Review: Poker Face, "The Future of the Sport" | Season 1, Episode 7
In which Charlie revs her engines while solving a crime in the world of racing
“I agree. Karma is like a consequence.”
Now that we’re seven episodes into the first (and thankfully not only) season of Poker Face, it’s worth calling out one of the most fascinating aspects of the writing and performances. Though each episode features Charlie Cale spotting and calling out bullshit, only so many installments have featured her revealing her secret skill. It happened in the series premiere, in part so creator Rian Johnson could get some vital exposition out of the way regarding Charlie’s lie-detection abilities. And it happened in “The Stall,” as Charlie pleasantly confided in a barbecue master about the talent.
Charlie also spills the beans in “The Future of the Sport,” and to particularly effective ends. It’s notable—and I highly doubt accidental—that Charlie has only ended up telling all to a criminal of the week. I mention that because as much as the writing has to be deft: if Charlie, in one scene, reveals to a murderer that she’s a human lie detector…