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[strong-reader-slash-writer]

Stede's journey screams demisexuality to me. (And as someone who is demi, I love it.)

I've posted about a reading of Ed as demiromantic as well.

Stede doesn't leave to find (romantic) love. He set out to find himself, to find a community. And he finds that! His crew becomes his family (it's also part of why he starts crying and really starts to self-destruct in 2x7 when they start to leave.)

Along the way he finds not only a best friend, but the love of his life: in that same person. Stede's journey is a blatant queer allegory: a man who has never fit into society, who is treated poorly for not fitting into *pick your societal norm*, who finds himself through community, fixing some of his past relations, but also discovering his sexuality: gay and demisexual.

Stede and Ed's connection is based on friendship — their emotional journey. We see an instant connection in 1x4 where both of them are fascinated by each other.

Stede tries to be open with the crew beforehand, an open door policy to the cabins, various other rooms, and the library. He tries to form that connection with others (to varying degrees at first.)

But when Ed enters the picture, they immediately have that connection. They are interested in each other and their idiosyncrasies.

We see their friendship grow over the course of the next few episodes. They remain equal in all things, learning and teaching each other. We see the deepening of friendship of course in the big scene of the bathtub.

Ed shares his biggest secret (secrets technically), trusting Stede with it. And Stede responds in kind, using the term friend for the first time. Their emotional intimacy grows deeper here.

We also see their connection and friendshio in the small moments. From how well they match each other with playing/riffing off of each other, finding in one another a partner. Something they always wanted. Someone who gets them for who they are, but also meets them at that level, letting them unmask and have fun.

And in small gestures such as learning basic things about each other: Stede knowing exactly how Ed likes his tea. That Ed will be cranky that he has sand in his beard. That Ed would set the world on fire or die trying, etc.

So much of Stede's s journey is having an emotional connection to Ed, and from there a sexual one. But it takes him a while to figure it out. I don't read his season one trek as repressed but rather not ever having that connection with another human being before — particularly a man. He knows about same sex relationships (he presumably went to boarding school and is on the queerest pirate ship in the Caribbean🌈) but I don't think he ever attached it to himself.

Their friendship crosses the line at their first kiss. But the focus of the kiss isn't sexual, it's emotional. It's that sigh at finally finding the thing you always wanted but simultaneously didn't know you needed. That feeling of oh, there you are.

We don't see Stede show (romantic/sexual) interest in anyone else. (Same thing with Ed in a way, but Ed's journey is another topic.)

Even during their time apart, they are both pining for each other, no hints of feelings or acts with others.

Stede is having sex dreams about Ed at night and writing gorgeous love letters during the day. And when they finally connect again, Stede and Ed take it slow. Stede tells Ed exactly how he feels about him, and it isn't about how he wants to jump his bones. He tells him he just likes being near him. And respects Ed's boundaries, never crossing them and telling him he doesn't have to say anything back.

One of my favorite things about their relationship is their consent and bodily autonomy respect in each other. He knows Ed and respects Ed. Ed knows and respects Stede.

They are friends first and lovers second.

At the surface his dreams may be about becoming a pirate (not really being a pirate but rather using the stories of pirates he read in books to achieve his dream of getting community), but ultimately, his dream is just really getting to be himself, love himself, and in the process, he picks up a found family. It's mutual.

Stede no doubt knew about sexual attraction, particularly others having it, but not so much himself having it nor acting on it. Not until Ed at least. And when he does discover and puts into words those feelings, everything going on with his sexuality, Stede does not hesitate, he does not doubt. He goes after Ed, after love.

Watching Stede discover love for the first time, a deep emotional friendship that then evolves into a romantic and sexual one. His demisexual journey over the two seasons (so far) has been wonderful to watch and connect with.

That's my demisexual king! And queen! Everything!

I've written pieces of this before, but I wanted to combine all of it together into one post.

Happy Asexual Awareness week, loves! 🖤🩶🤍💜

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

Like, even if OFMD is focused on a romance (rightfully, it's the story they set to tell), it's never felt amatonormative to me. There are multiple characters that are shown having funny, whacky, fulfilling lives without a partner, there are several canon poly characters, and the show celebrates platonic love often (Izzy's "big love story" in s2 is about falling in platonic love with the crew; it's often remarked upon that the fact that Ed and Stede are each other's first real friend is equally important to them being each other's first romantic love...). Even if a romantic monogamous relationship is the focus, it's never alienated me as an aro person bc the team has crafted a world in which I know I'd feel free to be myself. That's my two cents.

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I should’ve just told him—

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

want to see s3 open with a swordfight set to lay all your love on me (not giving up on this one) but it's ed and stede fighting on the beach, through the inn, into the bedroom, where ed falls onto the mattress and "surrenders" to stede. You'll Never Believe What Happens Next

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[strong-reader-slash-writer]

mightve accidentally visualized blackbeards first time at jackies

(part of my OFMD in quotes mini zine series)

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ZAZLOV WHEN I CATCH YOU

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“You wear fine things well.”

Jeff the Accountant is complete!

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GIRL WAKE UP NEW PROMO PICS FROM SEASON ONE AND TWO WERE JUST UNCOVERED

[SOURCE]

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

Guys if I get hunted down and my legs broken broken for sharing these photos just know I did it for the gays but here are photos I took of the ‘you wear nice things well’ scene and the deleted Lucius opium scene (although even this is different than what Nathan Foad described in terms of what they filmed for this scene so-)

And then the opium scene:

Those are the only photos I snapped of the scripts themselves (they were on an iPad) but i may go back this summer and if I do (hopefully they have the season two scripts) I’ll take more photos if these ones don’t get my kneecaps stolen :)

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Via Lindsey Cantrell's instagram story (Season 2 - January 30th 2024)

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SOURCE for all the new stills!!

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

just thinking about how someone actually sat down and wrote the nose jar into existence. like…someone came up with the character Spanish Jackie, and then they were like hmmm what if she had a jar where she kept the severed noses of her enemies, and then they were like hell yeah that rules—we should devote multiple minutes of our extremely limited screen time to said jar, which will then become a relevant device in more than one plot beat across both seasons.

With utter sincerity, I just fucking love these writers so much

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

Alex Sherman BTS: 03/05/2024 Part 1

More OFMD BTS: Alex talking about his buttox on camera. Con loving the shit out of it.

"The characters get to see your ass, WE'RE gonna take pictures of your ass!" - Con O'Neill

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

BOYFRIEND!!! bonus: proud bf :')

[strong-reader-slash-writer]

Some trans man Ed ideas that I'm obsessed with:

Stede learns Ed is trans when they swap outfits, but not because he sees Ed naked, it's because he sees Ed's packer and he shouts "Ed! Your dick fell off!"

"Stab me" scene parallel but it's Ed making Stede give him his t shot

Stede and Ed meeting through grindr texts, Stede opening with "Good morning! I'd love to see a picture of your penis," Ed responding with "don't have one" and Stede interpreting this as Ed losing his penis in some grisly, horrible accident and not bringing it up for, like, a while after they start going on dates just because he assumes it's a very sensitive topic

Canon era Ed telling anyone who asks wildly differing accounts of how he got his top surgery ranging from "lost 'em in a game of cards" to "they're in a jar at Spanish Jackie'z" to pretending to look down at his chest in horror and going "shit! where'd those fuckers get off to??"

Ed wanting to be called a princess very very badly but feeling a bit embarrassed to ask for it, Stede never referring to him using even vaguely feminine terms to try and be respectful, and the pair of them spending literal years tap-dancing around the issue while trying to be respectful of each other's boundaries

Stede using an airhorn/buzzer/very loud noise-making device to correct people who use the wrong pronouns or say anything disrespectful (I wrote a fic about this one!)

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they deserve their 3rd season!!!