The Jenna Thing (situation)

The Jenna Thing is an event where Alison, Spencer, Emily, Aria and Hanna blinded Jenna Marshall.

The TV show's version:
Chronology of Events - Night of July 4, 2009

It started when Alison thought she spotted Toby peeping through her bedroom window whilst the girls were getting dressed (later proven to be a lie). So to get revenge, Alison and the others go to Toby's house to set off fireworks in the garage. Aria, Hanna, Emily and Spencer all don't think it's a good idea . Emily and Aria want to go back, but Alison won't let them. Hence convinced that it's a harmless prank to teach Toby a lesson the girls accompany Alison. Alison gets the match from Spencer and lights the stink bomb, dropping it in the garage, not knowing anyone is inside. When Alison opens the door, she tells the girls to run, without explaining what she saw. A fire explosion is then seen. This ends up blinding Jenna. After the accident Hanna insists they go to the cops and fess up only to be yelled at by Alison.Toby lies to the police about the incident, saying it was he who set the garage on fire after Alison blackmails him by saying that she will tell about his and Jenna's relationship, thus making "The Jenna Thing" a huge secret for Aria, Hanna, Emily and Spencer, who were accomplices to Alison's prank and all lied to the police about it. Jenna also keeps quiet about the truth, lying in order to protect her own secret (her affair with her stepbrother), as per Alison's blackmailing her at the hospital the day she disappeared. Even when Alison is gone, however, Jenna keeps the secret.

Another theory is that Alison knew all along that Jenna was in the shed and she was her intended target and not Toby. She probably lied to the girls about Toby peeping through her window.

Book-Series Comparison
The Jenna Thing is slightly different in the books. Read The Jenna Thing (book situation) to learn more.

In the books, the characters Toby and Jenna are different from their TV characters. Jenna is unpopular, quiet, sweet and is friends with dorky Mona Vanderwaal whereas in the TV show, she is portrayed as Ali's vindictive rival. Toby is the one who forces the sexual relationship between the two of them in the books.

Jenna found out about Courtney DiLaurentis, in the books and bonded with Ali over sibling problems. They plotted The Jenna Thing together but things went awry. In the show, The Jenna Thing was a pointed attack at Jenna by Ali and Toby was used as an excuse.

In the books, all five girls saw Toby outside the window and Ali seized the golden opportunity to prank Toby. In the show, Ali lies to the others that she saw Toby peering into the window.

In Unbelievable, when Jenna reveals to Aria about Jenna and Ali's plot to get back at Toby, she says that despite her loss of vision, she has no regrets. In the TV show, Jenna knows that Ali and her crew did it but keep her mouth shut to hide the secret about her relationship with Toby

In Flawless, in which the story of The Jenna Thing is told, Ali is the one who lights the fireworks and the others have no direct part in it, in fact Emily, Hanna and Aria never even leave Ali's House. In the show, they are all present when Ali lights the firework though Emily and Aria are hesitant to participate just like they are in the books.

The Aftermath
Before she dies, Alison tells her older brother Jason the story, reversing hers and Spencer's role in the story, making it seem that it was Spencer's idea, Spencer's execution, and Spencer pressuring the others to let it happen. Jason seems to believe the story and reveals his knowing Alison's version of events to her when he is back in Rosewood, planning Alison's memorial. Spencer seems to contradict him, but it is unclear whether Spencer gave him the real version and whether his opinion is subsequently changed.

Spencer had blackmailed Alison before she died. When Alison threatened to expose Spencer's past relationship with Ian to Melissa, Spencer retorted that she would expose Alison's role in "The Jenna Thing." Probably trying to avoid exposure, Alison told her brother a different version, so that if Spencer ever came out with her version, Jason would believe Alison's, as Alison had voluntarily revealed hers without needing revenge on her friend.

Toby is sent to a reform school for a year after the incident.

Jenna alludes to the incident in an essay for Mr. Fitz' English class in "A Person of Interest," letting her readers know that she believes the accident to have been anything but.