Just One More Version

Poker Face finally made it to the top of my list. I’m not all the way through, in part because so many of the people I’d discuss it with haven’t finished season two, either, but I binged a good chunk last week. And, yes, it’s easy to talk about Natasha Lyonne’s pitch-perfect Peter Falk impersonation—do you want to talk about Natasha Lyonne’s pitch-perfect Peter Falk impersonation for a while? And of course the wide array of guest stars—enough so it isn’t always the obviously famous person who did it. But one of the more interesting aspects is the show from a critical perspective is the smaller details. Like the font.

The ‘70s were the golden era of detective shows, if you want my personal opinion. The recent batch have focused on ensemble casts, since about Law & Order, but in the ‘70s, you get shows named after one person. Usually a guy, unless the detective is good ol’ Kate Mulgrew in Mrs. Columbo or whatever you’re calling it this time. Or Jessica Walter as Amy Prentiss. There were two or three others, but it was TV. It was mostly men. There was also an odd Mod Squad, too, of course. But mostly you get Banaceks and Ironsides and Rockfords. And, yes, Columbos.

They don’t have to be as exact a duplicate as Poker Face, but I think there’s a lot about a series can borrow from the classics on. Oh, Rian Johnson borrowed from the classics of the ‘70s for Knives Out and Glass Onion, too, but that isn’t really what I mean, either. I also don’t necessarily mean borrowing the “howcatchum” feature of Columbo. There’s a show on Netflix set in ‘70s Mexico called Belascoarán, PI that’s in the modern version of Grimy ‘70s Vision. And we’re not talking, you know, Mexico Is Sepia, we’re talking “the ‘70s were brown.” Just like a lot of Poker Face.

Because that’s the thing—you don’t need to be in the US to be a version of this story. Life on Mars is British, for one thing. But I could see a good version being set in Lagos or Singapore or Quito. It’s the aesthetic that matters, and the aesthetic can be anywhere. For best results, throw together a low-rent detective with unexpected perception and unquestionable charisma. Add in a dash of class issues for best results. Do not forget the comedy. Recurring characters can be fun but aren’t actually necessary.

I guess I’d just prefer these to more CSI clones. I want to see a detective who turns out to be the child of Basque separatists and is learning his job from a correspondence course while he’s at it. A woman on the run from assorted mob families and eventually a child. A gentleman detective who hates games. I want trailers and lollipops and beat-up coats and all sorts of other trademarks. Strangers in strange lands and people learning more about the cities of their births. I like detectives who are characters, and if I have to suffer through a little Grimy ‘70s Vision to get it, well, that’s what I’ll do.