"Charlie has an extraordinary ability to determine when someone is lying. She hits the road with her Plymouth Barracuda and with every stop encounters a new cast of characters and strange crimes she can't help but investigate and solve."

OUR REVIEW:

Natasha Lyonne returns in the much-anticipated second season of Poker Face as the raspy-sounding, vape-sucking, foul-mouthed, Plymouth Barracuda-driving and surprisingly moral human lie-detector Charlie, and she is better than ever.

To quickly recap some key information: Charlie can always intuitively tell when someone is lying. No superpowers, no implanted surveillance device, just an unconventional blessing that puts her in and out of trouble. This uncanny talent took Charlie over the map during season one, where she worked odd jobs that paid in cash, when a murder mystery would drop in her lap. All while being on the run from the mob.

That premise is cute; one could expect such a gimmick to wear itself out early. But Natasha Lyonne and creator Rian Johnson cracked the code to make Poker Face one of the most binge-worthy new shows. And it looks like season 2 is marching to the same drum, full of wacky turns, A-list guest stars, and a subtle 70s’ sheen on top of everything. 

But what I can say is that the creative team behind Poker Face has done their homework, standing on the shoulders of old whodunit shows like Matlock and Murder, She Wrote. Charlie, the character, is easy to empathize with as someone who always happens to find people who need help or who need to go to jail. 

Lyonne has had a long career, but this role is what her acting resume has been building towards. She demonstrates dry wit and heart, having chemistry with virtually every character she meets. 

Poker Face also works well as a reverse mystery by breaking storytelling convention. Like Johnson’s previous feature, Knives Out, Poker Face shows who committed the crime and allows the audience to join Charlie in figuring out why. 

When we last saw our lanky detective, Charlie had managed to escape from Benjamin Bratt’s crosshairs after the events that forced her to flee initially, only to receive a call from the leader of the Five Families (Rhea Perlman) informing her that they would relentlessly pursue her nationwide. In the first three episodes, we find Charlie with even more dangerous adversaries pursuing her; she works part-time at carnivals and apple orchards while comedically avoiding henchmen shooting at her.  

Her sole sanctuary appears to be when she can pause just long enough to stumble upon a vibrant location featuring a corpse lying in plain sight; her strong sense of responsibility, sharp humor, and knack for detecting lies are put to good use. It’s a joy to simply wander alongside Charlie, who meets each new challenge with the same sarcastic grin and nonchalant demeanor she always possesses. 

And therein lies the charm of Poker Face. Charlie is compelling, engaging, and magnetic. She is a gift of a character with Lyonne delivering, building upon Charlie’s strengths and vulnerabilities week after week. There’s a certain comfort in that, even amid the violence. Perhaps that’s why Charlie continually finds herself in these scenarios: They’re perilous but feel familiar. The same old story is wrapped in an exquisite presentation.