Television’s past is proving to be its future. While streaming platforms have spent the last decade chasing cinematic universes and hyper-serialised arcs, a surprising winner has emerged; a return to classic, episodic storytelling, and it’s not just older viewers tuning in.
Poker Face, the stylish mystery-of-the-week series now streaming on Stan, has its roots in 70s and 80s classics like Columbo, Knight Rider, and Magnum P.I..
It blends old-school narrative rhythms with modern production values and it’s attracting both the older ‘nostalgic’ audience, plus the younger demo who are clearly taking notice.
Creator Rian Johnson, the director of Knives Out, has clearly hit a nerve with the show, starring Natasha Lyonne who stars as lie-detecting prodigy Charlie Cale. She’s a former waitress on the run from a gang intent on killing her. As she travels the country trying to evade them, she uses her innate skills to solve a different murder every week.
Rian Johnson
“I watched The A-Team, Quantum Leap and Charlie’s Angels growing up,” Johnson explains to Mediaweek. “And they were all episodic in the true sense of an episodic nature.
“You weren’t following a big, long arc. It was every week, you got your own little mini story. As great as modern serialised television is, I just felt a deep hunger for kind of the comfort food of that kind of storytelling.
“I love a TV show where someone solves a thing and moves on,” says Johnson. “Not everything needs to be connected by a massive arc. Sometimes it’s satisfying to drop in, get a complete story, and come back the next week.”
And it’s not just the format that harks back to the classic 80s episodic TV. Johnson ensured the way the show is shot, and even the graphics, have the same feel.
‘I didn’t want to be coy’
“Coming to it for the first time, I wanted to give audiences a cue as to what the game is that we’re playing with this show,” he notes. “I didn’t want to be coy about what type of show it is. I wanted, when you tune in, to give you a very clear visual marker and then let you ease in and enjoy it on that level.
“The yellow titles, the filmic look of how it is shot, the way we use music and all of it is geared towards just orientating the audience.
“It’s less about nostalgia as a pursuit of its own, but also about letting the audience know, ‘This is this type of storytelling and this is what we’re doing with this.'”
Natasha Lyonne in Poker Face
This back-to-basics approach, familiar structure, rotating guest stars, and a clear beginning-middle-end, has become Poker Face’s signature, alongside Lyonne’s drawl and one-liners. And for an audience fatigued by commitment-heavy binge-watching, this simplicity is a real draw.
But Johnson admits it wasn’t over-thought or part of some grand strategy to appeal to two demos at once.
“We didn’t try to calculate what a younger audience would want,” he says. “We just made something that felt good. Younger audiences watch Frasier and Friends, they’re not opposed to formula, as long as it works.”
Season two of Poker Face, currently available to watch, expands on the original format, with a more ambitious roster of guest stars and a confident sense of identity. Cynthia Erivo, Katie Holmes and Rhea Pearlman are just some of the stars who feature.
‘Casting is always a challenge’
“Once the actors saw the show, it was easier to get them to jump in,” Johnson explains. “Like Columbo, we wanted big stars and great character actors to own their episode.
“But casting is always a challenge, even on a Knives Out movie.”
Johnson is currently directing the third Knives Out instalment, Wake Up Dead Man, due for release later this year.
And as for whether Charlie Cale will ever face a larger story arc or get “caught,”? The answer is refreshingly unfussy.
“We’re taking it episode by episode. No big endgame. We just want to keep ourselves, the writers, surprised,” says Johnson.
While no third season has been officially confirmed, Johnson says the team is watching how the latest season performs. “We’ll see. No one’s making guarantees,” he adds.
Smart without smug
At a time when the streaming landscape is saturated with sprawling story arcs and IP-driven franchises, Poker Face is a reminder that smart, self-contained storytelling still has power, especially when it’s delivered with style and confidence.
“TV can be smart without being smug,” said Johnson recently.
In a world of overcomplication, this return to simplicity might just be the most radical move of all.
Poker Face, seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on Stan now.