Aaron Hernandez’s Story Was Riveting, But Damn

I watched the Netflix documentary and istened to the Boston Globe’s six-part podcast series about Aaron Hernandez.

Both were excellent, especially the Globe’s in-depth reporting on him. The show is even based on the podcast.

But DAMN…a dramatized version of his life as a 10-episode TV?

I mean, it is Ryan Murphy we’re talking about. He loves him some stories about murderous, “attractive” men.

He’s done a series about OJ Simpson, Versace’s killer Andrew Cunanan, Jeffrey Dahmer (Dahmer actor Evan Peters also played a high school shooter in the first installment of America Horror Story), plus the new one about the Menendez Brothers.

Sheesh, in that case — why not Aaron Hernandez? I think seven years after his suicide is too soon. Then again, the podcast didn’t even wait a full year after his death to release, with the Netflix doc following only two years later.

At least those aforementioned Murphy shows highlighted tragedies that happened before the new millennium.

I get the intrigue, though. I ended up watching the two-episode premiere and like that they are showing some of the things the Globe’s Spotlight Team addressed in the podcast series, like Florida’s insistence on Aaron graduating early to join the team at only 17 years old.

Urban Meyer has declined interviews discussing every aspect of this topic, but that hasn’t stopped the series from portraying Meyer is as a selfish coach who let way too much shit slide because of his obsession to win.

What about Hernandez’s family and his victims families? His fiancée, Shayanna Jenkins, already had to voice her disdain about the distasteful jokes about Hernandez at Tom Brady’s Comedy Central Roast a few months ago.

Dahmer’s victims’ families were displeased with their trauma being acted out onscreen, as were the families of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman with the OJ series.

That’s bound to happen with any true crime projects. The entertainment aspect of it inevitably adds an extra layer of exploitation. With the documentary and podcast, we were presented the facts and that was that.

Judging from the first two episodes alone, it looks like the series is more interested in probing into his double sex life than what I think is the more shocking reveal: his CTE.

I, like most football fans at that time, immediately thought: not excusing what he did, but him to having late stage CTE that young had to be a factor.

I’m concerned that them focusing on his closeted sexual attraction to men will overshadow that. As if his repression was the sole reason for his rage. After all, his late father made it clear he didn’t want any gay shit happening in his house.

That’s another thing - his dad was reportedly abusive, but the first two episodes deduced it to him merely having a temper tantrum because his wife, Aaron’s mom, provoked him. Maybe the upcoming eight episodes will delve deeper into his abuse, and how Aaron remained the closest to his dad despite possibly suffering from it the most.

I do like their choice in casting Josh Rivera as Aaron. He’s got a wholesome face, which might help make Hernandez’s story somewhat sympathetic (the thirsties were probably expecting someone to be “bad boi hot”).

Bottom line: would I recommend this show? Nah. I felt like the Netflix documentary and the Globe’s six-parter provided us with information we didn’t already know when Hernandez was serving his prison sentence. Maybe read his brother’s memoir instead.