The Game Is a Foot

After the wait to see to what happens to Charlie we are brought back to the orange hair girl we all beloved in American pie. This first episode is a great beginning to the who dunnit genre, and we are given a taste of what's to come with the twisted evil twin sister story, with a good performance by Cynthia Erivo. It was a great example of negligible parental guidance, behind the story of the fruits of their labor only to be withheld by their mother guided by greed and profit alone. I will leave it at that because I don't want to give away any spoilers, but from the first 3 episode drop the second episode is by far the best only second to the first. I adore Natalie's performance, as a long time fan of hers I am quite eager to see what awaits in this season and just hopefully Charlie will finally be able to have a glimpse of happiness and a normal life to follow, but not to normal lol so their may be a season 3 of course. Great beginning.

I loved Pokerface and I'm really happy to see it back. It was a fun start. Cynthia Erivo was great, playing five distinct characters. I do have some issues with it though. Certain aspects of the story don't feel ground in that certain level of reality season 1 had. The quintuplets were interesting and Erivo did a great job, but the individual characters are so over defined that it comes across contrived. I get the temptation to separate identical quintuplets as much as possible, but it leans too much into caricature. As much as we all know who did it I felt the slip ups were too heavy handed. Lastly the hitmen chasing Charlie Cale all over the country are more like a cartoon, popping up in different locations. I hope the next episodes are more grounded again.

Wouldn't it be cool to know when someone is lying? Sure. But imagine always knowing-at every moment, with everyone you meet-that something isn't quite right. That white lies and half-truths stand out like blinking neon signs. It's a blessing and a curse, and "Poker Face" knows exactly how to make that tension sing. Over the course of its first season, Charlie Cale transformed from a drifter with a party trick into a reluctant folk hero-using her unique lie-detecting ability not to hustle cards, but to uncover injustice. With Season 2, the show picks up right where it left off, and this premiere is a confident, stylish, and thrilling return to form.

"The Game Is a Foot" once again deploys the show's signature inverted mystery format with surgical precision. We meet Amber Kazinsky -a faded former child star navigating the minefield of family trauma, impending inheritance, and long-buried secrets. The writing smartly gives us a full psychological portrait of Amber before even introducing Charlie, letting the drama simmer and unfold in ways that are both shocking and grounded. When Charlie does arrive, the episode kicks into a different gear, showing off the series' gift for weaving two storylines together into a suspenseful, emotionally rich conclusion. The script-penned by Laura Deeley-is full of sharp turns and tension, elevated further by Rian Johnson's sleek, gothic-tinged direction. Set on an eerie coastal estate, the episode draws on the atmospheric elegance of "Knives Out," making full use of symmetry and rooms full of secrets to capture both the grandeur and the decay of this dysfunctional family's world. It's beautiful, it's moody, and it makes you want to pause just to drink in the details. Natasha Lyonne remains the show's magnetic core, slipping back into Charlie's boots with that unmistakable blend of curiosity, sarcasm, and stubborn heart. She's matched note-for-note by Cynthia Erivo, who delivers a bravura performance that's both technically dazzling and emotionally sharp-playing five different siblings with subtlety, wit, and clarity. It's a showcase of range that doesn't feel like a gimmick, but rather a seamless part of the story's engine.

With strong writing, strong performances, and that unmistakable Johnson-ian visual flair, this is a season premiere that reminds us exactly why "Poker Face" works so well. It's clever without being smug, stylish without being empty, and above all, fun as hell.

"The Game is a Foot" is an enjoyable episode of "Pokerface" but I also must admit that the plot is kind of stupid and incredibly hard to believe...even compared to other episodes of this series. The plot is clearly contrived and beyond difficult to believe!

Charlie has gotten a job picking apples and she's made a friend there. It turns out this friend used to be someone famous...or she played someone famous. It seems that long ago, she and her other three identical sisters all played a beloved TV character. However, their mother was a monster and stole everything...leaving the four with nothing. So when the friend learns that her mother has died, she decides to see if she's left anything in the will...and, of course, Charlie tags along. Soon, they learn that NONE of these quads get the money...as they were not quads at all but quintuplets. The unknown last sister, who none of them know, has been given everything...and this of couse leads to murder.

Ignore the silliness of the plot and just enjoy...that's my advice. The unknown fifth sister is silly and the story never seems the least bit believable....but it is very entertaining and is worth your time.

Sadly, season two does not continue with what I thought would be the natural evolution into Charlie becoming a true detective.

Instead of creating circumstances which land her in happenstances, the show could've evolved her into the female Colombo. Charlie is curious like a detective. She asks the type of questions that a detective would. She applies deductive reasoning to figure out what may have happened. But she's not a detective? And she has a super power of sorts; the ability to know if someone is lying. I've only watched the first two episodes but, unless some good writing develops, I'll have to stay with my first impression on S02... cheesy.