Jennifer "Jenny" Diane Schecter is a fictional character from the American Showtime television drama series The L Word, played by Mia Kirshner.

Jenny was created by series creator Ilene Chaiken, based on herself as a younger woman living in the lesbian community.

Chaiken implemented a series of changes to the character, one of which being the inclusion of a sexual abuse story line and self-harm, which some critics observed as being attempts to make her likable in the LGBT community.

Other story lines include stripping, writing novels, coming out, directing a film, affairs, and her possible murder.

The final season is based around the lead-up to her death, during which Jenny made herself extremely unpopular with her friends, who became suspects.

She based her on her own past experiences of coming out and dealing with the everyday life in the lesbian community as a younger woman.

Chaiken said it was these qualities that made Kirshner "the bravest and boldest of actors" and branded her "utterly fearless" in her approach to Jenny.

Throughout her duration on the series, Jenny went on a journey from the very first episode, which portrayed her as a selfish egotist; many observers have perceived her as a narcissist, and even as a borderline sociopath.

[5][6] This latter assessment was based early on around her recurrent lying, and the fact she seems to excuse her own cheating in the first few seasons as a corollary of empowerment and as research for her book: which features an experimentalist female character who is evidently herself.

Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe described Jenny stating: "Dreary, confused, introverted narcissist [...] downcast, secretive, almost Goth in her black moodiness, she is the epitome of an unhappy egotist.

[6] When Jenny is introduced on-screen she arrives in Los Angeles to stay with her boyfriend Tim Haspel (Eric Mabius).

[11] She soon becomes aware her neighbors Tina Kennard (Laurel Holloman) and Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals) are lesbians.

[11] In the show's companion book "The L Word: Welcome to our planet", they describe Jenny's confusion as leaving her "unmoored".

During an interview with LGBT monthly magazine The Advocate, Chaiken commented about the story line: "Well we all know it was an incident of sexual abuse.

[13] Heather Hogan of AfterEllen criticized the story line because there was no conclusion to it, also stating it was never explored enough, leading everyone to think she was just a jerk.

[14] Jenny was negatively received amongst TV critics and viewers from the very first episode after she cheated on her boyfriend, Tim, with another woman for no clear reason.

"[16] Of her character's changes after season five, Kirshner stated: "I think she'll continue to be just like a tumbleweed and a car crash and I'm happy for that, I don't want it to be wrapped up.

[20] Kate Aurthur of Los Angeles Times questioned if viewers would still want to watch the season after Jenny is killed.

[21] Lydia Martin of The Miami Herald said Chaiken was being manipulative not revealing Jenny's killer, so viewers would watch their online series.

On her very first night in Los Angeles, Jenny attends a party with her neighbors Tina and Bette where she meets Marina.

In season two, Tim decides to move out and leave town - his faith and trust in Jenny - and humanity in general - destroyed by her infidelity and outright deception.

Mark Wayland (Eric Lively), a filmmaker who moves into the house to help pay their rent, starts spying on Jenny, Carmen and Shane, with hidden cameras.

Jenny steals Alice Pieszecki's (Leisha Hailey) ideas for a play which sparks a feud between the pair.

During the going-away party held for Bette and Tina, who are planning on moving to New York, they watch the film and Jenny is found dead in the swimming pool in the back yard.

In the book Blood Moon's GT Gay and Lesbian Film, Darwin Porter brands Jenny "one of the most annoying, needy characters on television" and calls her a "lost damaged soul".

[27] Hillary Frey of The New York Observer opined that Jenny provided "voyeuristic pleasure" for straight females in season one.

Also adding the fact she gradually became self-obsessed – yet still conveyed the "thrill and pleasure of a fresh sexual experience", while portraying the sadness.

"[29] In 2009 by the time season six was on air, the magazine claimed that Jenny was one step away from a Lesbian backlash, joking: "If only she would sing an acoustic version of the show's ear-melting theme song intermittently during the next episode to ensure that the entire Sapphic nation hits the streets bearing torches and pitchforks, all calling her name.

[7] They also branded her the most hated lesbian character since Joan Ferguson (Maggie Kirkpatrick) on Prisoner: Cell Block H, credited most of the hatred upscaling when she had her dog put down and praised Kirshner for rising to the challenge of playing her.

"[31] She also claimed that the season finale was a let-down, but Jenny would have been happy that even in death she was the center of attention and meddling in her friends lives.