#mary bonnet ofmd

[athenashaw]

Ok so hear me out (sorry if this has been done :) )

Buttons takes Olivia to Mary's Widows Support Group

Olivia is obviously distraught about Karl, and Buttons has noticed. So he takes her to see the group and acts as translator.

He tells the story. The widows are confused but eventually just accept it. Olivia is a regular and valued member. The Widows appreciate her wit. She goes to all of their outings. Buttons always accompanies her to translate. The Widows help him with his grief over Karl.

There's even comic potential with Buttons not mentioning he knows Stede, and thinking Mary is referring to some other Stede if she ever mentions him. Buttons would 100% describe his job as High Moon Priest and Husband of the Sea or something like that. They're just peacefully co-existing. It takes a full year to realise they're talking about the same guy. After that they just shit-talk him (affectionately).

[ladyluscinia]

Every time I see Stede's drunken display at Mary's gallery I'm instantly like girl you should have been quicker with the skewer

[fresne999]

The story progresses, the story posts. She keeps on trucking.

A week into posting the Our Flags is the Hero of It's Own Story series of interconnected modern AUs and there's at least 1 chapter out for all the characters. Except Frenchie and Lucius, who will just have to wait given how complicated posting them will be.

-Stede has run away from home and started his self-care shop based on medieval recipes. If admittedly, stayed in his home town with his last name and dying factory, also with his last name. -Mary has realizied what it means that her husband has run off. Freedom baby. Also, she can never be the worst parent. -Izzy has become the Chief Operating Officer for one Edward Teach, the head of Kraken Inc himself. What a f-ing achievement through hard f-ing work! -Ed, bored with being the Kraken, with being a corporate raider and destroying people's dreams, has become obsessed with a certain Gentleman Apothecary's self care soaps and lotions. -Nana wanted/wants/will want revenge. -Jim's journaled their revenge. So much revenge. Also, Olu was kind of cute. -Spanish Jackie has established her little empire of a dispensary, laundromat, and gas station in her home town - along with a very complicated love life while dealing with the eldritch horror in the woods + cloning cult. Look Spanish Jackie be a busy woman. -Olu has lost his home and drifted into working for Spanish Jackie and her absolutely mental favourite husband, Alfeo de la Vaca, while also not telling his family he's homeless. Also, Jim was very cute. -Wee John has lived through the troubles, working for the Irish mob in Boston, and a life on the run. Bonnetville on the horizon. -The Swede has stepped out of his fairytale childhood (which is to say horrifying in an eldritch way) to land a job working for Stede Bonnet. The Swede has found his soul, if only he can find his heart. -Pete survived childhood -- and a very strange drywall incident -- to land in Bonnetville with a whole head full of stories + his own personal Narrator. -Ivan wasn't sad that the company where he worked was taken over by Kraken. So many opportunities. -Kevin (Fang) was devistated that the company he helped found was taken over by Kraken, but he made choices and now he's stuck working at Kraken destroying other people's dreams. -Roach has traveled the highways in his roach coach and landed a job working for one Stede Bonnet as a personal chef. He has decided that Stede is Rouseau as f-, which was fine. If only he has taste. -Zheng has just started on the road to a mystery in nearby Bridge City involving a dead lawyer and a solar company.

It is in fact all related. Somewhat. They are all on their own adventures.

[hoistxourxflag]

Join OUR crew. Mutiny against the renewal news with us. And continue the adventures of these brilliant characters.

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[lily-s-world]

This is exactly how that scene went.

[milkovichy]

hold on now

[ladyluscinia]

Honestly I'm starting to suspect the issue might be that Ed's a side character.

Like. I don't think he should be a side character. I wouldn't have deemed him such in S1. I called it "still in the setup phase of his arc" when I was writing S1 meta, because he had a lot of characterization and importance and it made sense in the story that he hadn't really begun exerting agency and experiencing consequences yet.

But if he was in setup, then 1x10 would have kicked off said arc. Yet S2 isn't interested in giving him agency for change, either.

The only thing he's working through is being Stede's love interest.

Stede is a protagonist. His abandonment of Mary was conceived of as an essential character flaw from the initial development of his journey, and the whole of S1 was about his arc to reckon with that choice and the consequences. Similarly, while the inept and oblivious boss persona is played for laughs, it's still a point of characterization at the same time. One that develops as he goes through the story. I personally think his arc as a character stumbles pretty hard in S2 - killing Ned leads to partying it up and then saving the day by helping massacre British mooks, but also it's maybe really bad and traumatic? - but I don't ever doubt they are approaching him with the intent for character development as a main character.

I'm starting to doubt with Ed.

Yeah, all his mirrored issues to Stede's felt like the basis of letting Edward grow and change for himself after S1. He had family trauma. He has his own version of Mary and a crew he was obligated to and failing. I thought it sounded super interesting to explore Blackbonnet similarities and differences while seeing them address different versions of the same challenges and flaws... Only coming at them from wildly different directions. And just like they acknowledged Stede bore some measure of responsibility to make right with his supporting characters, I expected Edward would have to do the same.

Only... I guess he doesn't.

It makes no sense from the angle that Edward is also a main character in this show. His disregard for the people around him - most of whom are subject to his authority and whims - is not treated as a potential point of growth. It's barely even treated as an issue. But if you consider the parallels are less about establishing flaws for Edward and more about creating points of sympathetic understanding for Stede...?

If Edward is a side character love interest with no independent growth arc planned - albeit a cool one with lots of fun personality - then the important bits of echoing Stede's flaws could just be about how Stede can relate? The 1x04 lecture about a Captain's responsibility is a lesson for Stede. Being trapped in an unbearably dull life that maps near perfectly to Stede's marriage serves to highlight how perfectly in sync Ed would be for Stede. Even confessing to killing his dad... the one place that stunning moment of vulnerability goes is *checks notes* giving Ed a reason to go find Stede after Ned and level up their relationship. Again. Stede gets more development out of Edward's tragic backstory than Edward does.

If you want a really hot take, Edward's entire suicide era is pretty much just a vehicle to get mermaid Stede. Not like it gets any acknowledgement once that's past.

In S2 especially, Ed's character traits feel like romantic flavor text. They make him interesting or sympathetic or attractive. Stede is speeding through meaningful dialogue cutscenes like he's romancing a NPC in a videogame. But there's no narrative push for Edward to do anything outside that romance.

One thing I've actually been thinking about for awhile is the parallel between Mary Bonnet and Izzy Hands and, more specifically, how Ed and Stede are treated in their abandonment of them.

Izzy and Mary are mirrors of each other. Izzy is to Ed as Mary is to Stede. The one the captain is duty-bound to. The one they made a promise to stand by. Stede and Ed fail to communicate with them and when they do, they choose the wrong times and method (Ed talking around his boredom with his way of life while they are under threat of death, Stede surprising Mary with the boat). They don't listen to their respective partners (Ed basically ignoring Izzy while Izzy begs for a plan on how to not die, Stede not remembering that Mary hates the ocean). And Izzy and Mary are the caretakers for the people they're responsible for, with Ed and Stede only giving them attention when it's time to play (Ed choosing to stay in his cabin and making Izzy do most of the actual managing of the crew until Ed finds something new to be excited about, Stede being shown to ignore his children until it's time to play pirates). They also both lie to their partners about their plans when confronted (Stede claiming he'll "have it stopped" when referring to the boat before lying about having it made at all, Ed claiming he's planning on killing Stede even though he never wanted to). They both abandon their partners' plans (Ed deciding not to kill Stede, Stede running out on Mary). Izzy and Mary are both shown to be unhappy with their respective partners, but stay with them out of a sense of duty or responsibility (Izzy's threat to resign comes after he's been struggling to manage the crew and his life for some time, Mary saying straight up that she knows this isn't the life she or Stede wanted). There's like a million other things, but other people have made better posts about that

The point is that Discomfort in a Married State is about both Stede and Mary being unhappily married, but also Ed and Izzy being unhappy in the same dynamic. As much as they try, no one in either party are actually HAPPY with the way things are. Ed is bored out of his mind and feels like life is flat and has nothing to look forward to. Stede feels the same way about his life with Mary. Mary is dealing with an impulsive husband while taking care of her children and struggling to manage Stede's mood while still living her life in a way that doesn't make her miserable. Izzy does the same. Even though Mary and Izzy are upholding the relationship and staying true to their bond, they are obviously unhappy too.

What I'm interested in discussing is the way both Stede and Ed are treated by the narrative as it regards their betrayal of their partners.

Stede is shown to be in the WRONG for abandoning Mary. She's happier without him, yes, but it's pretty clearly stated that him just up and leaving her and their children was a DICK MOVE and he has to deal with that. He's made to come back to a world that no longer has a place for him in it. His children have forgotten him or resent him, his wife has found actual love with someone else, and he's no longer fit for the life he abandoned (not that he ever was, really). Stede is shown the consequences of his actions, how he hurt people by leaving and also how people are better off without him. He's punished by the narrative, made to feel uncomfortable and guilty. This makes sense!

Stede being depressed in his life is not an excuse to just... run away from it. We're shown that him leaving was a good thing, but him playing with the emotions of the people in his life by deciding when and if he wants them to be in his life at all and trying to dictate that just isn't the responsible thing to do. It's not until he finally sits and has an actual conversation with Mary where he listens to her that they're both able to move on fully. They're able to agree on an outcome, they Talk It Through and are both happier for it.

Ed imo is never treated the same way as it concerns his betrayal of Izzy. He lied to Izzy and then went back on their plan, doesn't say a word when Izzy is banished from the ship (doesn't even try to stop him from dueling Stede in the first place), and emotionally abandons him pretty much immediately after meeting Stede. Izzy is shown looking for direction and guidance from a man he trusts and who is supposed to be looking out for his best interests, only to be dismissed and mocked. Izzy repeatedly goes to Ed for direction, asks him "what do we do" or "you told me you would do this, so let's follow through" only for Ed to turn around and do something completely different. And then with the Act of Grace, he plans on running away and leaving Izzy behind entirely. Ed's betrayal of Izzy SHOULD mirror Stede's abandonment of Mary.

But Ed is never punished for it. The way Stede goes back to Mary in a time of crisis and the way Ed goes back to the crew (and Izzy) is the same situation. But where Stede has to deal with the consequences for his selfishness, Ed just... doesn't. He has to deal with his breakup, yeah, but not how he really was just going to leave the crew behind. He tortures and hurts his crew and specifically Izzy, but he's allowed back on the ship as long as he wears a cat bell. He doesn't even appear bothered by it. He never has a moment like Stede and Mary get where a conversation is had and faults are acknowledged on both sides.

Where Stede had to recognize his mistakes and grow, Ed gets off with a slap on the wrist. Mary gets better without Stede dragging her down, but Izzy falls apart without purpose until the crew give him a new purpose in being their unicorn

I don't necessarily think this is a bad thing or even poor writing if it was explored more. It mostly just perplexes me. Why make these connections between these characters at all? It fascinates me

I really wish we could see Mary and Izzy interact. Just once. So Izzy could meet someone who understands

[our-flag-means-love]

ofmd as text posts | part 15

source

[saltpepperbeard]

Next on Our Flag Means Death...

[thebootstrap-paradox]

If there is one thing about Stede Bonnet is he'll appear in the background to spite his ex lovers

[whim-prone-pirate]

"i'm worried his life is better without me" because mary's was. she was better off and she was happy when he left the second time. why wouldn't ed be the same.

[girlbossblackbeard]

btw. if u even care.

[ladyluscinia]

Mary clenching her teeth hard enough to crush Stede's stupid rock-orange while she resists the urge to rip out his throat, while Izzy bares his in the most uncomfortably desperate attempt to look like everything is all ok totally ok it's FINE

Struggling wives club for the win

[hoistxourxflag]

These bad ass beautiful women are wanted at HOIST OUR FLAG, a premium jcink play by post roleplaying forum.

[soapbubbles511]

And now free

[paleoleigh]

I need Mary and Doug to show up at the inn so we can have an exchange that goes like:

Mary: Stede?!

Stede: Mary?!

Ed: Mary?

Stede: *remembering dinner at Anne and Mary Read's house* Ed...

Mary: *doing the math* Ed?

Stede: *affirmatively* Ed!

Ed: *confused, pointing at himself* Ed.

Doug: *also confused* ....I'll go wait in the carriage.