Veronica Mars 1.22 'Leave it to Beaver'

When dealing with a season of television with such a serialized format, the season finale is normally surrounded with high expectations and a lot of scrutiny. ‘Leave it to Beaver’ is a fittingly brilliant conclusion, especially for a season as mind-blowing as this one. Everything came to a head and we got all the answers we’ve been waiting for with Lilly’s murderer revealed in alarmingly fantastic fashion. The episode itself constantly builds and builds and has so many different moments of extreme emotion there isn’t one part of it that doesn’t seem pivotal.

Veronica Mars 1.21 'A Trip to the Dentist

This is a pretty intense episode, and we see a number of things seamlessly falling into place. Veronica discovers something shocking about Logan; Keith tracks down Debra Collins; and Veronica finds out the truth about Shelley Pomroy’s party. Along with all the pivotal moments this episode has, it has a lot of the trademark intelligence that is always so prevalent during the series run, and it’s easily one of my favourite episodes.

Veronica Mars 1.20 'M.A.D.'

Almost all of the people Veronica helps possess some sort of trait that seems to parallel Veronica in some way. Last week it was Mandy’s lack of authority, this week its Carmen’s diminished appetite for revenge, something Veronica constantly seeks out. Like last week, this episode is all about the set-up; Veronica is given her big clue to kick off her big inquiry into who was responsible for what happened to her a year previously; Keith starts to search for Duncan, whose return allows for his presence during the next episodes big revelation; and Veronica learns some truths about Logan who will become a major suspect next week.

Veronica Mars 1.19 'Hot Dogs'

Get dogs involved and you’ve invested pretty much everyone in the story’s outcome. This episode works on a number of levels, but it still presents a few minor issues that affect my enjoyment. We still have loads going on, and things seem to be falling into place for Veronica’s last few steps in finding out Lilly’s killer with more suspects piling up. 

Veronica Mars 1.18 'Weapons of Class Destruction'

While I wasn’t overly impressed with the case this episode explores, other factors like great scripting and wonderful character development help to make this episode anything other than a disappointment. The weakness of the major story is superseded by the strength of the smaller aspects of it and again we’re faced with a less than perfect outcome.

Veronica Mars 1.17 'Kanes and Abels'

With the myriad of plot strands flying around, you’d think that the series would start to get a little messy at this point, but instead, it’s retaining the well balanced humour and intrigue that it’s had since the start. Every single story here is given the right amount of screen-time and enough attention to really make their full impact.

Veronica Mars 1.16 'Betty and Veronica'

This is another favourite of mine. It blends both the humorous school mascot hunt, with the emotional and heavy scenes of Lianne and Veronica with such ease. Not only does it do both of those stories justice, but it also fills a few more holes and for yet another offering that fits a whole lot in, the way in which it’s tackled makes it feel like a breezy and perfectly crafted hour of television.

Veronica Mars 1.15 'Ruskie Business'

One of the many reasons I love this episode is because it manages to fit an otherworldly amount of story into it, and not once does it let it affect the episodes quality, keeping the normal banter and fascinating character development front and centre. The noir element of the series is in full swing, and this week’s cases feature more than one twist even in their short episodic format.

Veronica Mars 1.14 'Mars vs. Mars'

I think the writers’ main intention behind this episode was the idea of having Veronica and Keith fighting on opposite corners but the fact is though that this idea got overshadowed by the greater story that they become part of. While I enjoy the less serious cases that revolve around Neptune High, like ‘Clash of the Tritons’, it was really evident here that the show could easily run with a far more serious one and still do it with style.

Veronica Mars 1.13 'Lord of the Bling'

It’s the subtleties of this episode that keep it above average for me, since story wise it’s the first slight misfire of the series so far. Even though the flashbacks are excruciatingly long, they certainly paint a picture of a completely different Veronica. It also lays the groundwork of the great quest to find Lynn Echolls that follows it.

Veronica Mars 1.12 'Clash of the Tritons'

I’m such a sucker for a ‘Prove ‘em wrong’ story. Veronica Mars itself is pretty much one big journey towards setting things right, but I always enjoyed simple episodes like this one; essentially  a straight forward, but fun case which leads to Veronica taking someone deserving down. The quips and humour are pretty much the best they could be here ("Say "Repressed Homosexuality"!"), and while we spend most of the episode watching Veronica snoop about, there is still a lot of time dedicated to more important things, like how Lilly’s death changed our group of teens.

Veronica Mars 1.11 'Silence of the Lamb'

It’s easy to see why Mac was so popular with fans, and eventually became a major player in the next two seasons. This episode goes to great lengths in establishing a truly likable character with not only her back story, but her genuine friendship with Veronica; she’s the Willow to Veronica’s Buffy. While ‘Silence of the Lamb’ presents two justifiably strong stories, what makes this episode less than perfect is the strange pairing of them in the same hour.

Veronica Mars 1.10 'An Echolls Family Christmas'

‘An Echolls Family Christmas’ is an example of a simpler episode of ‘Mars with Veronica tackling a straight forward case of thievery. It cleverly meshes the two on-going cases of the week in the final moments and presents a few hidden clues about a character that will become far more important as the season goes on.

Veronica Mars 1.09 'Drinking the Kool-Aid'

‘Drinking the Kool Aid’ follows up the shocking revelation of the previous episode with Veronica facing some harsh realities while also giving us one of the series most interesting mysteries so far. When the show tackles something out of the norm I think it establishes itself as one of the more intelligent teen dramas around.

Veronica Mars 1.08 'Like a Virgin'

‘Like a Virgin’ is one of those episodes that, for me, is near perfect. A lot of that is down to the way in which it balanced all the different aspects of it so perfectly, like Veronica helping Meg, Keith helping Alisha, and of course the major advancement of the season’s big mystery. Not only does it accomplish all that, but one of the things I adore most is the way in which this episode boasts the sense of community that it creates through the efficient utilisation of so many of its minor characters which is a major selling point of this series in and of itself.

Veronica Mars 1.07 'The Girl Next Door'

“Are some things better left buried?” Such is the question that is raised during this episode, which examines the harsh consequences of uncovering the truth, something Veronica is honour bound to do. While presenting us with a story that has a pretty intense outcome, it also has some fun with characters whose interactions will become a major recurrence in the series.

Veronica Mars 1.06 'Return of the Kane'

Right from the get-go we learned about the town of Neptune, and the major class divide by which it is defined. The High School is almost the middle-ground were both groups must co-exist. This episode makes use of that interesting social anomaly by means of a student election, with great results.

Veronica Mars 1.05 'You Think You Know Somebody'

The Keith/Rebecca coupling was a superb way to test the strengths of the father/daughter dynamic and it’s written in such a realistic way so as to make Veronica’s objections to their union seem justified while still painting her as a relatable teenage girl. This episode also details how Veronica’s mistrust though sometimes a curse, can inevitably come in-handy.

Veronica Mars 1.04 'The Wrath of Con'

Episodes like this one are sometimes where 'Veronica Mars' falters slightly. Flashback heavy episodes have a tendency to get a little tedious and overdone, especially if they’re not focused on the season’s main exposition plot. ‘The Wrath of Con’ is certainly not one of them. While the flashbacks here don’t give us any new clues about her murder, they give the viewer an invaluable insight into Lily as a person and help us to understand why Veronica valued their friendship so much.

Veronica Mars 1.03 'Meet John Smith'

While this episode does focus a little too much time on a character that is probably undeserving, it also manages to show how well the series utilises the case-of-the-week antics to progress the more important story forward and help us to learn that much more about who Veronica is.