Fannishly, Yours

Stargate Atlantis | Sunday 3x17

Look, I thought this was just going to be a silly little pirate sitcom that I could sit down and binge and move on with my life. But seriously, it’s SO good! 

Now, if you haven’t heard of the show, let me start with the basics. 

This is Stede. 

He used to be a fancy foppish aristocrat. 

Then he left his wife and children to become a pirate. 

Well, a Gentleman Pirate. 

But he’s not really cut out for it and things go south. 

Fast. 

Enter Blackbeard!

(pause to admire the wigmaker who crafted his glorious beard…. and we’re back)

Blackbeard has heard all about Stede and, quite frankly, he’s fascinated. What the hell is a guy like this doing on a pirate ship? 

But the thing is, Blackbeard has been in a bit of a rut himself, and he’s ready to try something new, so they work out a bit of a deal. 

Ed will teach Stede how to be a better pirate

And Stede will teach Blackbeard how to be a gentleman.

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking. 

Gee, this sounds like a silly little pirate show. Maybe I’ll get around to it eventually. 

Or maybe you’ve watched the first couple episodes and thought, “Eh, it’s alright. Kind of funny, but I’ve got limited time here and I’ve got a lot of other stuff to watch.”

But the thing is, this is SO much more than just a silly pirate show. It has hands down the best acting I have ever seen from Taika Watiti. He and Rhys play off each other with the silliness very well, but they also dive into some deep emotional stuff that is just phenomenal. 

Oh, and did I mention that this wasn’t a comedy? It’s actually a Rom-Com between Stede and Blackbeard. 

And no, it’s not subtext. It’s very much text. 

Like… Literally. The show’s writer/creator has spent the last 3 weeks in every interview ever being like, “Hey, did you know that gay pirate marriage is a thing that existed? In actual history? Like they had a word for it and everything. Have you heard about this? If not, you should definitely hear about this, because this is a thing that 100% exists and is absolutely historical and you should all definitely know about for no particular reason.”

Anyway, I won’t spoil anything specific from the episodes because it’s all so wonderfully done, but… yeah. The creator ships it hard and he is fucking delivering with every new episode. 

And that’s not even getting into any of the wonderful side stories with the crew! 

There are multiple queer couples/romances there. Two of the characters create the first ever pyramid scheme. There’s a non-binary character with a amazing backstory and side quest. There’s roommate shenanigans, and… well, just all types of shenanigans really…  

I feel sexy as hell sometimes, and I feel tired as hell sometimes.

Gina Torres for New Beauty, January 2022.