Pride month is off to a good start! HBO Max announced earlier today that the comedy pirate series Our Flag Means Death has officially been renewed for a second season! This announcement was made on the streaming service’s official Twitter account, the tweet itself can be viewed below.
Our Flag Means Death made its grand release on HBO Max from March 3rd and finished its ten-episode first season on March 24th. The series, created by David Jenkins (People of Earth), tells the heavily fictionalized tale of former aristocrat Stede Bonnet as he trades his comfortable life for one of piracy. But when his ship and crew cross paths with the infamous Edward Teach, or by his more famous name, Blackbeard. After several misadventures, Bonnet and Teach begin to form a relationship that seems to grow that further they travel.
Our Flag Means Death stars Rhys Darby (What We Do In the Shadows), as Stede Bonnet and Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit) as Edward Teach. Playing alongside them as the colorful crew are Ewen Bremner as Nathaniel Buttons, Joel Fry as Frenchie, Samson Kayo as Oluwande Boodhari, Con O’Neill as Israel “Izzy” Hands, Nathan Foad as Lucious Spriggs, Vico Ortiz as Jim Jimenez, and Kristian Nairn as Wee John Feeney. Rory Kinnear also stars as both brothers Nigel Badminton and Admiral Chauncey Badminton.
Never Left
If you haven’t finished up season one of Our Flag Means Death, consider this your spoiler warning for the season finale!
When the first season wrapped up, Stede and Ed finally came to terms with their feelings and confessed their love for one another. But just as things were looking up for the two of them, they separated. Stede was left thinking that Ed would be better off without him, and Ed thinking that Stede had stood him up. The season ends on a cliffhanger, with Stede ready to make his way back to his ship, while Ed embraces his old Blackbeard persona and literally goes off the deep end!
Our Flag Means Death has since earned a large fanbase in the LGBTQ+ community and gained a 91% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The show also managed to do the unthinkable and dethrone a Star Wars show by becoming the most in demand series in the United States (which was formerly held by The Book of Boba Fett at the time). The show kept that number 1 spot for three months straight. This, along with the praise, left fans hoping for a second season. But for three months, HBO Max and crew were completely muted on the subject. Jenkins held out hope for good news, but could not comment on the show’s status when asked mid-April.
It's good to finally have an official word, even if we had to wait until pride month for the grand reveal. Fans have been dancing all day since the announcement, eager to see their favorite crew set sail once again. We can only anticipate what will come next for the adventurous Stede as he inevitably reunites with his fearless pirate lover!