Poker Face Episode 7 The Future Of The Sport Review And Recap- Fish Hooks, Grease Monkey Mind Melds, And Cancer Dogs

When you thought you couldn’t love Charlie more, along comes an episode that showcases the best of this flawless blend of acting and writing. Poker Face Episode 7 is near perfect with its well-timed jokes and anxious moments. It’s rare that we actually feel like Charlie is in danger. It’s the nature of this lite show that relies on Natasha Lyonne’s immense talent. Things felt different this week, and Charlie felt vulnerable in a way she hasn’t since the first episode. Joe Lawson, whose brilliant BoJack Horseman defined what emotional comedy could be, wrote a fantastic episode that gave us everything we wanted from the series and things we didn’t even know we needed.

This revenge story is so meticulously written you won’t see the twist coming until it smacks you in the face. Labyrinthian and vicious, this is more The Cask of Amontillado mixed with a dash of Monkey’s Paw. Karma almost always gets you, as Justin Timberlake famously sang, What goes around, comes back around.” Poker Face Episode 7 brings us to the racetrack where rubbin’ is racin’, and all is fair with a ribbon on the line. Buckle up, race fans. You are in for a bumpy ride.

The usual formula of murder introduction and then Charlie’s timely involvement got a revamp this week. That’s the thing about this entertaining show. It has some of the pieces of the best episodic mysteries, but they are mixed in fresh ways that keep things from getting stale. Like Murder She Wrote and Colombo, we get a new crime each week and watch as our hero solves it. The difference with Poker Face is we know who did it and how. We get to be inside the sarcastic mind of Charlie and watch as she figures it out. It’s a spin that is paying off. I could never get tired of watching Charlie suss out killers all while they stumble around, wondering how she could know so much.

Until now, Charlie has come in on the back side of a murder and had to get justice for the victim. In Poker Face Episode 7, she gets something potentially better than justice. Charlie gets the best revenge for her victim, who fortunately does not die. The killer is free but is forced to live with the knowledge that you can’t outrace Karma, and when your flow is gone, there is no getting it back. Charlie didn’t put the killer behind bars, but she did do enough damage that they will never be the same.

Davis McDowell(Charles Melton, Riverdale) is the future of racing. He is handsome, fast, and social media savvy. Unfortunately, he also is a little bit of a dick. His rival is longtime racer and legacy winner Keith Owens(Tim Blake Nelson from Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities). After McDowell beat him with a legal but irritating bump, Owens is determined to race one more time and retire on top. McDowell, who has more talent than sense, pokes the bear by filming a Tik Tok destroying Owens’ mailbox. Feeling disrespected and angry, Owens broke into McDowell’s garage and tampered with his race car. The next day when they race, McDowell crashes at full speed into the concrete barrier, and his car bursts into flames. But that’s not what happened.

Charlie gets involved when McDowell’s mom, Jean(Angel Desai), comes into her orbit. They are both working for Kamelot Karts, a fun park for kids near the racetrack. When Davis comes by to visit the kids, he stays to help out Charlie. The tough guy persona we thought we knew is a front for a sweeter guy who loves his family and is generous with his time. He spends the day with Charlie and even tries kissing her before Owens’ daughter Katy(Jasmine Aiyana Garvin) shows up and embarrasses him on the cart track. It’s a humiliating series of losses and explains why he was angry enough to show up at Owens’ house and destroy his property.

The night before the race, Davis was home. His mom took the tow truck call and left him home to sober up. He saw Keith messing with his car. He did some tinkering of his own, and on the day of the race, he handed the keys to his car over to Katy, and the rest is history. Using Charlie’s abilities against her, Davis involves her in the investigation of the crash because he knows all roads will lead to Keith. It’s a clever little ruse that might have worked if Charlie wasn’t so damn brilliant herself.

In yet another surprising turn, Keith admits to sabotaging Davis’ car. Thinking he had gotten away with everything, Davis got ready to cash in. Unfortunately, he wasn’t out of Charlie’s earshot when he told a little kid Katy’s seatbelt was a fluke. Next, when Jean tells her Davis was home on the night of the break-in, she has all the information she needs to crack the case. Charlie goes looking for clues in Davis’ garage and gets caught.

With nothing to lose and more curiosity than is wise, she confronts Davis, and he admits to everything. She narrowly escapes when Jean finds them, and she drives away. Davis tries to run her down in his tow truck, but the clunky vehicle is no match for Charlie’s Baracuda, and she escapes again. Just before Davis’ race the next day, Charlie tells him he is a monster and Katy is coming for him.

Charlie has been able to catch the criminal every week prior to this one. Unfortunately, she couldn’t put Davis behind bars, but luckily, Katy did not die. Davis is a sociopath who got away with attempted murder, but his victory lap will be short. His new sponsor won’t be thrilled with him if he doesn’t deliver, and Charlie moved Katy into his head. She is living there rent-free, and there is nothing he can do about it. The pale blue eye of time always catches up with us.

Every week Poker Face manages to reinvent the who done it series. Just when I think I have everything figured out, they throw something different at us. Poker Face Episode 7 gave us another reason to love Natasha Lyonne and this incredible series. She is the best version of all of us. She is intelligent, capable, brave, and, above all, honest. With creative and funny stories and a cavalcade of great weekly stars, this is the kind of series worthy of the words prestige television. Peacock recently teased a season 2 pickup. I call bullsh@t. You know you have a hit on your hands. Stop playing with us and admit its been ordered. Find all our Poker Face coverage here.