Veronica Mars is no Buffy

I love both buffy and veronica mars. yeah shore they have somethings alike. but at the same time they are so different!!!

It's absolutely true that VM is no Buffy. Thank goodness. Many people (me included) prefer VM over Buffy for a number of reasons. I enjoyed Buffy a lot, but I cringed during every single fight scene because I found that part of the show downright silly and cringeworthy. To each his own.

But the ariticle so misses the point of VM that it's hardly worth arguing about. Criticizing VM for not having the "higher calling" aspect of Buffy is aking to criticizing The Sopranos for not being about the White House. It's apples and oranges. One could just as easily criticize Buffy because there was no murder mystery. And Buffy relied too much on her "gang" whereas Veronica figures things out on her own.

These endless comparisons are beyond tiresome. VM has as much in common with Twin Peaks as it does Buffy, not to mention plenty of other shows. I guess one could argue that VM is better than Twin Peaks because TP didn't have a good father-daughter relationship.

I have to say something, and this is based on watching a single episode of Veronica Mars, so take it with a huge grain of salt. The episode I watched was the one Joss Whedon guest stars in. I could barely handle watching throught the whole hour. I mean, the dialogue was hoky, Veronica looked ill at ease with herself throughout the episode (and not in an authentic way), and it was just awful. This is supposed to compare with Buffy? This is supposed to compare with anything? Give me a break. Maybe that was just an incredible low point for the series, but it certainly didn't give me any desire to watch another episode.

Buffy, it is not.

I read the article at Beliefnet.com and posted my thoughts a few days ago on my website, so no point in repeating myself verbatim here:

http://tvandsympathy.blogspot.com/2006/04/in-defense-of-sarcastic-soulful.html

Essentially, it's valid to compare Buffy and Veronica, but to say Veronica lacks a higher purpose and is less ethically responsible than Buffy is just poor thinking.

But that's just the thing. Veronica shouldn't have a gang. That's kind of the point of her character. She's been abandoned and/or hurt by everyone she loves, and has been ostracized by her so-called friends at every turn; first because she stood by her father, and second because she's the one who blew the whistle on Big Dick Casablancas. I mean, they've gone so far as to call her, rich man's kryptonite. While Veronica is the lead of the show, she's never, never ever meant to be the popular girl that Buffy supposedly was; I mean, in the end, everyone was grateful to Buffy/loved Buffy, because she got the umbrella thing at Prom and the name Class Protector. That makes her the "popular"/Good girl, which Veronica isn't, or never will be. She's the "right" girl, which means she's ostracized A LOT because nobody really wants to hear the truth.

i just recently got into Buffy, right around the time i got into VM and i can understand some of the critiques. i feel the writers wanting to form a gang for Veronica but never making a connection. i hope its something they're working towards because if the show is missing something, its that. a scooby gang. that said, the show does have its own kind of magic, despite being set outside the realm of fantasy, and this what keeps me tuned in every week. i love VM.

We had a couple of similar posts to this in the past:

http://www.tvsquad.com/2005/11/29/the-five-ways-veronica-mirrors-buffy/

and

http://www.tvsquad.com/2005/11/30/mars-vs-summers/

But really, you shouldn't *not* watch VM because it's not Buffy -- that's just silly. I'm atually re-re-re-watching Season 2 of Buffy right now, and the thing that I've found that VM lacks is the feeling that you actually *like* the characters. It sounds queer, but the Buffy cast almost felt like a bunch of your friends, whereas I can't find myself connecting or ever wanting to be friends with any of the VM characters.

Nemme: Not to be pedantic, but technically neither of them are noir per se. Genre-wise, they both fit the Hard-Boiled genre better (Veronica, more so).

Yeah, "Buffy" it ain't. That's hardly a criticism, though, very few shows are "Buffy" quality. The finale of season 2 is one of the most astonishing hours of television ever, and you don't get to claim to be "Buffy" until you can end a season with a character triumphant but so emotionally and psychologically wounded that it feels like a defeat. It's kind of a tough standard to judge shows against.

But "Veronica Mars" still is exceptionally original and compelling television, and very few shows on right now can compete with it. Just 'cuz it ain't "Buffy" doesn't mean it's crap.

I'm a huge fan of Veronica, but Buffy is one of my fav shows of all time. I would agree that Veronica is no Buffy, yet. It's possible that it might eventually come close. I agree with an earlier comment on how well the mysteries are handled with Veronica. It's easily the best mystery show on television - over Invasion or even LOST.

I think the best point the writer made for Buffy over Veronica is side character development. If you were a fan of Buffy, you were in love with other characters on the show. Oz, Angel, Willow, Xander, Spike, etc. Angel was such a great character they gave him his own show. The same could have been done with Spike, and I think Angel was at it's best when Spike joined the crew.

Where are those characters on Veronica? Outside of Logan, I don't think there's any side characters on that show worth watching. I like Veronica's friendship with Wallace and I think Weevil has potential, but they are no where near where the characters on Buffy were. When Buffy killed Angel at the end of season 2, fans grieved. I immediately jumped online and thousands were talking about it. Did anyone shed a tear earlier this season when Duncun left?

Even Logan - easily the best character not named Veronica - couldn't handle his own show.

Buffy was new, exciting and different. Veronica may eventually come close to Buffy, but the other characters on the show need to shine first.