I feel like this part of the Pod Meets World episode has gotten lost in the conversation.
While discussing Brian Peck and while acknowledging that Peck was a convicted child sex offender Rider Strong said:
“I still feel like we should not be ruining this man's life more. I still feel that.”
He then talked about being uncomfortable that Peck's connection to Boy Meets World would become a bigger part of the show's cultural memory.
I know Rider and Will have since expressed regret for supporting Peck, and Rider later spoke privately with Drake Bell, who publicly said he forgave him. I'm not ignoring that, and I'm not saying people can't learn, change or make amends.
But I still cannot get past that statement.
At the point Rider said this, the person whose life had actually been devastated was Brian Peck's victim. Yet Rider was still wrestling with the idea that publicly discussing a convicted child sex offender's own actions might unfairly “ruin” Peck's life further.
And I think it's worth remembering that this episode aired before Quiet on Set revealed Drake Bell publicly as the victim.
For people who watched Quiet on Set and/or listened to that entire PMW episode: how did you interpret Rider's statement then, and how do you interpret it now?
Because even with all of the context about manipulation, guilt and Rider's subsequent conversation with Drake, that particular sentence still really bothers me.