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#I need Ed Stede and Zheng teaming up again
portraitofadyke · 7 months
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We are all thinking they’re gonna reunite with revenge and Zheng right?
Because what else would be the point of Izzy’s big ‘you have a family you twat’ speech it Ed and Stede were just going to isolate themselves in an inn (that they’re gonna get tired of in a couple of months btw)
Our biggest fear of them all separating is gone, they teamed up, and now Ed and Stede can have their little ‘normal life’ honeymoon but they definitely gotta come back
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Okay here’s a whole post with my thoughts/theories about how the next two episodes and the finale are going to play out, using BTS footage, reviewer’s comments, and the promo. My attempt at piecing together an entire timeline for the rest of the season, basically. (Though pretty much focused on Ed + Stede’s plot)
Major spoilers, obviously, especially for the finale (though it’s mostly theory, but there’s some very spoilery BTS pictures)
So, starting with episode 6, we’ll be getting either a Pete/Lucius wedding or some kind of party. With the title being “Calypso’s birthday”, I think the party theme and the prior lupete proposal could be a red herring for a wedding, and it could be just a party for the sake of a party. Calypso could be wee John’s drag name, rather than a yet to be named character (and in that sense maybe it’s more along the lines of ‘the birth of calypso’ for the title) Who knows. Anyways. Some kind of party, that we then see interrupted by Ned Lowe, who begins to torture the crew for breaking his record of most ships hit in a day or what have you.
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Now from reviews we’ve been told that Blackbeard is not the one who ultimately saves the crew, and it is in fact stede who steps up and averts a crisis. I think this is what begins stede’s newfound infamy, defeating or at least stopping the torture of his crew from this famous pirate.
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With his open wound, it needs to be cauterized, hence this scene:
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Followed by these two hooking up, with stede having a confidence high, and them just completely giving into their horniness of averting a near-death situation:
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I mean, the wall slam, the next morning half nude bed scene, it’s a given. It’s happening. No doubt. 100% sure of it.
As far as how or why they end up at Spanish Jackie’s, for episode 7, “Man on Fire” I dunno. I think a review summary said they’re just chilling. Not really there with any intent. And with stede’s defeat of Ned and his other stories building him infamy, he has groupies and fans now.
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Which i think begins to build this divide between him and Ed. Being as Ed is probably looking at retiring from the pirate life, and stede is really just starting at it, I think they’re going to come to some kind of impasse by the finale.
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Regardless, before the season began all the reviewers had was up to the 7th episode, and everyone mentioned how it ended on a cliffhanger. And I think the cliffhanger will be this-
Based on the explosions, fire, and mass panic scenes that we have seen from here:
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And here:
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I think prince Ricky will be launching an all out attack on the republic of pirates, probably taking out several of zheng’s ships (likely with those suspicious ass clocks). Here is where stede and Ed will be separated, and the episode will leave us with them apart. (Possibly thinking the other is dead? Though we’ve had a LOT of near deaths this season so. Maybe not)
I think it could be a fight between the two about their diverging paths that separates them, leading to Ed back on the ship and Izzy’s “frowny face” line and him once again being a mediator for Ed and Stede’s relationship
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Part of why I think they’ll be separated is that it’s the only logical reason why they would have a reunion scene in the finale (which is called “Mermen” I believe?)
Where stede looks up to see Ed on the opposite side of the fight:
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Quite possibly this scene, of Ed emerging from the ocean:
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And they fight their way to each other:
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And embrace:
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And save Zheng:
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And team up with her
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Now I get murky on the rest here, but they probably come up with some kind of counter attack plan where they infiltrate Ricky’s/ the English army, and take it down from the inside.
See Ed here in what looks like English army clothes, as well as Frenchie and black Pete on the side in outfits as well, and the other shot of frenchie and Lucius.
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And from this plan, which I do believe succeeds in some regard, we get a ‼️‼️ major character death
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And I think (SPOILER SPOILER SPOLIER‼️) it’s Izzy. He’s the only one not pictured (except for wee john), Jim is giving some kind of eulogy:
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And everyone begins to walk away EXCEPT ed and stede, who remain looking down.
Unfortunately it narratively makes sense as well to have Izzy, who started as a purely selfish character, become someone who would sacrifice himself for his newfound family. PLUS it being a parallel to last season, where he gave them up to the English. I don’t like it, but it does make sense. It hits the hardest, too. And reviews of the finale have said it hits hard emotionally.
As far as how we’ll leave off, I have this feeling that Ed may stay behind and stede may go off to continue pirating. I just don’t see how they can stay together with their warring desires at the moment. But it’s not going to be an end to their relationship, I just think they’re going to try to both do their own thing. To have them choose to be apart yet together, instead of forcibly apart like where we ended last season, it just feels like something David would do. And it really would show them being secure in their relationship, allowing them to develop themselves outside of each other and come into their own on their own terms.
This scene in particular makes me feel like this is them talking about Ed staying, and possibly even fixing up this house for them while Stede goes out to pirate.
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Ed is stede’s lighthouse to come back to. I’m seeing fuckin parallels to pirates of the Caribbean with Elizabeth and will. Maybe we’ll get stede choosing Ed over piracy, especially with the end of the golden age of piracy looming, and his desire to build a life together instead of building his reputation but. That’s just my wishful thinking.
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iamadequate1717 · 6 months
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OFMD S3 (Manifesting!)
I think we've all seen Casey Bloys' comments on an OFMD S3:
“What’s a little bit different in a linear world than here is… how a show performs over a longer period of time than three weeks or something,” Bloys stated. “So we’re figuring out how it’s doing, what it’s looking like.”
My reaction:
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Really, HBO? HBO, after running one of the worst, most spoilery, most front loaded marketing campaigns I have ever seen, wants to talk about the long term?
The question that was driving everyone feral for an S2 was, will Stede and Ed find each other again? HBO/MAX put their first face-to-face meeting in the trailer. Why watch the show when the marketing will just toss a greatest hits reel out to the public before the episode even releases?
The showstopping set piece of 2x3 (MerStede rescuing Ed) was spoiled in their "marketing" since they released the concept art for MerStede days before the episode aired in a BTS video.
Let's look at the finale:
The beach kisses and the inn were spoiled in BTS videos released days before the episode was released after putting a week between 2x7 and 2x8 releases. Yeah, yeah, they didn't show the kisses exactly, but what else would that pose be for? It really enforced that 2x7 and 2x8 should have been released together, but HBO/MAX choose to create a cliffhanger while immediately posting the resolution in their marketing
Ed thinking Stede was dead was spoiled by the episode promo
Ed and Stede running toward one another on the beach was spoiled by the trailer. (It didn't show them in frame together, but it was obviously the same location and the direction they were going in matched.)
Ed reading one of Stede's letters was spoiled by marketing a few days before the finale release for no discernable reason
Izzy's climatic speech to Ricky (and that he was saying it to Ricky!) was spoiled in the trailer. It could have been a good hype VO, and they didn't need to spoil whom Izzy was talking to
The crew in the British garb and taking out soldiers was in the trailer. This plot begins nine minutes before the credits start.
The Revenge Crew working with Spanish Jackie and Zheng at some point was well spoiled beforehand in their BTS promo material. Zheng saying they should team up is three minutes before the credits start.
(Has anyone seen this amount of BTS material of episodes, including the season climax, released before an episode releases instead of after? Just holding this BTS material until after seems like a no-brainer to extending a show's interest after the finale is released.)
The reason the pacing felt super "off" on your first watch is because HBO/MAX already released a bulleted run through of the episode beforehand, and you were mentally ticking it off as you went instead of watching it organically. Watching it a second time really improves the flow of the episode.
This is a show whose popularity was raised created entirely through word-of-mouth excitement. The greediness of these streaming companies is why we couldn't have the actors doing promo, but then they took away the show's next most powerful tool, the word-of-mouth discussion, by releasing large swathes of the climax of the season before it aired, and the social media hype and discussion was front loaded to before release instead of after.
S3 was set up to show Ed and Stede as a solid couple and to show the pirate community against the British, and the season climax of these two points was released by HBO/MAX before the episode, and it was excitedly discussed then. Now, a week after release, we're stuck in some horrible gravy basket of discussing the part of the last five-ten minutes that HBO/MAX didn't outright spoil (though they tried their hardest with the grave promo stills and Ed's bloody hand in the promo!): Izzy's death. No one is having fun!
There is a lot of story setup for an S3 but DJenks and company had to set up a season that could double as a series finale in a pinch, so we also lost the "What happens next??" fervor because HBO/MAX wouldn't greenlight two seasons at once of their biggest new IP of 2022. The bizarre marketing strategy didn't lend itself to a long term success, and it's up to the fans once again to do HBO/MAX's job for them.
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I agree with all your takes on omfd season 2... wasn't all that a laugh and a half :/ do you have any thoughts on a prospective (?) season 3?
Oh yeah lmao, the writers were definitely having a laff, unlike me 😭😭😭
When it comes to season 3:
• I can't imagine or accept a situation in which Izzy is not there in the flesh. Not after a season that specifically introduced the concept of magic and the gravy basket. I don't want him to be a ghost or a vision of guilt-ridden characters. I want my boy back, in the flesh, to pester everyone around him and to finally have his hot girl summer ‼️‼️‼️
• as much as even after the first 3 eps of s2 I could potentially see Steddyhands happening, all of that kinda went to shit in my eyes after they killed Izzy off.
• After everything that happened I can't and don't want to imagine Ed and Izzy reconciling enough to get involved with each other romantically.
• I can see Izzy with Stede tho. I'd actually like that quite a lot.
• at this point I'm not a Blackbonnet girlie (gn) by any stretch, and well, I can't imagine myself enjoying a potential season 3 if all it has to offer will be more drama between those two
• knowing them both, I think they will be making genuine attempts at running an inn for half an episode. And I'm being generous
• also, I can't imagine a season 3 that has Zheng just. Hanging out on the Revenge. Making out with Oluwande. And not even attempting to rebuild her pirate empire. I need my girl cunning and powerful with a fleet to show for it. I think that what they did to her by the end of the season was a shit writing decision. Was her losing her entire fleet... Supposed to humble her? To teach her a lesson? What lesson? That it's not things but people that really matter? It's kind of a weak message, especially for this character. And the execution of it was just. Plain bad lmao. Her talk with Auntie by the end was cute, yes, but it came so out of the blue tbh. If it has been established earlier on that maybe Zheng feels insecure sometimes and would like for Auntie specifically to tell her she's proud of her, that would make more sense. But this way it was kinda. It didn't have the punch it should've had.
• also sidenote: Zheng deciding to team up with Stede (even if it was mostly because Ed was also there) doesn't reflect well on him... It reflects badly on her. My girl deserves allies as powerful as her and Stede is simply not that.
• I want more crew shenanigans. And more backstory for every crew member!!!
• I can imagine a version of the story in which Stede and Ed break up and just don't get back together again by the end. It's so beautiful here. Hold my hand
• also sidenote, but has Jim just completely given up on taking their revenge on the Siete Gallos? I think it would've been fun to revisit that storyline
• also - WHAT HAPPENED TO JIM'S BROTHER
• honestly - after the shitshow that was season 2, I can't think of an actual potential way that the story could end. And tbh I don't think the writers do, either. I do have ideas, but they're mine and not the writers' of the show, and thus not very likely to actually happen.
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saltpepperbeard · 7 months
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WAAAAAAGHHG HEY ITS ME AGAIN IM SO SORRY I HAVE A THOUGHT AND DONT KNOW WHO ELSE TO GIVE IT TO: Im going to try really hard to be quick!! Still reeling from ep 8!!! (I have so many thoughts and emotions- tldr I know it struggled with pacing but I just really loved it. I’m so glad this show exists. Not going to recover anytime soon!! Excellent.)
I think the ending is a great setup for what could be coming next! Looking back at this season as a whole it feels to me like they had two major points they zeroed in on: 1- Edward’s state of mind. We spend a lot of time with him when no one else is- we’re with him in his head while he tries to process what he wants and how he’s going to get it. We see him wrestle with feeling unlovable, and then we sort of sit with him in his pov while he starts, (STARTS!! He’s not done yet!!) to understand that he IS loved and there ARE people waiting for him. 2- The Golden Age of piracy is ending. They lost The Republic of Pirates, they lost Spanish Jackie’s bar, Zhengs fleet, and they lost Izzy, the most pirate to ever pirate. After the couple of weeks(??) season two takes place- the OFMD cinematic universe is going to be different for pirates now.
ALL THAT TO SAY- after Izzy’s funeral, (rip king I sobbed lol) when Zheng asks Ed and Stede to team up- Stede says something like, “He needs a minute”/“Maybe give him a minute”. So they agree to help- but they stay behind to build their inn. (“It’s a fixer upper, but the bones are good.” ITS THEM ITS THEM THEYRE EACHOTHERS FOUNDATIONS THEY JUST HAVE TO BUILD ONTO IT TO MAKE IT A HOME IM GOING TO TURN TO ASH) this is a decision both of them make- this will give them time to just be. I think Ed still has a ways to go, and talks to have, and maybe needs some time to grieve Izzy, but Stede is there, and they love eachother, and they will be ok. Shit will still go down, and they’ll get involved again eventually, but they’re going to take a minute. NOW. That wraps up this season as a part two of a Three part show- we have a setup for the next big bad, and we’ve focused a lot on Ed (accompanied by Stede’s) issues/insecurities with a focus on Ed having to deal with his issues directly. He had to sit and talk, honestly talk. Do you know. Which half of our main pair. Has not done that?? The guy who the show still deliberately makes a point of showing us he is STILL. NOT OK. Granted, he had the end of season one to realize what he wanted and what he felt, but then we had so many moments this season of him reacting to those feelings but not actually talking about them to anyone. SO. What if the last season is meant to be point 2 revisited- piracy is still ending, the world is changing so how do we deal? And point 1, but FLIPPED. WHAT IF. Season three is Stede’s turn revisited??? Season three with Ed AND Stede TALKING and Stede genuinely coming to terms with the fact that the people he loves are not better off without him- that he doesn’t have to earn the love he thinks he doesn’t deserve?? What if he gets to take that final step into a new world where being a pirate can’t be the same as it was before, but that spirit carries on and now he knows he’s loved and has worth regardless?? I STILL WANT THAT MAN TO BE THROWN IN THE EMOTIONAL BATHTUB IS WHAT IM SAYING. I don’t know if this is anything, or if this is true or accurate!!! Do I just want to see them kiss and cry some more?? MAYBE. Aaaaagh I just really hope djenks gets to made season 3- he deserves to finish his pirate story and I would very much like to be here when he does. hbo max count your days.
Also I once again want to thank you for your thoughts and screams over the course of this season- you really are incredible at character analysis and it’s been an absolute pleasure to come running over to this corner after each episode to see what you think. Thank you for posting. YOU. are WONDERFUL THANK YOU <3 <3 (also. Also also. THEY KISSED SO MANY TIMES ED READ STEDES FUCKIN LETTER ED SAID I LOVE YOU AND THEY ARE NO LONGER SEPARATED. MARRIAGE. I CANT BELIEVE THIS SHOW IS THE WAY IT IS. There is still an owch but!!! It’s a good owchie now 😭😭)
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I AM ONCE AGAIN HONORED TO GET SUCH A BEAUTIFUL STRING OF THOUGHTS IN MY INBOX??? <3
PARTICULARLY EXCITED, HAPPY, POSITIVE ONES SJDKSDS LIKE I AM HUGGING YOU SO SO TIGHT <3 <3 <3
AND ALSO, I'M SHARING SO MANY OF YOUR SENTIMENTS TOO SDJKJSHDKLS LIKE-
*INHALES* So seeing the little house in the BTS footage ~*~fucked me up~*~ because I just had a FEELING it was going to be both literal and symbolic for them and their relationship. A little house that's struggling, and falling apart in some places, but is still standing after years and years of battering. It's been through the wringer, yet it still flourishes with so much life and beauty. And it has the potential to grow into something even more beautiful and strong with some mutual effort and tender love and care.
AND THAT'S THEM!!! THAT'S THEIR RELATIONSHIP!!! Like, as you said, they're BOTH still so hurt. They BOTH still have issues to work on. But now they're there, together. They're standing on the same, rickety, wooded floors. They're there, ready to patch things, side by side.
AND YES, I've very much thought it was going to be Stede for Season 1's focus, Ed for Season 2's focus, and then both of them for Season 3's focus, but I do like your idea of it looping back around to Stede! Or maybe like, SHARING the focus. Because, as you said, Stede needs his fRIGGIN BATHTUB, and Ed still needs time to figure out who he is.
It's just such a delicious setup indeed, and I am crossing my fingers so so hard that it gets greenlit quickly for us here. There's just so much MEAT to their dynamic that's still left, still so much to be EXPLORED AND GROWN. AND ESPECIALLY, LIKE YOU SAID, WITH THEIR WORLD COMPLETELY CHANGING AROUND THEM TOO!!! THE BRITISH!!! THE REVENGE BEING CAPTAINED BY FRENCHIE!!!! ZHENG AND AUNTIE WANTING TO GET AT RICKY!!!!!! SO SO MUCH!!!!!!!
BUT anyway, thank YOU so much for taking the time to come in here and share YOUR thoughts, too! It's been such a delight reading them, and I'm so glad we could MUTUALLY SCREAM SDJKSDKLS <3
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ragingstillness · 7 months
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Ok so I just finished the episodes and by a cruel twist of fate I once again have to work in the morning so here’s my quick thoughts:
Calypso’s bday was clearly a pride celebration and I love that for them
I actually picked up on it surprisingly fast, like literally when Frenchie left the galley to go prepare for the party
Izzy’s voice is of course always tops, we knew Con could sing but man he really belted it this episode
Ned Low is a dick and deserved what he got
I now stan Hellcat Maggie
Not surprised murder turns Stede on, frankly it was smtg I was always expecting
While their previous two kisses have been sweet and romantic I was happy to see one with some passion
Izzy, Jim, and Wee John in drag mean everything to me
Poor Roach, he seemed to be enjoying his torture
Wish we’d seen whatever torture there was that “turned Izzy on” lol
Can confirm, people who play violin are assholes (source: I am a violinist) /jk
Ngl the episode felt a tiny bit rushed idk if that was just me
Ricky’s a dick and his speech immediately made me think of a gay priest who is denying himself and condemning homosexuality (for which specific priest, just take your pick there are a lot of them)
As much as I like Ed trying to encourage Stede not to “kill in cold blood” I think that ship has totally sailed on both their parts. Even if you don’t claim Stede’s killing of the Badmintons as “cold blood” he did totally set that ship of French aristocrats on fire
I like that the show’s acknowledging that jumping right into sex especially after trauma is not necessarily a good idea no matter how much some part of my shipper heart is like ugh why are they fighting again let them be happy
The second episode in particular Stede spends kind of acting like a dick and knowing Djenks and his team this is on purpose but it’s still unpleasant to watch
I feel like Stede’s fallen into the trap of now that he’s back with Ed he thinks everything is going to be fine and he’s turned Ed into this idealized figure again and is ignoring the actual things that Ed says
That being said, I do agree with him that Ed is being a coward by running off to become a fisherman as if he wasn’t a bloodthirsty pirate who still hasn’t made up for his actions to the crew.
Ed becoming a fisherman is clearly a “I was happy fishing for the first time in a long time I want to hold onto that feeling” decision
Essentially both Ed and Stede are running from their faults and pasts and I think they need to talk it out
Ed seems to be trying to say to Stede that he wants to have time to love himself before falling headlong into a relationship but he missed the mark a bit
Izzy briefly plays Lucius’ role in congratulating them on sleeping together and giving Stede advise
It fits him like an over large suit but I understand they needed a character to fill that role and Lucius has his own plotline now
I do think Izzy is being remarkably calm and that might not last, he’s probably bottling it up
Has the Jim/Olu/Archie polycule expanded to include Zheng? I’m so confused by it all. I don’t disapprove in any way I just feel like some of the relationships in that square are qpps and some are romantic and I can’t really nail down which is which
Fang and Roach bonding I kind of ship them a little
The Paper-azzi hysterical
Jackie’s new outfit: yes queen
The Swede’s new look: bitchin’
I feel like most of the cast have gotten hotter over the season. Shows what a few modifications in costuming can do (note, I said in costuming not in body or face or anything I’m not shaming anyone)
At one point I straight up thought Izzy was a ghost the way he kept popping up near Stede and Ed and giving commentary, idk if that was intentional
Izzy is still dealing with his alcoholism and I’m glad they didn’t pretend that���d be solved in a few days
RIP Ed’s leathers, you were hot
I knew there was smtg up with those clocks but I thought there was some sort of secret message in them not that they’d explode. That might be just because I considered it an anachronism. The earliest I can find evidence of a time bomb with a little googling is 1776 but that may be wrong
Who was firing on the republic? Was it Ricky or did the bombs somehow set off the canons on Zheng’s ships?
Stede deserved the beat down he got he was being a misogynistic dick
Also, it’s about time Stede detached from Ed long enough to realize that he hasn’t spent enough quality time with his crew to get them to stay with him when there are other options
Not surprised Ed didn’t kill Ned Low but a little surprised Izzy didn’t, as Izzy’s canonically killed everyone Ed couldn’t
Izzy mentioning how Ed shot him when he told him he loved him and Stede responding as if he’d heard that before I would have loved to see that scene
In general these two episodes felt a little rushed but idk if I’m perceiving that correctly I’m too tired
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spaceshipkat · 7 months
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my point is dolphins i’m waving away my original theory about the season’s ending, wherein Stede and Ed will be separated in some way/shape/form (though it could still happen! this show is unpredictable). no, i fully expect this upcoming conflict with Ricky (and i’m sure someone will tell Ed about his connection with Stede, or how else will Ed learn he needs to return to save Stede) to be what pushes Ed and Stede back together and into season 3, given we have that preview of Ed running onto the beach, he and Stede cuddling up in a reunion, and then Zheng asking for help while she takes on six people at once. then we have that preview where she suggests a team-up, likely to get revenge on Ricky and/or save the Republic of Pirates from falling, and finally that moment of Ed, Stede, and Zheng sharing a drink on a sand dune after all’s said and done.
and going into season 3, one thing i find interesting and compelling is the idea presented with Stede’s fight against Zheng. he was trying to be someone he isn’t—trying to fight in a way that isn’t him while stinging from Ed’s rejection and high on his own sense of self and temporary infamy. but what Stede doesn’t seem to realize is that Ed didn’t fall for the big, brawny pirate who killed Ned Low. he fell for Stede with his fine fabrics and best brandy. like Mary Read said, the artsy guy is Ed’s type, which is exactly what Stede is, and i do think there needs to be a conversation in which Ed tells Stede why he’s into him, the same way there was for Ed in ep4 (i’ll say it again: communication! before! fornication!). until then, i’m sure Stede will continue to believe he needs to be The Pirate.
so in season 3, i think this recent rise in Stede’s sense of being The Pirate is going to be a hard lesson he has to (un)learn, since being The Pirate (being like Blackbeard) is all he’s wanted (or so he thinks). but he can’t change who he is at heart and expect to keep the people who were drawn to him for him, not the fictitious idea of what being a pirate means in Stede’s mind—the Kraken was the quintessential pirate, and the crew wanted nothing to do with him. the crew of the Revenge came back to Stede and stayed with him because he is a good person at heart; they’re not here bc he killed Ned Low, unlike Stede’s groupies. and Stede trying to force them to stay, rather than asking them to (just as Zheng asked if they wanted to join her), isn’t going to help matters any.
Stede may have helped Ned Low’s crew talk it through and recognize what they want isn’t what Ned Low offers, but i don’t think Stede has turned that lesson upon himself yet. or at the very least, he hasn’t made the connection that you’re more likely to keep people around by being who you are, not someone you aren’t. molding yourself into another person isn’t the way to happiness (just as Ed is gonna learn, i’m sure, while he tries to become a fisherman away from Stede). he’s still trying to be The Pirate, still trying to be like Blackbeard. whether or not he knows it, piracy may still be a whim to Stede.
does this even make sense idk i’m posting and peacing out to be an adult with responsibilities
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