Elsbeth Was More Aggressive Than I Expected In The Halloween Episode, But I’m Loving Her New Bond After That Kaya Twist

Spoilers are ahead for Episode 4 of Elsbeth Season 3 on CBS, called "Ick, A Bod" and available streaming now with a Paramount+ subscription.

The spooky season came to Elsbeth in the fall 2025 TV schedule, and the leading lady managed to surpass her Breakfast at Tiffany's look from Season 2 by wearing several costumes in honor of My Fair Lady's Eliza Doolittle. It was fitting that the killer guest star of the week was Broadway regular Annaleigh Ashford, although she was chopping heads more than belting notes for "Ick, A Bod." I was surprised to see how quickly Elsbeth let Sharon (Ashford) know that she was onto her as the killer, especially in the aftermath of last week's twist with Kaya. Luckily, Elsbeth did bond with somebody, and it was a joy to watch in the Halloween episode.

While Elsbeth usually leads the suspects on a little farther into the episode before letting them really feel that they're in her crosshairs, the chainsaw-wielding suburban housewife knew pretty quickly that the woman dressed like Eliza Doolittle suspected her of murder. I'm not sure if this was a one-off for Elsbeth or the beginning of a trend of how she operates without having the same partner week in and week out, but I definitely noticed.

It didn't help that Kaya's absence continues to be conspicuous, with everybody knowing that the undercover detective would have loved the My Fair Lady outfits and Captain Wagner even stepping in to defend Cam's relationship with Kaya when he suspected that the coroner might be considering stepping out on her. (Admittedly, Wagner did have the added motivation of trying to keep his daughter from falling for him.) We can't just move on from Kaya when the characters haven't!

That said, "Ick, A Bod" might be my favorite episode to date for Elsbeth's friendship with Donnelly. The cop took some time to warm up to the lawyer and her consent decree, but they've become friends with some common ground, and Donnelly was surprisingly insistent that Elsbeth not lose her optimism. In fact, she was so determined that Elsbeth not give up hope of somebody finding Gonzo's lost favorite toy that I was half convinced the episode would end with Donnelly revealing that she'd been Elsbeth's neighbor all along.

That wasn't the case, but Elsbeth did get Gonzo's toy back. She found it tucked onto a bench along with the "LOST TOY" flyer on her balcony early one morning, and was much more unbothered about who had managed to place it there than I would have been in her shoes. She just shouted "Thank you!" beyond her balcony, and then took the stuffed taxi cab inside for her dog.

So, was this just a nice ending to show that Donnelly was right about Elsbeth's optimism, and it really was just a matter of time before she got Gonzo's lost toy back? Or should we be worried that somebody gained access to Elsbeth's balcony and dropped it off? If the latter, I think the level of worry would entirely depend on who that somebody is.

Donnelly seemingly does not actually live in Elsbeth's building, and even though the death of Judge Crawford (played by Carrie Preston's real-life husband Michael Emerson) rid the leading lady of her nemesis, I can imagine that there are plenty of people out there who might not want the best for her. Could this tie in to that upcoming arrival of a Good Wife star?

Find out with new episodes of Elsbeth on Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS, following the latest installments of Kathy Bates' Matlock. You can also revisit earlier episodes streaming via Paramount+.