Man, I Think About That First Beach Kiss In Season 1 And How Everyone Said It Was Awkward And Uncomfortable

Man, I think about that first beach kiss in Season 1 and how everyone said it was awkward and uncomfortable (it was, but damn there were a lot of claims about the actors being homophobic or some shit because of that). That kiss was REFLECTIVE OF THOSE TWO MEN AT THAT MOMENT. Stede had never kissed another man. Ed had probably never kissed another man he was really in love with. Ed surprised Stede, and he definitely wasn't 100% certain how it would be received. Fuck, Stede didn't know he was gay. He may not have known what gay is. He just knew that he was "different" and that his difference wasn't acceptable to a lot of other people. And suddenly he discovers what his feelings mean and what that difference is and he's doing it while also working through a shit-ton of complicated emotions about this one particular man? Of course the goddamn kiss was awkward; they didn't know what they were doing.

And then their second kiss is the one in the moonlight? Stede has worked through all those issues of difference; he's accepted that he's gay, he's embraced that he's gay and that he's in love with Ed, and what's more, that he wants Ed. He's had months to do it and probably also to maybe come to terms with the fact that he doesn't just love Ed, he wants to have sex with Ed. (When, I ask, has this repressed man in a loveless marriage likely felt defined sexual desire for someone before? And now he's quite obviously have sexual fantasies about this man and keeping his crewmates awake at night?)

Ed has gone through a suicidal spiral, hurt a lot of people that he does actually care about (and a bunch more besides), nearly died, woke up to find the man he thought had abandoned him sobbing at his bedside, decided to open his heart to that man again, amassed a ton of guilt and horror at his own behavior, and has no idea who he is at the moment except that if he goes back to being "Blackbeard," he's probably going to die.

After a day of peace and fun (pirate-style), they get to be alone together, really for the first time since Ed woke up (since they spent most of that day at Mary and Annie's, getting Virginia Woolf'd). But it's not awkward. They haven't fallen right back into their old pattern of being uncertain about their own feelings or about the other guy's feelings. They're both way more confident about their relationship and where it's going.

Stede deepens that kiss because he's been pining for literal months and now he's got Ed back. Ed's very much not ready to go further than a kiss, but he's obviously happier, and Stede is ready and willing to meet him where he's at. But, like, man, that's their second kiss. Like their first, it very much expresses where they both are - it's open, and it's tender, and, yeah, it's sexual in a way that the first one wasn't because they're moving towards that in their relationship.

I hope we get to see more casually intimate relationship things with them in the next season, when they've actually been together for longer and open with each other for longer, but I really love how this season builds on everything that the first one established. Of course their first kiss is awkward and of course their second one reflects how they've both changed, separately and now together. Then their third kiss is all desperation and longing and desire to feel alive (don't get me started on how Ed nearly died and Stede just killed someone and they both want to feel each other's heartbeats, dang it).

A lot of romantic comedies and dramas just treat the various kisses as stepping stones to the next point in the relationship, but the situations and characters developed in this silly gay pirate show how very complex and messy relationships are, and each kiss reflects that complexity and messiness. They're not stepping stones; they're reflections of what the characters already know and feel for each other.

10/10, David Jenkins and directors and actors, et al.

I am by no means an Izzy fan, but it's tv. Dead doesn't necessarily mean gone.

I am having such a rollercoster relationship with the season 2 finale. My brain goes: *devastation* *understanding* *bargaining* *apathy* *enjoyment* *devastation* *denial* *enlightenment* *analytical distance* *sorrow* *relief* *happiness* *contentment*

And I'm back to freaking *devastation* right now. How are we supposed to get through a season 3 without the dynamics Izzy brings to the table? How can the cast get through a season 3 without Con? How are we gonna do this.

Fun lil pirate show has me twisted in knots.

Sherlock Holmes (2009) dir. Guy Ritchie

It's easy for you to say because Izzy is not your fav. So you're in a comfortable place. In any case, what was bleak was the entirety of season 2.

oh yeah absolutely i am fully aware i am speaking from a place of privilege (has never cared about what happens to izzy even a little bit) but i also think the fact that im in no way emotionally affected by izzy dying sort of helps me analyze what i think the showrunners were trying to do here. like i havent been able to pull together any significant coherent thoughts abt ed and stede yet bc my heart melts into goo every time i think abt them. but izzy i have no strong feelings towards so im able to just be like "ah, yes, how does this side character contribute to the main story." but also the post youre talking about isnt even about any of that it was just that ppl saying izzy's character growth is meaningless bc he dies is a bummer of a take.

anyway you're entitled to your opinion but the show ending with ed and stede deciding to commit to each other and to their relationship and try something new together (which is going to go terribly but that's sort of the point) and lucius and pete getting married and the whole crew sailing off into the sunset and also definitely visiting ed and stede again (idk why so many ppl are acting like ed and stede are just abandoning the crew like how stede abandoned his wife and kids but theyre not???? lol????????). is not bleak to me.

Ed putting his hand on Stede's chest gets me every time. He's reassuring and grounding himself while offering comfort to Stede. He used physical touch with Stede from the beginning, sitting on the bed next to him and placing his hand on Stede's. There was always a different level of comfort there between them.

And there's something special about the hand on the chest. He not only does it while kissing Stede, but also during moments where he's protecting him or where he's looking for words, being emotionally vulnerable.

Gif source

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