Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for Poker Face Season 2 Episode 4.
Charlie Cale (Natasha Lyonne) is completely on the loose. After having the hit on her canceled by Beatrix Hasp (Rhea Perlman), the Poker Face protagonist is hitting the road for the first time with no one on her back. Turns out, however, that things aren’t about to get easier for her just because of that. Sure, a road trip always feels a lot better when there are no henchmen hunting you down, but Charlie’s crime-solving days aren’t over yet. In this week’s “The Taste of Human Blood,” our hero still has to solve a gruesome murder — although, let’s be fair, the whole story is a lot sillier than the title makes it sound.
Taking a page from Tiger King and from the myriad of news stories concerning that mythical entity known as the Florida Man, writer Wyatt Cain imagines a bloody adventure in which TikTok meets wildlife meets a whole bunch of Florida Men, this time dressed as cops. And, after episode upon episode of Charlie making it clear that she doesn’t want to work for “the man,” it’s nice to get a reminder of why she is so reluctant. Instead of focusing on strengthening the bond between its lead and an extremely likable FBI agent, “The Taste of Human Blood” features a version of the police that is extremely vain and trigger-happy. Good cops are hard to find, yet extremely easy to corrupt. It’s an interesting take for a show that sells itself as anti-establishment through its main character, but often fails to hold that position. The problem is that this long-awaited take doesn’t exactly solve the problems of “The Taste of Human Blood,” namely its all-over-the-place plot and its dissatisfying conclusion.
‘Poker Face’ Season 2 Episode 4 Pits Charlie Against the Cops

Image via Peacock

The story starts with star police officer Fran Lamont (Gaby Hoffman), whose ego has been taking hit after hit following years of losses at the local FlopaCopas, or Florida Panhandle Cop Awards. To add insult to injury, Fran, who is known for doing things like saving a truck full of migrant children, is losing her precious trophies to a TikTok-famous former traffic agent who became an influencer after adopting a baby alligator that once belonged to a meth dealer. Played by Kumail Nanjiani, Gator Joe now carries his beloved Daisy around in raids, much to the horror of criminals and the delight of his millions of followers. The problem is he also keeps Daisy on a steady diet of laxatives and anxiety meds that’s been raising eyebrows among defenders of animal rights. That’s where Charlie comes in.
Having volunteered at a sanctuary for rescued alligators, Charlie ends up getting involved with a group of underground activists who are trying to save Daisy. She infiltrates the FlopaCopas as a waitress and begins the process of getting Daisy out of her cage. Alas, while she’s getting some Oreos — a treat that Daisy absolutely adores — someone releases the alligator and sets them off on Gator Joe, who ends up dead and partly eaten on the floor of the men’s bathroom.

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What Charlie doesn’t know, but will find out by the end of the episode, is that Fran has decided to take revenge on her nemesis after years of humiliation. Realizing that she will lose once again in 2025, she drugs Joe with alligator laxative, but mixes up the dosage, which results in her having a dead body on her hands. In order to get rid of Joe’s corpse, she releases Daisy and drugs her with a ton of meth, or at least enough meth that she would do some damage to the man that raised her.
Things get even crazier when Daisy escapes. Activists bail and cops are up in arms; they have an alligator that has felt the taste of human blood on the loose. Trying to keep her colleagues from finding the hidden camera that Joe had on his glasses for his TikToks — a camera that is now inside Daisy’s belly — Fran teams up with Charlie to let Daisy loose in a nearby swamp. However, when Charlie realizes that Fran is actually trying to kill Daisy, the pieces begin to assemble. Charlie confronts Fran, who says that she will turn herself in. And, indeed, she does, but her boss, noticing that this is the most Florida Man thing he has ever seen, decides not to take the case to court. Feeling that she has nothing more to contribute to society as a police officer, Fran goes to work at the alligator sanctuary. As for Charlie… well, she’s back on the road.
‘Poker Face’ Season 2 Episode 4 Is Too Convoluted to Work

Now, you might have felt a little confused while reading our summary of “The Taste of Human Blood.” If that’s the case, we need you to know that we have done our best. While Poker Face episodes are known for being full of little twists and turns, “The Taste of Human Blood” is simply too convoluted for words, and watching the episode can often feel a lot more confusing than reading about it. There are so many elements that need to come together for this story to tick, and sometimes they don’t even make sense. The part in which Daisy escapes confinement is unnecessary to the point where it becomes distracting, and why would an alligator owned by a meth dealer only discover the taste of human blood late in life? Why does Wyatt Cain think hotshot criminals keep these kinds of animals as pets? Hint: it’s got less to do with them being exotic, and more with how handy they are when it’s time to dispose of enemies.
The jokes about police officers jumping at the chance to fight one another and pull out their guns when a murder is afoot are funny, and the one in which they boo the award for Best Internal Affairs Investigation is just plain revealing of the show’s true sentiments. Likewise, the moment in which Charlie looks into Daisy’s eyes and sees the embodiment of peace and love is also cute. Sadly, that’s about it. The rest of the episode is completely devoid of charm. Even Kumail Nanjiani and his natural charisma don’t do much for “The Taste of Human Blood.” One would think that casting Nanjiani to play a version of Tiger King would be enough to guarantee at least a laugh or two, but one would be wrong. He’s not bad, but he’s also not that funny. His performance is fine enough, but the text just doesn’t work.
“The Taste of Human Blood” mostly throws away the chance to start developing Charlie’s character, which was more than welcome after the end of “Whack-a-Mole.” With no one on her tail, Charlie should be striving to find out who she is and what she truly wants from life, which the script tells us she is doing through her own mouth. However, when it comes time to show it, Cain just gets her on the radio with a random guy — voiced by Steve Buscemi — who tells her that life is all about the journey. Charlie doesn’t get any closer to self-realization. She just keeps on floating around from one town to the other, from one episode to the other. Let’s hope this changes as the season progresses.
New episodes of Poker Face Season 2 premiere Thursdays on Peacock.

Poker Face

Not even Kumail Nanjiani’s charisma is enough to Poker Face Season 2 Episode 4.

Release Date

January 26, 2023

Network

Peacock

Showrunner

Lilla Zuckerman

Pros & Cons

After episodes of Charlie saying she doesn’t work for the man, “The Taste of Human Blood” reminds us of the reasons why.
Charlie’s relationship with Daisy, the alligator, is cute enough.

The plot is just too convoluted to work and some elements fail to make sense.
Kumail Nanjiani is fine as Gator Joe, but the script doesn’t do him justice.
“The Taste of Human Blood” fails to explore Charlie’s character, something that is much needed after “Whack-a-Mole.”