Black Sails Review: “II.” (Season 1, Episode 2)

And speaking of exposition, that one word could summarize episode two in a nutshell. Gone are the bombastic and exhilarating naval action sequences that exploded onto the introduction of the season premiere, only to be replaced with 50 minutes of cat and mouse for the elusive schedule that leads to treasure.

Captain Flint becomes aware that John Silver isn’t a cook, but is in fact the man that stole the schedule. John Silver leaps off the ship and hitches a ride back to Nassau on a nearby boat. Upon reaching Nassau, John knows that once Flint and company reach the island, they’ll be pulling out all and any stops necessary to track him down. So, immediately upon reaching land, John does what is probably the most cleverly written thing on the show thus far; he tells three nearby civilians where he’s headed, but gives them all different locations. Following this is a rather humorous scene where Flint asks the men for John’s whereabouts and becomes irate at the three different responses.

This is probably the most brilliant scene in the show thus far, because it really does hammer home the rift in character traits between the two protagonists. John may have one incredibly punchable face and a cowardice personality, but he is a very sly criminal with a lot going on upstairs. Even as the episode progresses, he plays his dangerous position wisely by entrusting Max to smuggle around the schedule.

Aside from desperately trying to remain hidden and alive, John strikes up a deal to sell the treasure to Flint’s rival crew, Charles Vane and Anne Bonnie. There’s lots of sleuthing and secretive meetings set up, along with some betrayals, but ultimately it’s not that engaging. Two episodes of an eight episode season have been spent so much time watching a myriad of characters scheme for a piece of paper that at some point you just become disinterested and wonder where all the open sea carnage is.

Black Sails is trying to tackle the intrigue that backstabbing and untrustworthy characters can bring to the table, but it’s honestly failing and lacking the tense elegant pacing of a show like Game of Thrones or Deadwood. It also doesn’t help that most of the characters are one dimensional and uninteresting. With all that said, I don’t necessarily think the show should be written off just yet.

There are some intriguing developments towards the end of the episode that have paved the way for some great exchanges between Flint and John Silver. Furthermore, something very mysterious is revealed regarding Flint, making for one well executed cliffhanger.

Episode two is a step down from what was a solid and entertaining premiere, but it has just enough intrigue to keep viewers going. Also, judging from how the plot progresses, episode three should be a return to the high seas and the start of a memorable adventure to become Kings of the New World. At least, we hope.

As always, feel free to agree or disagree in the comments below, and stick around for further coverage of Black Sails.