1x09 Escape from Shit Mountain

[7.4/10] The direction here is really good. Having Rian Johnson in the director’s chair pays dividends for the visuals. Everything from the lighting changes as the motel loses and regains power, to the tension and intensity of Trey’s lambo race down a mountain pass, to the strange symbolism of both Charlie and Trey getting a spiritual warning from a stag that something bad’s about to happen.

But the story doesn’t do much for me. It’s not bad or anything. But it feels a little too traditional relative to the interesting twists and unique angles Poker Face has found for the mystery stories to date. The rich guy who takes advantage of his working class friend to cover up a murder is a fairly standard dynamic. And Charlie becoming friends with a klepto con artist has some charms, but the two of them stumbling into an old murder feels like something you could see in any mystery movie/series.

That's not to say “Escape from Shit Mountain” doesn’t have its moments. I like that for once, in a way, Charlie is the victim this week. Natasha Lyonne gives a great performance, summoning the terror, disorientation, and desperation that comes with this isolated setting.I like Jimmy, and how even if it’s ill-fated, after ten years he makes the moral choice to protect someone from Trey, rather than help Trey get away with another crime. And heck, I even like the silly comedy of Charlie basking in the sunshine with her ab-laden park ranger beau.

Again, this one isn’t bad by any stretch, just a little too overfamiliar for the genre. That feels particularly disappointing since you have frequent Rian Johnson collaborator Joseph Gordon Levitt here, as well as Stephanie Hsu, who’s been a stand out in both Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Everything Everywhere All at Once. They’re not exactly wasted here -- both do good work and have solid material to play -- but the script doesn’t necessarily take full advantage of their prodigious talents either.

I do still like many of the visual touches here. And there’s a few clever moments, from the sense memory of Trey’s coconut rum spurring Charlie to recall him dragging her from the roadside, or Chekov’s “ibuprofen” coming back to bite Trey, or the deft twist of Charlie hanging onto Trey’s ankle monitor to ensure she’ll be found.

Still, I’m more excited for what this episode portends for the season finale. Charlie being “dead” seems like a good thing to her, since that should theoretically put Cliff off her trail. Instead, it sets it up so that he can theoretically kill her without anyone looking for a Charlie Kale, since poor “Morty” is presumed to be her. It’s a good setup.

Overall though, this is another well-made, well-shot episode, but one that doesn’t have the same zip or rich sense of character that's buoyed the prior outings this season.