Plot Summary – A mystery-of-the-week series following Charlie Cale, who has an extraordinary ability to determine when someone is lying. She hits the road in her Plymouth Barracuda and with every stop encounters a new cast of characters and strange crimes she can’t help but solve.

★★★★★

This show has been an absolute delight to watch this year. Every episode is filled with mystery, suspense, and nuance. Rian Johnson and all the other talented people directing and writing this show masterfully construct 10 episodes in which there are different murder mysteries to be solved and yet each episode doesn’t feel repetitive or derivative of other works. Even though the formula and structure of the show is age-old, the presentation is brand new and the ‘gimmick’ of the show works so well. By showing us how each murder is done beforehand, we are made to attentively see how our protagonist solves it. But a mystery alone does not give us a brilliant show like this. The true mastery of the show is the characters and dynamics that Charlie builds along the way. Somehow in each one-hour segment, we end up caring about all these peripheral characters and their lives enough that we are invested in seeing justice be served which is why each episode serves as such an interesting capsule. While Charlie seems a bit invincible, the overarching storyline set up in the premier always keeps us guessing. The way it culminates, in the end, gives us a very satisfying and narratively dense finale that sets us up for an even more promising second season. Natasha Lyonne is phenomenal in her role and makes up the lifeblood of the show. There are so many great one-episode guest performances like Adrien Brody, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Stephanie Hsu, Hong Chau, Jameela Jamil, Luis Guzman and so many more making the show always exciting and star-heavy. Most of the actors play against type so well and give a refreshing perspective on well-worn tropes. Overall, I thought this was an amazing show and I would highly recommend it to anyone.