Veronica Mars (season 2)
Encyclopedia
The second season of Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...

, an American drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...

 television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...

 created by Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas (writer)
Rob Thomas is an American author, producer, and screenwriter, best known as the author of the 1996 novel Rats Saw God and creator of the critically acclaimed television programs Veronica Mars and Party Down.-Education and early career:Thomas graduated from San Marcos High School in 1983 and went...

, premiered on the United Paramount Network
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...

 in the United States on September 28, 2005. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television is the television production arm of Warner Bros. Entertainment, itself part of Time Warner. Alongside CBS Television Studios, it serves as a television production arm of The CW Television Network , though it also produces shows for other networks, such as Shameless on...

, Silver Pictures Television and Rob Thomas Productions, and Joel Silver
Joel Silver
Joel Silver is an American Hollywood film producer, co-creator of the sport of Ultimate, co-founder of Dark Castle Entertainment and owner of Silver Pictures.-Life and career:...

 and Thomas served as the executive producers.

The season begins with the introduction of two new cases: when a school bus full of Neptune High students plunges off a cliff, killing almost everyone on board, Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars (character)
Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :...

 (Kristen Bell
Kristen Bell
Kristen Anne Bell is an American actress. Although her first film role was an uncredited appearance in Polish Wedding, Bell previously acted in stage and musical productions. In 2001, she made her Broadway debut as Becky Thatcher in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...

) makes it her mission to discover why the bus crashed. Logan Echolls
Logan Echolls
Logan Echolls is a fictional character on the UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN.He is portrayed by Jason Dohring.- Background :...

 (Jason Dohring
Jason Dohring
Jason William Dohring is an American actor who is best known for his role as Logan Echolls on the 2004 television show Veronica Mars and for his role as Josef Kostan on the 2007 series Moonlight.-Personal life:...

) is accused of killing a Pacific Coast Highway
California State Route 1
State Route 1 , more often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along much of the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. It is famous for running along some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world, leading to its designation as an All-American Road.Highway 1 does not run...

 (PCH) biker gang member after drunkenly picking a fight with Eli "Weevil" Navarro (Francis Capra
Francis Capra
Francis Capra is an American actor. Some of his best known roles are a young Calogero Anello in A Bronx Tale, Max Connor in Kazaam, and Eli "Weevil" Navarro in the TV series Veronica Mars.-Personal life:...

) and the PCHers.

The series was critically acclaimed, and appeared on several fall television best lists. The second season garnered an average of 2.3 million viewers per all 22 episodes in the US. Out of all regular primetime programming that aired during the 2005–2006 American television season
2005-06 United States network television schedule
This was the United States broadcast television schedule on all six commercial television networks for the fall season beginning in September 2005. All times are Eastern and Pacific.This would be the final season of broadcasting for both UPN and The WB...

, Veronica Mars ranked 145th out of 156, according to the Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...

 system. The premiere was watched by 3.30 million viewers, while the finale was watched by 2.42 million viewers.

Cast and crew

The second season was produced by Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television is the television production arm of Warner Bros. Entertainment, itself part of Time Warner. Alongside CBS Television Studios, it serves as a television production arm of The CW Television Network , though it also produces shows for other networks, such as Shameless on...

, Silver Pictures Television and Rob Thomas Productions.Joel Silver
Joel Silver
Joel Silver is an American Hollywood film producer, co-creator of the sport of Ultimate, co-founder of Dark Castle Entertainment and owner of Silver Pictures.-Life and career:...

 and Thomas served as the executive producers, and Jennifer Gwartz, Danielle Stokdyk and Diane Ruggiero
Diane Ruggiero
Diane Ruggiero is an American television writer and producer. Her credits include That's Life, Veronica Mars, the US remake of "Free Agents", Dirty Sexy Money, Big Shots, and the Mythological X remake The Ex List....

 served as co-executive producers. The season's crew also included producers Howard Grisby and Dan Etheridge, co-producer Stacy Fields, head writer Dayna Lynne North, and casting director Deedee Bradley.

The second season features a cast of nine actors who receive star billing
Billing (film)
Billing is a performing arts term used in referring to the order and other aspects of how credits are presented for plays, films, television, or other creative works...

, six of whom were regulars in the first season. Kristen Bell
Kristen Bell
Kristen Anne Bell is an American actress. Although her first film role was an uncredited appearance in Polish Wedding, Bell previously acted in stage and musical productions. In 2001, she made her Broadway debut as Becky Thatcher in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...

 portrays the titular Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars (character)
Veronica Mars is a fictional character in UPN/The CW the television series, Veronica Mars, which aired on the UPN and CW networks from 2004 to 2007. She is portrayed by Kristen Bell.- Background and details of plot :...

, a high school senior and skilled private detective. Teddy Dunn
Teddy Dunn
Edward Wilkes "Teddy" Dunn is an Australian actor known for his portrayal of Duncan Kane in the Rob Thomas television series Veronica Mars which he portrayed for 44 episodes.-Personal life:...

 plays Duncan Kane
Duncan Kane
Duncan Kane is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He was a series regular during seasons one and two. He is portrayed by Teddy Dunn. He is Veronica's ex-boyfriend, and the brother to her dead best friend, Lilly...

, Veronica's ex-boyfriend and Lilly's brother. Jason Dohring
Jason Dohring
Jason William Dohring is an American actor who is best known for his role as Logan Echolls on the 2004 television show Veronica Mars and for his role as Josef Kostan on the 2007 series Moonlight.-Personal life:...

 plays Logan Echolls
Logan Echolls
Logan Echolls is a fictional character on the UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN.He is portrayed by Jason Dohring.- Background :...

, the "bad-boy" son of an A-list
A-list
A-list is a term that alludes to major movie stars, or the most bankable in the Hollywood film industry.The A-list is part of a larger guide called The Hot List that has become an industry-standard guide in Hollywood...

 actor and an "09er", a group of wealthy students from the fictional 90909 ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...

. Percy Daggs III
Percy Daggs III
Percy Daggs III is an American actor best known for his role as Wallace Fennel in the Rob Thomas television series Veronica Mars. He is also known for starring in television commercials for Hot Pockets and Orbit Gum...

 portrays Wallace Fennel
Wallace Fennel
Wallace Fennel is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He is portrayed by Percy Daggs III.- Background :...

, Veronica's best friend and frequent partner in solving mysteries. Francis Capra
Francis Capra
Francis Capra is an American actor. Some of his best known roles are a young Calogero Anello in A Bronx Tale, Max Connor in Kazaam, and Eli "Weevil" Navarro in the TV series Veronica Mars.-Personal life:...

 portrays Eli "Weevil" Navarro, the leader of the PCH
California State Route 1
State Route 1 , more often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along much of the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. It is famous for running along some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world, leading to its designation as an All-American Road.Highway 1 does not run...

 Biker gang and Veronica's friend. Enrico Colantoni
Enrico Colantoni
Enrico Colantoni is a Canadian actor, probably best known for portraying Elliot DiMauro in the sitcom Just Shoot Me!, Keith Mars on the television series Veronica Mars, and Sergeant Greg Parker on the television series Flashpoint. He has also had supporting roles in such films as The Wrong Guy, ...

 plays Veronica's father Keith Mars
Keith Mars
Keith Mars is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He is portrayed by Enrico Colantoni....

, a private investigator and former Balboa County Sheriff.

Thomas, who said that he "conceive[d] the show as a one-year mystery", decided that he needed to introduce and eliminate several characters to be able to create an "equally fascinating mystery" for the series' second season. Thomas felt that he could not bring back the Kanes and the Echolls and "have them all involved in a new mystery"; he needed "new blood". The second season saw the introduction of Tessa Thompson
Tessa Thompson
Tessa Lynne Thompson is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for the role of Jackie Cook on the TV series Veronica Mars.-Personal life:...

 as Jackie Cook
Jackie Cook
Jackie Cook is a fictional character on the UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars. She is portrayed by Tessa Thompson. She was a series regular for the second season, which aired on UPN.-Background:...

, a romantic interest of Wallace and daughter of a famous baseball player. Previous recurring characters Dick Casablancas
Dick Casablancas
Richard "Dick" Casablancas, Jr. is a fictional character on the UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He is portrayed by Ryan Hansen. He is a series regular from season two forward....

 and Cassidy "Beaver" Casablancas
Cassidy Casablancas
Cassidy "Beaver" Casablancas is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, portrayed by actor Kyle Gallner. He was a series regular during the second season and the main antagonist during the second season finale.-Background:...

 were upgraded to series regulars. Dick, played by Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen
Ryan Hansen is an American actor, best known for having portrayed Dick Casablancas on Veronica Mars and Nolan in Friday the 13th...

, was an 09er friend of Logan, a womanizer and former high-school bully turned frat boy. Kyle Gallner
Kyle Gallner
Kyle Gallner is an American actor. He is possibly best known for his portrayal of Cassidy "Beaver" Casablancas in the Teen neo-noir television series Veronica Mars, and for guest-starring in teen sci-fi drama Smallville as superhero Bart Allen, an adaptation of the character of The Flash and...

 portrayed "Beaver", Dick's introverted younger brother. Dunn, who played Duncan Kane, left the series midway through the season. Thomas explained that the Logan–Veronica–Duncan love triangle had run its course, and to keep the series fresh, there would need to be "other guys in her life". He attributed Dunn's removal to fan interest dominating the Logan–Veronica relationship, saying "it became clear that one suitor won out".

Critical reception

Brian Raftery of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...

praised the cast as ingenious, in particular Bell and Colantoni, who he thought kept the season "humming along". Raftery found their characters' "sweet-natured, genuine father-daughter friendship remains the show's rock-hard axis". Eric Goldman of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...

 wrote that the season was "entertaining start to finish", with "great" returning characters and a "wonderful array of guest stars". Goldman criticized the main mysteries for not having the "same personal touchstone for Veronica or for the audience", but found the pace pick[ed] up considerably in the final episodes". The reviewer called Bell's performance "Emmy
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...

-worthy", showing "an amazing amount of different emotions throughout the season, while maintaining Veronica's trademark wit and cleverness".

Jeff Swindoll of Monsters and Critics
Monsters and Critics
Monsters and Critics is a web-only entertainment/celebrity news and review publication with movie, DVD, video game, and music reviews, along with political commentary as well as coverage of world news, technology, sports, and science.- Background :...

 found that the focus was less on Veronica than in the first season. Swindoll wrote that although the ongoing bus crash mystery lacked the personal touch of season one, other characters were given more screen time and the narrative was still interesting and enjoyable. Reviewers for UGO Networks declared the second season "much more captivating than its freshman predecessor". Despite the positive reviews, numerous critics were frustrated with the complexity of the second season. Entertainment Weekly thought that the season contained "way-too-ancillary characters and red-herring subplots so extraneous that even the most ardent followers needed a Wikipedic
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...

 memory to keep track of things". Robert Bianco of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...

felt that the season was "lost in an overly complex plot".

Awards

The second season was nominated for nine awards, winning two. Kristen Bell and Enrico Colantoni were awarded with the Family Television Award for Favorite Father/Daughter. The series was nominated for the International Cinematographers Guild Publicists Award for The Maxwell Weinberg Publicist Showmanship Award for Television, and the Saturn Award
Saturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...

 for Best Network Television Series. Kristen Bell won the Saturn Award for Best Television Actress, was nominated for the Satellite Award for Actress in a Drama Series, and the Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actress: Drama/Action Adventure. Percy Daggs III and Enrico Colantoni were respectively nominated for the Teen Choice Awards for Choice TV Sidekick and Choice TV Parental Unit. Rob Thomas was nominated for a Writers Guild of America Award
Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...

 for Episodic Drama for his work on "Normal Is the Watchword".

Distribution

The second season was released in the US under the title Veronica Mars: The Complete Second Season as a widescreen six-disc Region 1 DVD box set on August 22, 2006, Region 2 on August 15, 2008, and Region 4 on September 8, 2008. In addition to all of the aired episodes, DVD extras included a gag reel, a promo trailer for the third season, deleted and additional scenes, including an alternate ending to "My Mother, the Fiend", and two featurettes: "A Day on the Set with Veronica Mars" and "Veronica Mars: Not Your Average Teen Detective". IGN's Goldman was displeased with the minimal amount of extras, and criticized the crew for the lack of commentaries. The reviewer felt that although the DVD was worth the episodes alone, the few extras made the set a disappointment. Contrastingly, reviewers for UGO Networks wrote that the DVD box set was as engaging as the season's episodes.

The CTV Television Network
CTV television network
CTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...

, which began airing the first season in Canada in May 2005, decided not to pick up the second season. Instead, Sun TV
CKXT-TV
CKXT-DT was a broadcast television station based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and serving much of southern and eastern Ontario, owned by Quebecor Media through its Groupe TVA unit. At the time of the station's closure on November 1, 2011, the station was serving as an over-the-air simulcast of...

 began broadcasting the season on July 18, 2006. Living began airing the second season in the United Kingdom on June 8, 2006, airing one episode per week rather than showing one every night as they did in the first season. Despite "underwhelming" ratings, Living picked up the series' third season. Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...

 broadcast the second season in Australia on Fridays in 2007.

Episodes

The season begins with Veronica's life returning to the way it was before Lilly's death: having broken up with Logan during the summer, she reunites with Duncan and is somewhat accepted by the 09ers. However, her tough personality and work as a private investigator keep her from being truly assimilated back into the rich crowd. 09ers Dick and Cassidy are abandoned by their father, who flees the country while under investigation for real estate fraud. The brothers are forced to deal with their stepmother, Kendall (Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Lee Carpenter is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cordelia Chase in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel, for which she was nominated for four Saturn Awards. In her most recent film she starred opposite Sylvester Stallone and Jason...

), who is only interested in their father's money. Wallace discovers that his biological father is alive and takes a romantic interest in Jackie.
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" style="margin-right: 0;"
|-
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| №
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| #
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| Title
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| Directed by
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| Written by
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| U.S. viewers
(million)
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| Original air date
! style="background-color: #ff3030; color: #ffffff;"| Production
code
|-

|}

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK