The Sunday Magazine: Veronica Mars Season 4

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One of the best parts of streaming services is they don’t have to program to the masses. They can have niche programs which capture a percentage of subscribers. They can be allowed to go further than they could on broadcast networks. They can also tell more serialized stories because we generally gulp these series down in a binge session or two. Which means you don’t have to resort to a “previously on” because you’ve just watched it. A final benefit is cult shows of the past has a new outlet. The current season 4 of Veronica Mars on Hulu is an example of that.

Veronica Mars began its story as a series on a tiny network in 2004. Each season had an overarching mystery which was slowly revealed. It introduced me to actress Kristin Bell who played the title character. The series took place in the fictional town of Neptune, California which had a group of rich Brahmins called the “oh-niners”. Veronica came from the other side of the tracks. The mysteries took place at the intersection of the two.

After three seasons it was canceled with an avid, but small, fan base supporting it. The fans were supportive enough to fund a Kickstarter campaign which led to a movie. While satisfying to see everyone again it left me wanting more. I wanted the long form mystery version.

Seems like Hulu also wanted that as they commissioned a season 4 picking up in the present day. It premiered a few weeks ago.

I wasn’t sure how it would be dealing with the characters as adults. Turns out creator and writer Rob Thomas knew exactly how to make it seem normal. From the first episode I was once again drawn into a mystery in Neptune with these characters. As it was before it is all held together by Ms. Bell’s indelible performance as Veronica.

This time around Mr. Thomas has a lot of fun with his storytelling. The central mystery of finding who is setting bombs around town is confounded with a Fargo-esque parallel plot. It all comes together over the final episodes with style.

As a longtime fan this was just what I wanted. If you’ve never checked it out the first three seasons plus the movie are on Hulu now as well. If you’re a long-time fan set aside some time because once Neptune reaches out it will keep you watching.

–Mark Behnke

The Sunday Magazine: Veronica Mars

Posted on by in Mark Behnke, The Sunday Magazine and tagged , , , .
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When it comes to television it seems like I am the patron saint of shows which are canceled fairly quickly. There are many shows through the years which I have really enjoyed which were canceled within their first year or two. Firefly, Pushing Daisies, Freaks and Geeks, Twin Peaks, Profit, Rome; even the original Star Trek could be included on my list. What is also great about these shows I’ve listed is even though they are gone they connected with a fairly passionate fan base who keep their memories alive with websites and forums dedicated to them. A common theme you will always find on these forums is the desire to somehow someway get the beloved show back into production. Almost all of the time because these shows are owned by studios who see no profit in bringing back a failed series this is all wishful thinking.

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In March of 2013 I logged into my e-mail to find a message from the “Veronica Mars” fansite urging me to go contribute to the Kickstarter campaign to get a Veronica Mars movie made. I read this with the same amount of skepticism one reads e-mail from a Nairobi Prince trying to share his fortune with you. I headed over to Kickstarter to see which starry eyed dreamer was trying to raise money to convince the studio to bring Veronica back. Imagine my surprise that it was the creator/writer Rob Thomas and the star Kristen Bell with the blessing of the studio Warner Brothers. If they could get $2 Million dollars in 30 days they could make a movie. Well this wasn’t fanciful thinking this was a plan. Over the next thirty days I and 91,584 other fans donated enough money to go well past the target to end up gathering $5.7 Million. I felt great. I felt like we the fans had actually brought something back to life that I never thought to see again. Then I started to worry that it would be bad as Mr. Thomas tried to satisfy 91,585 fans/backers and it would be another failed attempt to broaden the audience.

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One year after donating my money I sat down and watched “Veronica Mars” unspool before my eyes and when it was done I was smiling ear-to-ear. It was perfect as it was everything I had loved about the writing, the characters, and the actors who played those characters. Mr. Thomas  made a movie with lots of hidden layers in throwaway lines of dialogue which made us long-time fans giggle but never making it so much of an inside joke that others couldn’t find something to laugh about, too.

As of the writing of this I don’t know whether Veronica Mars was a success at the box office and frankly I don’t care. With the help of a group of other fans we were able to get another installment of something we all connected with years after we thought it was gone. Obviously I am hoping some of the other shows I named also have the opportunity to find their way back through a Kickstarter campaign. The success of Veronica Mars will be closely watched and imitated if it is a success.

Which leads me to wonder if there isn’t a perfume brand that faded away before its time which could be Kickstarted back to life. I do have a line I would be thrilled to see return to production and I would contribute to a Kickstarter campaign to finance it. So Victoire Gobin-Daude if you’re out there and want to bring back your original collection of Gobin-Daude perfumes I’ll be the first to contribute.

–Mark Behnke