Viewers who enjoyHigh Potentialshould check out an earlier series written by one of the show’s writers, the spiky ‘00s neo-noirVeronica Mars. AlthoughHigh Potentialseason 2is one of the most highly anticipated TV comebacks of the 2025 season, the Kaitlin Olson vehicle isn’t entirely innovative in terms of its premise. Indeed, a lot of what makes the procedural so much fun isHigh Potential’s quirky, original spin on a familiar detective story trope.
FromColumbotoMonktoMurder She Wrote, viewers love an unassuming detective who seems harmless to the outside world and uses this to disarm criminals.High Potential’s Morgan, with her feathered jackets and colorful miniskirts, is constantly underestimated by both the police and criminals, and this often works in her favor.Morgan is usuallyHigh Potential’s smartest character, but others constantly underestimate her at their peril, often resulting in their downfall. For viewers who enjoy this trope, one of the show’s writers penned a similarly quirky detective story much earlier. BeforeHigh Potential, Rob Thomas created 2004’s still-underratedVeronica Mars.
Rob Thomas Worked On Veronica Mars Before High Potential
Both Shows Follow Quirky Female Detectives Who Are Often Underestimated
Rob Thomas is both a writer and an executive producer onHigh Potentialand the creator’s fingerprints are all over this crime procedural. Readers might know Thomas from his most recent project, the comic book adaptationiZombie, which ran from 2015-2019. That series blended supernatural drama with crime procedural tropes as Rose McIver’s eponymous zombie ate the brains of the recently deceased, absorbed their memories temporarily, and used this new knowledge to solve their murders.
WhileiZombiewas a lot of fun, its sci-fi-centric premise meant the police procedural doesn’t feel all that similar toHigh Potential. In contrast,Thomas’s earlierVeronica Marsis a darker spin onHigh Potential’s premise, following another underestimated, ultra-intelligent female sleuth as she uncovers criminals by using her wits to outsmart them.High Potentialis lighter thanVeronica Marsand its many revivals, but the two shows still share a lot of details in common and are likely to appeal to the same audiences.
Veronica is pushed into action by the mysterious death of her best friend, Amanda Seyfried’s Lily Kane, and spends the series uncovering the conspiracies, corruption, and illegal activities that plague the small town of Neptune, California.
Veronica Marsstars Kristen Bell as the titular heroine Veronica, a high school student who acts as a private investigator with the help of her detective dad. Veronica is pushed into action by the mysterious death of her best friend, Amanda Seyfried’s Lily Kane, and spends the series uncovering the conspiracies, corruption, and illegal activities that plague the small town of Neptune, California. LikeHigh Potential’s Morgan,Veronica is often underestimated due to the unspoken prejudices of the cops and criminals she interacts with.
High Potential and Veronica Mars Share Many Story Similarities
Both Shows Blend Season-Long Arcs With Weekly Mysteries
Veronica is underestimated due to her age, while Morgan’s job as a cleaner and her wild personal style choices are what mark her out for the department’s derision. However, there is a larger pattern underlying the treatment of both characters. Both Veronica and Morgan are patronized because they are women, and it is satisfying to see both characters use this to their advantage, as they outsmart cops and criminals alike. WhileVeronica Mars’ Lily Kane storylineis solved relatively fast, the show continues with Bell’s character discovering new villains and conspiracies with each new season.
Much likeHigh Potential,Veronica Marsused a blend of weekly cases and bigger season-long storylines to keep its mystery story engaging.Like Thomas’s later show,Veronica Marsalso blended the heroine’s personal life with her cases. While Morgan has to worry about taking care of her kids while also simultaneously solving cases, Veronica has to navigate high school and later college life while moonlighting as a private detective. Meanwhile, her father’s tumultuous professional life made things even harder.
Veronica Marsis a surprisingly sharp deconstruction of the cop show genre that questions the allegiances and responsibilities of Neptune’s finest at every turn.
That said, there are also some pivotal differences between the two shows. WhereHigh Potentialdepicts the local police as largely heroic, if a little close-minded toward Morgan’s presence,Veronica Marstakes a much more critical view of the institution. As noted byYouTubecreator Skip Intro,Veronica Marsis a surprisingly sharp deconstruction of the cop show genre that questions the allegiances and responsibilities of Neptune’s finest at every turn.
High Potential Already Enjoyed More Commercial Success Than Thomas’ Earlier Show
WhileVeronica Mars 5might never happen,High Potentialkeeps many of the earlier Rob Thomas show’s best qualities alive in its similar story. This is particularly fortunate since the messy history ofVeronica Mars saw its ratings rarely climb as high as an average episode ofHigh Potential. This might not seem like a big deal, consideringHigh Potentialis a major ratings success story. However,Veronica Marsoriginally ran from 2004-2007, before the advent of streaming services cut into the audience share of network television.
As such, the fact thatVeronica Mars’ average viewership dropped from 2.5 million viewers per episode in season 1 to 2.3 million in season 2 was a major issue. Even though season 3 saw the show bounce back to 2.5 million viewers on average, the writing was already on the wall and the CW canceled the series after its third outing.High Potentialseason 2 is unlikelyto suffer the same fate, but this wasn’t the last that viewers saw of Thomas’s earlier detective series.
Why Veronica Mars Is A Perfect High Potential Stand-In
The Show Shares High Potential’s Quirky Offbeat Approach to Police Procedural Tropes
A successfulKickstartercampaign funded theVeronica Marsmovie, which was released to critical acclaim in 2014. This then resulted in 2019’s more divisive Hulu revival, which won over some fans and reviewers but also garnered some criticism for softening the show’s tone.Veronica Marswas always edgier thanHigh Potential, but this arguably makes the show the perfect stand-in while viewers wait for season 2.
Veronica Marsoffers a darker, more grounded spin onHigh Potential’s same themes with the same sharp wit.
WhereHigh Potentialprovides a fun, lighthearted bit of crime procedural escapism,Veronica Marsoffers a darker, more grounded spin on the same themes with the same sharp wit. Thomas’s writing ensures both shows are worth a watch, but their differing tones mean neither feels like a carbon copy of the other. Meanwhile,Veronica Mars’ thoughtful take on police drama clichés provides an interesting alternative to more traditional cop show storylines. As such, anyone waiting forHigh Potentialseason 2 should check outVeronica Marsin the meantime.
