playgroundDiaries

You asked for it. But I'm glad you did.

Re: Ross Weber

Well ... Darren Star, Jennie, her talent manager, and, to a less blatant extent, Ian, Shannen, Jason, and Gabrielle would all appear to disagree. It was a rape incident. The slumber party confession is regarded as one of her best and most-referenced scenes, as far as behind-the-scenes specials and interviews go -- always discussed in the context of 90210 'being bold with issue-oriented episodes' in S1.

But first, just re-watch the scene (it's at the end):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PajNAmHu2g

Notice the sad/uncomfortable stares, the dramatic music, the sheer length of the clip, and the fact that this girl is SOBBING her way through the tale. I hardly think such a production would be made if she was only 'put-off' by him not bringing a blanket. OMG. Give her some credit, please. Her saying that she was so stupid to assume all he wanted to do was show her his favorite part of the woods ("but, of course, when we get there all he wants to do is have sex") should be a major tip-off that she had wanted to have sex with Ross, but NOT then and not in that context. But really, all you need to know is that she's amazingly shaken up over the whole thing (not wanting to confess/crying and even shaking a bit while telling ...). I watched when I was 10, and there was no ambiguity. This show was the first of its kind so maybe they couldn't say it so plainly, but it's not like characters can't speak in roundabout ways without delivering their message to the audience. An example: When Brenda tells Dylan she wants "more than his applause", I knew it meant that she wanted a renewed romance with him ... not that she wanted him to see more of her plays.

Now, the outside support:

E! Celebrity Profile: Jennie Garth ('99 or '00)

17 minutes in,
JG: "We did some great stuff. Really, really groundbreaking, important material. The first dramatic thing that they gave me to do, it was this great scene at a slumber party. I got dared to tell the truth about something and it was my first sexual experience, and it was actually a rape incident."

Lifetime Intimate Portrait: Jennie Garth ('03, I think)

30 minutes in,
Randy James (JG's manager): "Early on, she dealt with date rape ... [cut to: a portion of the above scene] ... She tapped into an emotional level that I hadn't seen her tap into before as an actress."

Jason Priestley: "I watched her deliver that monologue and I just remember thinking, 'Wow, she's a star.'"

Amazon dot com interview with show creator, Darren Star, discussing S1 to promote the DVD release ('06)

2:30 minutes in,
Darren Star: "And there were a couple moments where I thought the show was really working and ... the first season, we did a slumber party episode when all the, you know, the girls were sort of confessing. Just having this sort of like, you know, sitting in a circle and just kind of, like, kinda bearing their soul to each other and ... Jennie Garth had this scene where she talked about the first time she had sex and she was basically date raped, and I was watching that scene and I thought, 'You know ... if I were a teenager flipping through the channels and I saw this, I - I wouldn't not be able - I would have to watch this show. Because there had been nothing like that on television."

He also WROTE the episode.

But if that's not enough ...

BH 90210: Our Favorite Moments ('98):

JG: "The first time that I ever felt like, 'Oh, I just did good work, maybe', was when all of the girls were having a slumber party and someone asked Kelly a question that brought back a really bad memory. [cut to: portion of the scene] ... I watched the show and thought, 'Wow, that moved me. And I think that that's what people watching it feel."

90210 Reunion Special ('03):

Ian Ziering: "It was the episode, I think it was called 'Slumber Party', Jen, they, you had this monologue where you were - "
Gabrielle Carteris: "She was weeping. It was - "
IZ: "Where you were, you know, conveying to everybody what had happened to you and, you know, the camera was moving in and I was so moved by your performance." [cut to: portion of the scene]
GC: "I remember, and you know what? It had made us cry. And we were sitting in a circle and all the girls were - "
Shannen Doherty: "We were all crying. Just by watching her."

And onto some scene dialogue ...

In "Take Back the Night", Angela Rhodes (from the Student Senate) asks at the seminar, "Okay, I know this is a sensitive question, but how many of you have ever been a victim of date rape?"

Kelly raises her hand and says to herself (and Donna/Brenda/Laura), "High School, it was practically a weekend ritual ... " This is not to be taken literally, of course, but it speaks to her role in the sexual/social scene at West Beverly.

And here's her speech at the rally:
"I know that date rape is real because it happened to me. A couple of years ago, a guy I had just met tried to rape me. And whatever I was wearing, or whatever he thought that implied, it was not my fault. But there have been other times when I've ended up in someone else's bed and, even though I regretted it, it was my responsibility. I didn't say 'yes', but I didn't say 'no' either. ... And blaming someone else doesn't make it their fault. ... Anyway, I don't even know the name of the guy who tried to attack me, but I do know the name of the guy who saved me that night. And he's here to tonight. His name is Steve Sanders."

Why does she mention the attempted rape in "Halloween", S2, instead of her actual rape at 14? Because (1) The only reason she was speaking at the rally was to clear Steve's name so that Laura could not falsely accuse him of date rape, and this was an incident he was involved in, and (2) When you've had multiple rape or near-rape experiences, I'd imagine it's more painful to talk about all of them at once and, in this case, it was totally superfluous to do so. Even if Steve wasn't being accused of a crime, Kelly probably would have chosen to speak about the time that was less traumatic ... AND the only one the viewers saw happen on-screen, and thus is remembered better.

There are at least 3 guys responsible for spreading rumors about K's sexuality: Steve, Ross, and John Sears. My impression was that she had lost her self-respect as a result (of this and the rape), and would at times 'live up' to her reputation for being "easy" on her own. Other times, boys would assume they could take advantage of her, and she'd be and/or feel cornered/tricked. Plus, her mother was allowing herself to be used by men day and night, in the same way. And this is what K had to witness.

Here's a very relevant scene from "Everybody's Talkin' Bout It", S2:

A: "Well, at least you've had 'something' ..."
K: "Andrea, wait just a second. When I was a Freshman, I threw myself at a Senior, who pushed me into a bush and never talked to me again. For the next year and half, I spent all my time trying to live up to that reputation. And now, even though I've changed, I never know if I guy asks me out because he likes me or because he thinks ... I'm easy."
A: "I'm sorry. That's terrible."
K: "So don't sit here feeling sorry for yourself. You're not missing out on anything you can't do later. ... Me, I can never go back."
_________________

And tying this in with Dylan, Kelly fears that history could repeat itself, even with him, which is one major reason why she nearly loses her mind towards the end of S3. Dylan proves himself, however, as the first guy to take her seriously. And it is all love from there.