As many of us know by now, last week’s Rescue Me included a disturbing sex scene that has created quite a bit of controversy.  All over the internet, people have been arguing about to what extent the scene depicted a rape, and about the show’s lack of social responsibility in showing a woman apparently enjoying a rape.  The show’s co-creater Peter Tolan has been posting in response to this controversy on the Television Without Pity message boards.  According to Tolan, “In terms of the scene ... I never wrote the words ‘don’t’ or ‘no’ at any point in the scene, and when I talked to Andrea about the playing of the thing, I pretty much told her that she had to stand up to Tommy—that he had taken so much away from her over the years, that she had to stare him down from a position of strength while he was forcing himself on her. I told her to shame him with the words she was given - to let him know he couldn’t hurt her anymore, no matter what he did.”  Tolan does acknowledge, however, that many viewers interpreted the scene differently, and that the issue of a woman seeming to enjoy a rape had “caused some concern” for them, but he’s very vague about it.  Also, to further complicate matters, there is an interview with Tolan and Denis Leary in which they claim it wasn’t a rape at all. (Beware of some mildly spoilery stuff there.)  Hmm.
 
As I stated in my comment to the post I linked to, I am of two minds about this issue.  On the one hand, it is consistent with the characterization of these characters, and with the sort of two-dimensional portrayal of women on Rescue Me in general: they all seem to be evil, crazy, or some combination of the two.  On the other hand, I do indeed think it’s socially irresponsible in this day and age to portray a woman as enjoying something that could be construed as a rape.  In addition, if Tolan and Leary’s vision of this scene failed to come across to the audience in general, couldn’t the scene perhaps be looked at as a failure, artisically?  Thoughts, anyone?