Veronica Mars 3.15 - "Papa’s Cabin"
Airdate: February 27th, 2007

Never trust a guy in a wig. Unless you’re a politician in 1776, a wig is just creepy -- but this show has a habit of putting characters in bad wigs. Like all those flashback scenes in the first season to Veronica and Lilly -- V is always wearing a huge, blonde monstrosity on her head. Yes, folks, a troll in a wig murdered the dean to frame Professor Landry to get back at him for not giving him a good recommendation for a teaching job.

What puzzles me is how Tim the Troll planned the whole thing in such a short amount of time. If we assume that he decided to kill the Dean after hearing Landry give him the bad rec, that means he had just a few hours between overhearing the phone call and killing Ed Begley Jr. Yes, he used Veronica’s perfect murder paper as the basis for his plan, but still, these things take time.

The episode starts off with a finger pointing in Landry’s direction, then it switches over to Mindy, a quick diversion to Night Ranger fan Richard Grieco, and then it’s back and forth between Landry and Mindy, with the option of them working together. But at what point did you know it wasn’t Landry?

For me it was when Tim found the cell phone in Landry’s trash. I’m not saying it all fell into place at that moment, but even though the writers tend to bank on some pretty improbable elements to further the plot (RU-486 theft?), this one was just too unbelievable to be true. Landry is a top criminologist and he throws evidence into the wastepaper basket next to his desk? I don’t think so.

And rethinking that clue later in class, while watching Troll revel in his ill-begotten professorship, is what tips Veronica in the right direction. First, I’d like to thank the writers for letting Veronica actually solve this mystery instead of finding the answer by accident. And second, I’d like to extend my appreciation for not having Veronica end up trapped in a burning freezer or drugged and about to be raped in the final moments of the big mystery. Yes, those final scenes are nail-biting, but I hate seeing Veronica be the victim. This time she used her masterful powers of deduction to put the pieces together. Well done, missy.

I’m still confused about Landry killing Mindy. It just seems awfully extreme, and such a sad road to travel. And does this mean Veronica won’t get a good reference for the FBI internship?

Some perfect VM moments included the license plate repartee between V and Tim, the millionth reference to Ernest Hemingway, V asking Wallace if she was getting a mustache (and the Gilmore Girls reference). But mostly I loved Parker pulling back from Logan because "having a friend like Veronica is important to me."

God save girls who put their friends first! What would have been even better is if that was the end of the Parker and Logan hookup, but no, Logan has to go and be all gentlemanly and ask V’s permission to have Parker’s hand in courtship.

If this LoPa (or PaLo?) thing goes forward, who is Miss V going to date next? I know she’s not stepmom material and Duncan’s not coming out of hiding anyway. Maybe Leo the adorable cop will come back? Where’s Piz? Nish? Nah. Never ever shall she date Wallace (promise?). So either a new man emerges, or Logan and Parker don’t work out. Of course the real Veronica would probably go solo for a very long time, but I don’t think her fans would stand for it. Just no more guys in wigs, OK?

See you in May when the detective-y goodness continues.

iTunes Links

Veronica Mars - Series
Veronica Mars - Season 3
"Papa’s Cabin"

Vern Seward is a writer who currently lives in Orlando, FL. He’s been a Mac fan since Atari Computers folded, but has worked with computers of nearly every type for 20 years.