'Elsbeth' Season 3 Recap: What To Remember From CBS' Murder Mystery Sitcom Before It Returns

Published Oct 6, 2026, 3:21 PM EDT

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Rejoice, Elsbeth fans — Season 4 is nigh, set to premiere on October 8 on CBS with guest star Nicole Scherzinger appearing as "renowned marriage counselor Serena Collyer." Ms. Scherzinger has her work cut out for her, given the stellar guest stars that repeatedly upped the ante in Season 3. The series itself has big shoes to fill, too, having set a high mark with that fantastic third season, which saw our hero face unique challenges that tested her trademark optimism (but, thankfully, not her quirkiness). So, before parking ourselves in front of the telly at 9:00 pm ET (and stick around afterward for Cupertino, the latest offering from Elsbeth's Robert and Michelle King), let's take a look back on Elsbeth's third season.

'Elsbeth's "Yes, And.." Sets the Stage for Season 3

Image via CBS

If one were looking to sum up the third season of Elsbeth in a single episode, the premiere, "Yes, And . . .", is the one. It has all the elements that made the season stand out from the first two: terrific writing, meta moments, great guest stars (Stephen Colbert, Amy Sedaris, and Andy Richter in the first episode alone), and, for the fans, callbacks to previous episodes, in this case Sheryl Jacobs (Marcia DeBonis), who Elsbeth met at the wellness retreat in Season 2's "Unalive and Well." The episode is also the first time we see Elsbeth (Carrie Preston) in a world without her bestie, Kaya Blanke (Carra Patterson), who left New York at the end of Season 2 for a task force training program in D.C., setting up new, interesting dynamics with rotating partners over the course of the season.

For those hoping the long-distance relationship with Scotsman Angus (Ioan Gruffudd) would work out, it didn't, which Elsbeth explains to Kaya in the first of a handful of appearances from her. What does work out is a relationship with mayoral candidate Alec Bloom (Ivan Hernandez), who is introduced to her by Marissa Gold (Sarah Steele), a welcome mini-reunion of two characters from The Good Wife. It's an unprecedented look at Elsbeth as she enters a romantic arc, and what it shows about her is stunning in that, for someone who has such an eye for subtle details, love leaves her blind to Bloom's lies. This is even after Teddy (Ben Levi Ross), now working as an investigative journalist, uncovers the truth about him.

She doesn't really question him until an unlikely source gives her pause: Judge Crawford's wife, Winnie (Henny Russell), whom she meets earlier in the season. Surprisingly, she has no personal vendetta against Elsbeth for her husband's death, but does lead a campaign targeting Bloom, seeing him as a threat to the city's elite (and burns the only evidence that tied her husband to murder). After she finally hears the truth from Bloom, she demands he come clean to the people. And if he won't, they're done. He does, and wins the mayoral race in spite of it.

Only Elsbeth can't get over how he flat-out lied directly to her face when asked and severs the relationship. It marks another novel moment where we see Elsbeth's heartbreak, which was absent from her disclosure of the sitch with Angus. Yet it's also a moment that is true to Elsbeth as a character, one who values integrity and truth over all else, and sets her up to end the season embracing her independence and self-assuredness without losing her optimistic worldview, ending with these words: "Isn't it great to love things?"

Guest Stars and Supporting Cast Shine in 'Elsbeth's Third Season

The season brought out the best in Carrie Preston, who stepped up to Elsbeth's challenges with the best performances she's had over the three seasons. Likewise, Wendell Pierce elevated his performance as Captain Wagner, owning even small, subtle moments; standing up for Lieutenant Connor (Daniel K. Isaac) in the premiere is one such example, saying more in one nod of his head than words could have expressed). The rotation of partners Elsbeth worked with over the season allowed for a number of others to shine, particularly the "anti-Elsbeth" Detective Smullen (Danny Mastrogiorgio), Connor, and Officer Chandler (Ethan Slater).

But as always has been the case, Elsbeth lives and breathes by its guest star "villains," and Season 3 had some of the series' most memorable. David Cross brought Elsbeth as close as it's ever been to straight comedy in "Doll Day Afternoon" as a panicked dad who holds Elsbeth and some toy store employees hostage, while Griffin Dunne posed a terrifying, real threat to Elsbeth as a troubled author, eliciting Preston's best performance of the season while at it. Other notables include The Good Place alum William Jackson Harper as a poetic perpetrator, Steve Buscemi as a killer crossword enthusiast, and the legendary Dianne Wiest as the murderous Mother Constance Mary Cabot in "And Then There Were Nuns." So, fellow Elsbeth Tascioni Fanscioni's, you've got a little bit of time before Season 4 for a full Elsbeth Season 3 binge on Paramount+. Don't waste it.