She gives us a fresh take on “lone wolf” saga

As “Poker Face” unfolds, we meet a familiar character – rootless, homeless, on the move.
“Life as a lone wolf has always been tricky,” said Natasha Lyonne (shown here), who stars as Charlie in the show (debuting Thursday, Jan. 26, on Peacock) from “Knives Out” creator Rian Johnson
That’s been true in her own life. Lyonne has described being on her own since she was 16, with a rich assortment of ups (“Russian Doll,” “Orange is the New Black”) and downs.
And it’s true on TV. Viewers savor shows – “The Fugitive,” “Then Came Bronson,” “Run For Your Life,” “Have Gun, Will Travel” – that keep lone figures on the move.
Lyonne’s own favorite was the “Long Goodbye” movie, with Elliott Gould as Philip Marlowe, a private eye. “I love that particular kind of a lone wolf,” she told the Television Critics Association. “Somebody who is really, I guess, sort of floating above a situation, sort of trying to crack a riddle.”
Such characters seem to be strong and sturdy … and male. Now Lyonne breaks the mold.
When we meet Charlie in the opener, she’s living in a shabby Las Vegas trailer. Her innate ability to tell when someone is lying has kept her banned from poker games; now a corrupt casino boss (Adrien Brody) wants to harness her skill.
The result in that first hour forces her to be on the run, solving mysteries as she goes.
At a time when streaming networks prefer heavily serialized shows, “Poker Face” is the opposite. Episodes are “nearly completely stand-alone” Johnson said. “The thing that got me really excited … was the idea of doing a truly episodic, case-of-the-week mystery show, like the kind of stuff I used to watch constantly when I was sitting in front of the TV as a kid.”
His favorites heroes, via reruns, included Columbo, Rockford and Magnum. Such shows need “a charismatic figure at the heart of it,” he said. “Because ‘Columbo’ or ‘Rockford Files’ – as much as those shows are mysteries, what really brings you back each week is you want to hang” with them.
And Lyonne, he said, fits that neatly. “We were becoming friends and at the same time, I was watching ‘Russian Doll.’ … I thought: ‘Here is somebody who has the presence and the charisma on the screen that I would just want to come back and be with.’”
The character he created neatly fits Lyonne’s life. She has described working as an actress since she was 6, being split from her parents since she was 16 and not quite graduating from high school. She’s had problems in court and with addiction, but she’s also had a string of successes, including Emmy nominations as a “Russian Doll” producer, writer and star.
At 43, she’s had lots of “life experience,” she said, and is a bit like Charlie. “I’m sort of somebody who has a pretty quick read on people – something you might call street smarts.”
Now she’s putting that into “Poker Face.” Four of the 10 episodes debut Thursday; by the second one, she’s rattling through New Mexico in a balky old car.
In pursuit is the casino’s security chief. He’s “the dutiful soldier,” said Benjamin Bratt, who plays him. “He’s got a military background …. He’ll do whatever it takes to succeed at his job.”
He’s sort of the Lt. Gerard from “The Fugitive,” forever in pursuit of a lone wolf who keeps changing lives along the way.