elanya

So, what I actually managed yesterday was to Buy All the Things, including a proof copy of my dis in colour, paying for my storage unit, and buying yarn to knit a sweater as a knit-along with longpig. I also bought needles to knit said sweater with (I have 6s in the set I got for Christmas :)

And then I watched Black Sails with earis. This was episode two. The show continues to be a confusing mix of good and terrible historical details. There was a lot of Drama this episode, including surrounding one of the more compelling original characters, a mixed-race whore named Max.

...I'm not going to give spoilers about the show here (but I make no promises about the comments). But I am not going to spoiler censor for actual history, because this shit happened 300 years ago, and also who knows how things will unfold on the show. I kind of want to write something more explicitly meta about this, but I'm not sure if anyone would care? I could write about the setting, things they get right, things that are wrong, snippets about what is know about various historical figures and how they are being portrayed in the show, etc. Anyone anyone?

How about this - I'll start with a list of characters who are very based on historical people, of characters who are taken from other media, and of characters whose existence has some basis in historical fact:

Real Peeps:
Charles Vane - And yes, he was a bit of a violent psycho. Don't know if he looked as good in leather pants with his hair half pulled back...
"Calico" Jack Rackham. Who really did serve under Vane. Spoiler alert: Johnny Depp's character is probably named after him. You know - Captain Jack >.>
Anne Bonny - Although technically she doesn't come onto the scene for another few years. She starts on Rackham's crew, as I recall.

Fictional Peeps (we're all at least passingly familiar with Treasure Island, right?):
Captain Flint - Treasure Island
John Silver - Treasure Island
Billy Bones - Treasure Island

Historical Basis:
Richard Guthrie. This is the most surprising, I'm sure. There *was* a merchant, Richard Thompson) who lived at Harbour Island who was rumoured to be colluding with the local pirates (especially those operating out of HI rather than Nassau proper. His house would not have been anything like the one shown on the show. HI was even more of a backwater than Nassau, though it did have close ties with the Carolinas. That and the mention of him successfully bribing the Lords Proprietors were some of the biggest "lol-no" moments of the show for me. Also the sugar planter from the Carolinas....

Thompson was very locally prominent, and served as a Deputy Governor under Woodes Rogers. His daughter (name unknown) also ( married a pirate: )