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Small stuff first: Logan and Parker are hanging out, but Parker pulls back when she feels weird about the Veronica factor. Logan then asks Veronica's permission to ask Parker out, and Veronica's reasonably convincing in giving him her blessing. Landry tells Veronica that he doesn't want the whole dad-thinking-he's-a-murderer thing to get in the way of Landry's relationship with her. Sure. I mean, why would it? Keith tells Mindy to call him "Sheriff," and she tells him, in flashback, what happened when her husband came to the hotel: Dean Ed threatened to make sure Landry never worked in academia again. It turns out that the person who came to the office at the time of the egging was Mindy, in an attempt to convince Dean Ed to be merciful. Also, she gave him the Xanax, and Landry called her to see how it went, but when she got back to the Grand, Landry was gone. Keith arrests Landry on this new evidence combined with the bloody clothes. Landry informs Keith that Dean Ed also threatened Mindy with financial ruin, and her version of the whole story doesn't exactly match his. He can't explain his clothes covered in the Dean's blood, but he did stop at a convenience store to buy cigarettes. Lucky Tim goes to see Landry in jail, and Landry asks him to find out who bugged his phone, and one other thing, in search of which he ineptly breaks into Mars Investigations. Veronica catches Lucky Tim in the act, and they end up teaming up to try to prove Landry's innocence. Mindy gets her life insurance check, buys a boat, and skips town. Veronica and Tim manage to track down a woman who bummed a smoke off Landry on the night in question, forcing Keith to release Landry. Veronica and Tim keep digging at Richard Grieco's house, speculating that he's the one that bugged Landry's phone. They find a recording of the phone call between Landry and Mindy, but also come upon another call on which Landry slagged Tim off to a potential Lucky Tim employer at Pepperdine. Landry, thinking Mindy set him up, tracks her down. Meantime, Veronica, continuing to listen to Landry's calls, hears a reference to "Papa's Cabin." Before she gets to investigate that, though, she discovers that Landry's witness was coerced into giving him that alibi. Keith realizes that Papa's Cabin is a Hemingway reference, showing up the kids. Heh. Keith and his team go to Cabo, where the Cabin is located, and find the boat and a distraught Landry, who confesses to being behind the attempt to frame Grieco, in an effort ot throw the scent off Mindy. In a fit of passion (by accident, he claims), Landry killed his onetime lover. With Landry in custody, Tim gets Landry's job, and hires Veronica as his TA. Unfortunately for him, her first classroom act is to figure out that Tim actually set Landry up, and that he's the murderer, just as I thought. She takes him down in a tense standoff in front of the class, and I only wonder if she's going to make Professor by the end of the semester at this rate. Give it up for James Jordan in this episode, by the way, because he was fricking awesome in every way. Tying up the loose ends, Landry will be tried for manslaughter, there will be a special election at some point in the near-sounding future, and I will get some time off after the full recap goes up. Want more? The full recap starts right below!
Veronica enters Landry's class as VMVO equivocates over where she should sit in light of her dad's suspicion that Landry murdered Dean Ed. Maybe my GPA didn't mean as much to me as Veronica's does to her, but I think my vote would have been anywhere but in the classroom. Landry notices Veronica's discomfort, so he approaches and tells her that her dad's investigation won't affect their relationship one bit, and that a student like her comes along "once, maybe twice," in a career. When I first heard that, I thought it was kind of a slap in the face to treat Lucky Tim as such an afterthought. Without giving too much away, I think you'll agree that I was getting ahead of myself. Veronica's touched in spite of her misgivings, and takes her normal apple-polisher seat as Tim appears. Someone's ears are burning! He'll just want to be careful of the wig.
Interrogation room. Keith, repeating his instruction from the end of the last episode, tells Mindy to address him as "Sheriff Mars," and she asks him whey they're still there, given that Richard Grieco's prints were all over her husband's keyboard. Keith informs Mindy that the prints were on every key on the board, while it only takes eleven letters to spell out "Goodbye, cruel world." Well, that doesn't prove much, Keith. Richard Grieco might have tried out "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" and rejected it as just a little too abstract in this context. Also, Keith points out that it's not very logical that the killer would have worn gloves for the murder only to take them off to type. Mindy exasperatedly tells "Keith" that she didn't kill her husband, and Keith is all, "'Sheriff Mars.'" Dude, maybe that uniform is even more comfortable that you remembered, but seriously, we get it. Keith takes far too long to lay out the evidence -- the two men overheard fighting in her room, the car being checked out, the phone call, the Xanax -- and sternly says that it doesn't add up at all. He then sits down to Mindy and tells her he thinks Landry killed Dean Ed. I hope Keith gets paid double for having to play both Good and Bad Cop here. He asks Mindy if she's going to take the fall with Landry, and Mindy looks, for the first time, like she's really considering the possibility that Landry might be guilty. After some tortured thought, she tells Keith what we've known for a long time: that the man arguing with Landry was Dean Ed. Mindy says that Dean Ed was furious...
...and we get thrown into one of those gold flashbacks. If I make any mistakes from here on out, I apologize in advance, but it's hard to remember things accurately after a seizure. Anyway, in the flashback as told by Mindy, Dean Ed waves his gun around and tells Landry that he can forget about tenure -- he's done, not just at Hearst, but everywhere: "No more happy days in academia bedding impressionable students and easily charmed wives!" Considering how Dean Ed and Mindy met, he pretty much called her a gullible trollop twice in that sentence. But given the situation, I can understand how he'd think it bears repeating.
Mindy says that Dean Ed could have killed Landry's chances at every reputable college in the country, and that Landry's career means everything to him. He freaked out, so she left to try to talk Dean Ed down. She went to the house first, but his car wasn't there, so she tried the office. Keith asks about the phone call, and Mindy tells him that Landry wanted to know how it went. Keith: "How did it go?"
In flashback, we see Dean Ed's window getting egged, and him turning and asking what an unidentified person is doing there. But now we learn that the person is Mindy, and she asks Dean Ed to be merciful. She claims that she gave him his bottle of Xanax to calm him down, but he took three pills, which Keith says "practically left him helpless." Given how much Dean Ed'd had to drink that night, I would think three pills could have killed him. Or at least caused him to babble incoherently on national television and flirt with Simon Cowell.
Mindy says that she was there for five minutes; Dean Ed yelled at her, she left, end of story. Keith considers this for a moment, and then asks her what she told Landry. Mindy reveals that when she got back to the hotel, Landry was gone. Something about this doesn't add up; if, at 1:30, Mindy had been gone from the hotel room long enough that Landry called her and asked how things went, how is it that she didn't even check the car out until 1:51? I know that service during the graveyard shift can be pretty dodgy, but that still seems extreme to me. Given that no one ever mentions this, I think the show simply screwed up the timeline here. Also, I guess we're to infer that Landry ordered the movie and bailed out halfway through, which is fine, but the fact that he still knew the ending shows how incredibly stupid Veronica's fishing technique was in the first place. Keith asks whether, when Mindy hired Keith, it didn't occur to her that perhaps Landry was the killer, but Mindy tells him that while she was sure Dean Ed didn't kill himself, she was also certain that the culprit was someone other than Landry, since Dean Ed had a lot of enemies. Keith asks Mindy if she'll testify that Landry was worked up at the thought of losing his career, and she says she will. Keith starts to leave the room, but stops to muse that, of the three men he's known in Mindy's life, two are dead, and the state might render the third the same way. Mindy asks how she's supposed to react to that. Keith: "Reflexively." A lot of people on the boards wondered what he meant by that. I think he confused Mindy too, because I don't think he was advising her to buy a boat and get sort of murdered. Keith, less mysteriously, tells Mindy not to leave town.
Landry is lecturing about profiling when Sacks and another deputy appear at the back of the room. In Sacks's case, it wouldn't shock me if he were auditing the class; the man needs all the help he can get. But Landry seems to think that this signals something untoward, and his suspicions are confirmed when Keith enters at the front of the room and quietly tells Landry that he's going to arrest him, so Landry might want to dismiss the class. Landry takes the news well enough, and sunnily turns to the students and announces that Keith needs to consult with him about a case, so he's letting them go early. Tim and Veronica are the only ones chagrined at this development. That sounds about the right percentage of a roomful of college students, if you'll allow me to indulge in a little profiling myself. Credits.
Landry has taken Mindy's place in the interrogation room, and attests to the fact that he's willing to answer Keith's questions without the presence of an attorney. Keith tells Landry that Mindy flipped on him. Landry doesn't believe it, but Keith tells him about Mindy's claim that Landry was gone from the hotel room at the time of Dean Ed's murder, and suggests that maybe he really, really does want a lawyer. Landry stays mum until Keith relays Mindy's account of Dean Ed's visit to the hotel. Landry informs Keith that Dean Ed did more than threaten him, as...
...in a continuation of the hotel flashback, Dean Ed tells Mindy that she'll find her stuff on the lawn in the morning. If he's including her son, I hope he at least tosses out a pillow as well. He goes on to say that he didn't take his friends' advice about not marrying her, but he's sure as hell glad that he acceded to their wishes that he make her sign a prenup. Boy, Dean Ed's friends sure were nosy. It's a shame they weren't around lately to intervene about his hair. On that subject, Dean Ed agitatedly runs his hands through his hair, and for a second I'm convinced that we're heading for Arrested Development-ville. His eyebrows look pretty firmly in place, though.
Anyway, Landry tells Keith that Mindy went to the office to plead her own case, not Landry's. Keith points out that Mindy was back at the Grand by the time Dean Ed was killed. Landry brings up Grieco as a potential answer, but Keith breaks the news to him about his clothes, soaked in Dean Ed's blood, being found. I...really think it should have at least occurred to Keith that Landry was being framed. Aside from the convenience of the clothes just happening to get stuck in a spot where they surely would eventually be found, with all Landry's knowledge of true crime, would he really drop clothes in a school incinerator? That kind of thing has tripped people up before, I'd wager. Wouldn't he have taken the time to burn them himself? I mean, you may think I'm nitpicking, but seriously, put yourself in his shoes. Landry commits murder, has blood all over his monogrammed shirt, and doesn't take the time to make sure he sees it burn with his own eyes? I can't believe Keith would take this completely at face value, although given the circumstances surrounding Keith's retaking this job, maybe it's his way of honoring Lamb. But seriously, I would have found this a bit more interesting and credible if it had occurred to Keith that someone could be framing Landry here rather than that Landry could be so very sloppy. That thought does occur to Landry, but he suspects Mindy, and Keith has to tell him that Mindy's alibi checks out, and ask him where he was at 3 AM on the night in question. Well, I'm sure at 3 AM, he must have been lonely...oh, wait, wrong Rob Thomas. Landry forlornly says that he drove home alone, but brightens as he remembers that he stopped at a convenience store for cigarettes. Keith asks whether he charged them, but Landry admits that he didn't, and, what's more, the clerk didn't even look up from his little TV set. Oh, man, given that they had Kevin Smith on the show, they couldn't have cast Jeff Anderson in that role? I hate to give away my grading secrets, show, but you just missed out on an auto-A-plus. Well, an auto-A, and a bonus for the Berserker dance. Okay, I'm glad I'm on vacation after this, because clearly I need to watch that movie again a lot more than I thought. Landry then perks up once more, and in flashback, we see him walking out of the store packing his smokes when a woman, whose face we never see, asks him for one. He turns and gives her two, saying that he doesn't really smoke. Most people who say that are full of shit, it's true, but given his penchant for six-hour, um, "business" sessions, the idea actually fits in his case. Landry describes the woman as a brunette in her late thirties or early forties. Keith asks about the bloody clothes, and Landry has no answer, so Keith presses the lawyer point again, adding, "You're a smart man. You gotta see I have a case." Landry has no comment.
Lucky Tim uncertainly enters the holding area, and Landry notes, "Tim. Of course. It's always Tim." He sounds equal parts grateful and bitter, which is interesting. Landry tells Tim that he didn't kill Dean Ed, but starts to admit that the case against him is pretty bad. He tells Tim that there are two things he can do: one, Landry found a bug in his phone, so he'd like to know who put it there and how long it's been there. As stated in the last recap, I can't believe both Marses just forgot about this point. Maybe now Keith thinks that Landry was just trying to throw him off the scent, but even before the clothes were found, neither of them ever showed the slightest bit of interest in that point. And the second thing? "I need you to find a needle in a haystack." If this were The Amazing Race, Tim would be getting covered in poo very soon. More's the pity.
At night, Veronica's alone at Mars Investigations when she sees the light from a flashlight and hears someone fumbling at the door. She quickly shuts off her lamp and withdraws into Keith's office. Through the door, Veronica sees Tim go to her desk and start ineptly rifling through it. She turns on the light, startling Tim enough to send him collapsing in a heap. It looks like Veronica idly thinks about going for her taser, but doesn't even bother. Sure, Tim might be a vicious, premeditative, vengeful murderer, but you have to admit that that's a worst-case scenario. Tim gets to his feet and tells Veronica that he's trying to help Landry by retrieving the bug he gave to Keith. Veronica asks what that would do, since the bugs don't have serial numbers or any other distinguishing notations. Tim defensively says that he didn't know that, and asks what Veronica would do. Veronica: "Well, first, I'd break into someone's office, act really weaselly, and then ask their advice." Tim's way ahead of you, hon, especially considering the wig. Tim tells Veronica that he's desperate, because Mindy is framing Landry, but Landry's a great man, and Tim's going to do whatever he can to help him. Again, this is a point that rings a bit false on second watch: Veronica is well aware that the bloom is long off the rose of Tim's hero worship of Landry, so I'm surprised she's not a little wary here. It's possible that she's projecting a little, though. Tim relays the information about Landry buying cigarettes and giving a couple away, and hotly says that he's Landry's only hope, unless Veronica helps him. Veronica can't help smiling at the idea that Tim wants her aid. He admits that he's not good in the field, and says he's more of a thinker: "You might be an asset." I'll admit that that's high praise coming from Tim, but given that it's the arc finale, I could have done without Veronica smiling at his words for fifteen years.
Back from the break, Veronica and Tim are at the convenience store, and some guy who is most certainly not Jeff Anderson, after telling Veronica that the security camera isn't hooked up, denies any recollection of Landry and says that lots of people come through there. Well, sure, but how many of them are featured in the Hearst "Big Men On Campus" faculty calendar? Veronica gets nowhere with the guy, and Tim huffs that their cause is hopeless, since the purported witness could have been anyone. Veronica doesn't even have time to give him a "Buck up, little camper" speech, as two ladies who don't seem out of their element at this time of night enter. Veronica: "Or, she could have been a down-on-her-luck Catholic schoolgirl smuggling cantaloupes in her shirt." Hee. She returns to the clerk and asks if they're filming a Mötley Crüe video, and he informs her that "Strip City" is just across the street, and that 3 AM is the shift change. You know, the owner really shouldn't have cut corners with the surveillance system, because I'd bet this guy has lifted an awful lot of singles from the till. Veronica, with Tim in tow, approaches the women and asks if they've seen Landry. The sassy "blonde" one asks if they're a detective team, and Tim starts to confirm that, but he's so wordy about it that Veronica's able to deftly cut in that she's looking for her dad, who disappeared without paying the rent again. She gets funny with an earnest "I'm sure there's a valid reason," and Sassy has to tell her the reason is that men are scum. She relents and takes another look at the picture, but says that she would have remembered seeing Landry. Veronica asks if maybe they bummed a cigarette off him, prompting the brunette to get all offended and ask if they look like they smoke. Tim, with just the right-timed pause: "Yes." Hee. The brunette says that it's bad for the skin, but that they should try the night: "Tori" is on, and "she smokes like a big old slutty chimney."
Cafeteria. Look, I love Parker, and I've got little enough against Logan at this point in the game ["bumfights" -- Wing Chun], but this really has nothing to do with what this show is supposed to be about. It just doesn't, so, bare bones: Logan joins Parker, she gives him mild shit about skipping Econ class (which I suppose she should, given that he was one absence away from flunking it two episodes ago), they clearly like each other, Wallace sees them together, the end. Didn't you always think the best use of Wallace's character would be as a yenta?
Mindy signs for the life-insurance money from Dean Ed's death. I'd tell her not to spend it all in one place, but it's not like she's going to listen, and given what's to come, it's obviously for the best.
At a marina, Mindy buys a large yacht. Well, they didn't drag it out, at least.
Wallace tells Veronica about the lunch; she doesn't care in the slightest. She does ask him which Gilmore Girl he is, though. Oy, so Stars Hollow is a fictional place in the Marsverse? I don't usually mind the meta that much, but...what show is on after it? At least the clearance people didn't have to work too hard for that one.
At the sheriff's station, Veronica brings in some donuts and tells Sacks, wiether regard to Keith, to leave a jelly if he knows what's good for him. Sacks: "Last time you said that you didn't get any jellies. I almost had a heart attack." I guess now we know how important Lamb's bear claws were to him. While Sacks is preoccupied, Veronica not-so-subtly pulls a folder out of a cabinet. Veronica pops into Keith's office and says she likes it better when they're not civilians. Well, at least Landry will be relieved that Veronica gave up Mars Investigations about as easily as Britney gave up rehab. Keith mildly asks where Veronica got Landry's case file, and I'm with the posters who thought that Keith allowing her all access to the office is pretty ridiculous. I know they're not that used to competence around here, but still. Veronica wants to review Landry's testimony to help confirm his alibi, Keith is skeptical, and then Sacks tells Keith the DA is on the phone for him. Keith gives his permission (like it even matters) but suggests that she get used to the idea that he might have done it. He takes the call, and we learn that Mindy is missing.
Outside the convenience store, Tim asks why Mindy would leave if she isn't guilty. Veronica thinks maybe Mindy set Dean Ed up to be killed by Grieco, a guy who could be bought. Tim is skeptical, since he thinks everyone hated Dean Ed. Veronica: "Not everyone." Hey Veronica: jinx! The strippers approach, and Tim notes the one who's smoking. Veronica sends him in to get his Field PA Merit Badge. I'd worry about Tim being out of his depth with the stripper, but then I remember that he dated Bonnie. Veronica's phone rings, and Keith tells her that Mindy skipped town and shipped her kids to her parents in England. He asks if Veronica will be home soon, but she sees a brunette woman dressed all in black approaching, and, needing to cover all the bases, hangs up on Keith and rushes over to her. Veronica shows her the picture (I know it's a nitpick, but they brought two pictures?) and asks if she's ever seen Landry. The response: "Few months ago. Gave me a cigarette. Why?" Well, because we need an appropriately dramatic revelation with which to send it to commercial.
Sheriff's station. Keith is asking the woman how she remembers someone who gave her a cigarette so long ago, but the woman tells him that Landry reminded her of her boyfriend who had just dumped her: "What kind of loser breaks up with a girl two weeks before Christmas?" Perhaps a non-Gentile one? She goes on to say that she's pretty sure it was around 3:30, since she often goes to that store soon after her shift ends. Keith still looks skeptical, and the woman gets defensive, saying that she just came in because she was told the guy was in trouble. Keith considers that...
...and then we cut to Landry getting out of his cell and thanking Veronica and Tim. They break the news that Mindy took her insurance money and bailed, and that they think there's a chance she was working with Richard Grieco. You'd think that, with Landry's professional acumen, he'd know better than to react with a facial expression that so clearly translates to "I'm going to kill her." Tim uncomfortably starts to say that they could keep digging, but Landry recovers and affably says that they've done enough, thanks them again, and bails. When he's gone, Veronica speculates that her dad isn't going to leave it at that, and Tim agrees by way of saying that they have to find the recordings of the calls. He opines that Richard Grieco was probably the one who planted the bug in Landry's phone, and Veronica notes that Grieco's keys are still in evidence at the sheriff's station. Tim starts to ask if there's any way they could get them, and Veronica pooh-poohingly parrots him. Yes, let's make fun of him for wondering if Veronica might have any ethical issues with abusing her dad's day-old new position. How endearingly quaint of him! Veronica picks up a phone, and "surreptitiously" snags the keys to the evidence room. Wacky music plays, probably in celebration of Veronica's hundredth misdemeanor committed in this room alone. I'm only surprised streamers and confetti didn't drop from the ceiling.
Cut to Veronica and Tim in Grieco's apartment. After giving Tim shit for wearing latex gloves to handle the computer ("Use your sleeve! It's less creepy!"), Veronica asks where the recordings might be hidden. On cue, she finds a shelf full of CDs...
...and then she and Tim are going through them as she remarks, "I didn't know Night Ranger had this many albums!" And I'd appreciate it if you'd keep that information to yourself. Tim laughs, and then goes to check the DVDs. Veronica jokingly asks if he has A Bug's Life. Tim, down with the theme, says no, but -- he opens a case to reveal a CD full of recordings -- "he does have Taps." You have to admit Veronica set him up for that one. Just as well, because otherwise, we might have been here a while.
Tim finds the Mindy/Landry conversation and plays it. Both parties are pretty agitated, with Mindy saying that she won't let Dean Ed take everything, and Landry worried for her safety and promising that he'll "take care of it." In other words: fodder for suspicion of both of them. Veronica then clicks on another call from earlier that day: it's from a dude at Pepperdine calling about Tim, who applied for a job there. Tim smiles big when Landry calls him loyal and hardworking. However, Landry then says that Tim is a linear thinker with no imagination, and for Pepperdine, he wouldn't be the strongest choice. Well, Tim, if only Landry knew you fake-accused Veronica of cheating to send her on an intricate journey that resulted in her discovering you're a cuckolding scumbag, he would have been more impressed with your imagination. Can't imagine why you didn't tell him! Veronica heavily starts to console Tim, but he huskily says that it doesn't matter. I know I said it in the recaplet, but James Jordan rocked the socks off this episode.
Keith is yelling at someone on the phone for no reason pertinent to the episode that I can see. (In other words: filler.) Sacks appears to tell Keith that he's in the process of checking on the airports, and then Veronica comes in and hands Keith a copy of the recording, saying that it really sounds like Mindy did it, and that she thinks Landry's innocent. Keith's all, "That's great, but he skipped town." Veronica's face: "This can't be good." You said a mouthful, Veronica's face.
Mindy's asleep in her bed below deck when she hears a noise. She heads upstairs and finds Landry at the wheel. It's odd: from Landry's position and the fact that Mindy woke up, it seems like he's driving, but from the lights on both sides, it looks like they're in a harbor somewhere. Landry: "So you finally got that boat you always wanted." It's just too bad that the S.S. Irony isn't going to make it past its maiden voyage.
Veronica's shelving books in the school library with her iPod on as VMVO says that she's in Hour 3 of listening to Landry's calls in an effort to discover evidence of his conspiracy with Mindy, and to find out where he and Mindy might have gone. Wow, Veronica didn't read Landry's expression earlier at all. Anyway, she comes across Landry and Mindy agreeing that a getaway at "Papa's Cabin" would be nice. Veronica calls Tim, who's not aware of any cabin in Landry's family, but suggests that they meet at Landry's house to poke around; Tim's still got his key. Nice little mention, there. I'm surprised, though, that straight-A-for-all-eternity Veronica didn't get the Hemingway reference -- I don't think the "Papa" part is that obscure. Also, do any men actually refer to their fathers as "papa"? Isn't that the domain of children and fictional bears? Veronica starts packing up her stuff as Parker enters and awkwardly starts to tell her that she and Logan are hanging out. Veronica gets some eternal points with me by being very nice, very sincere, and very much not having time for this shit. I mean, who does? After Veronica's gone, Parker looks glum. Honey, I don't blame you. This storyline sucks.
Logan joins Parker in the cafeteria, but she tells him that having a friend like Veronica is important to her, and that she's worried. Logan gets the message and leaves.
Veronica is sitting on Landry's leather couch, looking through a photo album at a picture of what VMVO calls Landry's "cuddly old grandpa." He may be cuddly, Veronica, but given his grandson's proclivities, I hope you remembered to Febreze the couch before you sat down. Tim joins her with a picture of Landry and Mindy together at what looks like an outdoor bar, and a cell phone he found in the office trash. Veronica asks what Landry was doing with a disposable cell phone, and then tells Tim to get a pen and paper. She presses redial on the menu, and when some guy answers, she pretends to be a recording from a radio station, telling the guy he may have just won a new iPod, and he should press the pound key to claim his prize. Dude, unless it comes with a free service contract as well, I'd advise you to hang up the phone. There's a funny moment as the guy apparently is figuring out which is the pound key. I hope he didn't have to look it up on the internet, because to me that somehow has "end of days" written all over it. When the guy finally hits the button, Veronica puts him on hold and, after some unnecessary babbling from Tim, Veronica picks the call back up, pretends to be from the radio station, and gets the guy's name and address. Tim smiles in dorky appreciation...
...and then Tim and Veronica are knocking on the guy's door. When the teenaged kid answers, Veronica introduces herself as "Crockett," and says that Tim is "Mr. Tubbs." How come she never tries Hunter and McCall? Poor Stepfanie Kramer gets no respect. They say that they're conducting an investigation, and Veronica asks how he knows Landry. The kid confesses that it's from the juvie board. Wow, I'm impressed that the writers dug that up, because this is the third time I've seen the episode, and I honestly forgot until now that that plot point was covered in the season premiere. Anyway, the kid goes on to say that he and some of his buddies stole some cough syrup from a drugstore, but before he can get any further, his mother comes barking to the door, and demanding to know what's going on...and it's the woman from the parking lot who claimed to have bummed the cigarette from Landry. The woman looks busted, and Veronica and Tim amusingly turn to each other with satisfied looks on their faces. I say give them a spinoff, as long as you can wait twenty-five years to life.
Sheriff's station. Keith, Veronica, and Tim are pedeconferencing as Keith tells them that the kid from the last scene was one strike away from being put in foster care, and that his mother claimed that Landry called and threatened to take her kid off probation unless she showed up that night at the convenience store and lied about having bummed the cigarette off Landry on December 10th. I can't really believe that both Veronica and Keith miss the obvious point here, but I'm going to recap it later, so I'll skip it. Veronica brings up the Papa's Cabin thing, and Tim hands Keith the pictures they were looking at in Landry's album. Tim tells Keith that Landry called his grandfather "Papa," which, okay, that makes more sense at least, and Veronica and Tim go on for a while, trying to figure out where the picture might have been taken based on the trees and the partially-visible license plate. They hilariously try to one-up each other with their hopelessly specialized knowledge, but it still goes on too long, so I say good for Keith in more than one way when he speculates that the "Papa" could be Ernest Hemingway. Keith Zowies the name and tells them that the Papa's Cabin Retreat is in Cabo San Lucas, and was a beloved spot for Hemingway. Keith justifiably gives the two punk-ass whippersnappers a cute smirk. Veronica, for her part, makes a note to buy another spiral notebook to continue her "Things I'm Never Going To Hear The End Of" list.
Papa's Cabin. Keith, in full traveling uniform, pulls up, walks onto the beach, and has a confab with the local law. The jefe tells Keith that the manager gave them a positive ID on Landry. He says some other stuff too, but it's garbled and also irrelevant given that Mindy's boat is anchored offshore.
Keith takes a police boat out. I know they're trying to create tension, but I'm seeing a fair amount of filler in this episode, and I'm not just talking about Parker and Logan. Keith and the local law eventually make it downstairs and discover that there's been quite the boozing going on, which I have to say seems like it should be required at a resort named after old Ernie. Maybe Lindsay Lohan can relocate down there now that the Marmont is finally rid of her. Anyway, Landry, a cut over one of his eyes, opens the door to the bedroom, and hazily tells Keith that he didn't kill Dean Ed -- it was Mindy, and she set Landr up. One of the stronger points of this arc is how Landry and Mindy each came to suspect the other. It took them a long time to get past the "he/she would never do that" thinking, but once they realized all the evidence was mounting and each knew that he/she didn't do it him/herself, what other logical thought could they have? It's pretty diabolical. After Landry admits that he's the one who swapped Dean Ed's keyboard for Richard Grieco's in an attempt to throw suspicion Grieco's way, Keith asks where Mindy is, and Landry isn't letting the presence of the law separate him from his booze. Of course, they might be far enough out that they're in international waters, in which case Landry might as well down the rest of the booze and go challenge another boat to a drag race. Anything goes, right? Landry, voice breaking, says that it was an accident, and that he just wanted to find out how Mindy could turn on him like that. They fought, he hit her, and she fell into the dark, dark water. He again swears that it was an accident as he completely breaks down. Wow, that was an intense scene. I'd better lighten things up with a joke. What kind of wood doesn't float? Oh, you know that one?
Mindy's lifeless body is found on the beach.
Logan catches Veronica at school. They engage in a little reasonably friendly banter, and then Logan asks her permission to ask Parker out. Tim calls to Veronica, who says she's coming, and then she tells Logan that it's fine, and thanks him for asking. Eh. It's not like Logan needs Veronica's permission, but clearly, he's only asking her because it's the only way Parker will see him again, so he gets no points for this. And Veronica seems to be okay about it, but still, I think this kind of sucks. I mean, if she says no, she looks weak and/or bitchy. But she doesn't know how it's going to feel when she actually sees Logan and Parker together, and...again, they don't need her permission, but now Logan gets to play the "Well, you SAID you were okay with it" card, and that's just stupid and annoying. Which, again, is how I feel about this whole plotline, so: moving on.
Veronica's clearly thinking a little about what just happened as she goes in to see Tim, who tells her that he's taking over Landry's classes until the school can find a replacement. He tells her it's a big job, and awkwardly and endearingly smiles as he says that since she's the star pupil, he could really use her help as his TA. Many posters pointed out that this would never happen, and I agree, but given that it's going to be irrelevant even faster than Antonella Barba, let's just say that Veronica accepts. Tim's psyched, and smilingly asks if she can pick up his dry cleaning. Veronica gives a fake laugh that says, "You get one of those. One."
Veronica's handing out some papers as Tim tells the class that he'll be teaching them for the moment. Before he can get to that, though, a student asks if they can discuss the Landry case. Tim says that's a little awkward for him, but accedes. He takes off his jacket; his subtle grandstanding here is a nice touch. He says that Landry killed Dean Ed in a crime of passion. It's a good thing the class knows some particulars here, Tim, because the way you describe it makes it sound like a slightly different scenario. Tim gives the official account of the murder, and lectures about opportunity, saying that the Dean was drunk and upset on the night of the murder. Veronica watches this with an unhappy, pensive look on her face. Tim goes on: the clothes Landry thought he incinerated got stuck in a chute, and everything unraveled. He adds that the more Landry had to improvise, the sloppier his work became. Ah, now we're up to the blackmail point, and Veronica figures out what I was referencing earlier: Landry was in jail when the phone call was presumably made. Glaring oversight on not just the Marses' part, but Tim's as well, no? I mean, on further consideration, I suppose I can forgive the Marses for initially overlooking that point, since they were so caught up in the Mindy/Landry deal, but Tim, planning this, should have realized the flaw and dismissed it as unacceptably risky. Also, a lot of people were confused as to why Tim would have bothered blackmailing the woman at all when the case against Landry was pretty strong already. That's a good question, especially given this: what would have happened if they actually found the real witness? Sure, Tim was going for the icing on the cake, but it was overly greedy, as he's finding out right now. Tim, getting a little agitated, makes the best save he can by suggesting that maybe Landry threatened the fake witness in anticipation of his arrest, but presuming that Veronica could get hold of the phone records and place the time of the call after Landry was arrested, that's not going to fly. And there's really no turning back when Tim tells the class that Landry knew Mindy had sent her children away, because Veronica never told Tim that. She reaches for her phone, takes off the back, and discovers a bug, much like the one in Landry's phone. Of course, it's insane to think that Tim was going to leave it there for Veronica eventually to find, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he hadn't had the opportunity to retrieve it yet.
Veronica takes a long moment to gather her thoughts, and then raises her hand -- the one holding the bug. I'm not sure Tim sees it, but either way, his voice is very tight and his face dead as he calls on her again. My problems with certain plot points aside, this scene was very subtly acted and well done. Veronica brings up the point about Tim knowing that the kids were in England, and then says that whoever bugged Landry's phone knew about the Dean's fight with Landry and Mindy, that the Dean was drunk in his office, and -- most importantly -- that Landry had shot down Tim's chance for a teaching job at Pepperdine. The students ooh and aah, but they're not getting the big picture yet. This isn't Simon and Ryan fighting on the way to the bedroom, kids. Veronica gets to her feet, and after starting to approach Tim, she tells him that he bugged both her phone and Landry's, and that he had access to Landry's clothes: "You murdered Dean O'Dell to destroy Professor Landry! Because he used you, then betrayed you! And when he said he had an alibi, you faked it, so you'd be sure he'd go down." Tim is responding to Veronica's triumph by holding himself like a Titanic passenger in the final minutes. Don't ever let go, Tim! Veronica hisses, "Bet he'll change his mind about you not being that smart." Everyone looks around, like, "Does this mean we get out early again?" Not really, but Tim bows his head in defeat, while Veronica looks like she could spit nails at the guy who killed her buddy Dean Ed. She's even too mad to point out that she "Foyled" his evil plan. Just as well -- you should never pun angry.
Cut to a TV screen showing a reporter telling us that Tim confessed to Dean Ed's murder. At home, Veronica watches as VMVO says that the downside of justice is that it doesn't change anything. Keith arrives, and Veronica congratulates him on his work and on being sheriff. Keith says that's true at least until the special election, so since he's running and is obviously going to win, I guess they're breaking down the Mars Investigations set for good. Veronica and Keith exchange a little light banter about the meat and potatoes they're having, and I just hope she didn't slice the once-again-absent Backup up for dinner. In California these days, there's reason to worry. Keith tells Veronica that Landry will be tried for manslaughter, since he killed Mindy: "He confessed too." I hope they waited for the formal confession until Landry was sober, even though it certainly looked like that was going to take quite some time. Another murder story comes on, and Keith tells Veronica to turn it off, since he doesn't want her exposed to all that crime and violence: "It's gonna warp your mind." Dude, you're the one who told her that Woody Goodman's password was "Mr. GoodWood." No amount of treatment will un-warp a mind after that. I wonder, though, if Keith might be telling her something he used to say when he was sheriff the first time, before Veronica was Veronica Mars, you know? That would be kind of cute. But once Veronica's sat glumly in silence for a few moments, Keith's like, "Who am I kidding?," and turns it back on. The Marses grin at each other as we fade out. Aw, a moment of stillness. No wonder people on the boards said it felt like a series finale!
I have some mixed feelings about this one. I'll say up front that I enjoyed it more on repeated viewings. Couple things: a lot of people claimed that they knew Tim was the murderer -- that it was obvious all along. I don't really buy that. I can believe, out of the pool of viable suspects -- fairly small given that they had to be, you know, on the show -- that plenty of people had Tim as their frontrunner, but that's a long way from knowing, or even having good reason for suspicion. I really liked the way Tim took advantage of the fact that Mindy and Landry each had motive to kill Dean Ed, and that that fact aroused mutual suspicion in them. And even though Tim got caught, he caused lasting damage beyond Dean Ed: Mindy's dead, and Landry's going to jail a broken man. That's dark stuff. But as I alluded to a couple times, this episode dragged in a lot of spots. There was plenty of stuff that wasn't necessary to see on-screen, stuff that wouldn't have been in the final cut if the episode had more going on, and at the end of an arc, that's pretty unfortunate. Also, I really, really don't see what the secondary characters have to do with the show anymore. None of them had any significant involvement in the arc mystery, and besides Mac in "Show Me The Monkey," none of them had any particular role to play in the MotWs either. I liked most of the MotWs quite a bit, and the two-parter was especially good, but that was all Veronica and Keith. I mean, when all you can do with four of your characters is send them on a goofy scavenger hunt, you're completely separating them from what's supposed to be the integral noir element of the show. I'm not saying everyone has to be all dark, all the time, but most of the recurring characters were noir-free the whole time. Contrast that with the first arc, where everyone had a key role to play somewhere along the line, and most of them were active participants in the finale. I mean, I understand that the ultimate point of the Logan/Parker thing is to reveal some truths about Veronica's character, but...this is Duncan and Meg redux, masked by the fact that Logan is so much more popular a character than Duncan was. And let's not even get into the fact that Wallace could be effectively played by a sock puppet these days, as long as it learned to shoot a free throw or two. I liked Veronica in this set of episodes, I liked the main mystery, and I liked that some real detective work was done. But with the possible exception of Bronson, it doesn't feel like there are any wild cards remaining even among the tertiary cast. Combine that with the loss of the mystery arcs, and I just wonder what kind of show we're going to have from here on out. But I won't have to worry about that for several weeks, so I think I'll leave it at that. See you in May for the five stand-alones!