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I Loved Season 1 Of "Poker Face" — Here's My Ranking Of All 10 Episodes

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4 min read

WARNING: This post contains spoilers for Season 1 of Poker Face.

The first season of Poker Face has come to an end, and damn, was it a wild ride.

charlie bobbing her head to music on poker face
charlie bobbing her head to music on poker face

Peacock / Via giphy.com

As a whole, the season was great, and fortunately, another one is in the works.

charlie saying that's wow on poker face
charlie saying that's wow on poker face

Peacock / Via giphy.com

Of course, as with any season of TV, some episodes were more enjoyable than others.

charlie looking awkward on poker face
charlie looking awkward on poker face

Peacock / Via giphy.com

Here's my ranking of Season 1's episodes, from least favorite to favorite:

10.Episode 3 — "The Stall"

larry brown and natasha lyonne barbecuing in episode 3 of poker face
Peacock

Honestly, this one mostly loses points because I thought a dog had been beaten to death, but I also just didn't find the killers in this one quite as compelling as the others (as much as I love Lil Rel Howery).

lil rey howery in episode 3 of poker face
Peacock

9.Episode 1 — "Dead Man's Hand"

natasha lyonne and dascha polanco in a car in episode 1 of poker face
Peacock

Even though the pilot is one of my least favorite episodes of the season, I still enjoyed it enough to watch the next episode. While the casino setting didn't really do anything for me, the performances are engaging — Adrien Brody plays a great dirtbag.

adrian brody in episode 1 of poker face
Peacock

8.Episode 2 — "The Night Shift"

natasha lyonne and hong chau at a diner in episode 2 of poker face
Peacock

This is another case of a setting I'm not overly interested in. There are exceptions — The Mummy and Nope, to name a couple — but media set in the desert just doesn't grab me. Again, though, everyone gave great performances (including '90s Jack Black lookalike, Colton Ryan).

colton ryan in episode 2 of poker face
Peacock

7.Episode 7 — "The Future of the Sport"

charles melton and natasha lyonne in episode 7 of poker face
Peacock

It was a nice change-up that nobody actually died in this one, especially since the almost-victim was just caught up in the feud between her father and his wannabe replacement. While I did like the arcade scenes, unless it's the opening of a Final Destination movie, a race car track isn't a super interesting setting for me.

tim blake nelson in episode 7 of poker face
Peacock

6.Episode 10 — "The Hook"

natasha lyonne and benjamin bratt in episode 10 of poker face
Peacock

The opening to this one was both funny (I found myself simultaneously thinking "poor Cliff" and cackling) and informative (around the fourth episode of the season, I began wondering how much time was passing between each of these murders Charlie kept finding herself embroiled in).

I also really enjoyed seeing Natasha Lyonne reunited with her But I'm a Cheerleader costar Clea DuVall (even if they weren't playing girlfriends) and was pleasantly surprised by the twist that Sterling Sr. was ultimately not the villain Charlie thought he was (outside of being a mob boss).

ron perlman in episode 10 of poker face
Peacock

5.Episode 5 — "Time of the Monkey"

darius fraser natasha lyonne s epatha merkerson and judith light in episode 5 of poker face
Peacock

This one sort of scratched an itch I'd had throughout the previous three episodes. I kept waiting for Charlie to be attacked by one of the literal murderers she kept confronting*, so it was a weird relief when it finally happened. I also love that she got her ass beat by a couple of elderly women, one of whom couldn't even be deterred by a wheelchair.

judith light and s epatha merkerson in episode 5 of poker face

*On the note of all this confronting, I do find it odd that considering the whole premise of the show is Charlie running away from certain death, her self-preservation skills are basically nonexistent.

Peacock

4.Episode 4 — "Rest in Metal"

natasha lyonne crowd surfing and giving the middle finger in episode 4 of poker face
Peacock

Chlo? Sevigny makes for a fantastic rock star, and the songs created for the episode are genuinely good listens. (Peacock, if you're reading this, feel free to release the songs!)

chloe sevigny in episode 4 of poker face
Peacock

Also, Natasha Lyonne crowd surfing, flipping the bird, and screaming, "FUCK YOU, RUBY!" is just a top-tier moment of television in general.

3.Episode 6 — "Exit Stage Death"

audrey corsa natasha lyonne tim meadows and ellen barkin in episode 6 of poker face
Peacock

I love seeing actors playing actors, especially when the characters are cartoonish and terrible, and Ellen Barkin and Tim Meadows nailed it. This episode also just had a great twist, and the fact that Meadows and Barkin's characters decided that the show must go on even after being caught? Amazing.

ellen barkin and tim meadows in episode 6 of poker face
Peacock

2.Episode 9 — "Escape from Shit Mountain"

natasha lyonne and stephanie hsu in episode 9 of poker face
Peacock

This episode just ticked all the boxes for me. The title alone is phenomenal, and a snowy mountain cabin is one of my favorite settings for a murder mystery. I loved that they twisted up the format a bit with this episode, with the "death" we initially see actually being Charlie.

The comeuppance in this one was also particularly sweet, considering our villain is an overly wealthy white guy who has no problem killing women, people of color, and both.

joseph gordon levitt in episode 9 of poker face
Peacock

Speaking of which, I'm gonna need Joseph Gordon-Levitt to play more douchebags ASAP.

1.Episode 8 — "The Orpheus Syndrome"

natasha lyonne and nick nolte in episode 8 of poker face
Peacock

This felt like the closest we got to a Halloween episode this season, and I'm a sucker for all things spooky. I loved the stylistic and editing choices made in the last act, specifically the surreality of Cherry Jones's meltdown as she's outed as a murderer. As for the acting, I wouldn't be surprised if both Jones and/or Nick Nolte received a nomination or two for their performances.

cherry jones on the phone in episode 8 of poker face
Peacock

Also, of all of Charlie's jobs, this was the one I was most jealous of. It just looked so fun!

What were your favorite episodes of Poker Face? Sound off in the comments!

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