In the three-part Peacock docuseries Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed, former Menudo member Roy Rosselló details the sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of the band’s manager, Edgardo Diaz. But then he describes an incident of sexual abuse at the hands of José Menendez, who was the president of RCA Records when the label signed the band. But more importantly, he was the father of Erik and Lyle Menendez, who claimed their father sexually abused them, leading them to brutally kill both their parents in 1989.
Opening Shot: A shot of the R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego. We hear a call come in from Erik Menendez in the background.
The Gist: The first episode starts with a recap of the Menendez case, told via Robert Rand, a journalist who followed the case from the beginning. After the brutal murders of José and Kitty Menendez, Lyle and Erik weren’t at first considered suspects. But then the investigation turned to them, and they were eventually arrested and tried for the killings. The first trial, where the Menendez’ defense attorneys presented one witness after another who detailed the abuse the boys suffered. When a mistrial was declared due to a hung jury, the L.A. County District Attorney’s office managed to get much of that testimony suppressed for the second trial, leading to a conviction and life sentences.
José Menendez’ position as the head of RCA Records leads into the second half of the episode, where Rosselló, who was a member of Menudo between 1983-86, describes how Diaz recruited him for the boy band, and how Diaz raped him almost daily during the entire time he was in the group. He feels it’s finally time to talk about it publicly, after almost 40 years, because he wants to help others who may have been victims of Diaz.
Rosselló comes to Florida, where his mother and brother live, for the first time in about a decade; he’s currently spreading his testimony at churches in Brazil. He connects with reporter Nery Ynclan, who has been talking with him on the phone for at least a couple of years, helping Rosselló to open up and give all the details. During those calls, he revealed that José Menendez also raped him, giving credence to the Menendez brothers’ defense during their first trial.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The Menendez Murders: Erik Tells All combined with Menudo: Forever Young.
Our Take: When you start with blurred-out scenes of the crime scene at the Menendez’ Beverly Hills mansion, you know that the docuseries you’re going to watch is going to go for the sensational. But sometimes going for the lurid obscures the producers’ overall message. That’s how we felt while watching Menendez + Menudo: Boys Betrayed.
Don’t get us wrong: The accounts that Rosselló gives about how he was sexually abused by both Diaz and José Menendez are horrific. He doesn’t spare the audience any details, in order to have the most impact. The thought here is that he not only wants to help out others who may have been victims of the two men but he also wants to show that the defense that Lyle and Erik presented wasn’t made up out of thin air.
But we also get the feeling that this could have been a Dateline episode instead of a 3-hour docuseries. Stretching out the story blunts the message, and it there’s any story that shouldn’t be blunted, it’s this one; there’s no reason to think that Rosselló is lying, which is why the impact should be greater than it is. We just wonder if this is done in the service of sensationalism or to actually get justice for both Rosselló and the Menendez brothers.
Sex and Skin: The harrowing descriptions of Rosselló’s abuse are tough to listen to.
Parting Shot: Ynclan says about Rosselló: “He’s the key to getting action in these two crimes after all these decades.
Sleeper Star: Rosselló’s mother, Miriam Diaz, has likely suffered the most, given how she hasn’t seen her son in a decade as he worked through his trauma.
Most Pilot-y Line: Nothing stands out, besides the low quality of the phone calls both Menendez brothers made to Rand while the cameras were rolling.
Our Call: STREAM IT, but only because Rosselló’s story is so harrowing. The series itself is done in such a lurid manner, and is stretched out so thin, that it’s tough to wade through the BS to get to whatever new information the series is offering.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.