We
have a tendency to heavily romanticize the Golden Age of Piracy, and this is
not a new phenomenon by any means. For proof of this, look no further than
Stede Bonnet, the gentleman pirate and contemporary of other such legends as
Blackbeard and Benjamin Hornigold. A lot of people say they want to be a
pirate, but to Bonnet this was more than just idle chatter; this relatively
wealthy Barbadian landowner ditched his family, bought a big ‘ol boat, and
decided that he was going to live the life of a swashbuckler, despite the fact
that he knew nothing about sailing. Sounds like one of those stories that’s too
fantastical to be true, and also one that is ripe for comedy. Our Flag
Means Death takes a stab at the humor inherent in the situation, and
after a very rocky start it mostly succeeds with bringing the laughs while
saying something at the same time.
Created
by David Jenkins and executive produced by superstar Taika Waititi, Our
Flag Means Death takes two or three episodes before it really gets
going and becomes something other than an occasionally funny chore. Rhys Darby
(Flight of the Conchords, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) stars as
Bonnet, and you’d be right in assuming that his being on a project with fellow
Kiwi Waititi results in a whole lot of that silly type of humor that New
Zealanders are increasingly famous for. Darby’s supporting cast is entertaining
and capable, but it is not until Waititi joins him on screen as Blackbeard
himself in the fourth episode that things actually get interesting. Laughs
exist before then, but they don’t come as frequently as I would have liked or
expected for the creative team in question, and even after that they are not
ever-present. Our Flag is funny, yes, but it also has a moral
or two to explore as well.
Bonnet’s
story as portrayed on the small screen has, of course, some giant liberties
taken with it, but it is surprisingly accurate when it comes a lot of the
basics. He did indeed sail with Blackbeard, for instance, who took the clueless
aristocrat under his wing, and he did actually pay his crew a salary and was
eventually pressed into being a privateer. The showrunners use this story to
explore the deeper theme of societal pressures, whether it be gender-, sexual
orientation-, race-, or class-based, and it is nice to watch a comedy that
actually has something to say instead of feeling the need to be “on” all of the
time. Our Flag is also accurate when it comes to salty
language, which parents should know about beforehand, and the violence can be
quite intense as well, if over-the-top and a bit cartoony.
The
production values are decent if not fantastic, having that “made for TV” feel
without looking bad. The script is good, the characters likeable, and there is
definitely more good in Our Flag Means Death than bad. Just be
patient waiting for Blackbeard to show up. It might be worth it.
Our
Flag Means Death season 1 is now available on HBO Max.
This review was first published in The Keizertimes on April 8th, 2022. Visit at http:keizertimes.com/
