'Veronica' Reports for Jury Duty! Plus, the Return of 'Alias!'

So maybe it wasn't the most shocking twist in Veronica Mars' short history, but Meg's death does set up a surprising future storyline: Veronica's promise to her that she would ensure that the baby not go to the scary religious adoption place or to Meg's parents. I'm not sure how our dear Veronica is going to pull this off, though. We know how crazy Meg's parents are, which is precisely why poor Meg didn't want them raising her daughter. Keeping with my motto for this show, I will "expect the unexpected" when it returns next year. Can you believe we have to wait until next year to see new episodes?? One thing that definitely surprised me last night was Wallace's return! Yay! I thought it was going to be Duncan at the door because of the sad news regarding Meg until I remembered that he was in Sun Valley with his parents for the break. This brings up an interesting point, though, why didn't Veronica or Duncan contact each other after hearing about her death? I wonder if Duncan has even heard yet. It's very possible that he hasn't. I thought Veronica took the Meg's-pregnant-and-it's-Duncan's news very well. You could tell that she was very upset, but she was also supportive of not only Duncan, but also Meg. Duncan is hard to read, though. I can't figure out how he feels about Veronica.

Veronica's jury duty was a nice way of continuing with the overall theme of the show: the class differences between the rich "09ers" and the rest of Neptune. Most of the jury, including Veronica, was easily able to accept the defense's story that the Mexican victim was a prostitute whose pimp got angry. The wealthy jury member who elected Veronica foreman, but decided to be extra vocal turned out to be so horrible. He refused to consider the other side because the victim was Mexican and her alleged attackers were kids "from good families." It's disgusting to know that things like this really go on. I knew when Veronica switched to the other side that there was no way she was backing down. Mr. CEO had no idea what he was up against! Interesting development with the juror who approached V about college next year. I know Creator Rob Thomas has said that he has some plans for next year when V goes to college, so I wonder if this was a bit of foreshadowing. I'd love to see her stay right in Neptune.

I understand why Logan did what he did so that the tapes would never end up on the internet, but he just seriously hampered the prosecution's case. Plus, how many more years of therapy is he going to need after watching his father and his former girlfriend together? I really felt bad for him while he was watching them (in order to testify to their content) and then erasing their content. How classic was it having Keith investigate the sheriff's office? It was like his own form of poetic justice! Sheriff Lamb is such a tool! I didn't see the Deputy Leo thing coming, but his explanation made sense. I liked the way Keith didn't write the entire truth in order to spare Leo. I wonder if he's gone or just suspended. Another strong episode, and it's going to be a very long wait for January!

It was nice to have Alias back last night and off of crowded Thursday night! Rachel's little tryst with Sark ended up working for them rather than against them. Not only were they easily able to locate him, but he was willing to work with APO to find Jack and Jack's old MI-6 agent friend. I'm really liking Rachel, so I'm curious to see how she and Syd work together once Syd has the baby. Next week's episode is the one that we have all been waiting for, though!

About Last Night... NBC took the first hour of he night with E-Ring, followed by ABC comedies George Lopez and Freddie and UPN's America's Next Top Model finale. At 9, ABC landed in first with Lost (r), followed by Trading Spouses on Fox and The Apprentice: Martha Stewart on NBC. UPN's Veronica Mars landed in fifth, ahead of the WB's Related (r). The final hour of the night went to NBC's Law & Order, followed by CSI: NY (r) on CBS and ABC's Alias. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - Johnny tells Marissa how he really feels on Fox's The O.C. Over on NBC, Joey's best friend from high school (guest star Adam Goldberg) comes to visit on Joey.

@9 p.m. - Rose gives Harold some startling news, Delia falls in with the popular crowd, Nina begins to suspect something is up with Jake, Bright helps Hannah work on her self-esteem, and there's a major development between Amy and Ephram on the WB's Everwood. Over on CBS, the team investigates the kidnapping of a boy from a local park on CSI.

@10 p.m. - Sam agrees to do a favor for a friend and she and the team try to help a young woman who has lost her memory. Meanwhile, Jack is forced to make a decision about his father's (guest star Martin Landau) failing health on CBS's Without A Trace.





Will & Grace - The gang spends the holidays at Will's mother's and Grace warms up to Will's brother. Meanwhile, Jack helps Will's gay nephew organize a Christmas show. 8:30 p.m. NBC

ER - Abby and Kovac exchange Christmas gifts, but Abby's gift to him is bigger than expected. Meanwhile, nurse Haleh holds chorus auditions and everyone is surprised to see who she picks to sing the solo. 10 p.m. NBC


QUICK CUTS

*Next week's Amazing Race finale on CBS is not the final leg, at least not for the two teams that finish second and third. Those teams will continue in a mini-race for a 2006 GMC Yukon XL. But, you won't be watching this Race on your television set because CBS will stream the competition on its web site immediately following the show's West Coast broadcast on December 13th. The mini-race will require teams to recall challenges and places from this season's journey. This is the first time the second and third place finishers have had a chance to win a prize. The two-hour Amazing Race finale airs next Tuesday on CBS.

*And finally, CSI creator Anthony Zuiker's paycheck just got a little larger. The man behind all three CSIs inked a reported eight-figure deal with Paramount Television that will keep him as executive producer of all three and calls for him to develop new programs for the production company. The pilot episode for CSI was Zuiker's first television script.

That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for Everwood (what will happen between Amy and Ephram?) and Without A Trace (how will another Jack episode go over?). Plus, all the latest television news!