by a serial killer who sets up a DeadlyGame and forces Giles to host for him/her]].
* CowboyEpisode: The episode in which the victim dies while horse-riding is stuffed with [[TheWestern Western]] clichés and shout-outs.
* CreatorCameo: The Killer's creepy, mechanical voice in the finale was done by the executive producer, Anthony E. Zuiker. He and fellow producer Cris Abrego -- not to be confused with the contestant named Cris -- also appeared as the cops who arrested the Killer, [[spoiler:who is the contestant Cris]].
* CriminalMindGames
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Many deaths are in this fashion.
* ADeathInTheLimelight: Getting a lot of screentime can result in this.
* DetectiveMole: It's assumed the Killer is sabotaging the investigation. Downplayed, however, as ''everyone'' is sabotaging someone else's investigation to avoid being the next victim.
* DoubleEntendre: At dinner after the sixth case, Giles tells the guests they're all gonna get "lei'd." They're having a luau.
* DisproportionateRetribution: According to their first note, the killer chose their first victim because she dropped a wine glass during the meet-and-greet.
* DramaticDrop: One victim dramatically drops a bowl of breakfast cereal after receiving a threatening message from the Killer.
* DudeNotFunny:
** The night after the ManOnFire murder, Giles taunts the players by serving roast pig flambé for dinner. He trollingly asks "Too soon?", which they agree it is.
** The morning after two females are murdered, Giles briefly dances with a maid before reminiscing olden times when he did the same with a British debutante in London; he was, in his words, "a little bit of a lady killer." This provokes less-than-amused reactions from both Melina and Cris.
* DumbBlonde: Subverted. In early episodes Lindsey is perceived by some of the other players as less intelligent, and is often shown stumped by the riddles. However, she [[spoiler: manages to get the best case in episode 3, doesn't get a Scared card until the penultimate episode even in spite of being left out of the loop often, and ends up being the runner-up of the entire game. Oh yeah, and she's the only one who correctly guessed who the killer was every single time.]]
* EliminatedFromTheRace: Players are judged by their ability to accurately determine how each murder took place; those who were furthest off the mark are in danger of being eliminated via becoming the next victim.
* EstablishingSeriesMoment: The death of [[spoiler:Sheri]] around ''five minutes'' into the pilot episode sets the morbid tone for the rest of the series.
* EliminationStatement: At the end of each episode after the first, the eliminated player whose "murder" was the focus of that episode delivers an elimination statement from the morgue (or equivalent, as in the case of the victim whose corpse spent the episode up a tree) while wearing their death scene makeup and costume.
* ExternalCombustion: One victim is killed by a car bomb planted in a golf cart.
* TheFaceless: The Killer -- until TheReveal, of course.
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:Adrianna]] is considerably calm when [[spoiler:she]] gets Scared for the first time, even saying "If it's my time, it's my time." [[spoiler:Sure enough, she's the next victim.]]
* FailedASpotCheck: Happens on occasion, such as when the players at the morgue missed the [[spoiler: wooden splinters in Ulysses' wound]]. After the seventh case, the killer calls out the final five for missing a great deal of evidence and how it was unacceptable that late into the game, to the point where the idea of a second double murder may be on the table as a result.
* FairPlayWhodunnit: Somewhat. The audience is presented with all the clues the players find, but each individual player is denied a share of the clues and must share information with others to get what they're missing. And if players miss certain clues entirely (as is the case in some late episodes), not even the audience is informed of them until the murder is explained at the end of the episode.
* FallingChandelierOfDoom: One is dropped following the sixth case, [[spoiler:though it's not actually the murder weapon.]]
* FinalExamFinale: While it marks the end of every episode (and a larger version is an important part of the actual finale), it's apparently played very literally behind-the-scenes: the end credits specify that the contestants actually take a written exam that questions their knowledge of the crime to decide whether or not they'll move on.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** Possibly a coincidence, but while investigating a fireplace, Adrianna expresses fear that it's going to explode. [[spoiler: At the end of that episode, Adrianna dies in an explosion.]]
** In one episode's investigation, Cris states that her dad taught her to handle and use guns when the situation ever came where it would be necessary. [[spoiler:It becomes clearer when you find out that she's the killer.]]
** According to the Killer, the luau murder was originally going to involve them strangling the victim with their kukui nut lei, but since the victim didn't wear the lei to the luau, the Killer had to kill them another way. [[spoiler:In the finale, Melina is strangled and killed with the same lei.]]
* GentlemanSnarker: Giles is very sophisticated and is quite snarky at times.
* GildedCage: Rue Manor. Not even the staff can leave its grounds -- Giles reveals to the survivors at the start of the second episode that he's got an ankle bracelet that prevents this.
* GoshDangItToHeck: Cris' CatchPhrase is, "Son of a biscuit!"
* AGodAmI: The Killer refers to the contestants as "mortals." Not a good sign.
* HollywoodSilencer: One of the murders is committed with a silenced handgun while the other contestants are only a few feet away. It's treated as entirely reasonable that none of them heard a thing.
* HopeSpot:
** At the third case's end, it seems the two potential targets are gonna see another day... [[spoiler:Then Don goes to cook his steak, and a mountain lion is released from a hidden passage...]]
** Following the sixth case, Giles announces that the Killer has told him that [[ExactWords nobody is going to die that night]]. Unfortunately for the victim, this was because the Killer intended to strike at 12:01 the next morning.
* HurricaneOfPuns: Giles and the Killer love to make puns based on the murder the players are investigating.
** After [[spoiler:Dontae]] was killed by burning, the episode was filled with fire puns up to and including [[spoiler:"Dontae's inferno."]]
** [[spoiler:Ulysses]] was offed using [[spoiler:"finishing" nails]].
** As [[spoiler:Geno]] makes a toast, [[spoiler: he becomes "toast"]].
** A slew of acting/award puns were used when describing the deaths of [[spoiler:Sasha]] and [[spoiler:Dana]].
* HystericalWoman: Some of the contestants, particularly Melina and Dana, get ''really'' emotional during the Spared or Scared ceremonies. At times they appear to have forgotten that they are playing a game, and seem to actually think they're going to be murdered. Of course, this can also be chalked up to the regular kind of reality show edits.
** Kam implies that some of the women are acting like this. At one point he interrupts Sasha (who's giving Ronnie a WhatTheHellHero speech). When Sasha responds to him unfavourably, he calls her a brat and says he'll always respond to her getting up in his face -- apparently forgetting that he was involving himself in a conversation that had nothing to do with him. In another instance, he calls Sasha entitled for walking up a clique meeting and asking him for information, despite the fact that she left when asked.
* IDidWhatIHadToDo: [[spoiler:Ronnie]] justifies his betrayal of [[spoiler:Geno, which ended in his death]] this way.
* IdTellYouButThenIdHaveToKillYou: Remarking on the public response to the series while introducing the season finale, Giles mentions that some viewers have asked if the failed contestants were really murdered. The Killer would be able to tell you, Giles says, but then he -- or she -- would have to kill you.
* ImNotHereToMakeFriends: Kam. Big time.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: {{Lampshaded}} in the first episode, when one of the contestants compliments the Killer in making a heck of a shot in their first murder: [[spoiler:yards away, through an open window, hitting square in the back of the neck, and with a slingshot]].
* ImpromptuTracheotomy: The final victim of season one took an arrow to the throat.
* ImprovisedWeapon:
** The murder weapon in the fifth case was [[spoiler: a simple 2x4 pulled from the floor of an abandoned hut with a pair of nails coated in poison nailed into it.]]
** One also would have been used for the "luau" death -- [[spoiler:two rings fastened onto the ends of a kukui nut necklace; in the Killer's own words, a homemade choking device]] -- but the intended victim went off track and forced the Killer to use an actual weapon. The Killer made sure to use it in a later murder for good measure.
* InstantSedation: In one episode, the Killer used the traditional chloroform-soaked rag to subdue the victim. [[spoiler:And the other victim.]]
* JackOfAllTrades: The Killer demonstrates skill with a wide variety of weapons and devices.
* {{Jerkass}}: Kam, particularly when he hopes that [[spoiler:Sasha]] is the next one murdered even when he isn't ''also'' Scared, meaning he just wants her gone for the hell of it. [[spoiler:His gloating after her demise just makes him look even worse.]]
* JerkassWithAHeartOfGold: As abrasive as Kam was, when he was approached by the opposing team to betray his own at [[spoiler: Ulysses and Lindsey's]] expense, he refused to keep information from them, which would later result in him being [[spoiler:scared instead of their primary target, Lindsey.]] [[spoiler:Also, when his closest ally, Ulysses, was nominated alongside him, he seemed genuinely saddened that Ulysses would have to be eliminated if he wanted to continue in the game.]] Kam was never willing to betray his team, leading to its members [[spoiler:being the final three contestants in the game.]]
* LargeHam: Giles. Melina also has her moments.
* TheJeeves: Giles the butler.
* LightsOffSomebodyDies: During the luau at the end of the sixth case. When the lights came back on, everyone saw that [[spoiler:Geno had been crushed by a [[FallingChandelierOfDoom chandelier]]]].
* LinkedListClueMethodology: The murder weapon hunts.
* ManHug: [[spoiler:The winner (Kam) and Giles share one in the finale.]]
* ManOnFire: How the first eliminated player "died". [[spoiler:Dontae was given a different change of pajamas than the other contestants; his pajamas had been sprayed with benzene, and his socks could generate more static electricity than normal. When the Killer sounded the fire alarm, in trying to get to the door, Dontae ran across a shag carpet, unwittingly building up enough electricity that the simple spark of touching the doorknob was enough to make him burst into flames.]]
* TheMole: The Killer is one of the contestants.
* MoralMyopia:
** After a small alliance forms of four players who refuse to share any of their information with the others/blatantly lie about whatever they find, the rest decide to close ranks and return the favor. This leads to members of the first group complaining about the others shutting them out in the exact same way they treated them.
** Kam repeatedly talks about all of the people outside his alliance being 'lying backstabbers only out for themselves'... including immediately after he breaks a promise to help one of them, with no apparent sense of irony on his part.
*** Though, to be fair, Ronnie refused to adhere to his end of the deal by deceiving [[spoiler: Geno]] and feeding him false information, when Kam told him to isolate [[spoiler: Geno]] and not reveal anything. This would've allowed Ronnie to rejoin [[spoiler: Geno]] if he figured out the riddle, whereas Kam wanted him to cut off all ties to [[spoiler: Geno]]
* MysteryFiction: Naturally.
* NoAnimalsWereHarmed:
** After the mountain lion incident, Giles makes a point to state that the lion was shot with only a tranquilizer dart and is unhurt.
** Likewise, the horseback murder makes a point of emphasizing that the horse was merely startled, and not physically harmed.
* NonindicativeName: Absolutely no focus was placed on figuring out the Killer's identity. Instead, it was all about how the murders were pulled off, making the mysteries "''How''dunnits". Lampshaded in the final episode by one of the contestants.
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Melina stated in a ConfessionCam that this was her plan: pretending to be a weaker player than she actually is in order to lure others off their guard.
* OldTimeyBathingSuit: Giles wears one while sunbathing by the pool.
* OminousPipeOrgan: Used to draw the players to the victims following the fifth case.
* OnceMoreWithClarity: Immediately after the identity of the Killer is revealed in the finale, a montage begins, first showing moments from the series that foreshadowed the Killer's identity such as [[spoiler: her familiarity with guns and her quick mastery of the "door opening gizmo"]], then showing footage of the murders taking place, now with the Killer's face visible.
* OneSteveLimit: The name "Cris" tripped some fans up. Cris Crotz (female) was one of the contestants. Cris Abrego (male) is one of the executive producers; he made a [[CreatorCameo cameo appearance]] in the finale as one of the cops who arrested The Killer, [[spoiler:who happened to be Cris Crotz]].
* OpenSecret: Don, a retired homicide detective, is one of several contestants with professional detective experience who lies about his occupation to the others. In his case, he's so obviously an old cop that nobody believes him for a moment.
* ParanoiaFuel: InUniverse; anyone who gets Scared has to go to sleep being terrified at every sound they hear, knowing that death could come for them at any moment.
* PassedInTheirSleep: The first time she gets Scared, Dana wishes that death will come in the form of carbon monoxide poisoning so she can die peacefully in her sleep.
* PatronSaint: For bonus irony points, the Killer provided a medallion of Saint Agatha (patron of protection from flames) to the victim s/he intended to set on fire.
* PlotIrrelevantVillain: Having one of the guests be the killer was completely irrelevant. The killer could have been someone outside of the players without the story or gameplay going through any significant changes.
* PoisonedWeapons: [[spoiler:Ulysses' death, as a result of being stabbed with a pair of nails (attached to a 2x4) laced with oleander.]]
* PreviouslyOn: Every episode except the first and the last begins with a two-part previously-on; the first part recaps the premise of the series and is much the same each episode apart from updates of the murder montage, and the second part recaps the previous episode in detail. The last episode has a completely new previously-on recapping the entire season.
* ReadTheFinePrint: In the season finale. In the last part of the puzzle challenge, Giles told the players to read the fine print on his employment contract to prove whether or not he was the Killer. One player didn't listen to that part, but [[spoiler:he ended up winning anyway]].
* RealityTVShowMansion: Rue Manor.
* RedHerring: Naturally, these are all over the place. In most cases, the obvious cause of death is the wrong one.
* RhymesOnADime: In the finale, The Killer spoke to the winner in rhyme. Obviously, it's a habit.
* RubeGoldbergHatesYourGuts: The Killer's murders are elaborate to the point that one player eventually thought that using a ''trained monkey'' could be a plausible explanation. (For the record, it wasn't, and he was so far off base with the trained monkey idea that he was the next victim.)
* SelfDeprecation: In the description of [[spoiler:Adrianna]]'s death, Giles gets a mocking tone in his voice when he explains how she spent the night watching ''reality television''. Bonus points for it being ''Series/RockOfLove'', a show with the same production company as ''Whodunnit?'' (51 Minds).
** The first episode has the killer saying their first victim would never have been a real adversary due to being a cheerleader. [[spoiler:It turns out that the killer is a beauty queen, another profession that's generally put down as vapid and overly concerned with looks over brains.]]
* SmallNameBigEgo: At about the mid-point of the first episode, Kam gathers Ulysses and Geno and tells them that they're "the three smartest people here". Although Kam and Geno are strong competitors, [[spoiler:with Kam going on to win,]] there's no noticeable gap in intelligence between them and the others.
* ShoutOut:
** The "snakebite" victim was dressed like Franchise/IndianaJones in the finale for no real reason other than a reference to the infamous line "[[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk Why did it have to be snakes?]]"
** In the double-homicide episode, Kam's congratulatory distinction from the Killer was topped off with the line "[[Film/{{Casablanca}} Here's looking at you, kid.]]"
* SpiritualSuccessor: To classic early 2000s reality shows like ''Series/TheMole'' and ''Series/MurderInSmallTownX'', although those programs played things much more straight.
** ''WebVideo/EscapeTheNight'' is this to the show itself, as it features a similar scenario. Hell, it even features a grey-haired host!
* TheStrategist: Kam seems to be the primary one from the first season, forming alliances and solving many clues. [[spoiler: It was one of the reasons he won.]]
* StuffBlowingUp:
** Early previews for the series particularly loved one shot of a fiery explosion. (This was later revealed to be [[spoiler:Adrianna's golf cart]].)
** We get another blast later on, as a victim is blown out of the hot tub. (This was later revealed to be [[spoiler:Ronnie]].)
* SublimeRhyme: Most of the Killer's clues are rhymes. The finale is stuffed to the gills with them.
* TheSummation: Following each investigation, each player gets to make one of these in the Library outlining their version of events. At the conclusion, they name their strongest suspect.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Cris and Lindsey are both part of Kam's "team", and thus regularly share information with each other. Despite this, neither trusts the other (Cris even tells Lindsey this directly at one point) and regularly accuse each other of being the killer.
* TemptingFate: When [[spoiler:Geno]] makes a pitch to Kam's team where they point out how they haven't been Scared yet, you just ''know'' they're asking for it.
* TenLittleMurderVictims: Pretty much the whole plot of this show.
* ThoseTwoGirls: Sasha and Dana. They form a partnership in the first episode, bonding over their common background as Southerners (nicknaming themselves "the Southern Belles"), and stand as pretty good friends and teammates during the series. [[spoiler:They even get killed together in the series' only double homicide.]]
* TitleDrop: The finale contains the line "You have unmasked whodunnit." Giles then gives the winner a pair of golden handcuffs to arrest the Killer; "Golden Cuffs" was the name of the season finale.
* TonightSomeoneDies: Par for the course of the premise.
* TookALevelInBadass: Melina, once [[spoiler:everyone else in her alliance was dead.]]
* ViewersAreMorons: In the opening of the season finale, Giles noted the ridiculousness in many viewers believing people were ''actually'' being killed on the show.
* WhatTheHellHero: The killer mentions that one of the reasons that he killed [[spoiler:Geno]] is that, by stealing Giles' cell phone in an attempt to be spared (due to a note left by the killer), he proved that he was an unworthy adversary.
* WhenTheClockStrikesTwelve: One murder takes place on the stroke of midnight.
* WireDilemma: One of the challenges in the season finale is a bomb with a blue and a red wire, which must be defused by cutting the wire that matches the color of a clue item from early in the season. One of the competitors never got to see that item, and doesn't recall anyone mentioning what color it was...
* WritingIndentationClue: Used in one episode to uncover a message left on the victim's bedside memo pad.
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Said verbatim by Kam during the "snakebite" case.
* WrongGenreSavvy: Don's biggest problem. As an ex-detective, he worries about things like motive and how the crime could have conceivably played out. Neither are very important in a campy TenLittleMurderVictims-style reality show.
----
->''"Is there anywhere in particular you would like to go?"''\\
''"...Home."''\\
''"Home it is."''

* ConfessionCam

* ManHug: The winner and Giles in the finale.
* ManOnFire: How the first eliminated player "died".

* ObfuscatingStupidity: Melina stated in a ConfessionCam that this is her plan: pretending to be a weaker player than she actually is in order to lure others off their guard.
* OldTimeyBathingSuit: Giles the butler wears one while sunbathing by the pool.

* RealityTV

** The "snakebite" victim was dressed like Franchise/IndianaJones in the finale for no real reason other than a reference to the infamous line "[[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk Why did it have to be snakes]]?"

** ''WebVideo/EscapeTheNight'' is this to the show itself, as it features a similar scenario. Hell, it even features a grey haired host!

* StuffBlowingUp: Early previews for the series particularly loved one shot of a fiery explosion. (This was later revealed to be [[spoiler:Adrianna's golf cart]].) We get another blast later on, as a victim is blown out of the hot tub. [[spoiler:This was later revealed to be Ronnie.]]

* TitleDrop: The finale contains the line "You have unmasked whodunnit." Giles then gives the winner a pair of golden handcuffs to arrest the Killer -- coincidentally, "Golden Cuffs" was the name of the season finale.

* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Said word by word by Kam during the "snakebite" case.

-->''"Is there anywhere in particular you would like to go?"''\\

** Though, to be fair, Ronnie refused to adhere to his end of the deal by deceiving [[spoiler: Geno]] and feeding him false information, when Kam told him to isolate [[spoiler: Geno]] and not reveal anything. This would've allowed Ronnie to rejoin [[spoiler: Geno]] if he figured out the riddle, whereas Kam wanted him to cut off all ties to [[spoiler: Geno]]

* DumbBlonde: Subverted. In early episodes Lindsey is perceived by some of the other players as less intelligent, and is often shown stumped by the riddles. However, she [[spoiler: manages to get the best case in episode 3, doesn't get a Scared card until the penultimate episode even in spite of being left out of the loop often, and ends up being the runner-up of the entire game.]]

** ''WebVideo/EscapeTheNight''t is this to the show itself, as it features a similar scenario. Hell, it even features a grey haired host!

** The first episode has the killer saying their first victim would never have been a real adversary due to being a cheerleader. [[spoiler:It turns out that the killer is a beauty queen, another profession that's seen a vapid and more physical than mental.]]

* SmallNameBigEgo: At the very start of the first episode, Kam gathers Ulysses and Geno and tells them that they're "the three smartest people here". Although Kam and Geno are strong competitors, [[spoiler:with Kam going on to win,]] there's no noticeable gap in intelligence between them and the others.

* FinalExamFinale

* HystericalWoman: Some of the contestants, particularly Melina and Dana, get ''really'' emotional during the Spared or Scared ceremonies. At times they appear to have forgotten that they are playing a game, and seem to actually think they're going to be murdered.

* AnyoneCanDie: It's a pseudo reality show so, yes, everyone is up for grabs (except giles, the host).

* TitleDrop: The finale contains the line "You have unmasked whodunnit." Giles then gives the winner a pair of golden handcuffs to arrest the Killer--coincidentally, "Golden Cuffs" was the name of the season finale.

* OnceMoreWithClarity: Immediately after the identity of the Killer is revealed in the finale, a montage begins, first showing moments from the series that foreshadowed the Killer's identity such as [[spoiler: her familiarity with guns and her quick mastery of the "door opening gizmo"]], then showing footage the murders take place, now with the Killer's face visible.

* TooSoon: [[invoked]]
** The night after the ManOnFire murder, Giles taunts the players by serving roast pig flambé for dinner. He trollingly asks "Too soon?", which they agree it is.
** The morning after two females are murdered, Giles briefly dances with a maid before reminiscing olden times when he did the same with a British debutante in London; he was, in his words, "a little bit of a lady killer." This provokes less-than-amused reactions from both Melina and Cris.

The evidence-collection phase of each episode has two stages. In the first stage, the contestants gather clues by examining the room where the body was found, the body itself in the morgue, or a relevant third location (usually somewhere the victim had been shortly before the murder) -- but each contestant may visit only one of the three locations. The second stage is a treasure hunt: the contestants are given a clue which leads to another clue and so on; the first person to follow the chain of clues to its end finds the murder weapon and gains an insight into the murder method -- and ends the hunt before anyone else gets to complete it. Thus, it is not possible for any one person to find all the available clues, and strategies for gaining truthful information from other contestants can be key to a successful solution. The last contestant alive gets to unmask the Killer and wins $250,000.

* AnyoneCanDie: It's a pseudo reality show so, yes, everyone is up for grabs (except the host).

Essentially, the series is a RealLife version of ''Franchise/DanganRonpa''.

Thirteen contestants are invited to a cursed mansion called Rue Manor. Each week, at least one of them is "killed," and the others must solve the mystery while trying to figure out [[TheMole who among them is the Killer]]. After collecting evidence, the contestants stand one at a time in the library and reconstruct the murder as best they can. The person whose theory is farthest from the truth becomes the next victim.

The evidence-collection phase of each episode has two stages. In the first stage, the contestants gather clues by examining the room where the body was found, the body itself in the morgue, or a relevant third location (usually somewhere the victim had been shortly before the murder) -- but each contestant may visit only one of the three locations. The second stage is a treasure hunt: the contestants are given a clue which leads to another clue and so on; the first person to follow the chain of clues to its end finds the murder weapon and gains an insight into the murder method -- and ends the hunt before anyone else gets to complete it. Thus, it is not possible for any one person to find all the available clues, and strategies for gaining truthful information from other contestants can be key to a successful solution.

The last contestant alive gets to unmask the Killer and wins $250,000.

** WebVideo/EscapeTheNight is this to the show itself, as it features a similar scenario. Hell, it even features a grey haired host!

* TogetherInDeath:
* TonightSomeoneDies

-->''"My name... is Giles. And I've been the butler for this... cursed estate, for only a few weeks now. Although I've never met my current employer, It has been painfully made clear that I must follow...murderous orders, for my life is at stake, ...As well as our guest's. In a few moments, 13 strangers will be arriving here to play a game. But, what they don't know is.... The game is murder. "''\\