TWoP Veronica Mars recap - Pilot:

In the first two minutes, the show has given us a relatively subtle and well-executed, as well as interesting, look at the dichotomous nature of the lead character's personality. You know, I just got cable last week in my new apartment, so I'm probably just mixed up here. For a minute, I actually thought this show was on UPN.

A Veronica Mars Voice-Over (VMVO) tells us that the school employs random locker searches, except that they're not really random, and she knows when they're going to happen before "Vice-Principal Clemens" does. In the hallway, Veronica turns the corner to find a security guard and, ostensibly, the aforementioned Vice-Principal.
The VP asks her to open her locker. As she works the combination, the guard's German shepherd barks, but she quiets him with a 'Buster!' Hmm. She opens the locker to reveal...nothing, save a heart-shaped picture oh it wasn't a mirror of the VP taped to the door. And on top of that, she deadpans, 'Wow. This is a little embarrassing!' oh ok about having a an apparent luv-pic of him Okay, she's got me. I mean, it's still conditional, as we're only at the three-minute mark, but definitely pencil me in as a liker.

We flash back in bluish streaky light to a long-haired Veronica pedemacking with Duncan, who's...not all that, really. The flashbacks are a little jarring, also, because Veronica looks much younger with the shorter hair. yeah I think it's impressive - they created that effect just by giving her the longer hair? (and is it a wig? they didn't shoot the whole season's flashbacks at once & then have her cut her hair, cldn't have done that, right?)

Veronica asks him what he did to piss off IHeartVinDiesel, whose name is apparently "Weevil," by the way. And here I thought I was bringing down his street cred heh by calling him "IHeartVinDiesel." (Incidentally, he's played by Francis Capra, who's descended in a direct line from Frank Capra. And some forum posters seem to think he's rather appealing.)

We cut to Veronica opening her door and being happily greeted by a pit bull. oh he's a pit bull. cool. he's a good big handsome dog - it's fun watching Veronica with him on the beach.

Veronica, in her car. VMVO tells us that she followed Jake Kane to his office, where "streaming video was invented and perfected." Boy, if that's true, it's a Jake Kane action figure I want.

Flashback. Bring It On-style car wash.

Lily is lying on the ground nearby next to the pool. Laura Palmer lives again! Ooh, poor choice of words.

Yeah, that's kind of overkill for getting booted from the popular crowd. ok. You could get booted from the leper crowd for that one.
This does bring up a complaint, though, that I believe was mentioned on the forums: in an earlier flashback, Veronica told us that Duncan broke up with her with no warning yep good I was wondering about this, but given all the information about her dad, and assuming that the breakup happened afterward, as seems logical, the possibility of its happening had to have occurred to her. I mean, when you think people who seemingly wrongfully try to jail your dad for your sister's murder, it's not usually alongside the term "father-in-law." However, someone else on the forums suggested that Duncan broke up with Veronica before the murder. While I think there are a couple of points in the episode that contraindicate that, I wouldn't rule it out, and it would make the story more interesting in some ways yeah, so I'm interested to find out one way or the other. me too. 4 episodes in it still seems like he broke up with her after & bcs of all this, though, so I wonder if that was just a mistake. but this seems so carefully written. but, this is in the pilot so maybe at that point things were not totally set?

Veronica runs off, only to bump into Logan, who emotionally asks her if her dad still thinks Jake killed Lily. He exposits that Lily was his girlfriend and her best friend - and does he not say sth like ~ and yr boyfriend's sister? maybe not , and tells her that her family is destroying the Kanes. Well, sorry about your girlfriend, dude, but life tried to teach you a character-building, if extremely tragic, lesson, and you responded by sweeping the Prick of the Year election in a landslide vote. I think I hate you even more now. yeah how they redeem this character?! wow. (since I know that eventually he & Veronica)

The bikers pull up to Veronica's car. Weevil takes off his helmet and asks, "Car trouble, miss?" Veronica responds sassily, prompting one of the henchDiesels to rush at her, but the pit bull comes flying out of the back window. The possibly fruity member of the group comes rushing to Veronica's window to get her to call off the dog, but she zaps him with a stun gun. Hee. it's funny? I just wondered what it was. does she call it a 'tazer' later? is that the same thing? (I've heard the word but) The first time I saw this scene, I thought it was too over the top, and it kind of is in a way, in that the character's still so new I'm not sure I'm completely ready to buy her pulling this off, but the saving grace is that it's funny, which is something that many shows that get described as "quirky" forget to be, and I'm thinking of a specific show when I say this. I'd name names, but it might be too soon. (Of course, judging from the Firefly fans, it might always be "too soon.") oh so that's Buffy. huh is that a quirky show? is this? gilmore girls seems the obvious quirky show, wh is not what I liked about it, though it cld be sweet sometimes all the silly people in the little idyllic town. still, give me the serious lorelai with emily or with richard scenes. Also, it turns out that the dog's name is Backup, so that's the backup her father was talking about earlier, which is also pretty funny for a total throwaway joke. and it's a sweet, to me. I got Backup with me! yeah boy. he'd a good Backup! yed he id!

"It's been eight months since I've seen my mother." VMVO tells us that a month after Keith lost his job, her mom split, leaving just a unicorn music box and a note saying she'd be back for her some day. So that means it's been less than a year since Lily's murder. Veronica angrily throws them both into the wastebasket, which again, I like -- she's not all woe-is-me about it. She's mad, as she should be.
Then she's telling us she's downloading some photos from the motel, which...I don't really mind the voice-overs per se -- a lot of them are necessary, both because of the genre of the show and the fact that it's an especially exposition-heavy pilot -- but I would really prefer them to exercise extreme diligence in determining their necessity on a case-by-case basis. To say the same thing with five times fewer words: if it's happening on screen, shut up about it. maybe they were covering their bases since not sure how much of pilot wld be aired (on dvd I saw the 'extended' version Also, as mentioned in the forums, she's got a pretty sweet Powerbook on her desk there, so apparently the people who "work for millionaires" are allowed a few status symbols themselves.also isn't her car nice? I was wondering if that wld be mentioned here. or explained: maybe it's not. looks fancy to me bcs it's a (to me) long sleek looking black convertible.

Logan sees Veronica and figures out what happened as people laugh at him. He gets in her face, and she fake-yawns at him. Word, Mars.
I was a little confused about the three phase plan here but the recap here (p9) helped. so, getting Logan in trouble was a side benefit of the main goal: using the bong planted in his locker as a device that would then be in the sherrif's dept, rigged to ignite at Wallace's control, starting a fire during which V's friend the fire chief switches the store surveillance tape (incriminating the bike boys that Wallace 'snitched' on & who are therefore after him) with the seventh veil tape (incriminating the sherrif's dept for accepting sexual favors in exchange for not pulling the place's liquor license). whew.

Beach. Veronica pulls up in her convertible, which I also could point out doesn't look all that shabby to me. ah, thanks. (see above: I was wondering)
Wallace is flying his plane. She goes over and gives him the security tape, and he's thrilled and thanks her. She says she had her own reasons for doing it, but he tells her she can't get away with that, and says that underneath her "angry young woman show, there's a slightly less angry young woman who's just dying to bake me something. You're a marshmallow, Veronica Mars!" Hmm. That's the first time I've ever seen someone beg for baked goods while making a friend. Veronica smiles in spite of herself, and I really think Kristen Bell can handle this role.
Cut to Veronica piloting the plane. She asks how to make it loop-the-loop, but Wallace's attention is on something else. They walk over to Veronica's car, upon and around which are Logan and a few goons. He asks if she knows what her little stunt cost him. When she sasses him, he takes a tire iron and breaks one of her headlights. She flinches, which is nice, because I wouldn't buy her as so hard-boiled that she could endure that completely impassively. He tells her that it cost him his car. "My daddy took my T-Bird away." Oh, don't say it. "And you know what I won't be having?" No, seriously, don't say it. "Fun, fun, fun."
One of the goons -- who's totally the Rancho Carne quarterback from Bring It On -- gets Logan's attention, as the bikers are approaching.
Weevil dismounts and informs Logan that the only vandalism that happens in this town goes through him. I should point out, as the faithful forum-dwellers have noted, that if the rich kids are that rich, they would probably go to private school instead of one where they could be harassed by Vin and the Diesels. On the other hand, I will also say that Francis Capra is doing way more with this role than I would have expected. yeah he's great. He's got an odd mix of grandeur and humor. In short, it's a lot more than you would expect from a guy named "Weevil." Also, I like that there's not a clear good vs. evil vibe with this show.
He tells the rich kids to take off, except for Logan, whom he instructs to apologize to Veronica. Logan sasses him instead, and gets punched twice for his efforts, rather nastily in the face the second time. The rich kids leave, and as they go, it looks like Logan's checking out his bloody nose in the vanity mirror. Hee. Tool.
Weevil informs Veronica that the security tape disappeared, and then easily and naturally hits on her. These two do have good chemistry -- I think the show could make a pairing between them work, if not for the long haul.

VMVO says that maybe her dad's trying to protect her, but that she's got too many questions to sit still and do nothing. She goes to the motel and knocks on the door of the room that Jake Kane was in. VMVO promises that she'll find out the truth, and bring her family back together. "I'm sorry, is that mushy? Well, you know what they say: Veronica Mars, she's a marshmallow." And she's a pretty damn good fledgling show.
Next week: Paris Hilton. I'd object, but we need the ratings any way we can get them. Don't worry, I won't pull any punches.