Poker Face Season 2 Just Gave Us The Show’s Most Tragic Villain Yet

Review

Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Poker Face season 2, episode 6!

Poker Face season 2, episode 7 just gave us the show’s most tragic villain yet, offering up another unique case for the detective TV series. Poker Face season 2 has featured plenty of memorable criminals in its lineup so far. These include Fran, a police officer who accidentally killed Gator Joe with a reptile laxative and used Daisy the alligator to cover it up; and Stephanie, an elementary school student doing whatever it takes to win. The culprits of Poker Face season 2’s episodes have been versatile in their presentation, and in how their crimes get committed.

However, Poker Face season 2, episode 7’s cast introduces Kendall, an employee of big-box store SuperSave with dreams of becoming a screenplay writer in Hollywood. When his boss and best friend, Bill, fires him to force him to pursue his passion, he ends up befriending a thief named Juice. Together, the pair use Kendall’s latest screenplay, One Last Job, as a blueprint to steal from the SuperSave. However, this results in a tragic death, one that makes the episode’s core criminal more sympathetic because of how it happens.

Poker Face Season 2, Episode 7’s Culprit Didn’t Kill The Episode’s Victim

Kendall's Actions Indirectly Led To Bill's Death

Kendall is the main culprit of Poker Face season 2, episode 7, being the mastermind behind the SuperSave heist. However, when he’s discovered by Bill, he initially wants to explain and apologize for stealing almost $400,000 from the store. Instead, his friend is killed by Juice, who shoots him in the back, unaware that he was Kendall’s friend. The pair end up escaping, but the moment clearly has the main culprit shaken up: the robbery was never supposed to result in someone dying.

This guilt extends to when Charlie discovers the plan he had with Juice, as it’s clear he doesn’t want to hurt anyone else. When Charlie discovers the money in his work locker, he aims a gun at her while explaining that Bill was never meant to get hurt. Despite being a witness — and having a personal connection to the case because of her romantic ties to Bill — Kendall lets Charlie walk away. He clearly doesn’t want to kill anyone else, and regrets that his friend died because of his actions.

Kendall’s Next Kill Was Both An Accident & Self-Defense

He Was Trying To Protect Himself After Juice Tried To Kill Him

Bill isn’t the only person Kendall harms this episode, as he’s also directly responsible for killing Juice. However, this happened after the seasoned criminal learned he’d hidden close to $100,000 in his locker at work. He threatens to shoot him, forcing him to give up the combination to the locker. However, Juice’s gun gets jammed, causing a fight that ends in Kendall picking up one of his display katanas. He accidentally stabs Juice through the chest with his back turned, doing so to save his own life.

The ending makes Kendall a very different culprit in Poker Face, as he’d simply made a terrible mistake that spiraled out of his control.

This doesn’t kill Juice, though, as he appears in the SuperSave at the end, pursuing Charlie and Kendall with a machine gun. While he tries to kill them both, he ends up dying of his injuries, while Kendall is arrested by police Charlie called with Bill’s emergency button. The ending makes Kendall a very different culprit in Poker Face, as he’d simply made a terrible mistake that spiraled out of his control. Although he hoped his crimes would allow him to get enough money to pursue his dreams, the sobering reality was he could have pursued them regardless.

How Poker Face’s Sympathetic Villain Changes The Show

Kendall's Story Is A Heartbreaking Lesson

If Juice hadn’t convinced Kendall to pull off the SuperStore heist, then he could have pursued his dreams in Hollywood regardless of the monetary cost. As Bill proclaimed, he had what it takes to be a screenplay writer, the realism of One Last Job clear due to the relative success of his heist. Instead, he made the conscious choice to listen to his criminal partner, throwing away his chance at success for quick money.

This makes Kendall’s story in Poker Face season 2, episode 7 extremely tragic, since the consequences of what happened were extremely avoidable. Now, instead of using his talent to pen screenplays in Hollywood, he’ll be imprisoned, likely for the rest of his life. This makes his ending one of the most tragic in the show, as he had plenty of opportunities to stop his crimes from snowballing. It shows just how experimental season 2 has been with its culprits, emphasizing how some of them simply make terrible mistakes with a horrible cost.

New episodes of Poker Face season 2 arrive Thursdays on Peacock.