I think it's really interesting that you've chosen to do this story in first person. I always really liked the Veronica voiceovers in the show- it often gave a great deal of insight into her motivations and personal triggers (as well as often being funny), so I appreciate how this story is showing her thought process. I am surprised by how much she seems to have mellowed- although she always was easier on Keith than anyone else, this new leniency for Logan is a bit unusual. I'll be honest, I like my Veronica at least a bit self-involved and judgmental. Her paranoia and self-reliance are such crucial elements of her character- I can totally buy her as giving into introspection on occasion, I think we saw plenty of evidence for that. But she always seemed to get over it pretty quickly and compensate for her weakness by being extra action!girl for a while.
I guess we're supposed to be attributing a lot of that to her freak-out from chapter one. I think it's totally reasonable that Veronica could have had a bit of a meltdown, realizing just what her actions have cost her father. But I'm not sure if I think the Gory Sorokin business was quite at this level yet. Yes, his family is tied to the Russian Mob. And no doubt he's very angry that Logan beat him up. I can even see him trying to get even with Logan by intimidating him. But I don't know if it was a reasonable reaction for Logan to feel like he had to violate his parole and flee the state. It's one thing for a mobster to kill or maim one of his own people to intimidate the others- but having a celebrity bumped off, especially right after the very public fight between Gory and Logan? Obviously it's important as a plot device, you want Logan with them to explore the dynamics of the characters, but I wonder if they aren't all overreacting on that front. If Gory filed an official complaint, he's certainly not done himself any favors for if he's intending to really hurt Logan (or Veronica). Gory is a sociopath, yes. But I don't know if that translates to being able to get the whole mob to do his bidding, and they've dealt with crazy murderous individuals after them before.
I guess I'm just not sure why any of them decided to run. Keith destroyed that evidence. That was bad, and a felony- but I'm not sure Wallace was right about other people being able to testify about what was on the DVR. If I remember correctly, Keith and a neighbor were the only ones who saw it, and there was no clear view of Veronica's face. That would be pretty weak evidence- not to mention the fact that the Kanes are unlikely to press that issue- Veronica has a pretty good hold over them these days, I doubt they would have had to actually blackmail anyone explicitly. Even if Keith was convicted, I would be skeptical about Veronica getting in any trouble. Obviously, they can't do a thing about Vinnie deciding to go after Keith for tampering with evidence, but it seems a bit premature for them to be taking off, I guess. Especially with Logan. Running just looks really bad.
Then again, it is a really interesting premise for a story. They've created so many more problems for themselves by going, it's going to be hell getting them to a point where they can go back- unless you never intend for them to go back, and I'm not sure how to feel about that. Statue of limitations on obstruction of justice, maybe? Logan's probation issue is probably muddling everything now.
I appreciate how you describe the state of their relationship by the way they're having sex. It's a great way to reveal things without having them actually have conversations about it, which wouldn't be nearly as realistic. The flashbacks, where it was all tentative and unsure and trustbuilding- which was of course wrecked by the pool burning made a nice foil for the desperate, clinging, we're totally screwed and just need to affirm this connection touching in the bathroom. On one hand, they're more familiar with each other, they know how to touch and what to do, on the other hand, it's almost impersonal. In the flashbacks, it's clear how much younger they are- how the trust issue is paramount, how they're so conscious of exactly who they're with and what is being allowed. Now, it's all about connection. Easier because they have a history, but it feels like they're trying to erase bad things, not build good ones. And the way that she says "Maybe", she has to know that it's not going to work, this isn't the right time. Not when they haven't worked anything out, they're scared and alone and someone is going to break and then badness is going to be flying all over the place. Personally, I'm not convinced they're actually capable of a healthy relationship. At least not without a long break of being single, learning to be friends again for real, and then trying it again if they ever actually mature.
I do love the little things, though. Veronica indulging herself doing voices and pushing the limit on how over the top to make her performance, the interactions with throwaway characters that allow her to be snarky, her distress about having to dress up like a little girl. And I like that you're still having her be Veronica. She pushes herself right to the point of heat stroke, she's being snarky and self-congratulating in her head when thinking about how she's being a more forgiving person now, and I'm basically just waiting for her to take a major risk by attempting to spy on the man spying on her. She needs to find out if he's a PI, or something more dangerous- I'm guessing she might attempt to stage a diversion so she can talk to the schizophrenic man. And honestly, I really hope she tries something. Learning that she needs to be more careful about breaking the law, that's good. Being more aware of when she's putting her friends in danger, also good. But Veronica without her giant brass balls? Well, that just wouldn't be Veronica. I like how she's not cowering like a little mouse, trying to be invisible. She's still using the resources around her in any way she can, even when they're questionable characters like Lynard. I really hope he ends up getting the short end of the stick after being such a jerk. I rather wonder if she thought to throw a few bugs and her laptop in her bag… unlikely, but it would be useful.
Anyways. I really like this story. Possibly even more than YOLD, because Veronica is on her own, kicking ass, taking names. She'll have the time and space she needs to sort out all her personal issues with what happened in Neptune, maybe find a balanced approach. Plus all that bus time, she can start coming up with a plan to get back to Neptune and make everything work out- I just can't see Veronica accepting a plan to stay gone and fly under the radar forever. I may be one of the few readers who really doesn't care much about the LoVe thing as much. It's my personal opinion that they're both a bit too damaged to jump into anything successfully, so I'm much more interested in reading about how they can independently evolve into successful people that can maybe eventually be together. For now, the actual plot is much more interesting. Can't wait to read the rest- hopefully I figured out the tracking thing correctly.
Sorry this review was all over the place. I tried to remember what I was thinking about for all 15 chapters. They'll probably be more organized when I get to review one chapter at a time. And thanks for being pretty much my primary source of entertainment for the past 40 hours or so. I'm probably going to have to rematch the series before rereading the stories, just to make sure I get everything. It's been about 9 months since I watched most of it, so hopefully I'm remembering things correctly and not just making stuff up.
no subject
I guess we're supposed to be attributing a lot of that to her freak-out from chapter one. I think it's totally reasonable that Veronica could have had a bit of a meltdown, realizing just what her actions have cost her father. But I'm not sure if I think the Gory Sorokin business was quite at this level yet. Yes, his family is tied to the Russian Mob. And no doubt he's very angry that Logan beat him up. I can even see him trying to get even with Logan by intimidating him. But I don't know if it was a reasonable reaction for Logan to feel like he had to violate his parole and flee the state. It's one thing for a mobster to kill or maim one of his own people to intimidate the others- but having a celebrity bumped off, especially right after the very public fight between Gory and Logan? Obviously it's important as a plot device, you want Logan with them to explore the dynamics of the characters, but I wonder if they aren't all overreacting on that front. If Gory filed an official complaint, he's certainly not done himself any favors for if he's intending to really hurt Logan (or Veronica). Gory is a sociopath, yes. But I don't know if that translates to being able to get the whole mob to do his bidding, and they've dealt with crazy murderous individuals after them before.
I guess I'm just not sure why any of them decided to run. Keith destroyed that evidence. That was bad, and a felony- but I'm not sure Wallace was right about other people being able to testify about what was on the DVR. If I remember correctly, Keith and a neighbor were the only ones who saw it, and there was no clear view of Veronica's face. That would be pretty weak evidence- not to mention the fact that the Kanes are unlikely to press that issue- Veronica has a pretty good hold over them these days, I doubt they would have had to actually blackmail anyone explicitly. Even if Keith was convicted, I would be skeptical about Veronica getting in any trouble. Obviously, they can't do a thing about Vinnie deciding to go after Keith for tampering with evidence, but it seems a bit premature for them to be taking off, I guess. Especially with Logan. Running just looks really bad.
Then again, it is a really interesting premise for a story. They've created so many more problems for themselves by going, it's going to be hell getting them to a point where they can go back- unless you never intend for them to go back, and I'm not sure how to feel about that. Statue of limitations on obstruction of justice, maybe? Logan's probation issue is probably muddling everything now.
I appreciate how you describe the state of their relationship by the way they're having sex. It's a great way to reveal things without having them actually have conversations about it, which wouldn't be nearly as realistic. The flashbacks, where it was all tentative and unsure and trustbuilding- which was of course wrecked by the pool burning made a nice foil for the desperate, clinging, we're totally screwed and just need to affirm this connection touching in the bathroom. On one hand, they're more familiar with each other, they know how to touch and what to do, on the other hand, it's almost impersonal. In the flashbacks, it's clear how much younger they are- how the trust issue is paramount, how they're so conscious of exactly who they're with and what is being allowed. Now, it's all about connection. Easier because they have a history, but it feels like they're trying to erase bad things, not build good ones. And the way that she says "Maybe", she has to know that it's not going to work, this isn't the right time. Not when they haven't worked anything out, they're scared and alone and someone is going to break and then badness is going to be flying all over the place. Personally, I'm not convinced they're actually capable of a healthy relationship. At least not without a long break of being single, learning to be friends again for real, and then trying it again if they ever actually mature.
I do love the little things, though. Veronica indulging herself doing voices and pushing the limit on how over the top to make her performance, the interactions with throwaway characters that allow her to be snarky, her distress about having to dress up like a little girl. And I like that you're still having her be Veronica. She pushes herself right to the point of heat stroke, she's being snarky and self-congratulating in her head when thinking about how she's being a more forgiving person now, and I'm basically just waiting for her to take a major risk by attempting to spy on the man spying on her. She needs to find out if he's a PI, or something more dangerous- I'm guessing she might attempt to stage a diversion so she can talk to the schizophrenic man. And honestly, I really hope she tries something. Learning that she needs to be more careful about breaking the law, that's good. Being more aware of when she's putting her friends in danger, also good. But Veronica without her giant brass balls? Well, that just wouldn't be Veronica. I like how she's not cowering like a little mouse, trying to be invisible. She's still using the resources around her in any way she can, even when they're questionable characters like Lynard. I really hope he ends up getting the short end of the stick after being such a jerk. I rather wonder if she thought to throw a few bugs and her laptop in her bag… unlikely, but it would be useful.
Anyways. I really like this story. Possibly even more than YOLD, because Veronica is on her own, kicking ass, taking names. She'll have the time and space she needs to sort out all her personal issues with what happened in Neptune, maybe find a balanced approach. Plus all that bus time, she can start coming up with a plan to get back to Neptune and make everything work out- I just can't see Veronica accepting a plan to stay gone and fly under the radar forever. I may be one of the few readers who really doesn't care much about the LoVe thing as much. It's my personal opinion that they're both a bit too damaged to jump into anything successfully, so I'm much more interested in reading about how they can independently evolve into successful people that can maybe eventually be together. For now, the actual plot is much more interesting. Can't wait to read the rest- hopefully I figured out the tracking thing correctly.
Sorry this review was all over the place. I tried to remember what I was thinking about for all 15 chapters. They'll probably be more organized when I get to review one chapter at a time. And thanks for being pretty much my primary source of entertainment for the past 40 hours or so. I'm probably going to have to rematch the series before rereading the stories, just to make sure I get everything. It's been about 9 months since I watched most of it, so hopefully I'm remembering things correctly and not just making stuff up.