Chief Parker: We know Dr. Pickering just checked into the Glitz Hotel... And I've secured us two tickets to Ivywood actress Celine Dernier's celebrity bash, which happens to be taking place at the hotel tonight!
Knowing Mortimer Pickering is staying at Glitz Hotel, Gloria and the player are tasked by Chief Parker with attending Ivywood actress Celine Dernier's celebrity bash at the aforementioned hotel with the intent of intercepting Mortimer for their DreamLife infiltration plan. However, their night turns even more eventful than expected when they follow someone's screams and find Celine's immolated body at the hotel gardens.
Tropes:
- Animal Nemesis: Plopsie, Celine's dog, became this for her sister Meredith, since Celine left all of her fortune to him and took Meredith out of her will despite supporting Celine in her acting career for decades.
- Bad Date: Amir and Jasper apparently had one of these that involved oysters, according to his account during the analysis.
- Big Damn Heroes: Ray, Lola, and Benjamin finally put an end to the Demon Fish treat during the Additional Investigation by using All Their Powers Combined to capture the creatures, as Ray finds an antique Xerdan stone table with a written song capable of attracting the Demon Fish if sung correctly, Lola performs the song with her diva singer skills, and Benjamin provides the nets and traps necessary to trap the fish.
- Big Damn Reunion: One between Rupert and Mortimer, who are shown to be happy to see each other again after so long.
- Broken Pedestal: Since she's a big fan of him and his work, Gloria has one of these regarding Cliff after he's exposed as the killer.
- Call-Back: Mike Cove and Lola Vallez reappear as suspects, while Officer Mia Loukas appears mid-investigation to provide you with a lead. Benjamin Fletcher and Ray Parker also reappear during the Additional Investigation.
- Chekhov's Skill: Throughout all of her appearances both in Season 1 and Season 5, Lola's musical skills and her status as a diva singer have been brought up one way or another either by her or other people. Here, said skills finally get put to use when she performs the Xerdan song to attract the Demon Fish and capture them once and for all.
- Cliffhanger: The case ends with Jones informing you that Mayor Martha Price has been assassinated.
- Continuity Nod:
- Stella, Celine's twin sister who suffered a fatal heart attack because of the Night Walker, is brought up again.
- During one of his interrogations, Cliff explains Celine broke up their acting duo after she replaced him with another actor named "Dick-something."
- The absinthe bottle the killer used to murder Celine is labeled after Maddie O'Malley.
- Cool Old Guy: Mortimer Pickering, Rupert's old friend, is shown to be a genuinely good gentleman who is more than willing to help you bring down DreamLife after you inform him how shady they are.
- I Didn't Mean to Kill Him: Cliff says this during his arrest, claiming he only murdered Celine in a fit of rage after she confessed spreading rumors of him cheating on his wife with every woman in Ivywood, which led to her leaving Cliff.
- Dirty Old Woman: It turns out Celine was one of these, as she kept groping Crispin both in his butt and his "unmentionables" while she forced him to eat oysters. It eventually led to Crispin filling a restrain order against her.
- Does Not Like Spam: Martine says any fan of Celine should know she despised absinthe, implying she made it public knowledge and part of her.
- Don't Celebrate Just Yet: Just as the police department is about to celebrate the Demon Fish being captured and Mortimer agreeing to let Rupert take his place inside the dome, news come out that Mayor Price has been assassinated.
- Double Standard Rape: Female on Male: Thankfully Averted. Gloria finds despicable how Celine sexually harassed and outright assaulted Crispin when he tells you about it.
- Dying Alone: Meredith, Celine's sister, says that, with both of her sisters' deaths, she's now all alone in the world, and will probably follow them soon thereafter.
- Evil Brit: Cliff Montgomery, the killer, hails from Scotland, although this is Downplayed since he isn't that evil.
- Evil Old Folks: Downplayed. Cliff, the killer, is 87-years-old, making him the oldest human killer in the series.note However, while not an excuse to commit murder, his somewhat sympathetic motive puts him on a better pedestal than some other elderly killers in the franchise.
- Fangirl: Gloria is one for Cliff Montgomery, since she admires his work done in Ivywood. This later turns into a Broken Pedestal when he's outed as the killer, though.
- Feeling Their Age: Lola uses this as her reasoning for not feeling sorry for Celine's death during her first interrogation.Lola: I mean, it's a tragedy and all that, but that woman was seriously old. I hope I die before I get as wrinkly as her!
- Food Slap: The killer first threw a glass of absinthe at Celine before setting her ablaze with a torch, which actually made her burn faster due to its high alcohol content.
- Heroic Dog: Plopsie, Celine's dog, ends up helping you catch her killer after he retrieves the glass the killer used to threw absinthe at Celine before setting her on fire.
- Hidden Wire: DreamLife gave Mortimer a device that he correctly assumes is bugged, prompting Cathy to deactivate it while making it look like an accident so you and Rupert can talk to him in peace.
- Malicious Slander: Celine confessed to Cliff she spread rumors about him sleeping with every women in Ivywood back in the day for no reason whatsoever, leading to Cliff's wife divorcing him. It's the main reason why he murdered her.
- Man on Fire: Woman on fire, but it's how Celine was killed, and it's not like she's going to complain about the term.
- Mind-Control Music: During the Additional Investigation, Ray gives you an antique Xerdan stone tablet that shows how the Xerdans inadvertently discovered how one of their ritual songs could hypnotize the Demon Fish, which the police department uses to lure them to a trap with Lola's hep.
- Mistaken for Cheating: Effectively the motive. Celine spread a rumor that Cliff was sleeping with every actress in Ivywood, causing his wife to divorce him. He was not, and was not exactly thrilled with Celine for doing this.
- Noodle Incident:
- Cathy says that Celine's party was almost as boring and dull as that time she and Alex went camping in the rain.
- During their Big Damn Reunion, Rupert says he and Mortimer once let a bunch of goats loose in the Bodleian Library at Oxford.
- Overworked Sleep: Rupert is shown asleep during one of his analysis due to studying geology 24/7 as part as his cover to infiltrate DreamLife.
- Passed-Over Inheritance: Celine took her sister Meredith out of her will to leave everything to her dog.
- Pet Heir: Celine left all of her fortune to her dog Plopsie, something that didn't sit well with her remaining sister.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: Lola theorizes that the reason why Celine was chosen as a judge for Grimsborough's Best Talent instead of the more qualified Lola is because Celine paid them off, which made Lola resent her.
- Shameless Self-Promotion / Skewed Priorities: Both Mike and Lola decide to use Celine's deaths for clout and career advancement, as Mike posts an extremely shallow condolence on social media and asks you for photos of Celine's corpse for his oncoming biopic of her, while Lola expects news outlets to say her fabulous singing was the last thing Celine heard.
- Shout-Out:
- The case's title comes from a song of the same name by The Doors.
- Cliff Montgomery is named after Montgomery Clift, and he resembles Sean Connery.
- In the Mermaid Ballroom scene, there is a parody of a Little Tree.
- Grimsborough's Best Talent is a parody of America's Got Talent.
- Hamlet is quoted.
- Copies of The Picture of Dorian Gray and Swan Lake are found.
- Silver Fox: In addition to being Older Than They Look, Cliff is also quite attractive, something Gloria seems to relish on.Gloria: I can't believe I didn't recognize the dreamy Scotsman in his younger days, but I guess he only gets better with age!
- So Proud of You: Gloria tells this to Rupert after you find him sleeping in the lab, since he's been overworking himself as of late both to find a cure for the Demon Fish neurotoxin and also study geology to infiltrate DreamLife.
- Spy Speak: Rupert and Mortimer apparently invented one of these during their time at Oxford, which Mortimer uses to tell him DreamLife has put a Hidden Wire on his belongings when you go meet up with him.Rupert: For example, erudite satsuma means enemy, curdling is eavesdropping, and parrot, gadget...
If I understood it all correctly, he was saying that DreamLife has given him some sort of device, but he thinks it's bugged! - Stalker without a Crush: Celine had been following Mike around to get him cast her in one of his movies, something he find appalling due to considering Celine wasn't qualified for starring in his action flicks.
- Those Two Actors: In-Universe example with Celine and Cliff, who were well-known for always acting together back in Ivywood.
- Violent Glaswegian: Cliff Montgomery, the killer, is Scottish.
- Waiting for a Break: Crispin Ruff, one of the suspects, tells you he's been working as a waiter among Ivywood stars for this very reason.Crispin: Ah yes, what a crazy night it's been! And here I was thinking that taking on this waitering gig would help me meet famous Ivywood stars!
Gloria: So you were a fan of Celine's?
Crispin: Not exactly... I'm an acting student, and I was hoping tonight might get me my first big break... But now Celine's dead, nobody cares about a waiter like me, no matter how charming I try to be! - What the Hell Is That Accent?: Gloria is incapable of understanding Gabriel's Scottish accent during his analysis on the poem Cliff wrote for Celine.Gabriel: You looking a bit peely-wally, <Player's Name>. You'd better just caw canny for a while!
Gloria: Er, Gabriel, what language are you speaking?! - Witness Protection: The police department puts Mortimer in one of these after he accepts Rupert taking his place inside DreamLife's dome.
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Cliff pretends to be hurt by Celine's death during his first interrogation due to all the years they spent working together when he's the killer.
