Duncan Kane

Duncan Kane
First appearance	"Pilot"
Last appearance	"Not Pictured"
Created by	Rob Thomas
Portrayed by	Teddy Dunn
Information
Gender	Male
Occupation	Student
Family	Celeste Kane (mother) Jake Kane (father) Lilly Kane (sister, deceased)
Significant other(s)	Veronica Mars Meg Manning (deceased)
Children	Lilly Kane/Faith Manning

Duncan Kane is a fictional character on UPN/The CW television series Veronica Mars, which debuted during the fall 2004 season on UPN. He was a series regular during seasons one and two. He is portrayed by Teddy Dunn. He is Veronica's ex-boyfriend, and the brother to her dead best friend, Lilly Kane. His best friend is Logan Echolls. His father, Jake Kane, perfected streaming video.

Background

Duncan is the good son to Lilly's wild child. Duncan is his mother's favourite and his father hopes that he will end up becoming a diplomat or politician. However, he has a medical condition that causes him to black out and lose control. Medication controls the condition but it can still be trigged by stress or emotional trauma. When he discovered Lilly's body by the pool, he went into shock, rocking Lilly's body back and forth, covering his clothes with her blood. His parents discovered them and assumed from Duncan's almost catatonic state that he had murdered Lilly during one of his black outs. This then led to the elaborate cover up which eventually led to Keith Mars being deposed as Sheriff. In "The Girl Next Door", it was confirmed that Duncan had broken up with Veronica before his sister died. Previously, some viewers had speculated that the breakup occurred after Lilly's death. The end of "Like a Virgin" included a statement by Abel Koontz that Veronica's father might actually be Jake Kane. Since then, many people speculated that Duncan may have broken up with Veronica because he believed her to be his sister. This statement was confirmed during "A Trip to the Dentist" when he tells Veronica that his mother had told him that Veronica's real father is Jake Kane (a statement which is later discovered to be false). In this episode Duncan had slept with Veronica after each had unknowingly consumed a drink laced with GHB.

In Season 2, Veronica and Duncan start dating again after Duncan gives Veronica a fortune cookie that says "True Love Stories Never Have Endings." They date for the first half of the season, until his ex-girlfriend Meg dies, as a result of a blood clot which she sustained after surviving the bus crash which occurs in "Normal Is the Watchword".

Their relationship leads to a rift between Logan and Duncan - Logan is not only upset because Duncan is dating Veronica, for whom he still has feelings, but because Duncan had been away all summer while he had to deal with being accused of the murder of Felix. Likewise, Duncan is upset with Logan mainly for him being so mad about Veronica, but he also harbors resentment over the fact that his dad killed Lilly, even though he knows that Logan and Aaron hate each other. However, they end up reconciling and remain best friends.

It is revealed that Meg had been carrying Duncan's child, which is delivered shortly after her death. In "Donut Run" Duncan and Veronica come up with an elaborate plan for Duncan to kidnap the baby girl (whom he renames Lilly) and take her to Mexico instead of allowing Meg's abusive parents to have custody. The farewell scene between Veronica and Duncan still leave some untied ends; prior to Duncan escaping to Mexico they kiss and Duncan declares: "I love you, Veronica. I always have, and I always will". At the very end of the episode Veronica is in her room reading the fortune cookie message that Duncan gave her before: "True love stories never have endings," this is also more proof that Duncan and Veronica will still have a place for each other in their hearts.

Some time after fleeing Neptune, Duncan appears in Veronica's graduation dream. In the same episode, he later appears in Mollymook, Australia talking on the phone with Kane Software security chief Clarence Wiedman, moments after Wiedman has completed Duncan's ordered execution of Lilly's killer and Logan's abusive father Aaron Echolls. A painting of Duncan is seen in "The Bitch Is Back", as a homage to the character.

In the first two seasons, most people see Duncan as the 'golden boy' of the school (in contrast to his 'bad boy' friend, Logan), but while he is indeed kind and has a sense of honor, he also has a tendency to ignore anything that upsets or displeases him. Instead of telling Veronica that she might be his half-sister, for example, he broke up with her for no reason and wouldn't even acknowledge her presence in the school corridors. When he stops taking the pills his mother leaves him every morning, which are supposed to be for depression, he begins to have visions of Lilly much like Veronica. Lilly tells him that he knows there is more to her murder than meets the eye, that he should open his eyes and wake up. Unlike Veronica, Duncan is too disturbed by the visions to follow through and starts taking the drugs again instead.

It is also implied that Duncan is attracted to Meg because she is like Veronica used to be. Although he quickly makes his move once Veronica and Logan break up, it is implied in a dream sequence that he is threatened by the hard edge Veronica has acquired. In the dream, Meg sits on a chair in a simple white dress asking him if he ever loved her, if he remembers all the times they had together. Veronica appears, dressed in tight black trousers and a see-through top with her belly showing, totally opposite to Meg. She states that she has heard enough. When Meg asks what Veronica has that she doesn't, the dream Veronica puts a black gag over her mouth and states "Well, I'm conscious... and that's just for starters." She then turns to address the camera (Duncan) and asks him if this is what he really wants, something innocent and sweet. She then says he should grow up and get over it, before lashing out with a slap. The dream shows the dichotomy of Duncan's mind (casting Meg as the virgin and Veronica as the whore) and the turmoil he is in over the two girls.

References

• Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season, Warner Home Video, 2005, UPC 01256972774.