Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during network UPN's last two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor network, The CW. Balancing murder mystery, high-school, and college drama, the series features social commentary with sarcasm and off-beat humor in a style often compared to film noir. Set in the fictional town of Neptune, the series stars Kristen Bell as the title character, a student who progresses from high school to college during the series while moonlighting as a private investigator under the wing of her detective father.