In the eleventh episode of the second season of Veronica Mars, well, I fell for that. I FELL FOR IT SO HARD. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Veronica Mars.
LORD.
- It really would be interesting to re-watch “Donut Run” knowing the endgame because I can already tell it would be a challenge to figure out what was part of Duncan and Veronica’s con and what wasn’t. Hell, it changes how I feel about practically every scene in this episode! I had all this stuff to say about Duncan’s emotional vulnerability in the wake of Meg’s death, and now I know that Kendall was invited over to Duncan’s hotel room as a way to make Duncan and Veronica’s break-up seem legit. And I BELIEVED THAT BREAK-UP. I didn’t question it at all.
- So that means that her whole moping session to The Virgin Suicides soundtrack was fake, right? OH MY GOD, VERONICA, YOU ARE COMMITTED TO THIS.
- I thought maybe that Duncan and Veronica planned this out after they broke up, but then Duncan later references Kendall and explains that even she believes it, so I’m guessing that Kendall was inadvertently part of this from the beginning.
- I wondered why Wallace wasn’t a part of this, but you know, I think Veronica didn’t want to involve him in something so intense and serious after he just got back. Well, and then she discovers that there is more to his return to Neptune aside from basketball. I’ll get to that in a sec.
- Just a heads up: Most of this review is going to be me asking WAS THAT PART OF THE CON? For example: Veronica’s arrest. Did she know that was going to happen? Was it only after she met Vinnie in Lamb’s office that she realized that she could hire him for her scheme?
- Regardless, there’s one thing “Donut Run” does well: convey how serious this is for Veronica. Even every detail of this was part of the con, that doesn’t negate what a big deal it is that the FBI are now involved, that Veronica had to manipulate her own father to pull it off, and that the con’s endgame relied on tricking Sheriff Lamb. Yeah, Duncan and Veronica successfully get little Lilly (!!!!! TEARS !!!!!!) away from the Manning family, but barely.
- Unrelated: Logan’s realization that Dick is perhaps the least complicated, most stereotypical straight white dude was one of the funniest things in this whole episode. BLESS.
- And seriously, this episode’s use of Vinnie as more than just comic relief – he’s integral to the kidnapping plot! – was also welcomed.
- Character depth is so satisfying to watch, y’all.
- Which is the precise opposite reason I liked what Lamb’s role in “Donut Run” was. In the wake of the events of “Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner,” I admit being intrigued if there was more to Lamb than we’d seen. However, I worried that this would be the keystone to his characterization, that his terrible behavior would be excused or explained by his past abuse. That’s not the case at all, and Lamb remains the complete jerkface he’s always been. Which the story needs! This episode would not be the same if we didn’t have the stubborn, bullheaded local cop who tries to impress the more qualified, attractive FBI agent and unknowingly causes the very crime he’s trying to stop. He has to be who he is for this to work.
- I’d be excellent at a Google quiz. I would.
- While there’s not a whole lot of it here, this episode also furthers the Logan/Weevil buddy cop comedy dynamic. I’m writing a lot of buddy cop comedies lately, aren’t I? Anyway, through a bit of fake drug deals, Logan’s able to figure out that Hector is the source of the clandestine drug deals. However, Hector (rather convincingly) states that he has no business with the Fitzpatricks, which deflates Logan and Weevil’s theory. There’s some connection to that family! There has to be! But even then, where is this plot going? Sean makes a reappearance after Hector names him as his source, but I don’t get it. I’m not complaining, for the record. I actually enjoy that there are so many plots unfolding over the course of season two, and I love that I can’t seem to figure out any of them.
- OH, WHOOPS, LOOKS LIKE LOGAN WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG. Because Felix was dating a Fitzpatrick the whole time: Molly.
- THIS SHOULD BE GOOD.
- Just to make sure y’all know, Wallace was back for a half hour worth of this show before HE CRUSHED MY HEART. Veronica quickly figures out that Wallace didn’t leave Chicago to play basketball in Neptune; no, he was actually playing the best he ever had out there. He admits that he came back for another reason: because he was in the car with someone who was drunk and RAN OVER A HOMELESS GUY.
- WALLACE
- WALLACE.
- And it’s not lost on me that even out in Chicago, Wallace couldn’t escape the precarious class divide that had dictated most of his life. Rashard’s uncle, who was the one who convinced Wallace and Rashard not to say anything, was motivated by the millions of dollars that Rashard stood to make. For Wallace, though, it normally would have been a clear-cut moral decision: You stop and help the person you hurt. But he didn’t stop, and he didn’t make Rashard stop. And now it’s coming back to haunt him. Oh my god, how is Wallace going to get out of this?
- Also, I haven’t freaked out about this yet: OH MY GOD IT’S LUCY LAWLESS MY QUEEN.
- Oh my god, I love how she takes none of Lamb’s bullshit. I love that she and her partner are eternally amused by Veronica and her relationship with Lamb. New buddy cop movie: Agent Morris hires Veronica to be her partner at the FBI. Shenanigans ensue. There you go. AO3 is awaiting this epic story of unrequited love and dynamic lady law enforcement drama.
- Actually, now that I think of it, this whole thing had to have been planned in advance. The boat! Veronica sold the earrings that belonged to Celeste so that Duncan would have money to plant the fake boat as a misdirect. And I just realized that Veronica probably told Vinnie where Duncan was for the extra $5,000, and then used it to hire him. THE LETTER. THE LETTER WAS PART OF THAT. Well, and the $30,000. Shit, that’s a lot of money.
- I love Veronica Mars, everyone.
- And there’s a part of me that will always respect Duncan for being able to give up his whole life in Neptune, possibly the Kane fortune, and all of his friends so that he can raise his daughter away from the Manning’s abusive tendencies. I think this is one of those plots that sort of unravels only when you think of Duncan’s future, but I’m not that interested in questioning it. I honestly think that we either won’t see Duncan ever again on this show, or at least not for a long time. His relationship with Veronica was a bit static this season, and while this resolution is convenient, it fits his nature. Duncan is incredibly loyal to those he loves, and it makes sense that he’d do whatever it took for his newborn daughter.
- Moment of embarrassed truth: I honestly thought baby Lilly was in his backpack when he tossed it into the truck that Vinnie was driving and freaked out because YOU SHOULDN’T PUT BABIES IN BACKPACKS.
- This is how my brain works.
- And while the con of the century is going down (BECAUSE OH MY GOD, DUNCAN IS IN THE TRUNK OF LAMB’S PATROL CAR), we are watching one of the most terrifying scenes in the whole show: Keith admitting that if he lost Veronica to anything, he wouldn’t be able to live. Con or not, it’s one of the most deeply upsetting things in the entire run of this show. Oh god, and yet? Keith still covers up evidence of Veronica’s con. He protects her. KEITH MARS HOW ARE YOU REAL. I ADORE YOU SO MUCH. Still, I’m interested to see if this will come up again. Will Keith and Veronica have to work on their trust issues in the upcoming episodes?
- Oh lord, how did Astrid come to be a part of this whole con? That’s such an incredible detail, y’all.
- “True love stories never have endings.” I’m intrigued by this; does that mean Duncan might come back? I don’t think so, honestly, and I think it speaks more to the eternal nature of the memory of what Duncan and Veronica had. And now that love will continue on between Lilly and Duncan as Duncan heads off to his new life with a daughter in his arms. He’ll love her, too.
- No, I’m not crying not at all.
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