The third episode of “Poker Face,” dubbed “The Stall,” presents the audience with a fresh murder. George Boyle is the proprietor of a successful BBQ joint that he runs alongside his wife, Mandy Boyle, and George Boyle has been acting weird since morning and has been standing beside the meat locker like a ghost, calling himself a murderer. In reality, George has grown conscious, calling his establishment the temple of savagery, wishing to go vegan, and asking his brother Taffy for his half of the property. Taffy tries to talk his brother out of it, but Geroge has already made up his mind to quit. Unlike George, Taffy is an avid spender and likes to spend all his money, leaving him with no money to buy George out. Believing this to be the only way, Taffy decides to kill his brother. Taffy is also the host of a local radio show and has pre-recorded his session to create a perfect alibi while he ventures out of the station to murder George. Unfortunately, Taffy was bitten by a dog on his way out. The dog belonged to Cale(the protagonist), and fearing it’d lead the cops to him, Taffy tried to kill the dog by smashing its head with pecan wood. Fortunately, the flurry animal survived.
Spoilers Ahead
The Ensuing Investigation
Unfortunately for Taffy, Charlie has grown a liking towards Geroge, as he was the one who offered her a job while she was broke and running away from Cliff and Sterling Sr. George’s death broke Charlie’s heart, and after noticing that Taffy is lying on the day of the funeral, decides to probe into the matter. After George’s death, Taffy wastes no time and rushes to franchise his brother’s BBQ joint, all the while ranting that his brother would’ve wanted the same thing. Taffy also had a partner, Maddy, George’s wife, who was having an affair behind his back with Taffy. Taffy also learns about the pecan wood that the vet extracted from the dog and realises that someone has tried to kill the dog in an attempt to silence it. According to Charlie’s talents, two mysterious incidents in very close proximity to each other are no coincidence. She also remembers that George wanted to tell her something but had to push it after Maddy interrupted him, meaning George thought he’d be alive at the end of the night. Believing Charlie to be a danger to his plans, Taffy threatens her to leave the town, advising her never to show her face here, saying that “he doesn’t smile kindly on trespassers.”
At night, Charlie investigates George’s trailer and notices that someone has befouled the trailer’s door, making sure George never gets out once the fume starts brimming in. Unfortunately, Cale encounters Maddy on her way out, who tries to convince her that her husband committed suicide after he couldn’t find himself with the courage to look himself in the mirror, knowing that he devoted his life to cruelty and savagery and the murder of innocent animals. Cale goes to the radio station, encounters Henry, asks if he was present at the station for last night’s BBQ-and-A, and learns that Taffy never left the booth after he went in for the last night’s show. After hearing the recording, Cale concludes that Taffy might have recorded the session, snuck out to kill George, got back, and resumed the session. However, he could’ve only done that if he’d known he was going to get asked about “Hot Links,” proving Maddy was in on the plan as well. Like Taffy, Maddy also suggests Charlie leave Texas for her own safety. The next morning, Cale decides to put an end to the madness and confronts Taffy about his deeds. In reality, what really gave Taffy away was the absence of the blaring of the train horn from his recording. And if Taffy was hosting the show in real time, the sound should’ve been there. Charlie also figured out that Maddy was the real mastermind behind everything and used Taffy to avoid getting her hands dirty. To save her own skin, Maddy decides to sacrifice Taffy and contacts the sheriff, blaming everything on his shoulders. Little did she know, Charlie, with the help of Henry, had recorded Maddy’s telephonic conversation with Taffy, proving her guilt.
George was betrayed by his own brother and the woman he was in love with just because he no longer wwanted to cook meat and go vegan. A stranger, Charlie, helped him more than his own brother and avaricious wife combined. When compared to other crime-solving detective series, “Poker Face” stands out because of its examination of how the person we love or trust the most might turn out to be our worst adversary for the sake of a few hundred bucks and a lottery ticket.
