When I look at my ridiculous TV DVD collection I can immediately put them all into one of three categories. There are the shows that are currently on and the only reason I purchased the sets were to watch the special features. Then there are the shows that I couldn’t watch on regular cable because I’m too cheap to actually pay for the channels. Finally there is the category that most people run to when they come over to borrow something. I’ve named this category the “Must Watch Entire Series At Once” category. Sure you can waste away a perfect weekend or four (depending on which series), but these are shows that can’t be missed for any fan of good story telling. I mention this only because Veronica Mars is at the top of this category.

Originally conceived as a short series of novels featuring a male teenager, Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas stumbled upon something extremely close to perfection.

When Thomas felt that the publication process of the novel would take too long, he turned his story into a TV spec script and sold it to the now defunct UPN. Remember UPN? During the UPN hay-days it was pumping out shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the television series Clueless. But capping off their prime time schedule beginning in 2004 was a brilliant noir-style high school crime drama called Veronica Mars.

Although the series only ran for three full seasons, it survived the re-branding of a network, endured constant parental criticism and still managed to capture multiple television award nominations. Like many cult shows, Veronica Mars was never truly appreciated by whopping numbers of fans, but it is still recognized critically as one of the freshest television shows of all time.

Veronica Mars starred the wonderfully successful Kristen Bell. Before landing the role to star as Enrico Colantoni‘s daughter, Bell was doing bit parts in shows like Deadwood and American Dreams. When she was cast as the lead, her world literally changed. Kristen Bell was Veronica Mars in every sense. Sassy and excited when needed, brilliant and opinionated otherwise, Bell literally made the character. Other co-stars were also extremely strong in their roles including Jason Dohring as Logan Echolls and a young Amanda Seyfried as the ghost and flashback versions of Veronica’s best friend Lilly Kane.

So what made Veronica Mars so amazing? The dialogue, characters, storytelling and the structure of the show. Veronica Mars combined the ability to carry a season-long narrative with a weekly episodic arc. Each episode focused on two major components, the weekly mystery and the season long mystery. This type of storytelling was traditionally used with more adult focused shows like court dramas or sci-fi shows, but Veronica Mars made it work and made it work well.

Season One was probably the most controversial as it dealt seriously with rape, alcoholism and murder in the fictional town of Neptune. Season One followed the story of the once popular Veronica Mars as she changed her attitude, friends and entire life to help her father as a part time private detective. The origins of the characters were also rooted in each other where the story made it possible to both introduce a new personality as well as a new twist. Keith Mars was once the respected town sheriff, but was ousted when he accused a high-powered community member of murder. Veronica chose her father’s side while all of her friends opposed. Wrapped up in all of this was Veronica’s struggle for a new identity, her father’s initial accusation, high school drama and the politics of Neptune.

After such a successful first season, Veronica Mars had already achieved cult status. But if the success wasn’t enough, Thomas managed to grab two of Hollywood’s most powerful cult figures in Joss Whedon and Kevin Smith to guest star.

Veronica Mars looked like it would be a long-lasting runaway hit – but then network disaster occurred. UPN essentially folded and the show was re-branded by the CW. The changes were significant in that the show shied away from the format it had so much success with. Gone was the season-long mystery replaced by smaller chunks of episodes covering three shorter arcs. The kill-shot occurred in 2007 when the show went on hiatus for the CW reality series Pussycat Dolls Present. When Veronica Mars returned, it was as if it never existed and the show was not renewed.

Since leaving television Veronica Mars still captures the interest of many mystery and crime drama fans. The show lives on through DVD and it seems as though talks of a Veronica Mars movie will never go away. Whether the film version happens or not, this show will remain one of the best teen/drama/noir/whatever you want to call it, shows of all time.