Our Flag Means Death: Thread 3. It's still utterly brilliant. We are still obsessed.

[TriceratopsRocks]

Ahoy again mateys! Set sail aboard thread 3 where we still wax lyrical about our favourite show, its cast, its music, fan edits, fan fiction and more 😁(there may also be just a little obsessing over our fabulous leads - pictures extremely welcome)!

If you haven’t yet seen Our Flag Means Death, what are you waiting for? Go watch it (on BBC iPlayer), then come back here and join us. But be warned, some of you may find yourself as hooked as we are 🎣.

You may have heard that this is a comedy about pirates and think it's not for you. But it’s actually a show about self-discovery, healing and found-family with a love story at its heart. The joint leads are both damaged by abusive backgrounds and want what the other has. The show is about their healing and their respective journeys. It’s tender, romantic, funny, emotionally intelligent and utterly refreshing. It subverts genre expectations. There is comedy, absurdity and a good amount of heartbreak and despair - sometimes in the same scene! The acting is outstanding (Taika Waititi and Rhys Darby especially). But the writing, music, costumes, sets, the sheer attention to detail – for a show with only 18 half-hour episodes it is still keeping us talking, two full threads and many re-watches later.

If you think this might appeal, do watch it and come back and talk to us. It would be lovely if more were to join our crew. But it's a show that needs time. The 2nd lead arrives in episode 3, so you need to give it at least 4 episodes as that’s when the tone changes and the main story starts. It still took me several more episodes to fully appreciate what I was watching, but by then I was hooked and had to immediately watch it all over again. If you like Good Omens, What We Do in the Shadows, Ghosts or even Bridgerton, this might be the show for you.

(I’ve kept this spoiler free, but if you scroll down you will no doubt find many, so beware!)

Thread 1: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/telly_addicts/5008593-our-flag-means-death-its-utterly-brilliant-and-i-am-obsessed?reply=135294204
Thread 2 : https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/telly_addicts/5076581-our-flag-means-death-thread-2-still-utterly-brilliant-and-we-are-still-obsessed?reply=136060611

I’ll play. What have I got to do?

Me too.

Having suggested the idea in the first place, I have forgotten how they work a bit. But if I say teal and 4, does that get me started?

I’ll do you first @Phineyj as you’ve been so efficient

T-E-A-L
1-2-3-4

choices:

3 reasons to live
40 x 10 orange glaze cake (stab me)
7 sugars (can we take this slow)
9 crew of the Revenge (nod of consent)

Do you want 3 reasons to live or try for the other list?

Your choices are:
1 year, 1717
2 = infinite love (I love you, I love you)
5 kisses
6 months since cancellation 😢 (this is happening)

3 reasons to live
5 kisses

@Phineyj you get one 🤣😉 3 reasons to live…

😍😍😍😍

(‘Having second thoughts?/ ‘No, I’m not’)

Get it, boys!

@BillStickersIsInnocent

We only have two left… which would you like?

Your choices are:
1 year, 1717
2 = infinite love (I love you, I love you)
5 kisses
6 months since cancellation 😢 (this is happening)

😀

@MrsJellybee

5 kisses please!

Ambiguous. 🤞🏻

I am sorry about my handwriting, everyone 🙈

Veeagainst does great dystopian fics. Couple of cool time travel ones too.

I had an exciting time today as I was on duty in my local community library and a dad and his sons came in; they’re regulars and we usually have a long chat about LOTR. This time he mentioned pirates so of course I asked if he’d seen the show. They don’t have a TV but the dad knew about real life Stede! And you can imagine my reaction the 10 y o told me that his favourite pirate is Blackbeard! He asked what he looked like in the show… luckily I have a few screenshots of Ed on my phone 😳The 10 y o told me all about BB lighting fires in his beard and they particularly liked this screenshot. It was so lovely getting the chance to enthuse about Ed and Stede out in the real world and the dad promised to check out the show so hopefully I’ve recruited another crew member.

@lizziesaurusx I saw your post last night, but was dealing with an ill child at the time…

Aww…that’s so lovely you got to chat about our show in real-life. They sound like really interesting people. And to know who Stede Bonnet is! I certainly didn’t. And the boy knowing about Blackbeard’s smoking beard. I love your screenshot choices. I love that one especially, but for probably very different reasons than a 10-year-old. 🥰

I hope the Dad watches the show and you get some more real-life ofmd talk.

If anyone needs a Sunday pick-me-up, I have this video. I put it together a while back from the professional stills found by the fandom in some dusty corner of the inter-webs on 19th May.

Ed & Stede Stills

Most pics in the video are from there, plus some favourites. If I have a spare five minutes, and want the ‘feels’ of the show right now, this is my bite-sized version. It starts very quietly, but watch your ears. And yes, it’s Hans Zimmer.

Would anyone happen to know the name of the show’s professional photographer so I can credit them? Cheers

The stills are here if anyone missed them the first time around
https://foxtelgroup.app.box.com/s/uku9yhox5qy7d281lr7j6te7xmbf8mjr/folder/214946555847

Ooh @MrsJellybee am planning boring lessons (well the process is boring but my lessons are of course moderately engaging...)

It shall be a lovely treat when I've finished!

P.S. that pic of rescue-Ed up thread -- must say if you can look like that while rescuing someone under fire, you have STYLE. Or maybe professional hair and makeup on the job, hmm.

PS. that pic of rescue-Ed up thread -- must say if you can look like that while rescuing someone under fire, you have STYLE. Or maybe professional hair and makeup on the job, hmm. I feel it’s my public duty as an English teacher to point out the very obvious phallic symbolism which I am sure you all missed. 🧐🤔Said gun is later pointed at Stede. Stede freaks and agrees to stab Ed instead. The ‘question’ never arises again, and they both live very happily ever after. 😉

Gosh yes, now you mention it! He is awfully pleased to see him.

See this is why I teach Economics.

Thank you again for that stills video @MrsJellybee . I'm incredibly busy in RL atm so can't get here much, but it was great to watch their story play out like that, with the music. I think your videos are fantastic (especially the Stede one, I have to say 😁).

Thank you @TriceratopsRocks I like sharing the joy that is Stede and Ed. 🥰

Fab video @MrsJellybee! I have never noticed Stede's lovely waistcoat in the 'French toffs' episode before. And phew, Hans Zimmer does love an orchestral crescendo.

It’s a lovely waistcoat. And keeps the teal-theme going for Stede. The clothes in this show are beautiful. I love Stede’s flowery embroidered waistcoat in 1.8. I adore the whole look, including the parasol.

That music. Hans Zimmer had me crying over penguins in 2016. Now I’m crying over pirates.

Thank you and yes they certainly knew far more about pirates than I did before I watched the show - I'd never heard of Stede either and my knowledge of Blackbeard was from when my sons did pirates in about Y6. And they're so enthusiastic about LOTR I thought they might be on the OFMD wavelength - we will see!

I saw this BTS picture recently on twitter - Taika practising his very intense stare.

Your stills video is beautiful - it's so lovely being able to see their story at a pace where there's a chance to concentrate on each image, and the lighting in the stills is so much better than in screenshots. Plus some of the stills seem to be of shots that aren't exactly the same in the actual show - I'm thinking the YWFTW kiss at 4.02, perhaps?

@lizziesaurusx Plus some of the stills seem to be of shots that aren't exactly the same in the actual show - I'm thinking the YWFTW kiss at 4.02, perhaps? Definitely. They’re kissing at a different angle and Ed’s hands are around Stede’s face. I mean, if there is moving image of that I’m going to need to inspect it 🧐 Either there were several takes and the photographer used a final image from an unused take or they staged them. The petrified orange is different too. Ed throws the orange in 1.7 yet we have a lovely still of Ed handing the orange to Stede. And then there’s the second 1.9 beach kiss…

That BTS above… is that ‘I’ve heard all about you?’ That’s straight to camera, I think. You can see poor Rhys on the floor.

If it was theatre there would be live shots from the performance and also staged ones for things that didn't come out so well live.

With Jenkins being a theatre guy, I'm guessing he went for that approach.