Real Story Behind Blackbeard & Stede is So Dark, We'll Never See It in OFMD

The first three episodes of Our Flag Means Death Season 2 have landed on Max, and fans of the surprisingly charming and gripping queer pirate romance are nervously grabbing the edge of their seats watching Rhys Darby's Stede Bonnet aka the Gentleman Pirate and Taika Waititi's Ed Teach aka Blackbeard find their way back to each other.

This shift from comedy to romance is a welcome development for OFMD. Season 2 focuses on the big, beautiful love between Ed and Stede, adding some mermaid aesthetics to the equation and taking the show further and further away from the real-life story.

Yes, the premise of OFMD is based on a true story

Since he has been the inspiration for many fictional characters, it is not news to many viewers that Blackbeard was a real-life pirate. The bizarre story of the Gentleman Pirate, however, is something else entirely.

It may seem like pure fiction, but Stede Bonnet did live in the 18th century and did make a sudden 180-degree turn in his career at the age of 28. He was a wealthy gentleman, a sugar plantation owner, a British army major, a husband and father of four.

But one day, for reasons still unknown to historians, he bought a ship, hired a crew, and went pirating. On his new path he met Ed Teach and the two became allied captains and went on many raids together.

There is no confirmation that Stede and Ed were romantically involved, but it is not entirely impossible. If so, the real love story ended tragically.

The alliance between the Gentleman Pirate and Blackbeard lasted only a few months. Then they had a falling out and parted ways. Before leaving for good, Ed burned Stede's ship and marooned his crew.

After rescuing them, Stede tried to pursue Ed either to reunite with him or to capture him and be pardoned, but quickly gave up.

Unfortunately, both Ed and Stede didn't last long after going their separate ways. Ed was killed by the British Army a few months later and Stede was arrested around the same time and hanged within a month.

Fortunately, this is not what OFMD will show us

By reuniting Stede and Ed in Season 2, showrunner David Jenkins has already emphasized his intention to go the fictional route. Furthermore, in an interview with Inverse, he confirmed that the true ending is not of interest to him.

‘It’s awful. You can’t see that version of it,’ Jenkins said. ‘When we write the show, we’re all fans of the show, so we like the taste of our own cooking in that room.’

Thanks to all the sea gods for that!

Our Flag Means Death Episodes 4 and 5 premiere on Max next Thursday, October 12.

Source: Inverse.