The smart, witty, ingeniously-plotted Veronica Mars was one of those great shows that we really wished had been SFX territory. With the kind of complex mystery arc plot so beloved of shows like Buffy or Lost, it felt SFX, but despite the vague suggestions of a ghost in season two and a glowing testimonial from Joss Whedon that it was the best thing on TV, it was never quite SFX enough.
Now we're getting the next best thing.
Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas is creating a space soap for CW, the US network aimed squarely at the yoof demo (home of Smallville, Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries). Plymouth Rock from Warner Bros TV, is a soap set aboard a spaceship concentrating on a bunch of young people headed to a distant planet with a mission to colonize and procreate to save the human race.
There's not much more information as yet, but if Veronica Mars is anything to judge by, then this could be a show which is far more interesting than its rather brief one-line pitch would suggest. Certainly Thomas has a knack for creating colourful characters. And Hell, there just ain’t enough starships on TV we reckon.