so a lot has been said about Edward Teach vs Blackbeard vs The Kraken and how much we see of each and what it means and I wanna work on it from a kinda offshoot perspective. So Im gonna do my examination of Blackbeard through a wrestling lens, that of kayfabe and how persona and person are both strongly delineated and blurred definitions.

First off, definitions. Kayfabe is a wrestling term that is “the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships...as being genuine and not staged. The term kayfabe has evolved to also become a code word of sorts for maintaining this "reality" within the direct or indirect presence of the general public”.

Lets first break down that first sentence in terms of how some of that is already present for the pirates we have. Now, pirating is very much real in ofmd. It is a real thing with life or death stakes and it isnt so much a job position as it is a lifestyle that many do not choose willingly. Izzy shows how ‘proper’ pirating is done. He facilitates rivalries (A personal one with Lucius and a general one with the crew of the Revenge), he has established connections (first mate of Blackbeard, Fang and Ivan as his semi-cronies, a working relationship with Spanish Jackie), and he maintains competitions to establish who is a proper pirate (the literal duel with Stede, and an ideological one with Stede over how pirating works). Its all very serious for Izzy, and one of the things he holds prime concern for as upholding the authenticity of piracy is the maintenance of Blackbeard.

Blackbeard is Ed’s pirate persona. Blackbeard is a catchy name Ed gave himself. Blackbeard is associated with a specific look (his leather getup). Blackbeard, and specifically the name Blackbeard, has a reputation that proceeds him and his prowess at piracy is unchallenged. Hes the best fighter, the most violent pirate of the seas, and every other pirate wants to be him.

The problem for Ed is that unlike for Izzy, pirating doesnt feel real anymore. Its a farce, a job obligation, something that has now become monotonous and boring. In a professional sense, Ed isnt putting any effort to work on the story of Blackbeard. Hes tired of doing plans over and over and he lets the Blackbeard name carry him through interactions (seen best in how just mentioning his name is what causes Spanish Jackie to spare Stede). When that isnt going to be enough though, he does show off how he is the best pirate. But its not out and out violence that Ed actually excels at. What Ed is great at is pulling off Fuckeries.

Fuckeries and maintaining kayfabe (aka maintaining the Blackbeard character publicly) are the two main ways that Ed still upholds piracy and his own reputation. This is going into the second sentence in that definition, one that Ed still cares about. Fuckeries are always meant as highly public affairs, usually against his enemies but also used on his allies to impress them. The end goal is always to make people think of how amazing and smart and impressive Blackbeard is for having done this cool feat, and how no one else can match him. The direct examples are the lighthouse fuckery and the fog/disappearing act fuckery. Another public incident of maintaining his persona is his whole embarrassment at the treasure hunt, not wanting Blackbeard to be seen by normal people doing this silly activity, as it would damage his reputation.

The very end of the definition for kayfabe is where Ed and Blackbeard become a lot more messy. “maintaining [Blackbeard] within the direct or indirect presence of the general public” has been Ed’s modus operandi for the majority of his life. While he see how he interacts with a direct public interactions, we also get a good look at what the indirect presence of the public does to him. Seeing his depiction in the books is an example. He hates it, even though he was somewhat responsible for making that depiction. Ed is tired that Blackbeard became a legend where “theres no life” anymore in using that persona. But he still likes having elements of Blackbeard in his life.

Theres a saying that the best wrestling characters are just exaggerated versions of the real person. This holds very well with Ed, as Blackbeard is an exaggeration of Ed’s actual anger, curiosity, and intelligence. Blackbeard conducts raids and “loves a good maim”. Blackbeards curiosity is what pushes him to try different tactics than that of his peers, and using both elements he turns those abilities into fuckeries. Fuckeries are not only a Blackbeard staple, their his main way of establishing himself as a good pirate.

We know that Blackbeard isnt always a reliable fallback though. He cant win every fight (as seen in the party with the french), and even in his fuckeries his knowledge isnt going to be air tight (mixing up the days before the lighthouse fuckery). These are the points where Ed leans too hard on the persona, and things start to fall apart for him. The thing about being the top guy is that your all alone, and Ed is only been able to realize very recently that he might have a much better time of it if he got to connect with others.