Our Flag Means Deathhas just wrapped up its sophomore season , and it ’s clip to say goodbye to our favorite pirates for , well , at least another class . cyclosis overhaul MAX has n’t regenerate theworkplace comedy / action - adventure show for a third time of year , but if the numbers are anything to go by , they would be dopey not to start talking about it .
David Jenkins , the author / creator and sometime director ofOur Flag Means expiry , did a conclusion postmortem interview with io9 , and we talk ending , plagiarism , and how comic actor and serious actors mesh . A quick warning , this interview is literally about the last installment of Our Flag have in mind last , and contains pillager . Proceed with caution .
So , here ’s the thing ; Jenkins and I have spoken a few multiplication about Our Flag think of Death . He knows that I adore this show . He also knows that I adore Izzy Hands ( Con O’Neill ) , the beleaguered first checkmate and jilted devotee of the cardinal duet of Blackbeard ( Taika Waititi ) and Stede Bonnet ( Rhys Darby ) . He has also been keeping a secret from me for month : In this last instalment of season 2 , Izzy Hands die .
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
“ Are you mad at me ? ” Jenkins ask , almost mournful as we said our ‘ Hello ’s under the auspice of the designated MAX Commonwealth of Puerto Rico person . “ Oh , well . I ’m not really mad at you , but I am disappointed , ” I responded . “ I think I ’m sad at you . ” This , he say , is worse .
At the end of the season , Izzy Hands snuff it in Blackbeard ’s arms , giving Blackbeard permission not only to “ be himself ” but to impart piracy behind for commodity . It occur in the variety of cruelly random way that people often cash in one’s chips in this genre of activity / risky venture stories . That did n’t make it any easier though . And at the end of the season , Blackbeard ’s inability to save Izzy intend that there was simply no more reason for him to be a pirate any longer . Who was he doing it for ? What more did he have to show ?
Regardless of the narration grounds why Izzy Hands died , I was lay waste to . Did it make sense in the context of the show ? Yes . Was it a deeply moving and incredibly well - acted consequence ? Also yes . Was his death made all the more affective because of how Izzy had been ingratiate , accepted , commit , and even , at points , loved by his gang ? utterly . So , of line I teared up a little .
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
Jenkins look slightly sorry himself , saying that “ spectre be in this world . ” I told him not to make promise he could n’t keep . At this point such a comment feels like it was made to make me , in person , feel better . I ’m not sure Izzy could make a homecoming at some point , nothing is sealed about Our flagstone think Death ’s future right now . It almost feels like Jenkins feel defective that he made me deplorable . I do n’t be intimate if he realizes how sad he ’s going to make a lot of people .
This is n’t going to be an consultation totally about Izzy Hands , but he ’s a big part of it — after all , his end is arguably one of the show ’s enceinte blow yet . Looking back at Izzy ’s electric discharge over the two time of year , Jenkins said that he does n’t see Izzy as a pure antagonist in season one because on some layer … Izzy was right in his hesitations about Stede . “ His chief is falling for this frenzied pixie dream young woman , and he ’s perplex to keep his political boss secure because that ’s his job , ” Jenkins explains . “ And then he has to get this ship to operate like a normal ship would run . And they ’re all looney . So he ’s stupefy the high-risk mediate direction situation . And on top of that , his gaffer is a lunatic . ”
Towards the end of season one , Izzy does have a turn aside from ‘ reasonably upset at Blackbeard ’ to ‘ serious incompatible force ’ . But when he gets what he wanted – Blackbeard back to fabled form – it does n’t really puzzle out out . “ Be careful what you ask your God for , because you just might get it , ” Jenkins warned . “ Izzy get it and it turn on him . That toxic family relationship that he wished were all his , becomes all his … he ’s crushed by it , and both he and Blackbeard both have to reconstruct themselves . ”
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
In Izzy ’s type , the rebuilding is quite actual – his leg is cut off and replaced with a wooden prosthetic , carve from the unicorn figurehead of the Revenge . After this , he has to go through a transformation , Jenkins said he has to ask himself “ What am I going to do with myself ? You know , who am I going to be ? After [ the crew ] makes him the Unicorn stage , I think he kind of sees like , ‘ oh , this work party cares for me ’ . And I do n’t believe he ’s ever find wish for in that path . ”
This season also saw a set of Izzy interact with Stede , often in more fun situations than the snipe back and forward in the first season . When asked about how Con O’Neill and Rhys Darby got along on set , Jenkins just laughed . “ I really love building a show with really laughable actor and then really serious actor . And the amusing multitude are commonly scared of the literal serious people . And the real serious people are scared of the funny people . They terrify each other . ”
For those that might not know , Darby is a stand up comic and has been in many of Waititi ’s darkly comic films . O’Neill , on the other hand , has been take striking role since his twenties , and has recently appear in productions like The Batman and Chernobyl . “ I reckon from the kickoff people saw Con and were like , ‘ Oh , man , I got to be like , really have to be in my secret plan ’ , ” Jenkins said , imitating Taika Waititi ’s lilting Kiwi accent . “ And then Con was like , ‘ Oh , I do n’t know what he ’s doing , he saying I should just watch along with the improvisations ’ — ” again , copy O’Neill ’s raspy drawl . “ And then they ’re both so good that by the end of the season they ’re not frighten each other as much . But that esteem remains , and I believe that was very much honest between Rhys and Con . ”
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
The decision to have Izzy die was n’t one that Jenkins take lightly . “ It was hard . It was hard to pour down off Izzy . It was gruelling to secernate Con that he was conk out to die . And he was so lovely about it . But , at the same clip , he took it firmly , ” Jenkins said . “ Like this matter we built together is croak to die . It ’s one matter to indite it , it ’s another thing to produce it , and to see Con carry that knowledge through the episodes , know what was go to happen to that character . Con take it really severely . ”
Jenkins also thinks that Izzy was able to say exactly what he require to at the end of the show . “ I opine he give his own eulogy . It ’s about belonging to something . And that we do this for each other , you bang ? He came to catch plagiarization as a matter we do for one another . And being on a crew is something you do for each other … he gets to a billet where he finally see that it works because everybody is help each other . Everybody like for each other , and there needs to be some structure , but for him , it became less about authority and more about belonging to something . ”
The final guesswork of the season is actually Izzy ’s grave , outdoors of Ed and Stede ’s bungalow . “ I think him being buried near them is a endearing image , ” he aver . “ And there ’s a grounds that that fall out . I reckon they both were deplorable to see their admirer go . And I think they ’re both thinking , ‘ let ’s make this oeuvre not just for us , but in memory of Izzy ’ . ”
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
One of the prevalent rumors about Our flagstone Means Death this season was that it was originally supposed to be 10 installment rather than 8 . But Jenkins says no ; it was always going to be 8 . They were looking for ways to cut budget , and moving the production to New Zealand and contract down the episode really helped with the bottom melody , as well as being better for the cast and crew . “ It look at so much to make one episode happen . Every section is string out by the clip you get to the end of the season , ” he explained .
“ The narrative of Stede and Blackbeard is a three - time of year narrative , ” Jenkins said , looking ahead to where the show could go from here . When asked if the ending of time of year two – Frenchie taking over as Captain of the Revenge , Stede and Ed in a shack on the beach , preparing to open their inn , and Izzy Hands entomb in front of their home – was a variety of “ safeguard ” in case the serial did n’t get that third season , Jenkins shrugged . “ In a way , ” he say . “ The first season end on such a sedative , so it made signified to end the 2d season in a kinder spot . ”
But he say that he “ still has interrogative ” about what find next . The Republic of Pirates has been destroyed , Izzy ’s grampus is still out there , and does Frenchie have what it train to captain a plagiarist crew ? Our Flag Means Death is not a complete history yet . “ I think there ’s plenitude of floor left for season three , but I conceive that it was important to end this as if it was the end of the show , and on cheerful note and fend off the kind of “ toss off your gays ” image . I do n’t want to see Stede and Ed punished for give it a go . I want to see them really say , ‘ yeah , we ’re going to we ’re going to render to have a family relationship ’ . ”
Image: Nicola Dove/Max
When ask how he would approach the third time of year , Jenkins think about it for a few second before answering . “ I would very much like to see pirate ship come in to America . Historically , they were in New York City and the Carolinas . And now , in the tarradiddle , the Republic of Pirates is pass away … I think that account about piracy are a little bit like stories about the West . They ’re tarradiddle about these things that are break down to end necessarily , ” he say this deplorably , like the inevitableness comes from looking back on the past times and thinking the present tense could n’t get out any other way . It ’s a minute of a encomium . “ In some way , I guess then seeing them have to deal with some of these things in a country that ’s coming together would be good . And I think it would be a dependable fashion to end the season , and see how they adapt to it . ”
The final scenery with Izzy and Blackbeard is fabulously , urgently sad , and clearly expect a lot from both O’Neill and Waititi in the import . “ When Izzy snuff it , I said , ‘ Would you care to play music on solidifying ? ’ ” Jenkins come back . “ He exit ‘ Yeah ’ . And so I made an Izzy Death playlist and put it on during the takes . ”
This is the second prison term I have been teased with an Our Flag mean Death play list . The first prison term was frommusic executive program Maggie Phillipsafter the first season had ended . I had to involve for this playlist , but Jenkins did n’t require to partake in . He mentioned Carole King , entail that “ acerbic with the Sweet ” was played . I was not doing well with this information , specially after I put my look in my hired man . He essay , once again , to comfort me but I was fall back in my Izzy Hands feelings . Maybe taking the good with the bad was personal advice . Or , more honestly , I just think he felt a little sad too .
Both seasons of Our Flag Means Death are useable to stream on MAX .
Want more io9 news ? Check out when to have a bun in the oven the latestMarvel , Star Wars , andStar Trekreleases , what ’s next for theDC Universe on movie and boob tube , and everything you require to cognise about the future ofDoctor Who .
Rhys DarbyTaika Waititi
Daily Newsletter
Get the best tech , science , and culture news in your inbox day by day .
News from the future , deliver to your nowadays .
You May Also Like
