When Veronica Mars debuted on television in 2004, she was a teenage detective just trying to make it through high school. She wanted to solve her best friend’s murder, but other smaller cases kept getting in her way. There seemingly wasn’t a mystery she couldn’t crack, but she didn’t just get all of those skills out of thin air. Her father, former sheriff Keith Mars, owned his own private detective agency.
Every episode father and daughter worked their own individual cases. Sometimes, they teamed up for a larger mystery. There were episodes where Veronica solved the problem while her father was still in the dark, and the same is true of the reverse. We have to wonder who in the Mars family had the superior sleuthing skills. That’s why we’ve compiled this look at who did the better job on some of their cases.
Veronica: Uncovers Manning Family Secrets
In season two, Meg Manning was the only survivor of the bus that crashed while on a field trip. Meg, however, wound up in a coma for much of the time she was still on the show. Her sister asked Veronica and Duncan to find a way to get Meg’s files off her computer so her parents wouldn’t find them. Among those files were a series of letters to social services detailing the abuse of a child Meg babysat.
With Duncan’s help getting into Meg’s head, Veronica discovered the truth. Part of Meg’s letters were lies because she was trying to get help for her little sister, but also covering for her own parents. Veronica made sure the authorities monitored Meg’s little sister.
Keith: Knows A Fake Backstory
In the season one episode “Ruskie Business,” a woman claiming to be a Russian bride whose boyfriend vanished came to the Mars family for help. Though Keith declined the case, Veronica pursued it when the woman continually offered more money.
As it turned out, Keith suspected her story was fake. Veronica didn’t realize that, and it ended up exposing a man in the witness protection program. He was a witness against an organized crime group. Keith had to step in and fix Veronica’s mistake.
Veronica: Gets Duncan Out Of The Country
Veronica actually helped Duncan flee the country once by accident, and once on purpose. The first time she helped him disappear it was a result of him overhearing her discuss a person her dad had been tracking. For the second time, however, she helped him plan a real escape.
After discovering how the Mannings treated their youngest daughter, Duncan and Veronica promised not to let Meg’s parents raise her baby. Veronica helped Duncan smuggle his daughter out of the country by faking his boat’s use off the coast of California. The real Duncan and baby Lilly were safe in the trunk of the police car crossing the border to look for them. They escaped after members of the Neptune sheriff’s department went to Mexico.
Keith: Connects The Dots For Literary References
In season three of Veronica Mars, the title character ended up in an uncomfortable position. She was investigating one of her professor’s for murder. Veronica teamed up with his teaching assistant to do it.
One of their clues involved a recorded conversation that referenced the teacher visiting “papa’s cabin.” While Veronica and the assistant tried to one-up each other explaining what they heard on the recording, Keith had the simpler, and correct answer, for them. The “papa” in question was Ernest Hemingway, and the cabin was a historical site. This time around, we’ve got to give Veronica a bit of a break. She might not yet have been familiar enough with the writer to understand this particular clue.
Veronica: Solves The Lilly Kane Case
When Keith Mars was the sheriff, Lilly Kane was murdered. The case, in which he focused hard on her father, cost him his job. Though a man later confessed to the crime, Keith and Veronica never believed he did it.
As it turned out, they were right. Both Keith and Veronica continued to investigate, though usually they did so separately. In the end, it was Veronica who discovered that Lilly and Aaron Echolls were having an affair. When Lilly threatened to go public, he killed her. Veronica searched a secret hiding spot of Lilly’s that the police never did and found the tapes of the two together herself.
Keith: Makes Nice With Hotel Staff
While Veronica typically likes to trick people into helping her, that can come back to bite her. Keith, instead, often tells those who work in service industries and hospitality the truth. As a result, he can often call in favors. Of course, this case is a bit different.
The reason Keith and so many members of the Neptune Grand staff exchange information is because he asked security to keep tabs on Veronica. In season two, Veronica dated Duncan Kane while he was living alone in a hotel suite. Keith used those connections repeatedly on future cases.
Veronica: Solves The Bus Crash Case
Though the big mystery of season one involved Lily’s death, the big mystery of season two involved the deaths of several of Veronica’s classmates. In “Normal Is The Watchword,” a school bus full of students drove off a cliff and into the ocean.
While some suspected the bus driver did it on purpose, Veronica figured out that there were actually explosives on the bus. A bomb caused it to go over the cliff. She chased down a lot of incorrect leads, and her father actually got his hands on as much evidence throughout the season as she did. It wasn’t until Veronica used her friendship with Gia Goodman to uncover information about Gia’s father that she discovered the motivation for the explosion, and caught the teenager responsible.
Keith: Dates Less Of His Clients
One rule of being a P.I. should be that a detective doesn’t mix their business with their personal life. Keith only had trouble following that rule twice. He dated Wallace’s mom after helping her with a problem. Keith also dated a woman who wanted to prove her husband was cheating on her. Veronica, though, crosses the line much more often than he does.
Among the relationships she had during the run of the series, all of her love interests were also clients at one point. Logan asked Veronica to find his mother, and in the movie also asked her to help clear him from a murder accusation. She did work for Troy twice, Duncan multiple times, and even met Piz in college when all of his belongings were stolen. The only reason she dated Leo was because she used him to get into the police station. Keith is definitely better at setting work-personal boundaries.
Veronica: Gets Away With Stealing Evidence
This is likely not a proud moment for the Mars family, but both Keith and Veronica have made their way into the evidence room (illegally) for different reasons. While Keith destroyed evidence that implicated his daughter in a crime, Veronica actually stole evidence.
The Veronica Mars movie tells us that Keith eventually got caught and it cost him his second chance at sheriff. Veronica, on the other hand, was often suspected of stealing files, photos, and evidence from the police station. No one ever caught her or proved what she did. So, that’s definitely a plus one for Veronica when it comes to the dirtier side of the Mars family P.I. work.
Keith: Scores Higher On The P.I. Exam
When Veronica turned 18 years old, she got a rite of passage most kids don’t think about: the chance to take a private investigator’s exam. Veronica had been looking forward to becoming an “official” detective since the show began.
Gloating to her father after she earned a particularly high score on the test, Veronica believed she outscored Keith. In reality, Keith scored two points higher than her. He even had his exam results in the desk waiting for her to prove it.
