Veronica Mars Overview

[janeeyre17.livejournal.com]

Veronica Mars. Probably the smartest network drama on tv today, and not just because of it's complex method of storytelling. The characters are multi-dimensional and engaging. (And hot, more on that later.)

The "gimmick" of the year-long mystery and a tiny blonde teen PI could have gotten old fast, but it's turned out to be one of the most original series in ages.

Over an entire season, through the use of Veronica's voiceovers, the weekly 'A' plot cases of her father's PI business, and just everyday life in Neptune California, the year long mystery comes together and is solved.

Watching a season through for a second time is even more enjoyable then the first time you saw it.



The series revolves around the title character, a blonde, 17 year old who is a bit too much involved in her father's PI business. A year ago Veronica was living a teenage fantasy. Popular and smart, she had the dream boyfriend, the perfect best friend, the most ideal life she could hope to have.

Then her best friend Lilly Kane was found murdered in her own backyard.

This combined with Lilly's brother Duncan - the aforementioned boyfriend - breaking up with her without even bothering to give a reason why, destroyed Veronica.

Veronica's father was the town sheriff, but after voicing his suspicions about Jake Kane's involvement in his daughter's death, Keith was ousted in a recall election. This proved to be too much for Veronica's mother Lianne. She left.

All the friends Veronica had had before abandoned her, feeling she betrayed them when she remained loyal to her father.

Her rape at an 09'er party a short while after Lilly's murder was the final turning point in Veronica's life thus far. She will never again be that girl.



"Neptune California, a town without a middle class."
This quote from Veronica opens up the Pilot episode of the series, and really is the background for all the various storylines in the series, from the season arcing mysteries, to the weekly cases Veronica and her father take on as part of their PI business.

The following line only emphasizes this fact. "Your parents are either millionaires, or your parents work for millionaires."

This situation may be odd and uncomfortable around town, but it's even worse at Neptune High, where it seems that all the popular kids are rich, and all the unpopular ones are not.






The Have Nots



Mars


Veronica (Kristen Bell) - She's spunky. She's sarcastic. She has a wardrobe and a supply of tech gadgets I seriously envy.

More importantly, she's managed to survive and continue to live in the circle of hell that's surrounded her since Lilly died.

Basically? She kicks ass.

Keith (Enrico Colantoni) - Veronica's dad. He has an awesome sense of humor, and is clearly the best tv dad ever. In all the turmoil of the past year, Keith has been one great constant in Veronica's life.

Their relationship might not always been the most traditional father-daughter one, but it's certainly one of the strongest.


Fennel


Wallace (Percy Daggs III) - The new guy in school, he appears to be Veronica's first friend since Lilly died.

Though he finds his own place at Neptune High, Wallace and Veronica still have an enduring and unbreakable friendship.

Also? The girls at Neptune aren't good enough for him. *cough*




Navarro


Eli "Weevil" (Francis Capra) - The leader of the local motorcycle gang (The PCH). But when it comes to Veronica? He's a big squishy teddy bear. Oh yeah, and he loved Lilly too.


Mackenzie

Cindy "Mac" (Tina Majorino) - She has blue hair. She's a computer genius. Quite simply? She rocks.



The Haves



Kane

Lilly (Amanda Seyfried) - Though it's Veronica's name in the show's title, and her eyes we see through, it could be argued that the show - for the first season at least - really revolves around Lilly. All the events that have effected Veronica in the past year resulted from Lilly's Murder.

We never see her "alive". Only in flashbacks and dreams. Despite this she's the most vibrant and whole character in the series. It's not hard at all to see why everyone loved her so much.


Duncan (Teddy Dunn) - Lilly's brother. Veronica's boyfriend. Logan's best friend. Jake and Celeste's son.

Duncan is defined by who he is to other people. He seems to barely exist as his own person. Is there a reason for this? Well……






Echolls

Logan (Jason Dohring) - Ah Logan. Be still my heart.

Ok, so I admit it. I'm a sucker for Logan.

Sure he organizes homeless boxing matches for his own amusement. And he's helped
make the past year of Veronica's life a living hell. But he has vast storages of angst, which doesn't stop at his pain over Lilly's death.

And the power of his and Veronica's bantering could run a small nation.




Casablancas

Dick (Ryan Hansen) - - Logan's lead hanger-on. Has no visible mind of his own. I can only hope that he and Madison Sinclair never breed. *shiver*


Cassidy "Beaver" (Kyle Gallner) - Dick's younger brother. Considering the other members of his family he's really quite lovely. Shame about the nickname.




Manning

Meg (Alona Tal) - Veronica once called Meg "The last good person in this school." Sweet and innocent, she's the girl Veronica used to be.





The Law

With Keith as the former sheriff and Veronica still investigating Lilly's murder, the Balboa County Sheriff's Department plays a decent role in the series. It doesn't help that Veronica is usually Lamb's number one suspect when anything in Neptune goes wrong.


Sheriff Don Lamb (Michael Muhney) - Scum of the earth in the form of a sheriff. He all but laughed in Veronica's face when she went to report her rape to him. Things would be so much simpler if only he wasn't so hot.


The School

With the town divided the way it is Neptune High is the one place where both sides of the town interact. (In a none Servant/Employer way that is.) Think a typical high school hell times ten. And though the setting may be teenaged, the stories taking place there are often anything but.




General Links
The Official UPN Site
Neptune High
vm-caps.com - (Where I got the caps for this overview)
Mars Investigations
Neptune Site
The Veronica Mars Directory
Television Without Pity's VMars Forums
vm_news
veronica_icons
neptune_video



LJ Fic Links
veronicamarsfic
fic_from_mars
vm_fic
loveathons

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_outercourse/]

Um, to quote Little John:

YEA-YUH.

Awesome show, can't wait for some recs!

[sparky77.livejournal.com]

Nice job, pookie!

He's a big squishy teddy bear. Oh yeah, and he loved Lilly too.
And Logan, except not in the big squishy teddy bear kind of way :)

[janeeyre17.livejournal.com]

See, that was in there originally, but Logan's entry was already longer then Veronica's, so...

[inalasahl]

Excellent overview.

[rani23.livejournal.com]

Lovely!!!

[chickpea.livejournal.com]

Nicely done intro! I liked how you grouped people with their families -- strangely enough, this is a family-centered show.

Also, I might suggest linking http://www.marsinvestigations.net/. They have a ton of interviews, and they're pretty much the most obsessed people I've ever seen (second to popslash, that is). Oh, and the boards at Television without Pity are really active, too. Again, great job!

[janeeyre17.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the Mars Investigations link.



And you know, I never even thought of linking to TWoP, because I always just assume that everyone knows about it.

[vampirespider.livejournal.com]

Absolutely wonderful overveiw, straight and to the point.

[twigged.livejournal.com]

Thank you for this overview!

[lina527.livejournal.com]

i have So Much Love for this show! Especially Logan. Great Overview!