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izzy hands to dancin' thru the dark because I am SO in love with con o'neill

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‘Our Flag Means Death’ Renewed for Season 2 at HBO Max

[booshangel]

I wanna talk about the Fandom idea of Izzy Hands as a “manipulator,” and common ideas around Ed “performing” Blackbeard. I’ve just been kicking around a lot of thoughts about the topic after seeing a lot of meta that feels not-quite-right to me.

First; I admire the writing in Our Flag Means Death SO MUCH. I think that it stands up really well to endless different analyses and has a lot of nuance!  So I’m not trying to say like, “all XYZ meta is wrong.” But I’m REALLY starting to balk at the popular fandom notion that Izzy is a devious manipulator and that Ed is just “performing” depending on who he’s with in order to have love and acceptance— in a way that I feel needlessly victimizes Ed and discounts his agency and power as a character.   First of all, Izzy isn’t manipulative; he’s a blunt fucking instrument.

Keep reading

[booshangel]

I’m on my second viewing of Our Flag Means Death and something that’s struck me this time around is how Izzy doesn’t just hold Blackbeard in high regard (obviously) but piracy as a whole. He has a couple of lines throughout the season where he references “real” pirates — “You are simply here to observe how real pirates function in the real world!” (E05) — but since this is always in reference to Stede and his crew, it’s easy to read Izzy’s criticism as specific to them and them alone. And yeah, I think that is mostly the case. Real pirates are more adept at dishing out violence, real pirates know how to sail properly, real pirates engage in hard labor rather than talking about their feelings, etc. — all the ways in which Izzy embodies toxic masculinity and that cycle of abuse. But if being a real pirate to him was simply about becoming a testosterone-exuding violence machine, you’d think that Izzy himself would reflect that better. Instead — despite the characterization that’s already pervading the fandom (of which I myself am guilty!) — Izzy is more dutiful to not just Ed, but piracy as a whole, than he is outright sadistic.

Take his duels, for example. Izzy isn’t just skilled with a sword, he’s very particular about how he conducts himself while using one. He could have easily killed Stede the moment they met, but instead he slashes up his shirt first to demonstrate how good he is and then announces, “This is how you die.” It’s more the setup for a duel, with Izzy allowing his opponent time to see what he’s up against and realize that the real duel starts from here on out. Izzy certainly doesn’t expect Stede to manage anything with the reprieve, but that’s not the point. Real pirates don’t just run a guy through, even if he is after your captives. (Which, interestingly, he bought from the elders rather than taking them by force: “Yeah, we sold ‘em to some guys.”) There are rules that real pirates follow and a certain respectability with which they conduct themselves, the irony of that aside.

This is seen even more clearly in his duel with Stede later in the season. He didn’t need to formally challenge Stede and then wait for him to accept before starting. He didn’t need to start with a couple of easy (for him) attacks and a pointed, “That was your warning.” When Izzy has his eyes full of gunpowder Olu is screaming for Stede to stab him while he’s temporarily blind because yeah, why wouldn’t you take any advantage you could get? Yet in contrast, right before this, Izzy corners Stede and instead of finishing him off, offers him surrender: “Yield or die.” Even Izzy’s loss feels odd to me when pit against all the other lengths he’s willing to go to, like working with the British Navy. He knocked Stede’s weapon out of his hand, stabbed him and pinned him to the mast… Stede has, by any measure involving a fight to the death, 100% lost. It’s just so, so obvious he’s lost. Yet because Izzy broke the handle of his sword while the duel was still technically underway, he looses instead, the logic of that be damned. Why can’t he just pick up Stede’s dropped sword to finish the job? Because that’s not how this works. There are rules and Izzy will not break them. He’s pissed as hell leaving the ship, but he’ll do it because that’s what was agreed upon. For Izzy, it’s one thing to completely betray Ed in an effort to “help” him by joining with their enemy and recruiting an old friend to play distraction, but it’s something else entirely to go against “dueling tradition.” It’s just not done. The fact that Izzy doesn’t kill Stede anyway to provide that same “help” speaks volumes about what a pirate’s honor means to him.

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[booshangel]

I’ve been thinking about whether Izzy is manipulative - yes and no, still pondering - and that led to how Izzy interacts with others, and then trying to suss out how Izzy functioned as a First Mate at all. So thoughts I’ve had:

First and foremost, in command Izzy functions as part of the Edward-and-Izzy unit (aka Blackbeard). He’s not equipped to function on his own, but neither is Edward. The difference is that Edward can hide that fact for longer because he’s the one with the instant charisma whose issues trip him up later, while Izzy cannot take control of a situation for the life of him but probably doesn’t suck once he has it and a clear goal. This is, I think, the root of why Izzy struggles so much on the Revenge. Edward effectively abdicates his role as unquestioned top of the hierarchy, which cuts Izzy off from the source of his authority.

And while Edward can keep riding charisma / the Blackbeard mythos / his relationship with Stede to stay on top anyway, Izzy is left to fend for himself in his personal hell.

Keep reading

[booshangel]

Izzy Hands is a victim of his own success.  And not just in his construction of Blackbeard, which we’ll get to… later.  Probably in another post.  But he’s a victim of his own success in that he has created his own persona and nobody ever takes him for anything but surface value.  

Izzy’s created himself as a capable, suave, smart individual who can handle anything that comes at him.  And, in a general sense, it’s true.  He’s helped Edward Teach create the Blackbeard myth, he’s an obviously talented fencer and fighter, and he’s reasonably (more in a minute) sure of his place in the world and what his responsibilities are.

And here’s the thing.

Izzy’s place in the world is just, “Blackbeard.”  I mean, yes, you could expand that to “Blackbeard’s right arm,” because Izzy is Blackbeard’s first mate, given that position by Blackbeard himself.  But I’d make the argument that it wasn’t really because Izzy did anything exceptional; it’s because Izzy was there, he helped construct Blackbeard, of course it makes sense that the next step would be making him first mate to help keep Blackbeard shored up.

And being first mate comes with a certain set of duties, like keeping the crew in line, basically being the captain when the captain isn’t around.  And as long as he’s doing it in Blackbeard’s name, there’s not that much required out of him; the fear of Blackbeard does most of the job for him, and he can fill in the rest.  And the crewmembers like Ivan and Fang (I love Fang so much) have probably figured this out.  I mean, they have zero respect for Izzy; consider the sketching in “The Best Revenge Is Dressing Well”.  Wee John comes in and tells Lucius and Fang that “the boss” is back, and Fang literally shits himself thinking Blackbeard is back and hurries to get up, but John tells him, “it’s just that angry fecker, Izzy” and the INSTANT reaction is laughter and “let him look.”  And then he proceeds to spill the tea to Lucius about Izzy’s misadventures at sea, which was meant only to humiliate Izzy.

Which brings us to the Revenge crew.

Absolutely none of them have respect for Izzy.  You’d think they would, because of who he purports to be (Blackbeard’s First Mate), but their first experience with Izzy is… they run rings around him and Stede steals back one of their prisoners.  Given what we know about the crew’s opinion of Stede at that point, if Izzy can be beaten by Stede, why would they have any respect for Izzy?  And then he shows up on the Revenge and Blackbeard “takes” the ship, but it’s not like any other ship they’ve encountered.  

They don’t know how to be invaded, they don’t know how to be prisoners, and Edward is totally enthralled with everybody and everything, including being ass over teakettle for Stede Bonnet.  There is no fear of Edward or of Blackbeard–only respect, and only for Edward.  Izzy gets dragged along, yes, but he’s such a fish out of water.  He has no idea how to actually handle people; even Ivan and Fang ultimately agree to mutiny against him.  Lucius blackmails him–and let’s marvel at that for a moment.  *Lucius* blackmails Izzy.  And not only does he blackmail Izzy in a beautifully benign way–“It’d be a shame if your nickname got out, Dizzy Izzy”–but he also shows Izzy that he is out of his depths.  Izzy tries to blackmail in return, with Lucius’ sexual history, and Lucius basically defangs him.  He proves that Izzy really doesn’t know how to manage people outside of fear, and that sets him back.  

Then, we have the heartbreaking moment of Izzy and Fang and Ivan in “The Art of Fuckery.”  not just the opening monologue, but the moment of, “I guess we’re not killing this guy” and Izzy’s determination of, “The plan is very much alive. He promised me.”  That’s not the voice of a man who is happy, but of a man who is expecting disappointment.  He knows he’s going to have to be the one to kill Stede Bonnet, and he’s going to have to be the bad guy, again, and push Edward into something Edward doesn’t want to do.  Izzy doesn’t care that it’d break Edward’s heart, or possibly break Edward himself, he just wants Stede and these other idiots gone and be back with the real Blackbeard.

But there’s also like, maybe 1% of Izzy that is… well, not rancid.  He has actual feelings; Con O'Neill is utterly brilliant at using his face to show what Izzy is feeling, even when his mouth is saying something different.  He’s chastising himself when he lets Stede get away with one of the hostages; he’s petulant when he whines “Can’t I just send the boys, Ed?” and Edward insists that Izzy do it to make a good impression on the “Gentleman Pirate.”  Somewhere under all the bullshit that Izzy has constructed for himself, there’s a person.  

And that person has some kind of love for Edward.  It’s not healthy, for either of them, it’s not even spoken of, hell, maybe it doesn’t even have a name outside of “weird” or “toxic.”  But he’s capable of it, and the fact that nobody sees that is what makes me love Izzy the way I do.  Nobody sees beyond this shell that Izzy built for himself–which is exactly the thing that’s happening with Edward.  Nobody sees beyond the shell that Edward has built for himself–except when he meets Stede.  

Izzy doesn’t have a Stede; in fact, if there were someone willing, I don’t know that Izzy would even accept it.  But I also think, of course he would if that someone was Edward.  

My hope is that eventually, Stede and Edward break through with each other, and then Edward can look at Izzy and say, “Shit, man, I’ve been wrong to look at you like this.  You’re my friend, mate, and you need help.”

[booshangel]

“Perpetually fizzing with rage, actor Con O’Neill injects an extra frisson of horniness into his scenes with Lucius. Izzy is both repulsed and fascinated by Lucius’ sex life. He leans into Lucius’ personal space, relishing his own malice. When he realizes the rest of the crew isn’t on his side, he’s shocked—not because he craves their support, but because he can’t comprehend their casual, friendly worldview. “We don’t own each other” is an alien sentiment, not least because Izzy himself wants to be owned.”

— This dick joke highlights everything great about Our Flag Means Death

[booshangel]

More of the best cast ever 💕

[booshangel]

for the girlies looking to lose their fucking minds over con o’neill’s voice in their ear laughing and berating them and talking about thirsting for blood i’m-

[booshangel]

You know what I really appreciate about the way they did Lucius?

In episodes 7, 8 and 10 Lucius steps into the role of 'let's help these disaster gay pirates get their shit together'. He's the first person who 'sees' what's going on between them (oh my god this is happening). He confronts Ed about the way he's treating Stede in episode 7 ('i said you don't have to be such a dick about it...that bizzare little man likes you very much'), is the one to help with the 'break up' in episode 8 ('do we think this is more of a spat or a rupture with Blackbeard'...'He really liked you, you know'), and is Ed's confidant about the 'break up' in episode 10 ('and this fictional character...he's going through a hard time?'). He props up the navigation of their romance from flirting to Actually Something, filling the narrative role of supportive friend.

But Lucius isn't reduced to that role like his sort of character might be in some shows/romcoms (particularly romcoms that use the effeminate 'experienced in heartbreak' gay man as a prop up for the straight protagonists to rest their heads on)! Because before he steps into it they give him not one but two episodes where the subplot revolves around him and HIS life and HIS relationship. He's fleshed out!

Episode 5 we have Lucius vs. Izzy and the GLORIOUSNESS that is that. In this episode we learn that Lucius can stand up for himself, has a growing romantic connection of his own, is manipulative through kindness, can sketch! And has in fact sketched MOST OF THE CREW NAKED (...including Stede...no? Yes....no). He's badass in this episode and I think this episode is probably the start of most people's obsession with this guy

Then episode 6 we get another sub plot and this time he's not the badass - this time he's hurt! Oh no! But that allows the plot to flesh out his relationship with Pete and give us that glorious kiss scene for them both at the end of the episode.

Add to that the smaller roles he plays in the first few episodes (keeping Jim's secret, 'do these outfits maybe feel like a lapse in judgement', he's a pick pocket and an excellent one who steals from Spanish Jackie of all people!) and before we get to episode 7 Lucius is perhaps one of the most fully fleshed out members of the original crew (next to Oluwande, Jim and Frenchie).

And this is so good! Because it means he's NOT just the 'sassy gay best friend' that he would be in some other TV show with straight leads. He's got a whole personality, his own strong and healthy relationship that's been well developed and an audience that loves him already for everything HE is. He's not just a plot device for the furthering of Ed/Stede, or a stereotype or a stock character, he's a character we care about! So when he's interacting with Ed/Stede and helping them, it's heartwarming and lovely - he's their friend! He's doing it on his own terms!

Idk I really love that. I love that they did that. I love that Lucius takes on this role late in the narrative for him and so it WORKS so well and I believe that he's doing it because he cares for Stede as his captain (and by episode 10 Ed too)

[booshangel]

Ed thinks that Stede will only love him if he's the Edward Teach version of himself, the one who folds laundry and is okay with licking king George's boots. That's why he says "you were always gonna realize what I am" in the Calico Jack episode. He's saying "I'm not this soft, vulnerable, happy version of myself that I'm with you, I'm Blackie, I'm Blackbeard, I'm the Kraken". And he was so afraid of Stede finally realizing that and being horrified and unable to love him anymore, that he leaves first. Only to immediately come back when he realizes Stede is in danger. And in that moment, he gives everything up, he signs everything away. To save Stede he becomes Edward Teach, a version of himself he hadn’t been since he was a child.

Ed is never himself, he doesn't even know who that is, in fact. He's a chameleon, he adopts a different personality depending on who he's with or what he's trying to pretend to be in that moment. This is made obvious in that scene in which they're having breakfast and Calico tells that grim tale of Blackbeard burning that ship with everyone trapped inside, screaming. Stede is taken aback because "I thought you'd given up the killing", because that's what Ed told him in that vulnerable "that's why I have no friends" moment in the bathtub. And he tries to justify it "technically the fire killed those guys, not me". But I'm sure he didn't try to justify himself to Jack when he did it, because that's what he expected of him, although it wasn't what Stede expected.

This scene has such an awkward energy, not just because Stede feels out of place, but because it's one of those moments in which character A has lied to character B and character C is about to reveal it by accident so character A tries to stop them by saying something like "no, Stede doesn't wanna hear about that" to make them stop.

Ed hasn't exactly lied to either of them, but he hasn't told the truth either.

He has killed people, indirectly, but Stede can't know that. He hasn't been able to kill anyone with his own hands since his father, but Jack can't know that. (Izzy does but that's another topic).

The thing, then, is. The real Ed is none of these people. You can see glimpses of him in all, because all of them are a part of him, but all of them are masks. He has needed them to survive. Edward couldn't have survived in Hornigold's ship, so he became someone else. Blackbeard couldn't have survived at the pirate academy, so he became someone else.

What I can say for sure is that he has allowed himself to be a bit truer to himself with Stede than with anyone else (in the show). Not fully himself, he was still trying to cover up his murders, trying to be softer and good enough for Stede. But he allowed him to see him crying, because that's a thing you can do around Stede, yes, but also because he trusted him. With Stede he wasn't Edward, or Blackbeard, he was Ed. And Ed is the name I think he'll end up choosing for himself. But, in the end, he was still trying to be a different version of himself, one that Stede could love. One that didn't have space for the things about Blackbeard and the Kraken that are still very much parts of Ed. All of them have pieces of him, but none of them allows him to just be, they were all carefully curated for other people, not for himself. That's what needs to change.

Now (you know...... in season 2) Stede needs to prove that he loves him, all of him, every version, everything. I've seen people talking about Stede cleaning Ed's makeup, washing the Kraken away, but that's not what I think needs to happen. Stede would love the Kraken, because it's a part of Ed, full stop.

It's Ed who needs to wash his own face. He needs to learn what parts of himself he needs to let go off, and what parts he likes. And learn to love himself, all of him, every version, even the ones that no longer serve him, but especially the ones that do. I don't think either of them could have grown as people alone on a ship to China, as much as it pains me to admit. Stede needed to make peace with his old life and say goodbye, and now Ed needs to face the Kraken.

[booshangel]

The choice should not be Ed or the Kraken. Just as the choice shouldn’t be Stede or Izzy. 

OFMD is about self actualisation through the love and support of community. Characters are rewarded for doing things which allow them to be themselves, and (generally speaking) when they cage away parts of who they are or repress themselves the narrative throws negative consequences at them. 

This is why is can’t be Ed or the Kraken. Because both are Edward Teach. It’s also why the choice can’t be Stede or Izzy as epitomised by Stede brings out ‘soft Ed’ and Izzy brings out ‘harsh Kraken’. 

Because if Stede is going to be the love interest Ed needs (and this is a love story, so he’s going to be) then he cannot be just an opposite version of Izzy. He cannot be a person who brings out one side of Ed and punishes or ignores or berates Ed for the other side. It won’t work. That’s Izzy’s role, as an antagonist who is fighting against letting Edward self-actualise. Stede can’t be in that boat too. 

No, Stede needs to fall in love with all the parts of Ed, if Ed is going to be able to chose him in the end. And no, this doesn’t mean Stede should forgive him for the whole…crew thing, because like I said, another very strong theme is about love and support through community and Ed was destroying his own community in his heartbreak. But like. Stede can’t be Izzy 2.0. It won’t work. It won’t be suitable. 

Ed is violent, he does love a good maim. He also cries in bathtubs and fancies a fine fabric. He likes fuckery, and can make friends easily, he’s charismatic as fuck - but he’s also scary enough that he managed to build up a legend where people see him and immediately surrender or throw themselves overboard rather than deal with him. He is both. 

And I think this also comes back to why we love Stede/Ed in the first place. Ed ADORES all these things everyone else in his life has belittled him for, the secret wardrobes and books and the fanciness. He’s immediately interested in pretty much anything Stede has to say, listens to him, laughs with him. And he shares his own life with Stede; fuckery, raids and yes, that soft part and Stede loves all of that too. But Stede has to give him that in return! He has to! He has to love all the pieces that don’t fit right in everyone else’s books which includes the Kraken and Blackbeard. AND I feel if Ed finally does feel accepted for both, he’ll no longer be so liable to these intense swings because he’ll stop seeing himself as fragmented pieces. Like. Stede leaves him and the last conversation they had Stede said ‘yuck’ about making people eat toes - so Ed IMMEDIATELY makes someone eat a toe when he ‘switches back’ to his old persona because he’s trying to PROVE SOMETHING instead of just like. Being himself.

IDK man, I just. I think it’s way more complex than some people are making it out to be with an Ed vs. Kraken, Izzy vs. Stede thing with Ed’s identity. It’s very similar to what the Dragon Age fandom does with Iron Bull vs. Hissrad actually. But Ed is both. And for their love story to work, Stede should accept him that way. 

The choice should not be Ed or the Kraken. Just as the choice shouldn’t be Stede or Izzy. There isn’t a choice. It’s just Ed, and who is gonna accept Ed enough for him to be who he actually is, all of it, not just a few pieces.

[booshangel]

I've gone fully feral and now all I can think about is Val and how much I love her (and Con tbh) so here's my first ever video edit because I'm obsessed😍😍

[booshangel]

I used to think Izzy was pushing ed into being Blackbeard for selfish reasons. Because it was more comfortable for him.

But after thinking more, I realized that Izzy almost... never does anything for himself. Everything is for Ed.

And after listening and reading about how performing masculinity acts as a protective shield for some characters in this show... I realized maybe Izzy's trying to protect Ed. He sees the vulnerability and thinks "This will get him killed." He can't imagine being safe without the shield and so he's desperately trying to help Ed hold the shield up. Basically begging him to protect himself. And the more he doesn't the more Izzy thinks he has to hold the shield for him.

It spun the character in a new light for me. He thinks he's saving Ed when really all he's doing is killing him.

[booshangel]

so, I’m rewatching episode 6 of OFMD and thinking about how Ed admits that he hasn’t killed anyone since he killed his father. And how at the beginning of the episode, Izzy tells Ed that he needs to kill Stede with Fang and Ivan at his back, an intimidation tactic to make Ed realise how serious this shit is. BUT then, Izzy waits until Ed is all by himself and THEN and only THEN he says that he’s happy to do it himself. 

And the first time that I watched this I was like ‘yeah of course he’s happy to deal with this himself, he hates Stede and he also thinks Edward see’s Stede as a ‘pet’ so wouldn’t want to hurt him’ (interesting that Izzy can’t conceive of Stede being a friend only a ‘pet’ but I digress) but with the context that Ed doesn’t kill it’s like. Oh. OH. He’s offering, while Ed is all alone, because Ed doesn’t kill. And because Izzy is the one who kills for Ed, probably the most out of anyone in Ed’s crew because he’s the one who’s tasked with protecting Blackbeard’s reputation and so this is probably a secret that (until Ed tells Stede) only he and Izzy share.

And like GOD their relationship is so LAYERED and interesting. Because it’s obviously toxic but also there’s this thing which is such a WEAKNESS and Izzy HATES all the weaknesses that he sees in Ed but also THIS weakness he protects unfailingly, keeps out of the way of everyone else. and it’s just. Yeah. I’m having some emotions about it.  

[booshangel]

the way ofmd deals with masculinity is so fascinating. we have stede, who’s about the least masculine a character could possibly be in the traditional sense: he gets sad instead of angry, he refuses to engage in physical violence, he encourages talking about feelings, he likes fashion and interior design and romanticizes everything. he likes picking flowers. and he has been told for his whole life that he is worthless because of all of this. he has been bullied and taunted and abused for it, but that didn’t keep him from adding a secret closet to his ship (lmao) to keep his excess fineries. he is still outwardly himself.

then we have ed. ed who is the pinnacle of the idea of masculinity, part of why he was remembered as history’s greatest pirate in the first place. he’s violent, ruthless, quick to anger, hierarchical, and his name, blackbeard, even emphasizes a symbol of masculinity. he’s revered for his masculinity. his performance is so powerful that people surrender before he even shows up in person. but it’s not him. blackbeard is a character ed has played for as long as he could remember that served to protect him from harm. you can't get hurt if you're never vulnerable in the first place.

when he meets stede, he finds someone he doesn’t have to present as blackbeard for. he can indulge in the frilly colorful clothes, the dancing, the emotional honesty that stede treats as normal. ed lets stede hold his heart in his hands and stede calls it beautiful. and stede, for the first time, has met someone who doesn’t see those things as hateful or embarrassing. everything stede has been mocked for unequivocally delights ed. in the reverse, stede sees blackbeard as the man stede never was. the ideal of a pirate that he read about and romanticized before he became one himself. to stede, blackbeard is everything he could never bring himself to be.

when ed begins to outwardly become interested in stede’s way of life, izzy serves to try to force him back into that hypermasculine presentation of Blackbeard. izzy hates stede for all the same reasons stede has been hated his whole life, and he sees stede as poisoning edward with his embarrassing foppish behavior, emasculating him. this comes to a head when ed signs the act of grace, shaves his beard (the symbol of his performance of masculinity), and kisses stede. all of those go against traditional masculine norms and by extent, the idea of Blackbeard. but ed isn’t performing anymore. he smiles more after the kiss than he ever does in the rest of the show.

then, stede is held at gunpoint by chauncey, who calls stede a monster, a plague for ruining the greatest pirate in history. ruining through emasculation, which in countless other media has been presented as horrific. think about other media that puts masculine characters in prison or the army (the similarities are staggering)—the threat of beating the character down until they’re submissive and emasculated is ever-present. losing the appearance of masculinity is by and large seen as one of the worst things that could possibly happen, and is often paired thematically with the loss of autonomy.

so stede agrees. he’s horrified with himself. he himself was already not traditionally masculine, and he spread it to blackbeard like a disease. everything he (and, interestingly, the viewer) has ever been told is that ed’s shift throughout the show is something to be terrified of. ed shaving his beard, in stede’s mind, confirmed his worst fear: stede had made ed into everything stede hated about himself and wanted to change; he killed blackbeard. but what he and chauncey and izzy can’t see is that stede actually gave ed more autonomy, more freedom and comfort to be himself and do what makes ed happy.

so stede runs. he runs back to where he once performed masculinity as a father and husband (regaining his own beard, so to speak), now sure that blackbeard would have been better off not knowing him. on some level, stede does want parts of blackbeard’s edge to stay (he’s like izzy in that way) and is scared he’s somehow excised it permanently. ed doesn’t want to leave it all behind either, but he’s terrified that stede could never accept the side of him that still exists as blackbeard. i also think this is why ed didn't try to kiss stede until he was the least like blackbeard he could be; he saw it as being less likely to get rejected for the ugliness he saw in himself.

it's interesting that ed doesn't go back to being blackbeard immediately after stede abandons him. at first, he goes all-in on the emotional vulnerability, trying to hang on to the hope he had allowed himself to experience when stede had agreed to run away with him. hanging on by a thread. the thread snaps when izzy mocks him for pining after stede, for lacking the masculinity izzy required in order to maintain his respect. in quick succession ed was rejected by stede, whom he loved, and izzy, whose respect he'd had since before the show began. so he threw his walls back up. he painted his mask back on, closed himself off, and removed every reminder of when he had allowed himself to be vulnerable.

ed's return to masculinity is not presented as a good thing. it's a trauma response, a defense mechanism, and it's toxic. the show experiments with defining a line between toxic and non-toxic masculinity; izzy, calico jack, the kraken, stede's father, the admiral twins, they all represent the ways toxic masculinity enforces a culture of violence and punishes any emotion except anger. stede and his crew represent a healthier version of masculinity: emotional honesty, encouragement and care for others, kindness, and love. it's not an accident that as ed allows himself to love and be loved, he begins to leave behind the toxic aspects of masculinity he had before. i've used the word emasculated to refer to ed's transformation throughout the show, but in truth that's not entirely accurate. it lines up with how many people would view what happened to him, but in reality he did remain a man, he just became a healthier one.

[booshangel]

What’s the deal with your friend Stede?