As of late, there has been some controversy concerning season 3, episode 11’s scene between Lydia Martin and Peter Hale concerning the latter character’s past abusive behavior.
First of all, a run down:
In season 1, episode 5 shows Lydia’s first encounter with Peter when he breaks through the window of a video store in his werewolf form where she is clearly frightened and is then heavily drugged.
In season 1, episode 11 we see Lydia’s second encounter. On the night of the winter formal, Peter brutally attacks Lydia, and she is hospitalized as a result.
In season 2, episodes 1, 7, 9, and possibly others, after Lydia has recovered from her (werewolf-inflicted) wounds, she is plagued by visions of a teenage Peter as well as a deceased, adult Peter (after being slashed in the throat by nephew Derek in the last episode of Season 1) trying to interact with her from beyond the grave. He eventually succeeded by somehow controlling her to perform a ritual to resurrect him.
Fast forward to season 3, episode 11 where we see Lydia meet Peter for what looks to be the first time since said resurrection took place. The only dialogue shared between them was:
Lydia: “You.”
Peter: “Me.”
Lydia: “You.”
Peter: “Me.” Article Continues Below
While it was established that Peter and Lydia would, in fact, share a scene at some point in the first part of season 3, it was eventually revealed before episode 11 was aired that Jeff hadn’t initially written the aforementioned Lydia/Peter scene at all until Holland Roden and Ian Bohen inquired about the lack of attention their previously abusive relationship was receiving. Roden is quoted as saying:
Ian and I have a scene coming up and…our past abusive relationship was never addressed in the scene how it was written! And so Ian and I walk in and we’re like: “really? Really? What’s going on?” And so, poor Jeff, he’s got a million things on his plate, and he’s like “yeah, oh…yeah” You know, I mean, it was fun though because it allowed us to make a decision as actors, you know? It’s been fun when you play a character for almost four years now…how would you react? There’s, like, a natural instinct there.
Video:
It comes as no surprise to hear that Jeff Davis does have a lot on his plate where his schedule and job are concerned. He is the one with the task of writing a sufficient and entertaining episode to be shown every week for fans ALL OVER THE WORLD, he has a deadline to write said episodes and, to add to that, there are time constraints so scenes will undeniably be edited out or, if not included in the initial script (like the Lydia/Peter scene from what I gathered from Jeff in Roden’s quote), might not be included at all because of the time each episode has already been given.
It’s safe to say it was Jeff’s aim to make this season’s plot as suspenseful, intricate and entertaining as possible. Sure, this might have been have been a little too ambitious and was the cause for him to forget about Lydia and Peter’s past history, but he is entitled to act forgetful every so often because we, as people, do that; we shouldn’t forget the motivation behind taking on such a task in the first place. It’s been noted before that he experiences sleepless nights trying to write and finish each script so that it can go into production as fast as possible, thus allowing it to be delivered to our screens.
(Skip to 30 minute mark)
While the scene in question was invariably and unnecessarily brief (believe me, I, as did so many others, wanted to witness a scene between Lydia and Peter where he got his comeuppance in some shape or form), Jeff has proven that he has the ability to write both impressively and effectively for Teen Wolf and other shows like Criminal Minds (which was created when he sold his own script to CBS, eventually leading to the conception of the hit series it’s known as and currently watched by millions).
It’s worth noting that we are currently just finishing the first of TWO parts to this season, so Jeff has ample opportunity to redeem himself with this minor indiscretion with regard to these two characters.
Lastly, some food for thought: The fact that people seem to have this idea that Jeff cannot make certain mistakes with the show here and there is, quite frankly, nonsensical. No show is, by any means, perfectly written or executed every time. Everything has its cons no matter the amount of outweighing pros it may possess.
While we as viewers of the show are perfectly entitled to our own opinions concerning certain aspects of the production, it is by no means helpful to say Jeff “isn’t a good writer” or that you’ll “never give Jeff credit for anything. Ever. EVER,” because that is plain disrespectful when you consider what he does for the Teen Wolf fandom on a daily basis and what is expected of him in his line of work. The provided quotes are just a couple of examples of the counterproductive nature present in some messages written by people.
Some people seem to forget the positive aspects of the show that make it what it is: the female characters are depicted more realistically as independent, strong, skillful and intelligent figures and leaders who can be forces to be reckoned with if not treated properly; the fact that sexuality is just another facet of someone’s personality – plain and simple; and it’s clear Jeff and the TW team do a considerable amount of research with regard to etymology for each individual character and mythological aspect of the show (having said himself, more than once, the names the characters are assigned pertain to the current story being told at the time); and the mythos attached to each season is clearly researched and rightly so in order to allow the story to progress, allowing to be more and more engaging.
There are more positive attributes to the show than negative, so don’t lose hope so soon!
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