Robert N EmersonVeronica Mars: Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner
December 4th 2006 10:30
Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner was a weaker episode of Veronica Mars than those that had preceded it. However, it still incorporated some great and intriguing moments.
The mystery of the week was fairly entertaining, albeit a little convoluted and far fetched, but it was nice to have a tie in with Meg (Alona Tal). Normal may be the watchword, but normalcy is something that 09er households seem to lack. In Green Eyed Monster, Meg’s sister said that her parents would pull the plug on her if they knew what was contained on the laptop, which I took as a figure of speech. However, after seeing this episode, those words take on a new and disturbing meaning.
There was some great work by Kristin Bell this week, particularly in her reaction shots. Her face was absolutely hilarious when one child’s father invited her on his boat to fool around. That moment was a perfect example of the humour on this show – it has a subtlety to it, rather than being in-your-face and anvilicious. I was disappointed once again by the lack of Wallace (Percy Daggs III), but I did enjoy Veronica’s email to him and her Doogie Howser comment. The sleepover was particularly hellish, and I totally identify with Veronica wanting to leave as soon as possible. Gia (Krysten Ritter) herself is pretty warped, and the prominent presence and strange actions of her father indicate that he is up to something.
The episode also contained a lot of reaction shots of Duncan. Frankly, these seemed a bit of a waste considering that it was impossible to gauge exactly what his reaction was. I’m not sure whether this is a problem with Teddy Dunn’s acting, or whether Duncan is supposed to be deliberately hard to read. He definitely has something to hide; particularly as he took the note from Meg’s room. I’m also wondering at the possibility that Meg had another boyfriend, considering the fact that he was never referred to by name by the parents she babysat for. It will also be interesting to discover whether or not Kendall (Charisma Carpenter) and Duncan actually did anything. Duncan chose to be deliberately cryptic with his response – if he is innocent, why not just tell the truth?
Once again, there was lots of Logan (Jason Dohring) in the episode – something I am truly thankful for. He had some wonderfully sarcastic and snarky lines, particularly during his interaction with Kendall. There’s no doubt in my mind that he wants Veronica back. He was deliberate in asking Duncan about Kendall in front of Veronica, to manipulate the situation and plant seeds of doubt in her mind. Also, the bathroom scene in which he reminisced about their lost relationship shows that he hasn’t gotten over her. He wants Veronica to remember as well, to think back to a time when no one knew about their relationship, when they may as well have been the only two people in the world. Since Veronica is how investigating the new witness that has come forward, I’m hoping these two will get to spend a lot more time together.
I thought the last scene of the episode was one of the strongest, and it gave us an insight into the possible childhood abuse of Sheriff Lamb (Michael Muhney). It’s amazing how his actions made the character more three-dimensional and, dare I say it, redeemed him somewhat. This scene too had the subtlety that I appreciate from this show. While they could have gone for an overly-dramatic revelation from Lamb, they instead let us draw our own conclusions. I also liked the fact that Lamb parked his car outside the house, watching Meg’s parents. 09ers may escape justice to some extent, but Lamb is letting them know that he is watching, and he knows.
In a shocking development, Veronica Mars will actually air again next week, at 10.35pm Friday night. Rumour has it that it may even appear the week after as well! I’ll believe it when I see it, but one can always hope.
*Screencap courtesy of Wikipedia, and used under Fair Dealing for identification and critical commentary
Veronica and Duncan*
There was some great work by Kristin Bell this week, particularly in her reaction shots. Her face was absolutely hilarious when one child’s father invited her on his boat to fool around. That moment was a perfect example of the humour on this show – it has a subtlety to it, rather than being in-your-face and anvilicious. I was disappointed once again by the lack of Wallace (Percy Daggs III), but I did enjoy Veronica’s email to him and her Doogie Howser comment. The sleepover was particularly hellish, and I totally identify with Veronica wanting to leave as soon as possible. Gia (Krysten Ritter) herself is pretty warped, and the prominent presence and strange actions of her father indicate that he is up to something.
The episode also contained a lot of reaction shots of Duncan. Frankly, these seemed a bit of a waste considering that it was impossible to gauge exactly what his reaction was. I’m not sure whether this is a problem with Teddy Dunn’s acting, or whether Duncan is supposed to be deliberately hard to read. He definitely has something to hide; particularly as he took the note from Meg’s room. I’m also wondering at the possibility that Meg had another boyfriend, considering the fact that he was never referred to by name by the parents she babysat for. It will also be interesting to discover whether or not Kendall (Charisma Carpenter) and Duncan actually did anything. Duncan chose to be deliberately cryptic with his response – if he is innocent, why not just tell the truth?
Once again, there was lots of Logan (Jason Dohring) in the episode – something I am truly thankful for. He had some wonderfully sarcastic and snarky lines, particularly during his interaction with Kendall. There’s no doubt in my mind that he wants Veronica back. He was deliberate in asking Duncan about Kendall in front of Veronica, to manipulate the situation and plant seeds of doubt in her mind. Also, the bathroom scene in which he reminisced about their lost relationship shows that he hasn’t gotten over her. He wants Veronica to remember as well, to think back to a time when no one knew about their relationship, when they may as well have been the only two people in the world. Since Veronica is how investigating the new witness that has come forward, I’m hoping these two will get to spend a lot more time together.
I thought the last scene of the episode was one of the strongest, and it gave us an insight into the possible childhood abuse of Sheriff Lamb (Michael Muhney). It’s amazing how his actions made the character more three-dimensional and, dare I say it, redeemed him somewhat. This scene too had the subtlety that I appreciate from this show. While they could have gone for an overly-dramatic revelation from Lamb, they instead let us draw our own conclusions. I also liked the fact that Lamb parked his car outside the house, watching Meg’s parents. 09ers may escape justice to some extent, but Lamb is letting them know that he is watching, and he knows.
Overall Rating
In a shocking development, Veronica Mars will actually air again next week, at 10.35pm Friday night. Rumour has it that it may even appear the week after as well! I’ll believe it when I see it, but one can always hope.
*Screencap courtesy of Wikipedia, and used under Fair Dealing for identification and critical commentary
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Comment by KylieW
Celebrity Obsession
Duncan is very wooden, and I just can't warm to him. Of course that could be because I want Logan and Veronica back together. Fingers crossed for that!
Comment by Nina
I either want conclusive proof that Duncan is up to something, or I want him gone. He's really irritating me, because he's standing in the way of LoVe, so if he has to stay in the picture I want a reason for it.
Comment by ms.echolls
Comment by Icekat83
What that comment the Dad made to Veronica about fooling around for real or was it that he knew that Logan had been there??
I miss VM. No show has quite the same mix of insane and witty one-liners and the intrigue. Not to mention Veronica's sassy way of dealing with things.