And tonight we have:
Poughkeepsie, Tramps and Thieves. When Veronica (Kristen Bell) is hired to track down a girl (guest star Brianne Davis, "Entourage") with whom Max (guest star Adam Rose, "Malcolm in the Middle") shared an incredible one-night stand, she discovers the girl is not who she says she is. Meanwhile, Keith (Enrico Colantoni) takes a closer look at Dean O’Dell’s suicide and begins searching for clues that may point to a murder. Percy Daggs, Jason Dohring, Francis Capra, Michael Muhney, Ryan Hansen, Tina Majorino, Chris Lowell and Julie Gonzalo also star. John Kretchmer directed the episode written by Diane Ruggiero.
Damn. Why do I feel like I just watched Rob Thomas lay bricks for 42 minutes?
And no Mac, either. Dammit.
Okay, I know they play fast and loose with the promos BUT was that Veronica saying “I’m pregnant” in the previews for next week?
Say it ain’t so. Why is Logan even on this show? He’s barely even Logan-esque. Sigh.
Still, some funny bits.
Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
So much to hate about this episode. Starting with Veronica blackmailing a judge. Really, she plays fast and loose with the ethics, but there is no way that’s close to justified. And she just walks up to the locker? With no expectation that maybe the police might be there? (Or that you know “I’ll use your cell phone because they can’t trace it back to me” doesn’t mean they can’t trace it and oh, arrest her client.) Very sloppy.
The whole “I can’t forgive you for sleeping with someone else while we were broken up” storyline? UGH! It was boring on friends, and it’s boring now. Emo Logon must DIE. And the whole counterpoint storyline where the guy just couldn’t get over something so Veronica can realize that she can’t either? Well, considering they did the whole “Veronica learns a very importan lesson from a client” back in season two, no thank you.
Could they please stop using Weevil as Plot Mover? It’s nice that he’s getting some air time but if he walks up only to drop important info in Veronica’s lap that’s dull. (Seriously, he is way smarter than that – I don’t see him barreling on about the tattoo on her ass while Veronica gives him the itchy eye and they both keep saying “that’s not me”
Papa Mars is awesome as always dressed up in his cute little uniform.
And I predict a big fakeout on the pregnancy thing. Though it would be super ballsy if they have her get an abortion.
YES!
Here’s the thing, and we’ve talked about this before, but there’s no way I can believe that Veronica is so offended by the thought of Logan sleeping with Madison she can’t get over it, but has no problem at all with Logan living with Dick, WHO PUSHED HIS LITTLE BROTHER TO RAPE HER. These characters only remember their history when it suits the plot.
One of the things I think this show does well is to give us characters (Logan, Keith) who have had to confront their failings and mistakes, and who have become more humble and compassionate, more aware of their own human frailty and thus more understanding of others’.
But Veronica seems to consistently develop in the opposite direction.
I enjoyed the episode for the pacing and dialogue and..? I’m not sure what exactly. I had fun watching it. But she made terrible, preposterous choices that had me moaning “Nooo, don’t do it” at every turn. And I’m developing a strong urge to see bad consequences happen to Veronica so she’ll develop a little humility, which isn’t the feeling I want to be having about a character I’d rather root for.
Well. That was… peculiar.
Anyone get the feeling that we’re already seeing arc-less VM? Veronica isn’t even tangentially related to the investigation of the Dean’s murder. With two out of the six episodes down and next week apparently focusing some more on the Veronica/Logan relationship (the name of the episode is “There’s Got to Be a Morning After Pill”), I don’t see how she’s going to get involved with the murder investigation at all.
I don’t think I’d mind the show focusing on Veronica’s life instead of an investigation, but right now life seems to equal Logan. I’m apparently the only person who likes mature Logan, but I wish both he and Veronica would get storylines that didn’t revolve around each other.
Gwenda, I think Veronica is very good at compartmentalizing and ignoring her emotions when it suits her. Dick is Logan’s friend so she ignores the fact that he tried to orchestrate her rape (the real question is why Logan ignores it). There’s no reason for her to ignore her hatred for Madison.
I agree with Abigail about the apparent arcless-ness of the episode. I also like mature Logan, but I get the feeling that he would mature more if his life wasn’t Veronica, and vice versa. So far, it’s almost like he’s Veronica’s Spike: he’s trying to become a better person, not because that’s what he ought to do, but because he knows that’s what Veronica wants. I was hopeful when he was willing to cut her loose, but then she headed right back to him like a boomerang.
That said, I sort of enjoyed the episode. But I also find myself hoping that Veronica will get knocked down a bit. She’s only 18 or so, and frankly, as much as they like to think otherwise, 18 years olds don’t have all the answers. God knows I sure didn’t. This ep showed that a little bit, with every one of Veronica’s presumptions being undermined as the plot unfolded, even down to the gender of the pimp. But I’d like to see V. involved in the arc, instead of having what appears to be two shows occurring simultaneously.
I don’t quite buy that, Abigail. Yes, Veronica compartmentalizes, but she also very much knows how to hold a grudge. I think the writers just gloss over the past when they need to. And, frankly, I’m having a tough time figuring out why she was able to get over Logan sleeping with Kendall so quickly, but would be so horrified at Madison.
The whole thing is lame and I hope it’s over with quickly and causes Logan to regress into the asshole we all love to watch.
I think the writers just gloss over the past when they need to.
There’s also that. Apart from the ongoing question of why she tolerates Dick, we might also wonder why Veronica is still working at the library instead of taking photographs for the Hearst paper, and how Max could still be in business after Wallace’s bust – surely his deal to stay in Hearst couldn’t have been so sweet as to not include flipping on his supplier?
I do, however, see the difference between Kendall and Madison. Cheap and annoying as she was, Kendall never did anything to Veronica specifically. Madison tormented her daily for several years.
And didn’t Madison contribute to the circumstances that lead to Veronica’s rape, what with handing her a “trip to the dentist”? Which, I think, was the drink that Dick drugged, which of course would bring up the question of the double standard between Madison and Dick again.
I don’t think the break-up will be over Madison. I think there’s still some horrible secret regarding the night in Mexico which is about to come out.
I watched two seasons of Buffy last month and it brought into focus some of my problems with VM. Granted Buffy was designed as an ensemble show and VM not, but Buffy was pretty great at continuity. On VM, Mac can find out she’s in the wrong family, Wallace can leave his mom without a word because she lied to him about his dad, Keith and Wallace’s Mom can have an argument, Dick can orchestrate Veronica’s rape, Eli can kill Thumper and laugh about it (and how does he even know Thumper was crushed under the stadium?) and then in the next episode it all disappears as if it never happened. In Buffy these would all be continuing plots and VM would be a better show if they realized that we are interested in all these people, not just Veronica and Logan.
I was thinking in these terms and with great dissatisfaction about Aaron Echoll’s murder. In what world is Lamb not under incredible pressure to solve that case? How is Neptune not swarming with reporters like the Ramsey case, even a year later?
Aaron is shot mysteriously in his hotel room the day he’s acquitted. Kendall’s DNA must be all over the room (and I never figured out why she wasn’t arrested in the real estate scam since she was the go between but now I want to know why she’s never questioned about Aaron’s death.)
The same night a kid dies in an apparent suicide at the same hotel. The two witnesses happen to be the two primary witnesses against Aaron. Plus, Aaron’s son has lied for months about his alibi and the kid who dies is the same kid who outed him. Conspiracy types would be all over this. And I think the show would be better if it took its own stuff seriously and thought about what would really happen next. And then incorporated that into the subsequent episodes.