What else can you tell us ...

Question: What else can you tell us about Veronica Mars?

Answer: I actually have some major Mars prattle and it concerns the show's third season. At press tour, Rob Thomas told me exclusively (at least I think it was exclusive) that not only does he already have next season's overriding mystery figured out, but he's introducing it (wait for it wait for it) this season! "We know what we want to do next year as our big 'Who Killed Lilly Kane/Who sent the bus off the cliff?' mystery," he says. "In fact, we're going to hint at it in an episode this year." Rob adds that the story will have a "completely different" flavor than the two previous mysteries. "There will be a criminal at play rather than a crime that happened that we're trying to solve. It'll be a crime that is ongoing, so it'll have a sense of urgency." (POSSIBLE SPOILER: Episode 16 is titled "The Rapes of Graff" and finds Veronica tracking down a serial rapist at Hearst College the very school she'll likely be attending next fall. I'm told Veronica does not catch the perp by the episode's conclusion. You do the math.)