My Top Ten Episodes of "Veronica Mars"

I weighed doing a wrap-up post and thought that this would be a better way to cap off my posts about the series. This is the best time to do one of these lists, and I'm actually confident enough that I'm going to rank these picks. Some moderate spoilers ahead. And here we go:

10. "Return of the Kane" - Veronica's biases make her lose perspective while investigating a possibly rigged school election. Meanwhile, Logan has landed in hot water with his movie star father when it's discovered that Logan has been organizing bum fights. Right and wrong are often very tricky to define on this show, and this episode is particularly good at subverting our expectations and making it clear that nothing going on in Neptune is as simple as it looks on the surface.

9. "Normal is the Watchword" - One thing I really admire about "Veronica Mars" is how it can convey a lot of information very quickly in an entertaining way. The second season opener spends a lot of time catching us up on what happened over a very eventful summer, and how Veronica's status in Neptune has changed for the better. And after some relentless teasing, we learn the state of her love life too. Best of all is the big shocker ending, that sets up the season's ongoing mystery.

8. "Not Pictured" - And now from the first episode of Season Two to the finale, where the cultprit is revealed. The plot machinations are pretty ridiculous and unconvincing, particularly the way so many different bad actions are attributed to the villain in the end. However, the way the events play out is tense and thrilling in the moment. I also liked how the Wallace and Jackie storyline wrapped up, the awful graduation ceremony with Weevil, and seeing Aaron Echolls get what was coming to him.

"7. Like a Virgin" - The purity test website episode is a standard first season case-of-the-week for the most part, but it's a great example of how "Veronica Mars" can do unexpected things with familiar material and how its lead character is very much a moral relativist. Her tactics and final revenge are terribly mean, but fitting in context. Major recurring characters Meg and Mac are both introduced here, which I was glad to see, since "Veronica" was a little too light on female roles prior to this episode.

6. "Spit & Eggs" - One of the few episodes of Season Three that matches the level of dramatic intensity of the earlier seasons. It's the episode that brings the first major arc of the season to a close, revealing who has been behind the rapes that have been plaguing the campus, and then goes right on to set up the next mystery. We get a good action sequence with Veronica in real physical danger, Parker saving the day, and Logan being a reckless badass in one of his best moments ever.

5. "The Wrath of Con" - The case stuff is all fun, especially Veronica in cosplay and figuring out how to get around a perp's heavy duty security measures. However, what I like this one for is the flashbacks that establish what Veronica's life was like a year before and everything she's lost. It's a big character building episode, not just for Veronica, but for Duncan, Lilly, and Logan too. Logan in particular gets to advance significantly and show that he's not really such a jerk - at least not all the time.

4. "Pilot" - My favorite part of "Veronica Mars" is Veronica Mars herself, a cute blonde teenage girl with a fearsome brain and fearless attitude. The pilot establishes how she operates day to day, while gradually filling us in on her complex home life, school life, and the multiple mysteries that plague her. It also shows off the creators' penchant for dense plotting, clever zingers, and pop culture references. The moment the show won me over was when it was revealed that the dog was named Backup.

3. "Ain't No Magic Mountain High Enough" - Few of the second season's epiosdes stand out individually, but the school carnival episode is a highlight. Veronica is continuously foiled trying to investigate a theft and turns out to have been right all along. Logan woos a new love interest, but perhaps not for the reasons we think. And then there's poor Jackie, newly appointed school pariah, trying to keep her chin up. And boy is it satisfying to see the real villain get some well-deserved comeuppance.

2. "An Echolls Family Christmas" - Who loves a locked room mystery? I do! I do! Logan holds a poker game and the money goes missing. Veronica is recruited to interview the suspects and go over everyone's version of events. It's a standard mystery plot, handled in true "Veronica Mars" fashion, commenting on class divides and family values on the way to uncovering the truth. Keith Mars also finally gets in on the action in a subplot, investigating a stalker who may attack Aaron Echolls at his Christmas party.

1. "Leave it to Beaver" - This is one of my favorite finale episodes, bar none. The whole season and all its mysteries and conundrums are wrapped up in one, big, exciting hour with car chases, fights, revelations, and Keith Mars saving the day in spectacular fashion. The pace was fast, the turns were sharp, and yet there were enough bittersweet moments to remind you that the show is a noir at heart, and there can't ever be a truly happy ending. But it can sure deliver a great time.
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