I’m back in Seattle and overwhelmed with email, new contacts and the need to post. But, while I collect my thoughts, I’ve asked Mystery Guest (yes, that Mystery Guest) to author a post on the subject of how and a viral campaign saved the TV program Veronica Mars.
Rand, sadly, is overestimating how technical and worthwhile this post will be, assuming that I’ll discuss user empowerment, grassroots movements, and transparency in the digital age. Sorry to disappoint, kiddies, but I’m going to exploit a captive audience that foolishly stumbled hereand if I get to that other stuff, so be it.
In reality, I’m just here to shill my favorite show. Someone tried to warn me about overselling it – that I was setting them up for disappointment. But I figure that’s impossible. Whatever the expectation, this show will beat it. And what I say now, I say without hyperbole – three amazing things have happened to me in the last few years:
- I found a job I liked
- I met a man who laughed at my jokes
- I discovered Veronica Mars
If you asked me to list them in order…well, we’ll leave that to another day. My old boss first told me about “Vickie” (a nickname I can’t quite explain – it’s neither derived from the main character’s name nor used on the show – but it’s stuck). I had never heard of it – despite being a self-proclaimed pop culture guru. After I noted numerous allusions made to it on Television Without Pity, I finally broke down and watched. Quite simply, it was the best writing and acting I’d seen on television. The show soon went into summer hiatus, during which I insisted Rand download the entire first season for me.
It was easy to get caught up. Particularly when watching 3 episodes a night, sans commercials, all the while wondering why I didn’t have a taser in high school.
Would have at least made prom night entertaining…
As season 2 approached in the fall of last year, I found that in the real world, I was alone in my love for Vickie. Other than my boss, her husband, Rand and myself, no one watched the show. Most people hadn’t even heard of it. My best friend laughed when I told her about it.
“You’re always watching shows meant for high schoolers”, she said.
Meant for high schoolers? Thus far the median age of viewers I knew personally was 26. And the title character discusses her own rape and her best friend’s brutal murder in the pilot episode. It made 90210 look like a cake walk. A dull, poorly written one at that.
But no one believed me – the show aired on UPN, for crying out loud. Even I doubted myself when I tried to sing its praises. So I found solace in Television Without Pity – the usually scathing reviewers adored Vickie. Fans diligently posted to the TWOP forums. I was home. But despite a group of die-hard fans, Vickie’s ratings were laughable. Stacked up against shows like “Lost” and (Insert Generic Fox Talent Show Here) the program was facing certain cancellation, despite critical acclaim. Salon.com bestowed upon Vickie its Buffy award, traditionally given to the most under-appreciated show of the season. Glowing reviews appeared in newspapers across the country, and Kevin Smith and Joss Whedon could be counted among Vickie’s fans.
But it still didn’t matter. No one was watching. The show’s dubious future became jeopardized even further when parent station UPN announced it would join forces with the saccarine and banal WB. The equation was simple – two stations, one fall schedule.
Vickie was on her way out.
Thankfully, her fans saw otherwise. They rallied; a group of sarcastic, overly-intellectual 20-something warriors with a great deal of disposable income and time on their hands. Veronica brought them together – like Athena in a mini-skirt. It was time to fight.
On May 9th, fans paid to have a plane fly between the UPN and CW offices in California. Behind it was a banner: RENEW VERONICA MARS! CW 2006!
They weren’t done. With the money collected through a paypal account, they were able to purchase dozens of copies of season 1 on DVD, donating them to libraries throughout the country, with the hopes of attracting new fans. The movement continues via sites like watchveronicamars.net and www.marsinvestigations.net.
Veronica continues as well. Season 3 begins on the CW in October. Its time slot following the Gilmore Girls will likely lead to more viewers, who may soon learn what Vickie’s loyal followers knew all along: sometimes all it takes is a lot of heart and little know-how.
A taser doesn’t hurt either.
Don’t believe me – watch this bootleg trailer
We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming…
