And it really points out the have/have-not dichotomy of Neptune. Duncan got away with it (as far as we know; maybe it'll come back to bite him in the ass next season) and is loafing on a beach with his daughter.

Duncan got away with it, but Duncan had a (noirish) right to it. Lilly was Duncan's sister. Even his own family thought he killed Lilly--they were so convinced of Duncan's guilt that they obstructed the investigation into the real killer.

Duncan had that question of guilt hanging over him for a good chunk of season 1. Then Aaron framed him for her murder, just this season. In fact, Aaron was only acquitted because he not only planted evidence, but lied, and set up all kinds of people, and tried to convince his own son to lie.

Within the Neptune moral framework, because he waited until the legal system failed, what Duncan did was not as bad as it would be in either the real world, or in the Buffyverse, which has heroes, and an inherent vengeance taboo. It may still bite Duncan in the ass, but noir is a pessimistic genre, and putting Aaron out of everyone's misery does not sink to the same level it would in other genres, or in reality.

Speaking of sinking? One of my favorite exchanges aside from the CW?/It's a done deal exchange was Aaron and Logan's exchange at the elevator:

Aaron: Going down?
Logan: No. Up.

Four little words. Forty GAJILLINiTYBITRILLION^∞ layers. Or at least four.

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I have an idealized vision of the future where Weevil, having escaped the murder rap, becomes a priest who devotes himself to social justice and plots with Father Fitzpatrick to save underpriviledged children.

::marries this::

I never said that my idealized vision was rational.

Rationality is overrated.

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It may still bite Duncan in the ass, but noir is a pessimistic genre, and putting Aaron out of everyone's misery does not sink to the same level it would in other genres, or in reality.

Totally what she said. I'ma let Cindy write all my posts, I think.

Four little words. Forty GAJILLINiTYBITRILLION^∞ layers. Or at least four.

Yes, this! Loved this.

Am I the only person who was certain, beyond any doubt, that Keith was alive?

I thought it was pathetically coincidental that the plane blew up with view just as Beaver pushed the button, but KB sold her grief and terror so well, my mind started jumping to what they could do in S3 with an orphaned Veronica out for vengeance/justice. But as they episode went on, and they kept ignoring the fallout of the plane's explosion, I knew Keith had survived it.

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I thought it was pathetically coincidental that the plane blew up with view just as Beaver pushed the button, but KB sold her grief and terror so well, my mind started jumping to what they could do in S3 with an orphaned Veronica out for vengeance/justice.

Me, too. She could have sold me the Brooklyn Bridge at that moment.

But as they episode went on, and they kept ignoring the fallout of the plane's explosion, I knew Keith had survived it.

It was just the opposite for me. The longer it went on, and she didn't get a phone call, and that she pieta-ed the night away in Logan's arms and woke up, and thought it was Keith cooking, when it was only Logan? I became more and more sure. I blame Kristen Bell, entirely. I think to my mind, it had to be real, because her Veronica was so very real. I know real people who are less real.

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Am I the only person who was certain, beyond any doubt, that Keith was alive?

Emotionally, I was freaked the hell out. Rationally, I figured he couldn't be dead. Rob Thomas is no Minear.

but Duncan had a (noirish) right to it.

So did Weevil. Remember the confrontation with Felix's GF, when Weevil yelled "*I* loved him!" With the exception of Keith and Veronica, what we've seen all season is how fucked-up blood family can be, and that chosen family can be just as -- if not more -- important.

I'd argue that Weevil had just as much of a noirish right to kill Thumper as Duncan did to kill Aaron.

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I was unreasonably sure that when Aaron flipped on the TV, it would be a newscast with pictures of the burning plane.

I blame Kristen Bell, entirely. I think to my mind, it had to be real, because her Veronica was so very real. I know real people who are less real.

I bought her grief and terror all through, because she was remarkably good last night, but also because it *was* real to her, until she found out differently. I think my head gets in the way, too, where I say to myself, Huh, I didn't hear anything about Enrico Colantoni leaving the show.

The image of Veronica limp across Logan's lap broke me. A complete twist on last year, when he was in her lap, beaten and broken. And she was totally vulnerable, face up, arms limp... Sigh. My little 'shipper heart is so happy today.

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So did Weevil. Remember the confrontation with Felix's GF, when Weevil yelled "*I* loved him!" With the exception of Keith and Veronica, what we've seen all season is how fucked-up blood family can be, and that chosen family can be just as -- if not more -- important.

I'd argue that Weevil had just as much of a noirish right to kill Thumper as Duncan did to kill Aaron.

Would you argue that Veronica would have had the same right to putting a hit on Aaron for killing Lilly, as Duncan had?

Weevil had some right to it, but I don't think he had as much as Duncan had. Felix was his dear friend. He was not Weevil's actual brother.

Secondly, Felix's murder is much more recent.

Thirdly, Veronica was still working on the case, and Weevil knew this, but he'd given up. Weevil didn't wait long enough. Justice failed him temporarily, but it hadn't failed in a permanent way, like it did in Aaron's case.

Fourthly, Weevil hadn't labored under a cloud of suspicion for over two and a half years.

That said, I want Weevil to get off. I don't want him to go to jail. I want him to get his diploma. I want some nice little moment for his grandmother, too. And if any of that happens, I wouldn't think it was outside the realm of noir (okay, except for the nice little moment for the grandmother). I am pissed that he didn't get to graduate, too. It all made me very sad.

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Weevil had some right to it, but I don't think he had as much as Duncan had. Felix was his dear friend. He was not Weevil's actual brother.

But was there anyone else to stand up for Felix? I think Teppy's point about chosen family makes sense in this context.

Of course, I also have a huge soft spot for Weevil. I was furious that Lamb pulled him out of graduation. And while I don't think Weevil will get off, given what we know about justice in Neptune, I wish he would. Plei's fantasy of Future!Weevil could be mine.

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...So I'm the only person who saw the Aaron murder and said, "OMG, stupidest assassin evar!!"

Generally speaking, it's wise to do it in such a way that leaves a slam-dunk suspect, or makes it look like a suicide. And not to do it when a potential witness just left the room.

Also, correct me if I'm misremembering, but "the clap" is gonorrhea, not chlamydia, right? Keith called it the clap.

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I was half expecting Principal Clemmons to jump from whatever letter he was on to "Navarro," just so that Weevil could get that diploma, because Clemmons isn't a bad guy -- he's no Snyder

One of the things I love about this show is that the principal, while occasionally weasely and Machiavellian, isn't all that bad a guy, but he also isn't just a push over. So no getting eaten for him, either by snakes or his own students.

However his physical resemblence to President Logan over on 24 is occasionally distracting.

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