God how I love a Rian Johnson joint. Because a Rian Johnson mystery is one that will leave fans on the edge of their seats! The man who brought us Knives Out and now Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery has decided to take us to a new kind of mystery show: one with Natasha Lyonne in it.
Poker Face is a perfect addition to the show roster for all fans of Johnson’s whodunnits and is described in the press release as follows: “Poker Face is a 10-episode mystery-of-the-week series following Natasha Lyonne’s Charlie, who 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 solve.”
What we get in the teaser trailer is Lyonne as Charlie, in all of Natasha Lyonne’s glory, with glimpses of the all-star cast that Johnson has rallied together for his next adventure into the mystery genre, and god, this feels like a gift!
The press release for the show also gave us a letter from Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne that reads as follows:
“Never underestimate the power of a good dinner conversation between friends. What started as a discussion over steak frites about detective shows and what made them such a reliable pleasure—the exploration of little worlds within each new setting, the guest stars playing killers and victims, and most importantly, a scrappy protagonist you were always ready to kick back with and see win—ultimately resulted in the creation of Charlie, the driving force behind POKER FACE.
We invite you to follow Charlie on a cross-country road trip as she meets a rogue’s gallery of characters and avenges a new injustice each episode, armed with little more than her uncanny ability to detect lies and a genuine appreciation for her fellow humans (and the occasional dog).
Now please leave the overthinking to Rian, who has masterfully crafted ten self-contained puzzles for Charlie to solve. Just jump in the back of her ‘69 Plymouth Barracuda and enjoy the ride.”
Rian Johnson and mysteries are a perfect combination
There are few things in this world that I love as much as I love a Rian Johnson mystery. He has mastered the art of giving us all the clues we need while still leaving us second-guessing the story unfolding before our eyes, and while I love Benoit Blanc and Daniel Craig’s performance in the Knives Out series, there is something so chaotically wonderful about Natasha Lyonne that has me staring at the clock and waiting for the day when I get to see her bring Charlie to life.
Poker Face seems incredibly different in tone from the Knives Out series, which is exciting because while I do love a murder mystery/whodunnit, a case-by-case television series also sounds incredibly perfect for Johnson and his style of writing.
This is just a taste of what we’ll get with this series, and if I am this excited about a teaser trailer, I can only image what will happen when I know more about Poker Face.
(featured image: Peacock)
