Our Flag Means Death review: A great pirate comedy to binge on – finally

Watching HBO Max’s pirate comedy is easy Our flag means death and immediately enter it as “Taika Waititi’s Latest Project.” Waititi, Director of Thor: RagnarokWhat we do in the shadowsand Hunt for the Wilderpeople, executive producer of the show, co-stars and directed the pilot episode. And this pilot in particular feels particularly close to a version of What we do in the shadows, with pirates instead of vampires. The humor, built around a limp, pretentious wannabe pirate captain and his crew of oddballs and misfits, fits squarely into one of Waititi’s favorite themes: the slightly tragic, often hilarious conflict between the way people imagine themselves, and the way everyone else sees her. Like virtually all of his best humor, it’s utterly deadpan and utterly ridiculous at the same time.

But ultimately, the series is more the vision of creator, showrunner, and writer David Jenkins. And after that build, he’s taking the series in directions that people expecting a Waititi comedy might not expect — directions that make the show authentically memorable and admirable, rather than just the light, throwaway sitcom fun that the first few episodes tease. Waititi is certainly no stranger to heartfelt beats or big drama, but as the show builds throughout its 10-episode season, it comes from a completely different, distinctive, specific voice. For that reason, it might be a good idea to skip the premiere and wait a week before watching, until enough of the series becomes available so you can devour it and get a better idea of ​​why the show is making the investment is really worth.

It’s not like there’s actually nothing wrong with the opening episodes of the series, which introduce “gentleman pirate” Stede Bonnet and his crew and set all the crucial gears in motion. Stede, played by Rhys Darby (a longtime partner of Waititi and leader of the “Werewolves, not Direwolves” wrap up What we do in the shadows), was a true 18th-century plantation owner who abandoned his family, commissioned a ship and declared himself a pirate captain, despite complete inexperience at sea. Darby plays his incompetence to the max: his version of Stede is a sprightly, squeamish, soft-bodied boi clumsy with guns, sails, and orders. He’s more suited to garden parties and top selling than boarding drives or weathering storms, and it’s immediately apparent in everything he says and does.

His crew doubts him at best, but they’re not exactly killer stuff either: the lineup includes cannibalistic nudist buttons (train spotting‘s Ewen Bremner), the apathetic lutist Frenchie (Down in the soil‘s Joel Fry), the taunting jerk John Feeney (game of Thrones‘ Hodor, Kristian Nairn), the lanky Swede (Nat Faxon) and would-be mutineer Black Pete (Matthew Maher). Only the soft-spoken Oluwande (Samson Kayo) and the dumb knife enthusiast Jim (Vico Ortiz) seem competent and able, or at least willing, to tolerate a situation where they get paid regularly and don’t risk their lives on a real ship have to. Battles between ships.

But with so many characters to introduce, the pilot in particular is light and goofy, centered mostly around Stede engaging his reluctant crew in a contest to sew the best pirate flag for the ship. And the prelude doesn’t give much notice to what comes later, when Stede meets legendary pirate Blackbeard (Waititi, in an impressive, outstanding performance). The show follows the broad parameters of Stede’s life to such an extent that his Wikipedia page could be seen as a set of major spoilers. But what’s missing from the history books is what propelled Stede and Blackbeard’s relationship, and that’s what Jenkins wants to fill in with the show. Once this process begins Our flag means death fully finds its footing, its heart, and the drama that underlies all of the wacky characters and straight-forward comic banter.

The show introduces Waititi’s Blackbeard early on, along with early hints of other elements that will be important to the bigger picture, including Stede’s feelings for his wife Mary (Claudia O’Doherty), Jim’s secrets and backstory, and Black Pete’s fanatic hunger for seen as a real pirate. But the pieces don’t fully come together until Episode 4, when Jenkins begins to reveal his greater intentions. Before that, the series is a thoroughly lovable collection of absurd set pieces built around pleasant guest stars like Leslie Jones and Fred Armisen as the bar-owning couple, or Rory Kinnear as the stuffy British marine. There’s a lot of Waititi-style humor, with one type of character being clueless, pompous, and full of their own self-mythologizing, and another type being sloppy, weird, and prone to failing to the top.

However, once setup is complete, Our flag means death something much more tender: a story about identity and friendship, about how difficult it can be for anyone to discover who they really are when being alone and being with other people both have their pitfalls and distractions. Throughout the 10 episodes made available to critics, Jenkins’ series never loses the slapstick angle or lowbrow humor — Bremner proudly runs around bare-bottomed and spits out insults in an almost impenetrable, raised Scottish accent, a gag , which keeps getting bigger throughout the show. But the story finds real resonance when you look at how people romanticize their place in the world and miss the connections they could have made in reality, and how relationships are an ongoing negotiation as people’s needs and wants change people involved constantly change as they grow.

And Darby and Waititi’s performances in particular only get better and more nuanced as the show progresses. In the opening episodes, Stede is a man’s one-note joke, a repetitive piece that begins to scratch early on. That’s no doubt intentional, but his purposeful, intentional superficiality doesn’t make him any less superficial. And Blackbeard also begins more legend than man. However, once the show moves into deeper waters, both men bring so much charm and nuance to these characters that it would be worth watching the series just to see how they interact. Waititi has always been as big a draw on screen as he is behind the camera, but here, as a man showing new layers in every episode, he’s particularly compelling and exciting.

Obviously it is possible to watch the opening episodes of Our flag means death at launch and come back later for more. But there’s so much content these days, and it’s so easy to start a show and then get lost amidst all the other competition — especially something that starts out as episodic and sitcom-esque as this series without it being obvious Secret that makes for an appointment viewing. And with a series that relies so much on turning early gags into later drama and piecing together big emotions from small beginnings, the binge experience is likely to be far more compelling. Maybe give Our flag means death a pass this week. And then don’t miss out if you have a chance to get the full impact.

Episodes 1-3 of Our flag means death are Stream now on HBO Maxwith two new episodes arriving on Thursdays each week.