Life's Too Sports

While the San Jose Sharks haven't yet had the luxury of playing at SAP Center this season (now slated to open their campaign with 12 consecutive road games), an abbreviated 56-game schedule provides "Team Teal" with little room for error. The Sharks entered Friday's contest against their Southern California rivals with an unflattering record of 3-5-0 on the young season.  All things considered, their fortunes could have been much worse. San Jose's first two victories of 2021 came by way of the shootout, while their third was secured courtesy of a brilliant individual effort from six-time NHL All Star Brent Burns. Meanwhile, the Sharks' losing efforts have typically been less tightly contested, including a dominant two-game stint from the Colorado Avalanche -- outscoring San Jose by seven goals. Thus, adopting a simple mindset seemed necessary on Friday: find a way to emerge from the first of back-to-back games in Anaheim with two points. Although the Sharks ex...

While professional sports are unpredictable by nature, millions of viewers across the globe can't help but weigh in with their unofficial analyses of star players, championship caliber teams, and other miscellaneous coverage. However, even the most astute sports analyst could not have projected a more perfectly scripted Super Bowl LV matchup for February 7, 2021. The headlines circling a winner-take-all contest between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs are nothing short of iconic. 43-year-old Tom Brady (presumably the greatest quarterback in NFL history) against 25-year-old Patrick Mahomes (indisputably the greatest quarterback of the new generation).  Mahomes was merely in Kindergarten when Brady clinched his first Lombardi Trophy in February 2002. Will the Chiefs' superstar usher in a new era by upending Brady to claim his second consecutive title? Or will the former Patriot singlehandedly surpass all 32 NFL franchises by snagging his seventh trophy in his 10th ...

For the Golden State Warriors, the 2010s were nothing short of remarkable. Having spent four decades mired in mediocrity, the Bay Area's team finally managed to assemble a dominant lineup en route to securing three championships, qualifying for the NBA Finals in five consecutive seasons from 2015 to 2019. While the basketball world largely fixated on the Warriors' iconic 73-9 record during the 2015-2016 season (as well as their subsequent NBA Finals' collapse and recruitment of phenom Kevin Durant), the history books will illuminate an unforgettable period of time in which rising superstars joined forces to immortalize their respective legacies. Unfortunately for Golden State, impermanence remains the harsh reality of professional sports, and the Warriors' reign of terror came to a screeching halt in the summer of 2019. In Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals, two-time defending NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon (ending not only his season, but hi...

The Season 1 finale of The Walking Dead: World Beyond launches with a flashback scene, as Leo and Kari Bennett look upon Iris and Hope as newborns, having already formed an unbreakable bond. (This scene proves particularly meaningful by the episode's conclusion.) A quick time jump now depicts Dr. Leo Bennett (who appears to be perfectly safe) sharing an evening meal with his colleague and life partner, Dr. Lyla Bellshaw. Elsewhere, his daughter, Hope, continues her journey to New York alongside Huck, having recently discovered Huck's deceitful intentions  -- in an emotionally-charged turn of events, Hope pulls Felix's gun on Huck, demanding to know her true identity. Alexa, cue the opening credits. Meanwhile, Elton and Percy (whose journey is hindered by a gunshot wound) make their way towards Silas' isolated living space to offer him a consoling truth -- Huck killed Tony  and shot Percy during his attempt to escape; thus, Silas is innocent . The newfound proof of his ...

Sunday's two-part season finale of The Walking Dead: World Beyond picks up directly following  last week's stunning revelation that Huck (or Jennifer, if you prefer) is actually the daughter of Civic Republic Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth Kublek. In their encounter, Huck ensures her mother that she's making progress with "the asset" -- meanwhile, Elizabeth reveals the intention behind her actions in the series premiere, having  provided Hope and Iris with a map to their father to keep things on course. A quick cut to present-day illuminates that Huck is intent on preventing the group from reaching their destination -- while the others sleep, her reckless driving renders their vehicle useless, and the group must depart on foot, seeking shelter and materials to patch a faulty tire. As they move towards safety, Felix recalls interviewing Huck upon her arrival at the Campus Colony -- in this fateful moment, he also met Will Campbell, a "more qualified" inte...

Sunday's midseason finale begins in recognizable fashion, as walkers munching on a deer carcass are killed by Virginia's rangers while Strand and Dakota ride in comfort towards a safe house. In their interaction, Dakota urges Strand to move forward with his escape plan, as she doesn't wish to live under her sister's rule any longer -- much to her chagrin, however, Strand insists on biding his time. Unfortunately for Strand, his casual escort system quickly goes awry when the horse of one of Virginia's rangers (Terry) rejoins their group without its rider -- Strand and Samuels quickly set off together to check for a horde of walkers ahead, but find only an inexplicably fallen tree. While the pair are away, a deadly conflict ensues -- the remainder of their convoy is brutally slaughtered, and Dakota (Strand's most prized possession) disappears. After the recent destruction of Tank Town , Strand fears that Dakota's life (and in turn, his own) may be in jeopardy...

In Episode 1.07 of World Beyond , horror-struck viewers watched as a friendly game of " Truth or Dare " descended into a crime scene -- our resident magician, Tony, was found dead, with Silas and the presumed murder weapon resting helplessly nearby. Thus, this week's episode begins with Silas tied to a swing set frame as his traveling companions discuss his fate -- Iris and Elton believe that Silas may be innocent, while the others argue that frequent evidence of his violent tendencies cannot be ignored. (On a personal note, it seems rather odd that Percy, a grifter who hasn't proven his trustworthiness , is nowhere to be found. I'm hopeful that he factors into next week's season finale somehow.) Meanwhile, Huck returns with a plethora of Iris' drawings that Silas evidently plucked from Campus Colony garbage cans while performing his janitorial duties -- in Hope's mind, this revelation lands as an unforgivable offense. Nonetheless, Elton visits Silas t...