On Poker Face, Charlie Cale goes along for a wild ride

Alright, Poker Face, I see and accept you for who you are. As much as I’ve appreciated the show’s case-of-the-week approach so far, I’ve realized that Peacock’s drama is best enjoyed when I’m not hoping for a connection between each outing. So what if Benjamin Bratt’s Cliff has not shown up since episode four when he chased Charlie (Natasha Lyonne) after she solved drummer Gavin’s (Nicholas Cirillo) murder? He’s probably off looking for her, but we don’t need to see that play out until their paths cross next: Probably in the finale, I’m guessing, which will bring Ron Perlman’s Sterling Sr. into the fold as well, but it doesn’t matter.

Until that happens—whenever it does—Poker Face’s whole schtick is to let Charlie galavant from town to town, befriend strangers, and use her bullshit meter to get to the bottom of suspicious deaths around her. It’s an ideal, entertaining cop shows with no cops present (not counting episode five’s Simon Helberg appearance, that is). And you know what? It’s a pretty fantastic overall deal. The latest episode features Lyonne acing her dry comedic delivery (at this point, who’s surprised? Guest stars Tim Blake Nelson and Charles Melton get delightful villainous roles, although I wish the former star had more to do.

The mystery this week is top-notch as PF subverts its format yet again. It’s not a simpler case like early episodes, with the deaths of Natalie (Dascha Polanco), Damian (Brandon Michael Hall), or George (Larry Brown), where the killer is revealed in the opening act. Yes, we still know who did it, but there are plenty of twists along the way for Charlie to discover and for us to engage with.

With “Future Of The Sport,” writer Joe Lawson and director Iain B. Macdonald keep us on our toes. In this installment, Nelson and Melton play dueling race car drivers Keith Owens and Davis McDowell, respectively. The actors are excellent at playing off of each other’s negative energy by simply exchanging furious looks. As the older of the two, Keith takes pride in his family’s legacy in the sport and his own skills. So much so that he refuses to give up so his spirited daughter, Katy (Jasmine Garvin), can take his place. Meanwhile, Davis is a rebellious youth who wants to beat Keith at his game.

They’re longing for fame in their neighborhood, not realizing it’s not the NASCAR race they’ve assumed it to be. They spend time racing in their seemingly podunk town while Davis helps out his mother, Jean (Angel Desai), at the arcade she works at. Oh, it’s the same arcade where Charlie has found her next cash gig as a janitor and helper. Again: It’s not important how she landed up there. But, of course, she quickly familiarized herself with her surroundings and befriended the McDowells. She hangs out with Davis and his pal, Randy (Jack Alcott), not knowing she’s about to take one of them down fairly soon.

Tired of Davis goading him, Keith decides to end his competitor’s life. He breaks into the McDowell home at midnight, tampers with Davis’ car using a fish hook, and sets off to race the next day, assuming it’ll be his nemesis’ last. Victory is so close. Except, Keith doesn’t know he was spotted. Davis caught him in the act the previous night, but instead of calling him out, he switches seats with Katy just before the race that we see in the opening minutes. Nelson’s subtly devious facial expressions, followed by the crushing realization that his daughter is behind the seat, elevate the reveal that it wasn’t Davis in the accident we saw in the episode’s opening.

PF unravels these twists gradually instead of all at once, including Charlie in the day-to-day as she witnesses the aftermath of Katy’s crash. It includes Davis pretending to “figure out” in front of her how Keith tried to kill him. And this despite her telling him about the lie-detecting powers she possesses. This happens when men like Davis think they’re superior to everything. Charlie eventually deduces that, yes, Keith messed with the car, but he’s guilty enough to confess, repent, and hopefully pay for his actions.

Meanwhile, Davis continues not to give a fuck about potentially killing Katy, who is in a coma. Charlie’s pretty disgusted when she finds out the truth. [Side note: do her skills have a distance limit? She’s standing pretty far away from Davis when she detects his “lies” as he tells a kid that Katy’s seat belt malfunctioned. What are the restrictions of her bullshit meter, and does it matter to anyone?]. Anyway, as always, our girl confronts the culprit without any backup. It leads to a car chase where Charlie is barely able to escape. Thankfully, when she shows up the next day to chat with Davis, she does it in public during the day. Instead of calling the authorities as she usually does, Charlie wisely deploys mental gymnastics, a tool that works well on insecure, emotionally fragile folks like Davis. I liked this one final twist too.

Stray observations

• I didn’t get to elaborate on this in the main recap, but Leslie Silva has such a captivating on-screen presence. She plays Tim Blake Nelson’s wife, and I wish both of them had more to do in this episode.
• Charlie’s description of race car driving (I hate to admit it, but I agree): “You’re basically just turning left a bunch of times.”
• I mean, Charlie really isn’t a fan of the sport. It’s witnessed again in how she confronts Davis about his attempt to kill Katy: “You tried to kill a person, you psycho. And for what? Driving a car around in a circle. Really?”
• Natasha Lyonne is a queen of delivering one-liners, like how she tells Jack Alcott’s Randy, “Karma is a consequence.”
• In case you missed it: Poker Face is renewed for a second season. Huzzah! I’m not sure if the Sterling Frost storyline will get carried over, but either way, I’m thrilled to see the Rian Johnson series continue. Maybe Benoit Blanc can show up then?

Correction: An earlier version of this recap mistakenly referred to Tim Blake Nelson’s character as Kyle instead of Keith.