'Sharp Objects' Book Readers Finally Saw The Disturbing Scene They Were Waiting For

Sharp Objects is a curious story in a lot of ways. It's Southern Gothic, but set in Missouri, the gateway to the Midwest. It's supposedly a whodunit, but it's far more interested in the broken people populating the story than the murderer. Most importantly, the lead character, Camille, is supposed to be a journalist, but she's a terrible reporter, lying about how she got information, and never recording interviews. Plus she sleeps with her source, Willis, and the primary suspect. Camille and John's sex scene on Sharp Objects was a long time coming, and when the show finally got there, it was just as uncomfortable as expected. Warning: Spoilers For Sharp Objects follow. This post only discusses the happenings in the TV series so far.

Book readers on Reddit have been waiting to see if the show would go here when the time came. There have been enough deviations from the original novel as it is. For instance, nearly everything in the Calhoun Day episode is made up from whole cloth. Though the relationship with Detective Willis starts out as a mercenary one, the show (and Chris Messina) have made it far kinder than on the page. At this point, skipping her sleeping with John wouldn't be entirely unexpected.

But it also wouldn't be surprising if the production decided this scene was a bridge too far. Even though Camille is not supposed to be a likable protagonist, there's "unlikable protagonist" and then there's "protagonist who sleeps with the barely 18-year-old main suspect of her story." One could forgive them for heading to the hotel and then having Vickery bust in the next morning, and all the suggested sex stays off camera.

But having the sex happen on camera does give the viewer a deeper insight into how broken Camille is. After seeing her sleeping with Detective Willis, and how she won't uncover herself, the fact that she will for a teenager is a disturbing revelation. It also makes her vulnerable for the scene where Willis breaks up with her. As noted above, the show has softened Willis considerably. In the book, him writing her off is less out of a scene of hurt and disgust than it is due to thinking he doesn't need her anymore.

As for if John really does end up going through the system for this remains to be seen. Vickery obviously wants him to be the murderer so he can close the case, lest it the real killer turn out to be someone he's been covering for.

But Willis clearly has his sights on Adora and has set Camille off in what might be a blow out revealing the truth. Also, as lovely as Camille's editor is, it seems hard to believe he would be able to overlook her sleeping with John if the kid winds up convicted. For the sake of her terrible reporting career, let's hope Camille finds out someone else is the real killer in next week's finale.

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