Veronica Mars has always been a show that runs in circles. That’s not a bad thing, as it's a cult classic with a devout fanbase, but a show with such consistent character development always needs to find a way to put spunky, bitter Veronica back in the seedy beach town of Neptune, California. After all, people need to die and she needs to figure out who did it.
In late July, Hulu is bringing back Veronica Mars (sustained through a movie and two canon novels since the show’s cancellation in 2007) for a fourth season. It’s been four years since the last time anyone got a look into Veronica’s world, so here are some questions that fans need answers to (beware of spoilers for every piece of Veronica Mars media up to now).
Is Tanner Scott Still a Threat?
The most interesting thing about the somewhat lackluster first novel, The Thousand Dollar Tan Line, is the focus on Veronica’s recovering alcoholic mother, Lianne, who married fellow addict Tanner Scott and started a family with him. In the novel, it’s revealed that he helped capitalize on the murder of a young girl by staging a kidnapping of his daughter, and Veronica’s step-sister, Aurora, and attempting to gather ransom money for her.
Tanner was sentenced to two years in prison and Aurora, as well as his son Hunter, were put in Lianne’s full custody. Now that Tanner’s sentence is up, he’s a liability, and one with a strong reason to return to Neptune and cause havoc. Tanner is a strong contender for a villain in Season Four, with signs pointing to him being a constant thorn in Veronica’s side (at the very least).
Where is Duncan Kane?
Since kidnapping his daughter and fleeing the country with her, the last confirmed sighting of Veronica’s ex-boyfriend Duncan Kane was in Australia (when the hit he put out on Aaron Echolls was completed at the end of the show’s second season). Conspiracy to murder isn’t the worst thing Duncan had done in the two years he spent on the show, but 13 years have passed since then, with no sight or mention of where in the world Duncan could be.
Duncan’s actor, Teddy Dunn, is no longer a working actor and instead a lawyer working in New York, but even if Duncan doesn’t show up in Season Four in the flesh, it would be nice to see one of the biggest loose ends of Veronica’s stories given some sort of mention.
Is Piz Still in Veronica’s Love Quadrangle?
Logan, Duncan, Leo, and Piz; the four men who have been the most notable in Veronica’s life have been rotating in and out of her life consistently. Stosh “Piz” Piznarski was her long-term boyfriend in the 2014 film, before dumping her when she decided to stay in Neptune to help prove Logan’s innocence.
While he went back to New York and hasn’t been seen in either of the novels, Veronica Mars has never been a story to shy away from bringing back old flames, and if Piz finds his way back to Neptune and Veronica’s life, he could still be in the running.
Can Weevil Keep His Family Together?
One of the saddest moments in the film --and the moment that cemented Neptune as a black hole nearly impossible to escape from-- was Veronica watching former head of the PCH biker gang and reformed family man Eli “Weevil” Navarro get back on that bike and ride off into the sunset.
Neptune is a place that sticks its residents in their old ways, and Weevil was no exception. While his rouge attitude was charming when he was in high school, now he has a wife and a daughter, a family that is in jeopardy now that he’s regressed and that Veronica has a tendency to come to him asking him for dangerous, risky, and often illegal help.
Is Leo Still in Love with Veronica?
When talking about Veronica’s various love interests over the years, it’s easy to forget about Leo D’Amato, the San Diego detective who is constantly putting his career on the line for Veronica. Leo leaves the consciousness of most Marshmallows as soon as he enters, just because he’s jostling for time with (at minimum) two other guys at any given point.
But in the second novel, Mr. Kiss and Tell, Leo plays a large role, and Veronica starts to return to long-dormant feelings she has for him while Logan is shipped out flying planes for the Navy. One of the primary conflicts of the novel is the Leo and Veronica dynamic, as Leo has clearly had feelings for her throughout the years. Should Leo return, is he going to try and win Veronica’s heart and create yet another rift in her and Logan’s relationship?
Are Hunter and Aurora in Danger?
Even more than Veronica herself, Hunter and Aurora, her half-brother and step-sister, are in real danger. Being tied to the Mars family through the volatile Lianne is bad enough, but with Tanner on the horizon, it adds another layer.
As this show has proven, being related to Veronica Mars is never an easy thing, especially when it’s two young and vulnerable kids. Whether it's Aurora putting herself in harm’s way (or even worse, trying to follow in her new sister’s footsteps) or somebody else doing the job, something bad is in the air and Hunter and Aurora are right in the crossfire.
How Corrupt Can Dan Lamb Get?
At the end of the movie, Veronica released a damning clip of Sheriff Dan Lamb talking about his desire to put Logan Echolls behind bars. For any regular town, this would be the kiss of death, but Neptune is no regular town and Lamb remains the sheriff. In a town as populated by evil and grime as Neptune, a strong police force is required to hold things together.
Dan Lamb is no such force, and this corrupt wild card can only get worse from here. The question with him is not if he’ll go dark, but how dark he'll go, and how much pain that could bring to Veronica and her friends.
Who Is Coming Back to Haunt Neptune?
In Neptune, nobody is out of the picture unless they’re dead. With the years of enemies Veronica, Keith, and everybody else has lined up, the central crime of Season Four, a series of attacks, could be the work of anyone.
The film’s antagonist Stu Cobbler, unhinged superfan Ruby Jetson, vindictive popular girl Madison Sinclair, wild card Luke Haldeman, and many others are just some of the characters with a major bone to pick with Neptune and its residents. One of the most exciting prospects of this new season is seeing which come out of the woodwork to cause trouble.
Can Logan and Veronica Make It?
It might be more realistic to ask “how long until Logan and Veronica break up?”, but in the name of optimism, the question stands. Logan and Veronica have fought and fought side-by-side for fifteen years, and the fourth season picks up with them firmly in each other’s arms, with only their pasts between them.
But the gap made by the past is wide, and the two do not have an easy road ahead of them; see any of the previous entries on this list. With Logan in and out of deployment, it’s looking to be another tumultuous season for LoVe shippers.
How Much is Too Much for Veronica?
But all that is just the plot. In the film, an idea is brought on that brings a new angle to Veronica’s character: that she can’t do this forever. Her life has an expiration date, either by getting herself killed or burning herself out. As she gets older and has more and more traumas under her belt, that date gets nearer and nearer.
Veronica has always been a marshmallow burned at both ends. It’s hard to say when the flames will meet in the middle, but the signs are starting to show. The final moments of her sanity might come in Season Four, or maybe not. But it’s coming, and there’s nothing she can do to stop it.