The Lazuli Detective

For Veronica Mars content & other mysteries

[thelazulidetective]

So what’s up with the “composer” Valarie Baisch? I said that in quotation marks because Valarie Baisch isn’t real and is just ai, but songs listed as composed by them are apparently being added to famous artists discography on services like Spotify and I’m unsure if it’s with their consent or not. Kristen Bell is currently one of them and she has publicly announced dislike for ai so it’s surprising she has these songs on her Spotify and YouTube Music, but not Apple Music. You can verify this without paying for subscriptions or listening to whole songs btw if you want to check my facts and don’t want to support this (because why would anyone support it?)

Obviously I don’t want Kristen Bell to be using ai, but it would be just a tad bit better if she is than if her label is doing this without her consent. I have no idea though what is happening though?

And what really confused me is that the songs are copyrighted to Valarie Baisch, and last I checked ai content literally can’t be copyrighted. If you want to copyright content it has to be mostly human made, and any part of a work that is clearly not made by a human, in this case ai, can’t be copyrighted. (Ex: a painting that is mostly made by a person, if say one part was generated like a tree in the background—that tree can’t be copyrighted). And it’s not like music posted is being modified enough by a hundred to be human… like to my knowledge of the current state of copyright law they can’t even be copyrighted? And valarie baish isn’t even hidden ai, like it’s in the name. How is it being uploaded to artists like Kristen Bell? Is she supporting them? Idk? And how are the songs being protected by copyright? Something feels hella fishy?

I don’t even care too much about the celebrity discourse of it all, I just worry about the logistics of if Kristen Bell is aware/consenting to it?

[vmheadquarters]

When is Logan's birthday?

Yay! A help desk ask! Librarians to the rescue. 

Okay, so the correct answer to this is: no one knows for sure. There is no official canon birthday for Logan (or, actually for any of the characters.) The show provides several tantalizing hints…

(source: @fponthedl‘ s post)

…but nothing conclusive. In canon, anyway. 

BUT, you’ve got four fic writers for librarians, so we’ve definitely taken a stab at putting the various clues together to approximate birthdays for major characters. Here is our working list of character birthdays, with a special hat tip to marsinvestigations.net and @susanmichelin, and assists by @cheshirecatstrut and @mysilverylining. In many cases, we’re using the actor’s birthday where it doesn’t contradict with what we know about the character. 

Keith Mars 12/23/1959

Aaron Echolls 9/24/1959

Lianne Reynolds Mars 6/18/1962 (according to fake death certificate that Veronica makes during the television show) HOWEVER according to The Thousand Dollar Tan Line her birthday is 3/23/1962. Since her birthday is specifically mentioned in the book, we lean toward 3/23/1962 as the “correct” date.

Don Lamb 6/23/1962 (Edit: Mars Investigations and myspace said that Don Lamb was born June 23, 1972 to July 22, 1972 not 1962 via a helpful anon)

Lynn Lester Echolls 1/17/1963

Alicia Fennel (a/k/a  Cherie Parker Saunders) 3/9/1968

Trina Echolls 5/2/1980 (her birth happens some time before the 8th since that is when the prom baby enters foster care) so… since May 3rd is the only Saturday before the 8th in 1980, we’ll say that prom night was then and that Trina was born the day before and left on Principal Moorehead’s doorstep, yes?

Leo D’Amato 6/14/1983 this is the date on the PryingEyez website; HOWEVER this directly contradicts Veronica saying that Leo is 29 months older than she is AND Leo himself says that his astrological sign is a Leo so there is NO WAY to make those two facts work together? RETCON time! We’ll say Leo was joking about his sign (eye roll) and that Veronica was slightly off in her count? His birthday would then be 6/14/1985 - yes? no?  (Later note: you have to be 20 by the time of your written exam (in Orange County, CA) so yeah Leo is going to have to be born in 1983 and be FOUR YEARS older than Veronica.)

BEFORE WE PROCEED: The cutoff date for kindergarten in California is September 1st so everybody in the graduating class of 2006 should have been born between Sept 1, 1987 and August 31, 1988.

Lilly Kane 2/3/1987 (Date of Death: 10/3/2003)Lilly definitely had to be born before October 3rd in order to be 16 when she was killed plus we had to account for time for Celeste to get pregnant and give birth to Duncan the following year (see his birthday for that mistake) so using the day of Amanda Seyfried’s birth, Lilly is now 2/3/1987. This would mean that she started school an entire year before everyone else and makes her graduating class 2005).

Eli “Weevil” Navarro 4/18/1987

This date is completely fictional - according to the show he is 17 when Credit Where Credit is Due airs on September 28, 2004 and he turns 18 by the time Hot Dogs airs on April 19, 2005- so that makes his birth year 1987 and I picked the day before Hot Dogs airs to celebrate Eli’s birth. This allows that he started school a year before everyone; however, because of the jokes about him repeating a grade, this provides for him failing ONCE and being left back a grade. 

Veronica Mars 8/18/1987While her birthday would allow her to be in Lilly’s graduating class, @cheshirecatstrut and @susanmichelinhave decided that Veronica was “redshirted” - a practice wherein you hold back your child and have them start kindergarten at age 6 instead of 5. This is to give them an academic advantage. We think Veronica was redshirted because her birthday was so close to the cutoff and because she was small for her age. Do with it what you will.

Stosh “Piz” Piznarski 9/21/1987The date of 9/21 is based on the fake ID Veronica makes him on the show; however his MySpace page puts his birthday on 10/8/87. Since, the 9/21 is from the show itself, we have chosen to go with this date.

Cindy “Mac” Mackenzie 12/16/1987

Madison Sinclair 12/17/1987

Wallace Fennel 12/27/1987This date is from the fake ID that Veronica makes Wallace. His MySpace has his birthday as 12/21/1987. Again however since the 27th is on the show, we’re sticking with that one.

Parker Lee 1/27/1988We don’t know what to tell you? This date was mentioned on the show, but on her MySpace it was the 28th and then on the show it uses May 1988 in a different episode? Since January was used twice in different sources, I’m just… going to lie down because I have a headache.

Duncan Kane 2/13/1988The missing persons website on the TV show has his birth in 1987; however the person who did this admits they made a mistake and picked a random date. We’ve changed it to 1988 since it has been confirmed numerous times that he and Lilly were NOT twins and that she was older than him.Logan Echolls 3/30/1988March works with Logan’s sarcastic “is this party nine months early or three months late” and “wow you got a vowel right” comments. Plus the month and day match Jason Dohring’s birthday so there you go.

Richard “Dick” Casablancas, Jr. 4/15/1988

[thelazulidetective]

Hot takes about Veronica Mars s1-3:

1. Jake Kane should have been Veronica’s biological father, but the big twist should have been that Lilly was also Liane’s daughter.

2. Logan should have been the one the kill his father or to kill Cassidy (of course one or the other).

2.5 Veronica does kill Cassidy but Logan takes the blame for it

3. Cassidy should have killed Keith (I love Kieth, don’t get me wrong, but that would have been an incredible gut punching scene if committed too).

4. Madison Sinclaire needed a larger role, maybe should have been a character at Hearst, especially if Logan sleeps with here, which should have been an arc more explored I general. But also her and Mac and her and Dick.

4.5 Logan should not have had a strange fling with Madison, that was a strange thing to write in the narrative. I struggled believing it.

5. There should have been more discussion about Cassidy’s actions in season 3, like they discussed Aaron’s in season 2. Especially regarding Mac’s and Dick’s trauma about Cassidy

6. Piz should has been a more active character if he was going to be a love interest for Veronica

7. Duncan should have been like mentioned more than twice…

8. Wallace and Jackie should have been end game, or she should has actually been in Paris. He ending was random and unnecessary.

9. S3 should have started with Big Dick coming back saying he is turning himself in, and the season should have started with Dick’s mental breakdown

10. Parker and Piz was actually cute

11. The serial rape plot line could have been longer and having women fake a rape really bad in idea even for a red herring. It could have been very slow and nuanced arc if taken slower. It could have been going at the same time as the Dean’s murder, but that arc felt unnecessary.

12. If not killed off as seen in my notes above, Keith deserved a love interest if he lived. The woman who was not in love with her husband and was planning a divorce was a cute plot line, but so was Alicia and Keith.

[thelazulidetective]

Veronica Mars theory (more of fanfic idea)

you know what... I agree there is no body? It makes no sense? Maybe Logan isn't dead?

The question that follows that is if or would he fake his death? I don't know? Maybe if it wasn't his wedding day? Maybe if he had a better goodbye before? Maybe if the Penn clearly hadn't left the bomb in the car? But I still am not convinced Logan is dead? And I'm not saying in a denial sort of way, just in the simple narrative question of what is the point? First rule of writing is your choices mean something? If you kill of a main character it should mean something for the narrative and for the other characters? If the narrative has been convincing the audience to root for happy ending for the two main characters, why kill one off? Why prevent that? Why strip away the arcs of the two characters of that season? Why? But I also didn't really feel like the arc was completed before that anyways. And if I am so honest didn't it feel like Veronica and Logan finally started. Like we have been rooting them to start for the entire show except maybe the first half of season 1 (I was rooting for Eli then), but this further cements my questions about the narrative. Especially in a mystery narrative where death means something. It's never a one dimensional act. People mentioned how Logan clearly has a lot of loose ends untied with his career, a lot of questions left unanswered, but maybe that's the redherring. And Pen also felt like a red herring? Like even when it was proven to be him, I felt unconvinced, I felt that strange feeling like I as watching that first scene in s1 ep 8 when Veronica speaks to Abel Kootz. A man desperately playing the part of a mad man, trying to prove he is a mad man. And the actor who plays Pen is good, it didn't feel like (to me at least) the failure of his his actor. It felt more like the characters trusted their wins too soon. So ho would have experience with bombs? Manipulation? Have a strong enough grudge against Logan, Veronica, even the Casablancas to fuck things over? Who would plant a bomb so close to the beach where Logan, Dick, and Veronica are? Who has a grudge against Neptune? Who was overlooked but existence makes Big Dick look all the more incriminating? Whose narrative felt dropped in season 3? Despite it feeling like it should have been about the fallout? I am talking about Cassidy Casablancas. Who could have faked his death too? Who could have been the ultimate evil mastermind and manipulated Pen, who took Logan, who made sure the arrows pointed at his dad so even after prison, that guy could get what was coming? This is likely NOT at all the angle the writers were going for? But wouldn't this make a great fic? But a part of me wants to think they had to write this out because of Tina Majorino's scheduling conflicts, and honestly her valid choice to deny the role because it was too small to justify. Knowing the show, she would have been written in just to make the story possible, but not enough to actually explore Mac's character. Because Rob Thomas only acknowledges the existence of one female character: Veronica. And the only possible way to bring Cassidy back as the big bad (which let's admit fans would like) would require more Mac. A My biggest gripe about season 4, was there was not nearly enough Mac, Logan, or Weevil.

[thelazulidetective]

I made a veronica mars blog... the thoughts have possessed me greatly....

[sistemshock]

I do not care for Rob Thomas

[thelazuliwitch]

Questions I have about season 4 Veronica Mars (and movie)

If you plan on watching the show, warning spoilers!!!!

1. If Piz and Veronica were dating for 9 years why are they only then meeting his parents in the movie?

2. Veronica mentions dating someone in Columbia, but like wasn’t she dating Piz like established? Did they have break ups?

3. Why wasn’t more of public accuse Big Dick of being behind the expansions when his son, Cassidy, was a known murderer using bombs????

4. Why was the story following more of romance arc thing with Leo? Why? I thought Rob Thomas said in an interview he didn’t want soap? Where it’s arguably less soap to just be about her and Logan. Why did the writers fee the need to prove she loved Logan by her not cheating on him? Like what? That doesn’t prove anything? And they already proved she loved him, I would have much rather seen them together, working together?

5. Movie questions: Why the military? Lowkey it would be so much more fun if Logan ended up in the FBI looking for Veronica in the nine year separation (if they wanted that I guess) and him not finding her because she became a lawyer instead. Or why is he will Carrie Bishop at all? Like why someone he met in high-school? Why is he dating a celebrity at all? Also why are Dick and Gina friends? That feels like a strange relationship considering who her dad is and who his brother is? Even if they are not the sharpest of knives that is still odd? But yeah back to Logan, wouldn’t it be so much cooler if he was like now in the FBI and on a case that he can’t solve and he calls the bets person he knows because he is worried people will die? Like that’s interesting.

6. Why is Celeste Kane still in Neptune at all after her divorce? That’s bizarre…

7. where is Mack in season 4? Where?

8. Why is Veronica not using her lawyer skills as a PI? Imagine if she just became a lawyer instead Neptune instead? Like that would be interesting.

9. What if Veronica, still with law degree, still was in the FBI and now is high up there and then what forces her to reunite with Logan is actually him being transferred from military to FBI because his skills are suited for something and he wants a change or something yada yada, and boom they are forced to be working in the same case.

10. Why did Weevil’s arc just go away? Why did Logan’s? And Veronica’s? Why is Wallace a teacher, able to get a student’s personal file? Like he wanted to be a mechanical engineer, why isn’t he? Why is Veronica just at Mars PI? Why is Weevil still in a gang? Why are the writers trying to bring everyone back to their origins rather than expand the narrative? Somehow the exception is Logan, but his ending is still, if not the most, unsatisfying?

11. Unless he faked his death, or someone faked his death and kidnapped him, and Veronica is going to get him back? Fanfic idea?

12. Why was no friendship or relationship end happily at the end of s4, with the exception of Keith and Veronica and Veronica and Wallace, and really sad because there is a coming to age aspect to this story, and like shouldn’t there be more rhetoric about leaving the nest?

13. You know actually Dick Casablancas deserved more? I don’t like him that much, but he should have had more moments to process that shitstorm his life is? The story ends with his father getting beheaded for the same crimes his brother committed, homocide via explosives? Like what? And now technically post movie and season 4, four of his friends are dead. Logan, Gina, Carrie, Susan. And his dad, and his brother. Plus two friends arrested: Mercer and Cob. I think Cob was his friend. But like…. What?