If there is one word to describe this season, it would be romantic. Ye be warned … Spoilers ahead!
★★★★☆
As one of the most successful queer shows on TV right now, season two of Our Flag Means Death fully leans into what drew everyone in with Stede (Rhys Darby) and Ed’s (Taika Waititi) love story front and centre. The season picks up where it left off, with Stede searching for a heartbroken Ed, desperately trying to reconcile their relationship. The romance is incredibly endearing, even when it should feel cheesy.
A highlight of the season was easily Stede and Ed’s talk in the moonlight in episode five. The scene mirrors the “You wear fine things well” scene from the first season; arguably its most romantic moment. Both Ed and Stede dream of it when thinking about the other, and it was one of the first signs of the blossoming love between the two, highlighting their understanding and acceptance of each other. The second season reverses the scene; this time with Ed telling Stede “You wear fine things well” before the two kiss under the moonlight, agree to ‘take things slow’, and have a surprisingly sweet thumb war. It is a beautiful scene, and the performances by Darby and Waititi are earnest and touching. Not only that, but you can feel the sincerity of the writing and you are constantly rooting for the two.
The first three episodes, which all dropped on October 5, were truly Taika Waititi’s time to shine. As Ed grapples with his heartbreak over Stede’s abandonment at the end of the first season, he reverts into the truly terrifying pirate Black Pete (Matthew Maher) described. Waititi delivers a captivating performance as Ed gradually becomes more and more unhinged, even cutting off the toes of his former first mate Izzy (Con O’Neill) and terrorising his crew to the point of mutiny. His presence fills you with dread; a shocking transition from the endearing if still violent Ed from the previous season. Despite this, episode three still manages to elicit sympathy for him, as he fights to escape purgatory and reckon with his insecurities. Another flawless use of a Kate Bush song in pop culture occurs; this time the hauntingly beautiful ‘This Woman’s Work’, as Stede begs for Ed to come back to him, making it a truly moving scene. It also gifts us with merman Stede— an absurd concept which somehow manages to be incredibly heartrending.
In a similar vein, Rhys Darby really comes into his own as a leading man, delivering both comedy and tragedy flawlessly. His over-the-top devastation at the loss of his cursed suit in episode five was perfectly executed, with Darby delivering a pitch-perfect “Oh fuck off!” at Izzy’s attempts to spout wisdom, as was his look of utter despair after killing in cold blood for the first time. Although the constant use of flashbacks did feel over-saturated at times, the shot of a horrified young Stede covered in blood, interspersed with adult Stede staring at the first man he has deliberately killed with the same horror, was strikingly moving. Stede’s newfound fame after his kill is a fascinating route for his character to deal with, although it regrettably only has one episode to be explored in.
This is my main criticism of the season, as the pacing does become noticeably condensed in the final three episodes. This is such a shame, particularly because the themes and ideas explored in these episodes are so rich and interesting. I wish there were more episodes so that all of these fascinating ideas were given time to breathe. In particular, Stede’s newfound fame in episode seven, contrasted with Ed’s longing for a quieter life, was a compelling conflict to explore that unfortunately just wasn’t given enough coverage.
The pacing issue also affects the screen time of the ensemble cast. Season one did a great job of giving the secondary characters their own stories and motivations, balancing the main love story with other entertaining and absorbing B-plots. However, this season is a lot more unequal, with important characters such as Oluwande (Samson Kayo) and Jim (Vico Ortiz) having underdeveloped stories and romances in place of full character arcs. Even the more present secondary characters have noticeably reduced screen time. Although Frenchie (Joel Fry) had an interesting dynamic with Ed in the first three episodes as his unwilling first mate, this is essentially pushed to the side once Ed and Stede rekindle their love. Joel Fry is excellent in the show, so it would have been great for him to show off his comedic chops in more episodes.
Similarly, Lucius (Nathan Foad) was easily my favourite character in season one, but also has a massively reduced role this season. His role as the exasperated middleman between the miscommunicating Ed and Stede was comedic gold, and it would have been great to see him reprise that once his hatred for Ed died down. The reduced episode number is likely to blame, but it is unfortunate, given how great the ‘found family’ dynamic was in season one.
Although the finale was incredibly fast-paced, it did a pretty great job at wrapping up loose ends and plot threads, whilst still leaving the door open for a third season. Izzy’s season-long arc of redemption culminates in his incredibly moving death monologue, and we finally see him and Ed apologise to each other for their incredibly toxic dynamic. His death might have been tragic, but did feel somewhat inevitable. Stede and Ed become innkeepers, an ending the show hinted at throughout the season. They are both finally ‘all in’, and we leave them on a hopeful ending.
The verdict
At its core, Our Flag Means Death is a rom-com; the pirate setting is just an interesting addition. Taika Waititi has frequently described it as “a love story between two guys who happen to be on a boat.” Season two succeeded in exploring this love story in greater depth, balancing the conflict and the charm of their relationship so that it feels like a realistic journey. Of course, Ed and Stede’s relationship isn’t magically fixed by the end of the season, and there is still plenty of story left to tell, but the show does a stellar job of giving us a satisfying conclusion to their love story, whilst leaving ample room for further development.
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