This entry is about Veronica Mars.

Kirk would be so happy. I mean, he would be if this weren't the exact same thing I already discussed with him in email. I added more thoughts, though!

[Begin Spoiler for "Not Pictured" - Season 2 Finale — Highlight to view]

I am of two minds about this episode. On the one hand, it was jaw-dropping and all around awesome. And I was very entertained. On the other hand, it was completely unbelievable.

Beaver blew up the bus. And killed Curly. And raped Veronica. Holy shit. And also: bullshit. I mean, I accept the outcome, because it makes sense from the evidence. It's clear that Beaver was always the killer, and this is what they've been building towards and hint dropping about. Plotwise, they did a bang up job. In the sense of character? It was ridiculously inconsistent.

I really liked the Beav. And the reason I did is because, as written and as acted, he was very complex, but seemed like a pretty decent person. He did not seem like a completely remorseless sociopath. And here is my thing: if he's really always been such a bastard, why didn't we ever get a glipse of that? Some outburst of aggression or nastiness that would seem out of character, but that you could look back on and say, "Oh yeah, remember that?" I don't buy that his normal demeanor was a facade. If they had given an indication of that, I would be okay. It's not that I don't accept Beaver as the killer, it's just that I don't accept the character that they've created as the killer.

Alternatively, I could have bought it if he'd been a lot more conflicted, and probably a little crazier. The boy who cried out, "My name is Cassidy!" before deciding to throw himself off a building seems compatible with the Beaver that I've seen all season. But he wasn't consistent with the Beaver of the entire preceeding scene.

My problem with this gelled in one specific scene: the flashback where Beaver hits Curly with his car. And then scribbles on his corpse. And dumps the body of a cliff. I didn't believe it. It looked ridiculous. It looked silly. What was great about the first season finale was that I did not see the reveal coming, and my reaction was: "Oh my God, of course!" Because even though I wouldn't have pegged Aaron as a murderer, it made perfect sense. At this reveal, my gut reaction was completely different: "Oh, there's no way!"

Here are some other minor issues. In the TWoP recap of "Plan B", guest reviewer Jacob, whom I freaking love, immediately got the vibe that Beaver had been molested. I don't want to know how he figured that out, because it was definitely not a conclusion that I jumped to. But he was right, clearly. What wound up bothering me afterwards was semi-logic of television that followed: Beaver was molested as a kid. Woody molested kids. Therefore, Woody must have molested Beaver. In a similar way: Veronica contracted chylamidia. Woody had chylamidia. Therefore there must be a direct link between Woody and Veronica. I mean, I get that these points never would have been brought up if they didn't relate to other plot points. It's not real life, it's television. But for some reason, I found these two things annoying.

I was impressed at the death of Aaron Echolls, and I was quietly excited to see Wiedman pull the trigger. However, my immediate thought was that Jake Kane had sent him. (Kirk pointed out that last year, he did vow to kill Aaron.) But it was Duncan. I like my idea better. I guess they had to use Duncan in the scene to round out his arc, or maybe they couldn't get the parents back for this episode, but I can't think of anything, storywise, that wouldn't make Jake a more satisfying option. Also, this must mean that Wiedman, and therefore Ma and Pa Kane know of Duncan's whereabouts. So what's going on with that?

I knew that Keith wasn't dead. Because I knew that the plane was going to blow up as soon as Woody got on it. And they never showed the plane taking off with Keith inside. It was predictable, but not in the sense that I was unhappy with it. I felt the thrill of anticipation, and the drama was well played out. I just knew how it was going to end.

I found it pleasantly entertaining that Kendall wound up on top at the end. Of course, alarmingly, it seems that she was actually the least reprehensible of all the Casablancases. ...Unless you want to bestow that honor on Dick. It's so fucked up, it's great. Of course, what is the deal with her and Aaron, please? It's pretty certain that she could never have gotten out of the suite before Aaron was shot, and it's even possible that she saw Wiedman there. But she seemed most unphased. I wish I knew what was up with that. But I'm actually happy to think that, assuming there's a third season, it looks like Kendall is going to play a large part in it.

Despite some nitpicks and the one large criticism, I thought the episode was great. I'm repeating that just in case I sound too angry. The first season finale was better, though. The first season, period, was better. I cannot agree with people who say otherwise. Bigger shocks do not equal better stories.

Lastly, I kind of love Jackie. This is bizarre, because when she first showed up, I hated Jackie. And Tessa Thompson's acting. "Acting." I don't know what kind of spiritual experience that girl had, but her improvement is proof that miracles happen. I hope this is not the last that we've seen of her. Poor tiny Wallace.

[End Spoiler]