Poker Face – Season 2 Episode 12 Recap, Review & Ending Explained
Episode 12 of Poker Face Season 2 begins with Charlie and Alex on the run towards Beatrix Hasp. Luca calls Charlie and tells her about the Iguana and how he wanted them to get away and lead him to Beatrix. He says the Iguana can look like anyone and encourages her to give herself up to the police.
She cuts the call and discusses the situation with Alex. They stop at the next truck stop, where Charlie muses that they only need to survive two weeks until Beatrix testifies. After that, they should be safe.
But at that moment, Charlie spots a man who could be the assassin and the two girls make a run for it. The man chases them but they manage to drive away before he can do anything.
Meanwhile, Luca tries to tell his superiors to reveal Hasp's location so they can move her. The location is protected by a three-word phrase which is split between three different agencies and each agency head refuses Luca's request.
Charlie and Alex arrive at Beatrix's house. Charlie goes up to the front door on her own but no one opens it. She goes to the side of the house and finds a dead body. Alex starts pressing the car horn and Charlie runs back but it's too late, Alex is gone.
Charlie goes back to the house and finds multiple dead bodies, including Beatrix's. From a side room, Alex comes out! Charlie realises she's been behind the whole thing — she is the Iguana! Alex is the one person who can lie to Charlie. She's been lying to her this whole time.
Alex describes how she's been an assassin for years but got bored over the last few years. She then got a call from her agent, who convinced her to take on a job to kill Beatrix Hasp. While Alex wasn't interested at first, she was intrigued when she learned that Charlie is a human lie detector and the only one who could get her to Beatrix. It presented a new challenge.
When Alex offered Charlie that free coffee that wasn't really coffee, it was a test to see if Alex could lie to Charlie. And she passed! But it took a Herculean effort from Alex to constantly lie. The gym murder got Charlie to fully trust Alex. Next, she hired the world's second-best assassin to kill Hasp's son and frame Charlie. She also attacked a random man at the truck stop to make him chase her and Charlie (who mistook him for the Iguana).
Alex says that the challenge of lying to Charlie gave her life purpose. But now, she has to kill her. She is about to shoot when a fire alarm starts beeping. Charlie had kept one of Beatrix's pots on a high flame and it set the alarm off. It sends her location to Luca and as cops arrive at the house, Alex holds Charlie hostage and drives off in her car. Luca and other agents pursue them.
Alex admits to Charlie that after fooling her nemesis, she's now ready to end her life. Charlie says that Alex hasn't tried to lie to her while Charlie's trying to catch her. Alex decides to play two truths and a lie while hurtling the car towards the edge of a cliff. If Charlie wins, she'll let them live. Charlie wins! But now, the car's brakes don't work.
The car goes over the cliff but right before that, Charlie opens her door and leaps out. Luca saves her from falling off the cliff but with Alex gone, she will now be held for several federal crimes. However, Luca agrees to let her go…for now. Charlie is upset about the turn of events but she rushes off and gets a ride from a truck driver.
When another FBI agent examines Charlie's burnt-up car at the bottom of the canyon, we see that Alex isn't inside.
The Episode Review
Episode 12 ends Poker Face Season 2 on a high note! A lot has happened in this episode and while your mileage with the implications may vary, it's still a solid dose of intriguing twists and turns. While the first half of the episode is all about the chase and running away, the second half offers a tête-à-tête between Charlie and the Iguana who is revealed to be none other than Alex.
The Season 2 finale implies that they are each other's nemeses and suggests that the following season will not only have Charlie run from the FBI but also face off against Alex once again. Although I wonder how Alex will continue to compete with Charlie now that Charlie knows her real identity.
Ultimately, it all comes down to the larger trajectory of Charlie's life. The second season largely saw her settle down in one place and make longer connections with people; it felt like a different direction from the chase of Season 1. In the end, it depends on which version you like better — slice of life or on the run?
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