thinking about how in my other beloved detective murder mystery story Murder on the Orient Express, one of the problems in figuring out who killed Cassetti is the fact that everyone on board had a motive, because Cassetti was cruel and careless and destroyed so, so many people without even noticing most of the damage he did.
like, that's the tragedy of MOTOE, that one bad person can ruin so many lives.
and how in The Residence, one of the problems in figuring out who killed Wynter is the fact that a ton of staff members have motives...
but not because Wynter was cruel and careless, he WASN'T. he was hard-working, dedicated, loyal, meticulous, professional, honorable, and above all motivated by a deep, deep love for the place he worked. every motive everyone has for killing him is, ultimately: he's a good man who wants to do a good job.
that's the tragedy in The Residence, that being very good can get you treated exactly the same way as being very bad.
(especially when you're an elderly black man in a position of moderate authority whose commitment to excellence has made you the household rage sponge)
