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Veronica Mars: The Complete Third Season (REGION 1) (NTSC)


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Veronica loses herself... and the plot... a little...
Review date: 2008-02-05 Rating: 8 out of 10

I whole-heartedly agree with the review as given by Ray Blake from Hemel Hempstead, UK (below). Ray, I couldn't have put it better myself.

Basically, you'll all be a little disappointed with this season. Although it still remains a great show, you wont find yourself as gripped as you were with the previous two seasons, and will find yourself bored with some episodes and wanting to skip ahead of some dialogues.

Somehow, ths season's "Veronica Mars at College" approach tries to mature the show and the stories too much... including Mars herself. We just aren't getting the same great chemistry and witty banter going on between Veronica and her dad as we saw in the previous two seasons. Also... not that I am going to spoil things here as it is common knowledge on the internet... but season 3 was supposed to lead us into a season 4... and so the final episode doesn't give you a sense of finality like the final episodes of season 1 and 2... and there are a lot of loose ends and questions you are found asking yourself as the screen fades to black. I finished watching this season feeling very let down. Esecially as some of the features on this boxed set are previews of the new direction they were planning on taking VM in the never-made-and-never-will-be season 4. The creator had planned to make a season 4 and was so confident that the CW network would renew the show that loose ends were left in season 3 so that season 4 could work on tying these up. I hope that other shows learn from this mistake and don't rely on networks renewing their series by leaving us with loose ends, because in VM's case... it didn't happen. (This also happened to "Caroline in the City").

All in all, I am giving this season 4 stars. I would have given it 5 stars if it had figured out where it was going this season, and had come up with a gripping, continuous plot thread that ran throughout instead of giving us two disjointed ones along with silly, individual stories that didn't sit right with the previous formula of the show. I found that "College Veronica" had lost her edge, with her coolness and sassy comebacks swallowed up by others around her who were given lines just as cool, or cooler. Mac, the computer nerd, is given a bigger part in this season (with lots of boring love interests to boot), whereas the lovely Wallace is just a cameo appearance roommate to a nice-guy who has a crush on Veronica, and Weevil (once a cool bad boy type with a good heart) resorts to being a simple janitor at the college, with only passing cameos. Sound disappointing? It is. You'll like what they've done with the new title music though!

Again, as with Season 1 and 2 discs, this season will also work on Region 2 (UK) players. :)


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Reviews


Still very much Veronica..
Review date: 2008-01-10 Rating: 8 out of 10

After graduating from High School, and entering Hearst College, Veronica Mars finds herself with a whole bunch of new mysteries to solve in the third and final outing for this sublime show. From the minute we see the new low-fi credits, you get the feeling that the series has changed and evolved.Indeed it had - unlike Seasons 1 and 2, there is no series long arc-story. Instead we're treated to some mini-arc's and standalone episodes due to the CW's tinkering with the format and this is probably what made it the weakest of all 3 series.

Thankfully, even the weaker episodes of Series 3 are better than much of the schlock produced by US Networks, and the writing is as clever as always. Our heroine plots and schemes her way towards obtaining justice, all the time armed with her usual intelligence, whip-sharp quips and a whole pile of danger.

The major faults are that this series simply tried too many things. The introduction of Piz and Parker seemed awkward, and for most of the series they were underused and under-developed, despite being series regulars. Long term characters such as Wallace and Mac seemed almost like afterthoughts despite being right in the thick of it for the proceeding two seasons. Even Dick Casablancas showed tantalising signs of developing into someone interesting - a missed opportunity which should have been explored more.

As stated above, the CW's format tinkering didn't help, and this lead to a more disjointed feeling to the entire season. However, credit to the writers, producers and staff must be given for bringing us 3 series of excellent television. It's a shame we will have no more Mars, and it's a shame the series ended on this lack-luster season. However, it's well worth watching no matter what, and the final episode will definitely leave you wondering what comes next for our 'street smart with a heart' detective.





Veronica Goes to College
Review date: 2008-01-02 Rating: 8 out of 10

With high school now completely behind her, Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) heads off to college. In spite of her best efforts, she's stuck in Neptune, attending Hearst College and living at home with her dad, Keith (Enrico Colantoni). As a result, it's really no surprise when mystery and danger find her again.

Veronica's well earn reputation and the person who can solve the unsolvable gets her involved in one case after another. Who is behind the "Welcome Wagon" and steals new student's stuff? Who would kidnap a monkey? And where is the missing member of the board of trustees?

Unlike previous seasons, there are two bigger mysteries. The first involves the serial rapist on the Hearst campus. And the second one begins when college dean Cyrus O'Dell (Ed Begley, Jr.) is found dead in his office.

And we can't leave out her personal life. Her on again off again relationship with Logan (Jason Dohring) creates problems, especially since friend Wallace's (Percy Daggs III) new roommate Piz (Chris Lowell) is also interested in her. With all this going on, will she ever have time to study?

Unfortunately, this is the final season of a show I fell in love with right away. The mysteries were sharp, requiring concentration to follow every week. Yet the clues were there. Veronica has a sharp sense of humor that is wonderful for lightening the mood of the usually dark show. The relationship soap opera, while at times annoying, never got too bad. And all the acting was top notch.

Having praised it, this is my least favorite season of the show. And it's not because there were two shorter mysteries and a couple stand alone episodes. It was because the adult tone, definitely always present, became even more pronounced. Of course, that's what you'd expect with rape being a subject for half the season. Even the details of Veronica's personal life made me uncomfortable at times.

As a result, I don't recommend this show for young kids. Older teens and adults will absolutely love this sly combination of wit and noir.

Falls just short of earlier seasons' quality
Review date: 2007-11-21 Rating: 8 out of 10

Veronica Mars is one of the decade's true TV classics. In Seasons 1 and 2, there was perfect balance between individual episode plots and the big season-long plot arc, a formula I had hoped would continue. However, half way through season 3, the big arc closes and another starts. This one gets an early close, too, before the season seems to give up on the whole big story idea and we end with a couple of essentially stand-alone episodes.

My other criticism is that the on-off nature of Veronica's relationship with Logan becomes tiresome after a while.

But with those complaints out of the way, I'll just reaffirm the show's status as a TV great. At its best, it eclipses virtually everything else on offer. Even a rare weak episode offers great viewing. And this is down purely to writing. The writing on this show is simply outstanding; it never talks down to the viewer and the dialogue is never less than sparkling.

The show's most obvious ancestor is 'Moonlighting', another beautifully written show. But imagine every Willis/Sheppard exchange in every episode of 'Moonlighting' and you might just match what you'll see in EACH episode of Veronica Mars.

So whilst season 3 offers a little less than 1 or 2, it's still essential viewing and head and shoulders above most other TV.


It Never Rains in Southern California... But it Pours
Review date: 2007-10-27 Rating: 10 out of 10

Here it is the final season of Veronica Mars, one of the best shows I've ever had the pleasure to watch. It's most certainly a television show I will always love and remember fondly. But the sun has set on Neptune and now I must say goodbye, it's a difficult season to review but here goes nothing.

I've given this season five stars even though, perhaps it doesn't deserve that many, but it's Veronica Mars and for that reason five stars is a given. I have many quibbles about season three namely the characterization of Logan (he was pretty much Mr Mopey until his last few scenes in the series finale), Veronica's overly smug attitude at the start of the season (which was later rectified thankfully), the inclusion of beyond pointless characters (Piz and Parker), too much focus upon relationships, dropped plot lines and lost opportunities (Veronica not dealing with her rape even though the story was at the perfect point to do so). I don't think it's unfair to say that season three is regarded amongst fans as the weakest season of all and one that does not hold up to those prior. Season three is good in general terms but not in comparison to the exceptional writing and acting of VMs past seasons. VM's Finale 'The B. is Back' is one of the best episodes this show has ever produced. I am not ashamed to admit I welled up much throughout the end of the episode and I could feel once again that the Veronica Mars of season one like proportions was back with a vengeance. Just in time to get cancelled, sadly.

The story arcs themselves this year were structured differently to those in the past, the network wanted the show to gain viewership thus standalone episodes were introduced at the end of the season; the first nine episodes of the season deal with a serial rapist once finished, move promptly onto a short murder mystery. The rape arc I enjoyed more than the second mystery, mainly because the psychology involved was very interesting and it was set up perfectly. The rape arc culminates in the dramatically exciting 'Spit and Eggs' -- the best episode of the season and quite possibly the series. The five standalone episodes bow the show out on 'mediocre' to 'excellent' writing. Personally, I don't believe Veronica Mars should ever have had standalone episodes and this change mandated by the network was unnecessary. The CW was accused of dumbing down VM and I think their influence is apparent in a 'relationship heavy' season. In the past the romance between the characters always took a backseat but this season is was front row centre the entire time. The writers over did it a little with a particular contrivance concerning Madison, which was, overall, completely unnecessary and Logan literally had no storyline of his own away from Veronica. Which was a great shame for such a fantastic actor and character. Despite the things I disliked about the season the good certainly outweighs the bad. Indeed the season suffered from wider problems but episode to episode VM was as enjoyable as ever.

One of the best things about the final year is its 'epilogue' quality. The real story occurred in the first two seasons and now we are treated to see what happens next, season three is quieter and perhaps less ludicrous than the past seasons. The characters all grow and change and in the finale episode we are left with a sense of 'life goes on'. There is little closure, but what of that do we get in life? Other surprises include old characters making a return, Dick showing some depth and Piz doing a funny "dance".

Certain characters were marginalized to a large extent in favour of the "newbies" as a result the actors were basically treated to glorified cameos. By the time the finale rolled around however Wallace in particular had a larger role in that episode than he had all season, he had Veronicas back as he always did. The series finale definitely had a 'back to the beginning' quality to it; the plot went full circle. This was a great way to end the series without really ending it. It worked excellently and made my brain go slightly mushy with all the parallels in the process. Now that's good writing! As a fan of Logan and Veronica, I was happy with where they left them. Their final scene was one of my favourites of the entire series and we as an audience are reminded of how much chemistry KB and JD share, even with the none verbals. Most importantly however, Veronica Mars ended on a noir note, one that tells us life goes on and it will always suck.

The sixth disc is dedicated to special features because the season was shortened to 20 episode (boo!hiss). These inlude the ten minute season four preview (Veronica Mars FBI) oh what might have been! It also includes featurettes from Rob Thomas, and a blooper reel.

Highlight episodes include: Spit and Eggs, The B. is Back, Weevils Wobble But They Don't Go Down, Postgame Mortem and Mars, Bars.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Kristen Bell
Jason Dohring
Percy Daggs III
Julie Gonzalo
Ryan Hansen

Creators:
Kristen Bell (Primary Contributor)
Jason Dohring (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 0085391142973
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 6
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Colour, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC,
Release date: 2007-10-23
Universal product code (UPC): 085391142973
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Region code: 1
Running time: 842 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2006
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: French (Original Language)
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: Spanish (Subtitled)
Language: French (Subtitled)

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