3-15: "Papa's Cabin" 2007.02.27 - TWoP Forums p15 [dour season 3 sum]:
Anybody and everybody who was the least bit compelling has either been killed off or completely marginalized. And that includes Keith. It's almost as if it's intentional, although I can't wrap my mind around why they would do that.
Looking back, you could see it coming from 3.01.
What was in the briefcase? Money. Yawn.
Cormac, Head of the Fitzies, who Keith busted, is out of jail. Within 2 or 3 episodes that fizzles out with Kendall 'dead' (I guess) and Cormac killed by Liam over.... money. The end. Yawn.
Weevil is out of jail. Working for Keith? Absolutely brilliant idea. So many possibilities. Will he be any good at it? Will Keith 'coach him up' and Weevil find his true calling? Will he be tempted to doublecross Keith and go back to a life of crime? Especially when he inevitably gets involved in a case involving the PCHers and/or the Fitzies. Oh, this ought to be GOOD. Nope, a 30-second yukyuk moment with Weevil in a ridiculous outfit, followed by Weevil screwing up (off screen) and getting fired. Oh well.
Dick is a basket case after Cassidy's death. Just like Logan, everyone in his life who he cared about is gone. He's on the outs with Logan, has issues with Mac, seems in pretty bad shape. Poof! Never mind, it's Dick. He's just a big dumb goof who's kinda funny sometimes.
Logan has issues stacked on top of issues stacked on top of issues. He has a huge inheritance ($20MM per picture,) a self-destructive streak, an awful lot of time on his hands, and an affinity for gambling. And hey, there's an on-campus gambling operation at Hearst. Currently run by one of Logan's friends. Interesting. And surely the Fitzies have something to do with it, and Logan is sure to get all mixed up in it, putting him at odds with the Marses and possibly Weevil. Maybe Logan tempts Weevil back to the other side. Maybe Veronica and/or Keith and/or Weevil pull him out of an ugly situation. Oh and hey there's this guy who used to be V's BFF who just happens to be involved with a sport on which people love to wager. Wow, even Wallace has something to do! Naaaaah. As others have said, "Logan is just the boyfriend."
Hey, there's Mac! She no longer seems in the mood to fuck. Well alrighty then. Evidently V no longer needs any kind of techie help with any of her cases these days. Issues with the Casablancases? Meh, 10 seconds of sad face at a temporarily-distraught-and-angry-Dick ought to wrap that up.
It's as if they went into the season committed to taking the easy, "okay, that's over" route on every thread that could have lead to interesting, compelling interaction between the characters we had all grown to love, in order to make room for a bunch of generic new people to serve as pawns in generic, run-of-the-mill crime solving plots and romance drama.