‘Poker Face’ Manages To Outrun a Limited Formula

If you, viewer, are anything like me, you watched the first three episodes of the new season of Poker Face and asked yourself when exactly it was that Ron Perlman got swapped for Rhea Perlman, no relation, despite the helpful season one summary at the top of the second season premiere (answer: the Ron of this equation was double-crossed by Benjamin Bratt as the villainous Cliff LeGrand, while the latter Perlman is only heard in the last minute of the finale and isn’t seen for several episodes).

One can be forgiven for the lapse in memory for the closing of a finale that originally streamed over two years ago. The real surprise, however, was how little I cared once the show quite literally takes off running each time Charlie Cale (Natasha Lyonne) flees from one locale to another in a hail of bullets like a curly-haired cartoon Roadrunner, even as I struggled to remember why those bullets are being fired on behalf of Beatrix Hasp (Perlman, specifically Rhea).

This is exactly what Poker Face banks on the viewer to do from one episode to another; if you’re too busy being amused by Lyonne’s moxie, you won’t question the occasionally paper-thin logic that dresses up the episodic cases in which Cale manages to embroil herself as she works various odd jobs across the country. This is intended as a compliment, because even when my mind begins to ponder things like, “Evading the mob is one thing, but what about the IRS?” and “How are you supposed to reliably time squibs with gunfire like that?” Lyonne’s charm commands my attention like a family photographer dangling a set of keys in front of a baby.

The endless lineup of guest stars, rather than coming off as a mere stunt—something I thought Poker Face was at risk of in its first season—manages instead to feel like an amusing game of tag as each guest star, now with even more impressive amount of collective star power among them (the likes of Cynthia Erivo, John Mulaney, and Giancarlo Esposito, to name a few), gets swapped out for the next. Everyone understands their respective assignments, which calls for a certain amount of letting their hair loose, such as Erivo playing multiple identical siblings, one of whom is hopelessly stuck on trying to make “butt munch” a legitimate exclamation, or Esposito as a mortician whose only source of passion seems to be for the dead.

The show has wisely appeared to move away from the ‘on the run from the mob’ format (as of episode three) that imposed fairly strict limits on Cale’s comings and goings. It frees up the series to grow in the ways that it needs to, such as allowing Cale a wider interior life.

What would really serve the show would be to allow a few surprises, especially when it comes to the sleuthing aspect. Sure, seeing Cale put together how each dastardly murder plot came together is part of the winning formula, but imagine if the audience was also allowed to uncover elements of the crime alongside her. No need to go full Sherlock, as much of Cale’s charming effectiveness is that her detective skills consist predominantly of real-world experience, a nice counterbalance to her almost superhuman ability to determine if someone’s lying, but it would add an additional layer of investment. But to pretend that I mind it enough not to be won over by this quirky murder-of-the-week throwback would rightfully invite Charlie Cale’s signature callout of “bulls**t.”

Poker Face streams every Thursday on Peacock.