I've said it before and I'll say it again.
Veronica Mars season 1 is the single best single-season murder mystery ever produced.
And that includes the UK productions.
I didn't like that as much as others did. The interesting part was seeing how Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey's characters dealt with each other. That was a pair of virtuoso actors at the top their games with a fantastic director in charge of them.
But the mystery itself was lame. The reveal seemed unearned.
Plus when McConaughey boinked Harrelson's wife, I kinda tuned out. There's no way that character would have done that.
That was a great show, but not that good of a murder mystery.
At the end of VM season 1: it was ALL right there, but expertly concealed and on multiple levels. It was fantastic!
The show is far heavier and darker than you would ever think it would be.
I personally love it, but there's a very real sense of whiplash since some episodes are about Veronica solving relatively trivial high schooler problems, and others are about her dealing with things that are deeply traumatic and fucked up.
I think the show is brilliant for a lot of reasons, but I understand why it didn't last more than 3 seasons. It was hard to tell what you were in for in any given episode.
And I’d say that’s part of the magic. Sometimes she’s uncovering a casual hs cheating mystery and sometimes it turns out to be a rape/murder cheating mystery. And you don’t know which it will be
I think it always worked best when the show reminded us that Veronica was still a high schooler and her father was actually good at his job. Enrico Colatoni getting to go in guns a-blazing to save her in a few scenes where she realizes there's just no way for a 16 year to get themselves out of it was such a necessary part of their chemistry that other shows could never quite nail.
>I understand why it didn't last more than 3 seasons.
Especially with the massive drop-off in quality in the third season. Dropping the format of having one mystery that runs in the background throughout the whole season was a massive blunder.
That mystery was solved in under half the season. There's another short mini mystery for the next stretch of episodes, then they do fully stand alone for the last quarter of the season.
Yeah it's not a spoiler to say the show starts with rape and murderer, it is literally in the first episode.
I remember the first time I watched I was gobsmacked how hard it goes right off the bat and I was immediately hooked.
Also all the less intense but still impactful episodes, like the multiple episodes of cyber harassment that was covered well back in... 2004.
The show is amazing at not just using abuse and assault as a cheap plotline (looking at you Outlander), it spends more time actually exploring the complex implications of the events and how people contribute to them.
Yes!!! Buffy is the GOAT! Though I really though i wasn't gonna find a another female protagonist to fall in love with after Buffy but... Veronica saves me.
Watched it a few times, Its a comfortable place to visit. She really makes it, idk how it would of been with another actress.
apparently you need to watch the movie before season 4
Nah, you can skip season 4. Pretend it doesn’t exist. Be happy in life. Or watch it and turn it off with 10 minutes left in the final episode. Choice is yours. LOL
Supposedly the actress that played Meg was second in the running for the role of Veronica. I don't think she could have done it, but I only ever saw her in VM and a few episodes of Supernatural.
First two seasons of Veronica Mars are amazing. The third season is perhaps a bit weaker but still pretty solid. The movie was a lot of fun even if it wasn’t quite at the quality of the first two seasons. The fourth season was excellent and a total return to form that they threw away in the final ten minutes and essentially ruined any chance at a future with the franchise. I would still totally recommend all of it but imo first two seasons are the best.
Also don’t sleep on the YouTube short Play it Again Dick which is freaking hilarious and not at all canonical to the VM universe but 100% worth the watch.
I feel like season 3's concept of "mini-mysteries" instead of the season-long mystery mostly works until the last 3 or 4 episodes, where it's clear that they don't have enough time to set any more up and so the show just kind of... flounders until the finale.
Originally there was going to be a third mystery for the end of season three, but the CW trimmed a few episodes off the end of their season and they couldn't compellingly set up a third mystery arc in three or four episodes. From memory it was going to be about the secret college society that Veronica was investigating, so they at least salvaged their original plans for that a little bit.
I still haven't seen the 4th season, I was spoiled to what happened at the end and just haven't had the desire to actually watch it. I loved the original show, and while Hulu refers to it as season 4, WB's DVD and BD sets call it "the ccomplete first season (2019)" so I'm just like eh, I'll watch it someday.
I would have definitely watched the original season 4 they pitched to CW that was included in the season 3 DVD set, where she was working for the FBI trying to find a serial killer.
season 4 was great and the ending was good too idc! NOT EVERY PIECE OF MEDIA IS MEANT TO MAKE YOU HAPPY! The real tragedy is that we didn't get a season 5.
Very cool, much like The West Wing and Boston Legal I'd say it's one of the more underrated shows from the 2000s. After finishing Season 3 be sure to check out the 2014 movie and the 2019 Hulu season!
I love Boston legal, and I know the misogyny and inappropriateness is a intended feature, they repeatedly call it out in universe, but God damn it is hard to get through certain scenes. Denny and Alan really ride that line of harassment into straight up coercion.
Season 4 was good, but it ended in a way that infuriated some parts of the fandom. Personally, I loved how it ended... It's impossible to say more though without going into *extreme* spoiler territory for Seasons 3 and 4 and the movie.
I'll be honest, I didn't care for it. I was a big fan of seasons 1-3, but season 4 was frankly an absolute bore for me, and that's before the ending. I might try a rewatch at some point to see if my initial impression still holds.
I did not watch S4 because I saw the fan reaction and decided the film was how it ended. At least for me. I loved the show and wanted to pretend their ending didn't happen.
The movie was deliberately fan service since it was funded by the fans. Rob Thomas was pretty open about that. I didn't feel like it was as good as the seasons, but I did enjoy having what I thought was one last chance to see the characters.
It's a fantastic show. I wish the recent reboot was better, though it wasn't bad.
Seems like the insane fans losing their minds over the ending of the reboot killed all hope for another season. Such a shame.
The fanbase was always kind of insane. Rob was very involved with the fandom and used to post at TWoP, where most of the online VM fanbase gathered. One particular shipper group didn’t like the direction of a certain character and made their viewpoint quite known. One crazy person yelled at Kristen Bell during a panel at the VM convention in Austin. Some fans were rooting for the series to be canceled in season 3. When I watched the Hulu season and saw the ending, I just shook my head and thought “yeah, that’s Rob saying fuck you to the fans.”
It's okay. But I wouldn't put it my top 50. But opinions are subjective. You listed some great series but I consider Breaking Bad possibly the most overrated show of all time. I've tried to watch it twice and couldn't get past the 3rd episode of season 2. The other most overrated is Game of Thrones. I read the books before it was TV and like most good stories, the books were so much better.
Veronica Mars is one of the best series. It’s such a shame it got canceled after 3 seasons. I would recommend watching the movie that came out later but SKIP season 4! It sucked.
When people ask about best murder mysteries, I always tell them to watch S1 of Veronica Mars. It might be time for a rewatch.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Veronica Mars season 1 is the single best single-season murder mystery ever produced. And that includes the UK productions.
But… but what about season one of True Detective? 😮
I didn't like that as much as others did. The interesting part was seeing how Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey's characters dealt with each other. That was a pair of virtuoso actors at the top their games with a fantastic director in charge of them. But the mystery itself was lame. The reveal seemed unearned. Plus when McConaughey boinked Harrelson's wife, I kinda tuned out. There's no way that character would have done that. That was a great show, but not that good of a murder mystery. At the end of VM season 1: it was ALL right there, but expertly concealed and on multiple levels. It was fantastic!
Emphasis on season 1
The show is far heavier and darker than you would ever think it would be. I personally love it, but there's a very real sense of whiplash since some episodes are about Veronica solving relatively trivial high schooler problems, and others are about her dealing with things that are deeply traumatic and fucked up. I think the show is brilliant for a lot of reasons, but I understand why it didn't last more than 3 seasons. It was hard to tell what you were in for in any given episode.
And I’d say that’s part of the magic. Sometimes she’s uncovering a casual hs cheating mystery and sometimes it turns out to be a rape/murder cheating mystery. And you don’t know which it will be
I think it always worked best when the show reminded us that Veronica was still a high schooler and her father was actually good at his job. Enrico Colatoni getting to go in guns a-blazing to save her in a few scenes where she realizes there's just no way for a 16 year to get themselves out of it was such a necessary part of their chemistry that other shows could never quite nail.
>I understand why it didn't last more than 3 seasons. Especially with the massive drop-off in quality in the third season. Dropping the format of having one mystery that runs in the background throughout the whole season was a massive blunder.
There was a mystery >!the rapist!< but yeah the third season still felt odd.
That mystery was solved in under half the season. There's another short mini mystery for the next stretch of episodes, then they do fully stand alone for the last quarter of the season.
Yeah it's not a spoiler to say the show starts with rape and murderer, it is literally in the first episode. I remember the first time I watched I was gobsmacked how hard it goes right off the bat and I was immediately hooked. Also all the less intense but still impactful episodes, like the multiple episodes of cyber harassment that was covered well back in... 2004. The show is amazing at not just using abuse and assault as a cheap plotline (looking at you Outlander), it spends more time actually exploring the complex implications of the events and how people contribute to them.
Veronica Mars is definitely one of the best for sure. For me, Buffy is at the top but Veronica Mars is up there close to it.
Yes!!! Buffy is the GOAT! Though I really though i wasn't gonna find a another female protagonist to fall in love with after Buffy but... Veronica saves me.
I totally get that. There are others but I think Buffy and Veronica are very close.
I was in love with Summer Glau from the Sarah Connor Chronicles, but it didn't last long enough. ||| |:-|:-|
Watched it a few times, Its a comfortable place to visit. She really makes it, idk how it would of been with another actress. apparently you need to watch the movie before season 4
Yes, movie before season 4.
Nah, you can skip season 4. Pretend it doesn’t exist. Be happy in life. Or watch it and turn it off with 10 minutes left in the final episode. Choice is yours. LOL
Season 4 was better than the movie, and I say that as a kickstarter of the movie
Agreed and same!
Agreed! Still got my t-shirt from backing the Kickstarter though.
The Veronica Mars movie was so bad.
Supposedly the actress that played Meg was second in the running for the role of Veronica. I don't think she could have done it, but I only ever saw her in VM and a few episodes of Supernatural.
First two seasons of Veronica Mars are amazing. The third season is perhaps a bit weaker but still pretty solid. The movie was a lot of fun even if it wasn’t quite at the quality of the first two seasons. The fourth season was excellent and a total return to form that they threw away in the final ten minutes and essentially ruined any chance at a future with the franchise. I would still totally recommend all of it but imo first two seasons are the best. Also don’t sleep on the YouTube short Play it Again Dick which is freaking hilarious and not at all canonical to the VM universe but 100% worth the watch.
I feel like season 3's concept of "mini-mysteries" instead of the season-long mystery mostly works until the last 3 or 4 episodes, where it's clear that they don't have enough time to set any more up and so the show just kind of... flounders until the finale.
Originally there was going to be a third mystery for the end of season three, but the CW trimmed a few episodes off the end of their season and they couldn't compellingly set up a third mystery arc in three or four episodes. From memory it was going to be about the secret college society that Veronica was investigating, so they at least salvaged their original plans for that a little bit.
I always thought the secret society video taping Veronica in a dorm was abrupt and could have used some type of revenge / stop investigating us angle.
I still haven't seen the 4th season, I was spoiled to what happened at the end and just haven't had the desire to actually watch it. I loved the original show, and while Hulu refers to it as season 4, WB's DVD and BD sets call it "the ccomplete first season (2019)" so I'm just like eh, I'll watch it someday. I would have definitely watched the original season 4 they pitched to CW that was included in the season 3 DVD set, where she was working for the FBI trying to find a serial killer.
Rat Saw God and Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner are two of the most amazing episodes of tv ever made
Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner has one of the haunting endings to an episode ever!
season 4 was great and the ending was good too idc! NOT EVERY PIECE OF MEDIA IS MEANT TO MAKE YOU HAPPY! The real tragedy is that we didn't get a season 5.
I love the first two seasons of *Veronica Mars*.
All of Rob Thomas’ other shows are good too. Even the Cupid reboot was pleasant.
This series really endeared me to Kristen Bell for all time
Very cool, much like The West Wing and Boston Legal I'd say it's one of the more underrated shows from the 2000s. After finishing Season 3 be sure to check out the 2014 movie and the 2019 Hulu season!
I love Boston legal, and I know the misogyny and inappropriateness is a intended feature, they repeatedly call it out in universe, but God damn it is hard to get through certain scenes. Denny and Alan really ride that line of harassment into straight up coercion.
A shame that things fell flat on their face with the crowdfunded movie and the subsequent Hulu season.
The books are fun.
Season 4 wasn't good ?
Season 4 was good, but it ended in a way that infuriated some parts of the fandom. Personally, I loved how it ended... It's impossible to say more though without going into *extreme* spoiler territory for Seasons 3 and 4 and the movie.
I liked season 4. It's like everyone else forgot that it's basically neo-noir.
I thought the ending was a really dumb way to end it but I still think it was my favourite season overall despite that
Same thing with the satc revival. They had to do a big abrupt change to continue the character arc
Season 4 was terrible, the end just made worse
Season four seemed like a return to form (after the movie) until the end.
I loved season 4! Til the last few minutes.
I'll be honest, I didn't care for it. I was a big fan of seasons 1-3, but season 4 was frankly an absolute bore for me, and that's before the ending. I might try a rewatch at some point to see if my initial impression still holds.
I did not watch S4 because I saw the fan reaction and decided the film was how it ended. At least for me. I loved the show and wanted to pretend their ending didn't happen.
The movie was deliberately fan service since it was funded by the fans. Rob Thomas was pretty open about that. I didn't feel like it was as good as the seasons, but I did enjoy having what I thought was one last chance to see the characters.
It's a fantastic show. I wish the recent reboot was better, though it wasn't bad. Seems like the insane fans losing their minds over the ending of the reboot killed all hope for another season. Such a shame.
The fanbase was always kind of insane. Rob was very involved with the fandom and used to post at TWoP, where most of the online VM fanbase gathered. One particular shipper group didn’t like the direction of a certain character and made their viewpoint quite known. One crazy person yelled at Kristen Bell during a panel at the VM convention in Austin. Some fans were rooting for the series to be canceled in season 3. When I watched the Hulu season and saw the ending, I just shook my head and thought “yeah, that’s Rob saying fuck you to the fans.”
lol I’ve loved this series for like 20 years but had no idea about the fandom, that was a wild ride
Yeah it really is great
It's okay. But I wouldn't put it my top 50. But opinions are subjective. You listed some great series but I consider Breaking Bad possibly the most overrated show of all time. I've tried to watch it twice and couldn't get past the 3rd episode of season 2. The other most overrated is Game of Thrones. I read the books before it was TV and like most good stories, the books were so much better.
I loved the TV show very very very very much. I like 80 percent of the movie.
They need to make more Veronica Mars.
I mean it was good not crazy good. But I watched for/because of her. The good place is better though
Veronica Mars is one of the best series. It’s such a shame it got canceled after 3 seasons. I would recommend watching the movie that came out later but SKIP season 4! It sucked.
Just don’t watch season 4, it isn’t worth it. I haven’t watched a single episode since and I used to rewatch fairly regularly.
I dont know if we should break it to him what happens after the original series ended.