comedy keeps not working for me...

[ratcreature]

Because of the fannish buzz I gave the first episode of Our Flag Means Death a try, but just couldn't finish it. My embarrassment squick didn't use to be on such a hair trigger. :/

Sigh.

Maybe I should try the Witcher tv series again, as I am on the lookout for something fannish.

Comments

[mific]

OFMD does get less bothersome at season's end re the incompetence (Stede becomes less naive and pulls off a notable caper), but it doesn't stop being silly as far as Stede's crew are concerned, which is kind of the point, I think. They and he go on being quirky and camp in the face of the grimdark reality of ruthless pirating epitomised by Izzy Hands and by Blackbeard's dark side. It's going to be a redemption arc for Blackbeard I think, with Stede rescuing him from his inner darkness. But be warned that it's not resolved in season 1 and ends on a cliffhanger (boy meets boy, boy kisses boy, boy loses boy). I have no doubt that Taika will swing another season though, or that he'll finish the story somehow and not leave fans hanging.

Black sails is violent and bloody but mostly to other people, not to the main characters. But they're almost all ruthless bastards so there are some betrayals and double-dealing between the protagonists, to some degree, partly due to idealism and desperation in the main protagonist. The gayness is also not apparent yet, but I gather it's coming. It's not what I'd call grimdark in that not everyone is evil and I think the plot arc isn't going to be nihilistic. But it's very bloody and a prostitute who runs foul of one of the bad guys in a thievery con is gang raped. But there's also humour, drama, romance, and adventure. Overall, I'm really enjoying it, and there's masses of competence re 'age of sail' stuff like sailing tall ships, C18th commerce and the weird, democratic organisation of pirate crews. The writing and dialogue are excellent and the whole show's just enormously intelligent.