It’s gutsy to go from a heist episode to a con episode. Yet Poker Face does just that with “The Sleezy Georgian,” the latest episode to pit Charlie (Natasha Lyonne) against some high-minded foes. John Cho, Melanie Lynskey, GaTa, and a fun ensemble support the fun little caper.
Poker Face —”The Sleezy Georgian” Recap
Regina (Melanie Lynskey) arrives at a hotel bar, where she spots Alec (John Chu) sitting alone at a table. She sits beside him and asks about his meal, which elicits a short response. He receives a package from a passerby and places it in his bag. They make small talk, order drinks, and Alec receives another package. He tells Regina they’re just work papers.
Regina pushes him about his job, which he admits is being a luxury travel agent. Now he’s using those skills to help him with his new business. He asks Regina about hers, and Regina reveals she’s holding onto $20,000 from a fundraiser for her non-profit. She’s waiting to deposit the money and has always wanted to do something fun. Alec excuses himself to go to his room, and she asks if she can join him.
Upstairs, she pours herself a drink and notices Alec’s gun. He takes it off, and they kiss, but she’s too interested in his job to overlook it. Alec reveals that he converts money for a former employer who had been deposed as the ruler of the country of Georgia. The former ruler cannot exchange the cash he brought with a bank, so he uses Alec to exchange it. Alec exchanges with the bank for a higher rate. Today, he will exchange $400,000 and earn even more.
Regina tries to put her money into the pot, but Alec warns her that something could go wrong. The bodyguard knocks at the door, and when Alec opens it, he gets shot in the chest. Regina shoots the guard with Alec’s pistol, grabs the extra money, and leaves the hotel.
Charlie (Natasha Lyonne) grabs a morning beer at the hotel bar. She meets with Alec, and the two talk while eating breakfast. Charlie asks him about his day, and Alec tells her a similar story to the one he told Regina. However, she recognizes the lies and reveals her gift. Alec is a con man, and he takes her to meet his con man friends.
One of the guys, Manny (Joel Marsh Garland), is the man who shot him with Regina. He plays the “heavy” for Alec’s cons. Jean (GaTa) is the accountant who helps wash the money. David (Eric Satterberg) is an actor who helps with the acting. Cliff (Veronika Slowikowska) is an intern who helps keep the minutes for their group. They run “The Sleezy Georgian” con and use the money from the last job as their bait. Eventually, they steal from the target after the fake shootout.
Manny and Charlie joke around, which causes Alec to yell at them. Charlie goes to leave, and they tell her to grab something from the “take-home pile.” There, she grabs Regina’s green bag, and Alec tries to get her to join the group. At first, it seems like he succeeds, but in her car, she finds the deposit slip Regina had filled out.
The next morning, Charlie confronts Alec about his con and the fact that they literally took money from orphans. Regina then killed herself when she thought she was going to jail. Alec tells Charlie that she was an easy mark and even tried to steal the $400,000 when she thought both men were dead. Charlie threatens to go to the cops if they don’t give the money back to the charity. Alec tells her they’ll pull off the move on a new target at the bar, and when they do, he’ll give Charlie the $20,000 for the charity.
In the hotel, they meet Sketch (Brendan Sexton III), a man who has a hookup to a local poker game. Charlie tries to get Alec to bail, but the mobbed-up guy has $400,000 he can add to the pot. Even as Charlie tries to talk him down, Alec tells them it’s a go. Charlie tried to warn Sketch, but Alec saw her slip him a note. He still needs her to finish the job.
Sketch arrives with the cash and has it taped to his body. While he takes it off, Charlie sees a gun and tries to call off the con. However, Manny walks through the door, and Sketch shoots him. Charlie tries to grab the weapon, and in the tussle, Sketch gets shot in the chest. Alec runs, leaving Charlie to clean up the mess. However, when he returns to the rest of the crew, he dumps out their money and realizes Charlie conned him. We hear the police arrive in the background.
Back in the hotel, Manny and Sketch get up. They knew Alec would run. Sketch also reveals that he’s Robin, Manny’s husband. Alec never took the time to meet him, despite Manny seeing Alec as his mentor. They tell Charlie they’re done and tell her to deposit the money for the orphans. She drops the money in the satchel and skips town.
Is “The Sleezy Georgian” worth watching?
Yes! While it’s not as much fun as the heist episode, “The Sleezy Georgian” is still quite fun. John Cho gets the showcase role, and he’s given more than enough material to remind us why we love him. Meanwhile, Melanie Lynskey has an incredible opening fifteen minutes but is sidelined for the rest of the episode. Unfortunately, “The Sleezy Georgian” is never as good as it was during that cold open.
“The Sleezy Georgian” does have another good performance from Natasha Lyonne. Her principled stand helps show some characters the right way forward and also proves that John Cho is beatable by the group. It’s a smart way to interject her into a story, and unlike many other episodes, it’s fun to realize the crime is well over by the time Charlie meets up with the principal characters.
Mimi Cave, the excellent director of Hulu’s Fresh with Sebastian Stan, hops in as the director. She helps channel the tone and adds a bit more of the blood effects than we traditionally see. Her direction is solid, especially in the cold open, which helps get us very intrigued about where “The Sleezy Georgian” will head. Unfortunately, the back half of the episode is not quite as exciting.
This may ultimately fall on the teleplay. For some reason, GaTa (Anybody But You) is introduced but does not get nearly a big enough role. Anyone who watches Dave knows how talented he is, so this is a real missed opportunity. Even Joel Marsh Garland deserved more screentime with Charlie specifically. We love their relationship but needed at least one more to fully get “The Sleezy Georgian” over the finish line.
“The Sleezy Georgian” airs on Peacock on June 12, 2025. Poker Face releases all episodes on Thursday mornings on Peacock.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
