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| Illustration by Melissa Gaggiano |
Have you ever watched the awesome, but short lived television series
Veronica Mars? If you have then you will know what I am rambling on about in
this essay. If not, then you will be entirely lost, and will want to watch the
series to work out what I am going on about.
During season three of Veronica
Mars, quite a few people were relieved to see Veronica Mars dating a good boy
like Stosh ‘Piz’ Piznarski. Particularly after the many heart aches caused by
on again, off again boyfriend, Logan Echolls. Others, like me, feel that when
it comes to Logan it’s a case of better the devil you know.
If I ever wanted confirmation
that Piz was all wrong for Veronica, then I would look no further than his
reaction to the unauthorised sex tape of Veronica and him. Or I should say his
non-reaction. Upon learning that someone had infiltrated his dorm room with spy
equipment, and thereby recording an intimate moment between Piz and Veronica,
he is surprisingly calm about the situation. He doesn’t appear embarrassed, nor
is he angry. I cannot help but feel, even if he’s not concerned about his own
personal exposure, he should at least feel so for the sake of his girlfriend,
who was ultimately the target of this attack.
Veronica’s Dad, Keith, was never entirely
comfortable with Veronica dating Logan. And when she began dating Piz, Keith happily
gave his thumbs-up to this set up. As far as he was concerned Logan had no
future and Piz and in computer game terms he was the new and improved beta. Translation Piz is not a trouble maker. But
here is the funny thing. Keith thinks very little of Logan yet they are mirror
images of each other. Certainly he doesn’t
have Logan’s anger management issues. However when it comes to the safety of
people he cares about, he has taken the law into his own hands.
In the other established caveman definition
of a beta, Piz is most definitely that. Put these two up against each other in
a fight and Logan would come out on top. The first episode we meet Piz he
conveys to Veronica that he is a “lover, not a fighter”, in what is an attempt
to prove to her that he more evolved than his fellow gender. Little does he
know about our sweet Veronica is that she has walked darker roads in the past
few years. And while she doesn’t approve
violence per se, she has been desensitised to it. She is no wall flower and subconsciously
appreciates a bit of retribution in the form of fisticuffs. Veronica is not
perfect, but so she is a product of the Neptune environment, where corruption
reigns supreme. In her world the law is backward and insecure, so for order to
be maintained some degree of vigilantism is a necessary evil.
Is Logan wrong for Veronica? Of
course he is, but he is ‘oh so wrong’ in the way that it is ‘oh so right’. What
I am trying to say is that Logan is not a perfect person. His imperfections are
visible like ripples on the water. He has done some pretty stupid things, and
has some habits Veronica would prefer to discourage, but everything you need to
know about Logan is laid out on the surface if you are prepared to take a look.
The good thing about Logan is that he is
passionate about the people he cares for. In point, even when he and Veronica
have broken up [which has happened quite a few times] he has repeatedly
defended her. And as much as Veronica likes to point out his faults, Logan
knows her well enough to turn the table and is able to bring her down to earth
when she is too high handed. Basically
Logan and Veronica ground each other.
Whereas Piz… Well what can be
said about Piz? He is loveable, has a sense of humour, easy going and for the
most part does appear dependable. You would not find Piz heading off for a wild
night of debauchery in Tijuana, but neither will you find him having the
gumption to defend his girlfriend’s
honour. Piz is a nice boy, but he hasn’t got what it takes to be Veronica’s
equal, which is what Logan is.
