Taika Waititi is back at it again! The Academy Award winner is currently busy with Thor: Love & Thunder; however, Waititi also has What We Do In The Shadows and Reservation Dogs on the television landscape. The latest project from the filmmaker is an HBO Max exclusive about Stede Bonnet, a wealthy landowner who decides to leave his upscale life to become a pirate in 1717. At this point, you pretty much understand Taika Waititi’s sense of style: his material tends to be quirky, out-of-the-box humor, mixed in with dark comedy. With that in mind, does the pilot of Our Flag Means Death showcase a series that’s brimming with potential?
First things first, if you’re expecting the same laughs as What We Do In The Shadows or Reservation Dogs then you’ll be mistaken. At least in the pilot. To be clear, this isn’t me saying that the opening of Our Flag Means Death is bad by any means. What’s great about Taika Waititi’s material is that the filmmaker understands his sense of style and has some good fun with it. Like his other two shows, Our Flag Means Death is original and unique, and it comes with plenty of funny zings and one-liners. The show opens with a catchy and hilarious song that transitions into Roach complaining about not having 20 kills at this point in his pirate career. However, despite the plenty of pirate gags and gears, Waititi never forgets the most important aspect other than the story: The characters. There’s plenty of the supporting cast that stands out in the pilot, from Frenchie to Roach or Black Pete. Each character brings a unique personality to the series and everyone gets a funny line or two in here. The dialogue is definitely the strongest, and the actors pull off the quirky humor effortlessly.
However, the heart of the story is about Stede Bonnet and his mid-life crisis. What’s great is that the story is never lost in the sea of this pirate adventure. He’s not meant to be a pirate. He doesn’t like to kill, is a very polite robber, and is clearly trying to find some true meaning in his life due to the fact that he didn’t feel appreciated in his old one. When shows are still able to tap into complex human layers such as these it instantly makes them special. The antagonist here is Bonnet, who treats his pirates like Costco employees, complete with weekly pay and benefits. It’s odd to say something of that nature, but the pilot does an excellent job of displaying his insecurities that doesn’t feel out of place or heavy handed. Rhys Darby is perfect for the lead role as Stede; There’s a goofy charm about the character that when he does commit a crime in the pilot, y0u’re actually happy for him! Obviously, the strong writing helps, but Darby brings the endearing and colorful character to life. In the midst of a strong cast, Stede stands tall from everyone else, which is good news considering the fact that he’s the protagonist.
As I previously stated, this show doesn’t provide the laughs of Shadows or Reservation Dogs, as the pilot is more straight-laced than the respective shows. You’ll definitely hear oddball dialogue, especially given the time period, but it’s just not on the level of those two shows when it comes to humor. However, the 32-minutes of Our Flag Means Death flew by with ease and diving right into the world of Taka Waititi’s latest vehicle was a breath of fresh air. The sets and costume designs are wonderful, and it never feels as if you’re watching something fake or on a studio lot. There’s a lot to enjoy about Our Flag Means Death and given the fact that this show manages to expertly showcase its numerous characters and deliver a meaningful and heartfelt plot under the scope of an half-hour pilot speaks volumes about the high-level you should expect throughout the full season. Fundamentally, there’s nothing particularly wrong. Our Flag Means Death checks off all of the boxes when it comes to the first episode: introduce an exciting and engaging world, with intriguing characters, and a plot that demands to be explored past episode one. If you’re not into Waititi’s sense of humor then you’ll likely hate this show. Once again, Taka Waititi brings another original show to the television landscape. The pilot for Our Flags Means Death is definitely worth the watch but it’s a specialty show that certainly won’t win over the mainstream.
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