VERONICA MARS (2019): THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON -- DVD Review by Porfle

 (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the DVD I reviewed in this blog post. The opinions I share are my own.)

 

Originally posted on 10/24/19


What could be more cutesy than a series about a daddy-daughter detective agency? And yet VERONICA MARS (2019): THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment) manages to make it seem not only fresh and funny, but hard-hitting, intense, and engaging at the same time.

Of course, it's a spin-off of the popular teen-oriented series "Veronica Mars" which played from 2004-2007 on UPN and The CW. It starred Kristen Bell as a plucky young girl whose father Keith (Enrico Colantonik, GALAXY QUEST) was the sheriff of their bustling beachfront town of Neptune, California.

This gave Veronica, an amateur sleuth, the chance to solve mysteries with the help of her recurring crew of high school friends.

Now, Veronica's back in town a little older and wiser--in other words, life hasn't quite worked out as she planned--and she's joined her father in a private detective agency. 

She lives with her old boyfriend from the original show, Logan (Jason Dohring), a hunky military intelligence agent whose desire to get married has commitment-shy Veronica in a tizzy.

Meanwhile, the whole town's in a tizzy over a series of bombings that are laying waste to lucrative beachfront businesses in the middle of Spring Break.  Crooked real estate dealers, local criminal gangs, amateur murder-case sleuths, shady politicians, and a Mexican drug lord looking for revenge after one of his relatives dies in an explosion all clash while Veronica and Keith work furiously to track down the deadly serial bomber.

I never watched the original series, and thus can't make any comparisons between the two. What we have here, however, is a taut, fast-moving, and pleasingly complex detective thriller which, just like real life, wavers endlessly between the lighthearted and the deadly serious.

Much is made of Veronica's return to Neptune and her reunions with various old friends, with whom she isn't above getting falling down (and throwing up) drunk or sharing an illicit substance or two. This heroine isn't perfect, we soon discover, a fact that makes her prickly but passionate relationship with Logan all the more interesting.

There's also an irresistible rapport between Veronica and dear old dad Keith, still using a cane after a terrible auto crash years earlier and now worrying that he's gradually losing his mental faculties. Enrico Colantonik is just as appealing here as he was in GALAXY QUEST, albeit with a much more subtle affability and gentle wisdom.

The supporting cast is very good, especially J.K. Simmons as Clyde, a smooth ex-con acting as advisor and bodyguard for crooked businessman "Big Dick" Casablancas (Ryan Hansen). Patton Oswalt is Penn Epner, a pizza delivery guy and member of the Murderheads, a group of cold murder case groupies.  And Clifton Collins, Jr., is fine as Mexican hitman Alonzo Lozano, to whom murder is a casual but bloody affair.

Kristin Bell easily carries the whole thing with her energetic style, making Veronica believably tough and self-reliant but with an amusingly irreverent outlook on life even at its most grim (a quality that clearly serves as a defense mechanism to keep herself together). 

My initial fears that this would be mainly a lightweight character drama with mystery elements were soon put to rest as the season's overall story arc quickly developed into a superbly engrossing crime thriller that's full of surprises and hard-hitting, often violent action.

I'm not sure how fans of the original show will react to this new version of Veronica, her friends and family, and her not-so-sleepy little hometown, but for me, VERONICA MARS (2019): THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON was pure binge-watching fun.


SPECIAL FEATURES

    Veronica Mars at Comic Con 2019


8 ONE-HOUR EPISODES

    Spring Break Forever
    Chino and the Man
    Keep Calm and Party On
    Heads You Lose
    Losing Streak
    Entering a World of Pain
    Gods of War
    Years, Continents, Bloodshed


DIGITAL
The first season of Veronica Mars will be available to own on Digital on August 19 (in the U.S.). Digital allows consumers to instantly stream and download all episodes to watch anywhere and anytime on their favorite devices. Digital is available from various retailers including Apple TV, Amazon Video, Google Play, Vudu, PlayStation, Xbox and others.

BASICS
Digital Release: August 19, 2019 (in U.S.)
DVD Release: October 22, 2019
DVD Order Due Date: September 17, 2019
DVD Presented in 16x9 widescreen format
Running Time: Feature: Approx. 456 min
Enhanced Content: Approx.30 min

UNITED STATES

DVD
2 DVD-9s
Audio – English (5.1)
Subtitles – English

CANADA

DVD
2 DVD-9s
Audio – English (5.1)
Subtitles – English