Hey guys, Becks here with a long awaited post on a few things I’ve been watching this Summer.

As I mentioned months ago, I’d like to write about more than cannabis, so we’re shifting some of the focus to other things I enjoy: food, sports, television, and other pop culture things. Truth be told I have so much I love and want to share and watch and listen to and experience, but there’s never enough time!

I originally planned to post about the return of Claws on TNT as well as Vida a new show on the Starz network, but I am one lazy fuck so I will just say watch Claws because this season was crazier than the last, and I will be rewatching Vida so look out for a future post before it returns in 2019.

This Summer I’ve been enjoying Sharp Objects on HBO, a miniseries based off the novel written by Gillian Flynn and directed by Jean-Marc Vallee who directed Big Little Lies, another successful book adaptation on HBO.

Sharp Objects follows crime reporter Camille Preaker, an alcoholic who struggles with cutting, played by Amy Adams. She’s sent to Wind Gap, Missouri, her hometown to investigate the grisly murders of two teenage girls.

The show has an amazing cast, the standouts are obviously Amy Adams, Elizabeth Perkins, and Patricia Clarkson who takes on the role of overbearing mother Adora with such a creepy sophistication. Newcomer Eliza Scanlen is awesome as Camille’s bratty roller skating half-sister, Amma. Chris Messina as the town outsider, Detective Richard Willis who hails from Kansas City helping the local authorities with the investigation is also a welcome addition

As the investigation into the murders deepens Camille and Richard start to form a bond. Neither of them thinks the two men that the town suspects of killing the young women is guilty and it’s basically up to them to figure out who the actual killer is. With each episode, through flashbacks we get a glimpse of Camille’s troubled past and the visible scars its left. The town of Wind Gap is especially creepy with their old Southern traditions and gossipy ways, none of which helps the authorities or Camille as they try to uncover the truth.

Visually the show is stunning, the soundtrack plays a big role in the show as well. There are strong Southern Gothic themes in Sharp Objects, somewhat like HBO’s first season of True Detective – the way the themes are used in each show creeps me the fuck out!Sharp Objects completed its 8 episode run on Sunday, which you can stream if you have HBO or subscribe to their streaming services and they run about 55 mins to an hour. The show is thrilling, enthralling and all the positive accolades I can give it. I may rewatch it because there were a lot of hidden clues within the show that I missed, but I’d also like to read the book as well. I believe the way in which they reveal the killer in the book is different from the show and i’d like a little more background into the townspeople. If you do end up watching Sharp Objects and I hope you do, make sure you watch the last episode all the way through to the credits because there are some quick grotesque scenes that are key to the murders (I actually had some creepy dreams that night).

My next pick is also on HBO which makes the slogan “It’s not TV, it’s HBO” ring true (it’s also one of my random,  teeny-tiny favorite parts in I Love You Man).

Under the HBO Sports umbrella and in collaboration with LeBron James and Maverick Carter’s digital media company UNINTERRUPTED we have The Shop, a 30 minute unscripted series featuring unfiltered conversations with some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment.

The first episode featured Jon Stewart, Snoop, Candace Parker, Odell Beckham Jr, Draymond Green, Michael Bennett, Vince Staples, and Jerrod Carmichael. The topics discussed in this episode touched on politics, race relations, parenthood, and the pressure/stress that come with being successful.

The Shop gives us an unfiltered King James who drops F bombs throughout the show, something his critics will definitely hate on while they ignore the overall message of what the show is designed for. But it also gives us the background as to why LeBron decided to start speaking out about about race related issues, following the murder of Trayvon Martin:

“When I decided I was going to start speaking up and not giving a … about the backlash or if it affects me, my whole mind-set was ‘It’s not about me’,” said James, adding he was influenced by thoughts of his own sons. “My popularity went down. But at the end of the day, my truth to so many different kids and so many different people was broader than me personally.” (via)

I like how candid and real the show feels. To see these big names behind the so-called curtain being able to fully explain themselves, sharing their views and beliefs without the media in their face scrutinizing every word is a blessing for those of us who want to hear what they have to say – those of us who want our athletes to do more than just dribble or score touchdowns.

Like Michael Bennett says in the episode:

“When I was growing up, I was looking for Michael Jordan to say something. He never did. Now kids can look up and be like, ‘What LeBron said.’” (via)

Back in 2016 the WNBA made headlines for supporting the Black Lives Matters movement, so I was a little disappointed that one of the only times we got to hear Candace Parker speak was when it came down to what she sacrificed as a mother and athlete. While that is important I wish she had more airtime to discuss some of the other topics than her male counterparts and hope that it’s something that changes if they have more females on the show.