Favorite Scenes Between...Stede & Zheng
When Stede and Oluwande visit the soup stand in 2x01
Something tickles me about Stede roping in “Susan” (aka Zheng) for his lesson to Olu about having a good attitude—such a dad thing to do, omg! “Sue, if you thought that way, would you have this wonderful soup kiosk?”
And of course, he doesn’t really notice that Zheng doesn’t back up his point. He just sails right past that to, “Sue had tenacity and grit,” hee!
“I also killed someone and stole their kiosk. Sometimes action is better than vision.” I know she’s incognito right now, but line is very Zheng
When Stede admires Zheng’s handling of John Bartholomew in 2x03
One thing I love about Stede is that he’s not afraid to openly praise someone else’s work. As much as he thought he was “overqualified for towels,” he’s now settled in quite well to being the guy who pushes the canape cart and serves the champers. So here, Zheng’s skill is something to revel in, not something he has to downplay for the sake of his own ego as a captain
He’s so cute, gushing, “I'll never forget it. I mean, he was gonna blow his brains out, and then you close the deal! Wow!” When his voice goes high and a little squeaky on “close the deal”? Love it!
In true oblivious Stede fashion, he just plunks a stack of towels down on Zheng’s desk, missing her subtly annoyed look
The dynamic between them here is really good. Stede is fluttering and excited, Zheng cool as a cucumber
I like Stede comparing his own style to Zheng’s, down to giving her the old “talk it through.” There’s some pride in there, yes, pointing out his similarities to the incredible pirate queen. But you can also tell how thrilled he is that Zheng talked John down without violence, and he’s just enthusiastic to know another pirate captain who seems to be taking the same approach as him
Ooh, Zheng maintaining her calm, unruffled manner as she points out to Stede that “there's always the second option” when people can’t talk it through. So good! The way she looks up at Stede and gives him this sweet smile until he realizes what she’s talking about
“Yes! This is a ‘join me or die’ situation. I didn't conquer China by letting people go on and on about their feelings.” Zheng is such an interesting character. It’s always neat to see when she does her sweet placating routine, when she goes steely badass, and when she reveals some of her real vulnerabilities. Here, she slips into steely mode while keeping her sweet demeanor at the start, gradually dropping it as she rolls her eyes about people expressing their feelings
Stede’s reaction to this is good, too. I like how he quiets down, alternately alarmed/thoughtful, then just turns to Oluwande with an uncertain smile—“Mmm, dire”
When Auntie comes in to tell Zheng they’ve found another ship, I love Rhy’s delivery on, “Two in one day, wow!”
When Stede and Zheng talk about Ed in 2x03
Just generally, Stede having a relationship talk with Zheng is so good! It’s maybe a corollary to Ed’s relationship talk with Jackie in 2x07—the two scenes have different dynamics/sensibilities, but I really like both of them!
In his plea for the Kraken crew, I like how Stede appeals to Zheng on their behalf while also being gentle in his explanation about Ed. “Well, they couldn't keep living like that. Ed can be quite…troubled.” He acknowledges that it was a terrible situation all around—he doesn’t blame the crew for what they did, but his description of Ed recognizes Ed’s hurt and pain, rather than going with the “he went mad”/“he was a wild dog” route that Izzy took
“Girl, how are you?” Iconic! Perfection, no notes. Ruibo’s delivery is fabulous
I love the way Stede is trying to process his feelings in real time. “Well, it feels pretty complicated, actually. And bad. It feels bad.” Ohhhhh, Stede!
“I should've just told him how I feel. But I was scared, and now here we are.” It’s so interesting that Zheng is the person Stede is opening up to here. I suppose he knows he can’t go to Lucius anymore, who would’ve normally been one Stede would talk to about things like this. I wonder how well he felt like he got to know “Susan” on the Republic of Pirates, and if that’s why he feels comfortable being so vulnerable in front of her
“I've dated my fair share of guys on wanted posters. They're hot…” Great moment, and I love that little fair point face that Stede makes in response to this!
As Zheng talks about “the wrong people [getting] hurt” re: guys on wanted posters, I like how Stede brings it back around to the Kraken crew. “Maybe we could avoid that happening here”
Gaahhhhhhhh, I adore Zheng’s pout when she says, “I am feeling a little merciful today”
When Stede duels Zheng in 2x07
Obviously a much more contentious scene between them, but the interactions here are fantastic!
“I took her entire crew down with chamomile tea!” Hee! I like that, while Stede is spiraling right now and this is a tense scene, they still fit in these moments of levity
For all that Zheng is a lethal badass, as she’ll demonstrate very shortly, I like how collected she is throughout this confrontation, like calmly remarking, “I'm going to pretend you didn't just touch your sword.” She’s not rolling over, not by any stretch, but she’s also giving Stede every opportunity to walk away from this
Although Zheng’s most provocative moment—her crack about Ed leaving Stede—is definitely designed to sting, she doesn’t realize it’s actually true until she sees Stede’s reaction. Ooh, that slight step forward and the lowered voice on, “Who told you that?”, sooooooo good!
Oh god, the tears glistening in Stede’s eyes when he tells her to draw, paired with Zheng whipping her sword around and taking that badass stance, I love it!
I’m hardly the first to point it out, but it’s neat to see how Stede’s muppety tricks from his duel with Izzy don’t work here, because he’s off-kilter and not being true to himself. Based on this duel, I understand why Zheng would make her “mediocre man who thinks he's exceptional” assessment
Even though it can be painful to watch Stede striking out like this, Rhys’s acting is terrific. I especially like his little “aha!” when he frees his sword after Zheng steps on it, and his wide-eyed “...shit” when he tries to throw a bottle at her and misses
Zheng’s still giving Stede every chance to stop this—during the whole swordfight, she doesn’t do more than toy with him, and outside, it’s, “Say ‘mercy’ and this all ends.” Obviously Stede has plot armor, but compared with how quickly she dispatches Steak Knife, it’s interesting how lenient she’s being with Stede, who did previously embarrass her with the escape from the Red Flag
“Merci…beaucoup!” with the halfhearted dirt throw, oh man…. Stede, buddy, what are we doing?
Ughhhhhh, I just love, “Is this how you plank someone, Stede?! Am I doing it right?” She’s so great
“Now the plank walks you!” Hee!
That shot of Zheng standing there, holding the plank over her head, watching her fleet blow up in the harbor is just… :flails: Amazing acting from Ruibo here, my god!
When Stede comforts Zheng in 2x08
“You could try thanking me, by the way. I did, er, pull you to safety.” “I pulled you to safety.” “Did you? Well, don't wanna split hairs.” Love it! I find it oddly sweet that correcting Stede is the thing that pulls Zheng out of replaying the destruction of her fleet, and Stede’s, “Did you?” has such “I have no memory of that” energy, ha!
I really like how Ruibo portrays Zheng’s numb sense of hopelessness here when she says, “Who cares? I failed. Auntie and my whole crew are dead because of me.” It’s pretty understated, but you can feel it loud and clear
Side note: it strikes me that this is kind of a reverse of their conversation about Ed in 2x03. Zheng is the one opening up here—she’s less forthcoming than Stede is, which is fitting for her character, and the way he responds is different than she did for him
Squeeeeeee, all my love for Stede awkwardly trying to touch Zheng’s shoulder! Her forceful, “Don't touch me, Bonnet,” and his, “Yeah, sorry. I tried to be…it was affectionate, but, er, it was weird. It was weird.” Absolutely perfect! This scene has just the right blend of drama and comedy
Awwww to Stede jumping in to try and save Zheng when the two British soldiers come by and she won’t get up to hide. I love the shot of her sitting there while you can hear Stede valiantly losing a fight with the soldiers offscreen. *punch! punch!* “You’ll regret this!” is especially good
Zheng getting up and matter-of-factly killing the soldiers, followed by Stede’s cheerful, “Well, that went as well as I planned it.” I love them, your honor!
There’s something I really like about Zheng cinching her pigtails as she goes off to find and kill Ricky
When they fight the British on the beach in 2x08
They kind of characterize Stede as the planner/collaborator and Zheng as the fighter/lone wolf here, even though she’s traditionally been strategic and gathering allies. But under the circumstances, where Zheng’s entire fleet has been killed, she feels like she has nothing left to lose. She specifically tells Stede, “I can go die all by myself,” showing the reckless mindset she’s in right now. So it works that Stede is the one urging caution, saying, “We do need to be smart about this”
When Zheng says that Stede’s help is pretty much useless, I like that he immediately retorts, “Oh, I can do things!” Stede is such a fascinating mix of insecurity and self-assurance!
Love, love, love that Stede’s sword is stuck in a British soldier when he sees Ed across the beach, that Zheng kicks the guy to get it unstuck, and that she urges him to go to Ed
Strictly speaking, this is a Stede/Ed interaction, but it’s too good not to count it. When Zheng calls to them and Ed asks who she is, I adore the soft reverence in Stede’s voice as he replies, “Oh, that's Zheng. She's super tough.” Cutting back to Zheng surrounded by British soldiers and shouting, “Fuuuuuuuck!!!” makes it art
When they lead the crew to take on the British in 2x08
a.k.a. the “Road to Moscow” sequence. It’s just a quick moment within the whole (amazing) scene, but Stede and Zheng look cool as hell at the head of the pack, leading the others through the streets of the Republic of Pirates
When Zheng asks Ed to team up in 2x08
I like that Stede is the first one to reply, gently pushing Zheng back with, “Er, maybe give him a moment.” He’s not shutting the idea down entirely, but he recognizes that this isn’t the moment for it
Oh man, you can tell Zheng is calling Stede “a damn fine pirate” practically through gritted teeth, but Stede “Social Cues Extraordinaire” Bonnet is flattered by it
I love, “Really? Anything in particular you like about my skill set?” Hee!
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