LUCIUS GAINS HIS (WATER) WINGS | Our Flag Means Death Final Episode Reaction 

I still won't believe Lucius is dead - no body, no death. I hope he's hiding in Jim's sea chest.

This definitely could have been two episodes. I feel like the fandom has just refused to accept that Lucious is actually dead myself included. I swear, either he's hiding in the walls or was rescued by mermaids. My favorite thing about this episode will always be Stede's talk with Mary. I'm so so glad they got to have that conversation, for both their sakes. Izzy is a rat and I'm sick of his shit, but also he's weirdly fascinating and I don't quite want to get rid of him. He should be studied for science.

So I saw something about Lucius from another video essay. Basically, Lucius has been shown to tell it as it is, and get Ed to actually see everything about what's going on. Getting rid of Lucius is getting rid of the only one who can change him back other than Stede, maybe, big maybe! Getting rid of Lucius first would mean that no one would get into his mind that what he's about to do is wrong and is not ok. THat's what I remembered anyway. I actually get the disappointment of seeing Lucius "drown" but I also get it because like you said, Lucius is Ed's angel. What better way to go back to your old ways than to get rid of the angel.

I love the amount and quality of meta discussions about this show, it's something that doesn't pop up as much with shows anymore.

Lucius is 100% alive.

Apart from getting rid of the angel on his shoulder, I think Ed attempting to murder Lucius gives Stede something Ed did that he can't (well, shouldn't) immediately forgive. Stede doesn't mind Ed's violent past actions, or isn't really engaging with them seriously. Killing Lucius is something that he's going to have to take seriously, and makes it so that there's something legitimate that Stede should be mad about, rather than Stede being the only person who did something wrong. (I don't think Lucius died, but I do think in his old "technically hands off but you did murder that person" style, that Ed meant him to die.

"Compassion". If that is the lesson, the thing that we all need, and Lucius is the one character in the show who exemplifies compassion/intuitivemess, what does it mean that he gets thrown overboard? You are the first person to point out that this episode needed more room to breathe. And now I can't unsee it. Yeah. It did need to be two episodes. Maybe we will get a director's cut someday. The plan is for the series to follow a three act structure and three seasons. So we'll see if your suggested story structure plays out. I think you may be right. I'm on team: "Lucius lives". There is no body. He shouts for help. And there is someone to hear him: Fang. The man who never forgave Ed for sending his dog to doggy heaven. The very man who rescued him the last time he was overboard (or at least hanging off the side of the ship, on that convenient hanging swing). So my bet is that Fang rescues Lucius. That nicely rewards Lucius for giving Fang that healing moment of body positivity. And it would exemplify that theme that compassion is what is needed in this world. Certainly we saw compassion rewarded when Stede’s crew rescued him from execution. Oluwande brandishing that healthy, well-loved plant, as evidence that Stede should live. And I just love Oluwande, who is so much more competent than Stede, seeing him through the spyglass and saying "fuck me". I am hoping that he gets some leadership time, because he deserves it. Maybe he can teach Stede how to be compassionate AND sensible. Finally, I'm holding out hope for Izzy to get some kind of redemption. Maybe he figures out his shit in time to throw himself into a firey doom to save Ed and Stede. That "thrown into a volcano" line from Ed (the lighthouse episode). I'd like to see that pay out. Excellent analysis, as usual. You've deepened my appreciation of the story. You know your stuff!

I'm genuinely emotional about these reactions ending, the way you view the show and your thoughts are so beautiful

Most of the fandom has just decided to reject the idea that Lucius is dead (I'm personally on team Living in the walls, 'cause Stede mentioned secret passages back in ep 4 that never came back) and I think there'll be mutiny if he's actually gone 😅 I absolutely love what they did with Mary, going into this episode I was expecting her to kind of be the bad guy, but she's easily one of my faves (I'm obsessed with fics where Ed and Mary meet, there aren't nearly enough). Doug is the best and I'm kind of obsessed with Evelyn, too, she's such a badass! Rhys' delivery of You were going to stab me! In the earHOLE! WITH A SKEWER! is probably my favourite in the whole show 🤣 Mary and Stede's conversation and the montage of Stede and Ed are just *chef's kiss* I love them so much! I also agree with the people saying that Ed had to get rid of Lucius, because he knew he was the only one on the ship who could make him change his mind. Ed's just building walls up to protect himself from further harm, but, as we see in his last shot, they were made of glass. That scene with him crying, alone, at the painting wrecks me every time, but at the same time it gives me hope, 'cause under all that kohl and posturing we can see Ed's still there. I cannot describe the insanity of having to wait just over 2 months for HBO to announce that there is going to be a season 2, we were all losing our minds waiting for anything. They finished filming s2 on 13th of December and the hope is it'll release in the summer, but we'll see. I'll be really curious to see your reactions and analysis to it, you've had such great insight into s1 from the first watch!

i think Lucius is far more aware of how dangerous Ed is compared to Blackbeard, much more than the audience is at that point. Ed is unpredictable where Blackbeard kept to an awful but definite script.

I really enjoyed watching your reaction series, you had a lot of good insights that i really enjoyed. But to be a total nitpick: "This is the ONLY time we see a genuine smile from Izzy" first, i don't at all think that's a genuine smile, he looks absolutely terrified imo, it's similar to the strained smiles he gives the crew at the beginning of this episode but more twitchy, second, at the end of the fourth episode after Ed tells Izzy he needs him there we see Izzy beam as he tells Ed he's "still got it," a genuine, non-twitchy, non-strained smile, though considering you watched the fourth episode weeks ago I fully understand forgetting it.

I can’t remember the exact wording but you mentioned something about Lucius having a knack for survival in a previous OFMD vid, probably ep 1 or 2, and it’s stayed with me. I like many, don’t believe Lucius is dead, they framed it a specific way, like going from night to day so his survival is off screen, but you had to admit that it’s entirely possible for one of the crew to have saved Lucius (my money on fang) or he’s holding on for dear life. I personally love the idea of Lucius comes back and the running gag of s2 is no one has any idea how he survived. Nathan Foad is kind of integral to the essence of the show. No way did they get rid of him. Absolutely refuse to believe it. I was so excited at your reaction to the attempted murder, and Mary’s character in general. Stede definitely thought of himself more highly in their relationship, I’m glad he was atleast able to resolve one of his strained relationships. Would absolutely love a Widow’s club spin off, even if it’s just short one shots. Need to see how the women of this world find the space to be their authentic selves. You’ve got some very insightful observations about Ed/BB, I’d love for you to touch on the idea during your review, that even after stede broke his heart, right before the talk with Izzy there was a version of Ed that wanted to try be the softer/authentic version of himself regardless of stede. Also love to hear why you think the “devil on his shoulder” was the one that won out considering the overwhelmingly positive vibes from the rest of the crew. Obv Ed has some loyalty to Izzy, we’re yet to explore, but it’s interesting that one person compared to boatload of ppl was able to get under his skin as it were. Can’t wait to see more breakdowns from you for other shows. What we do in the shadows, both the film and the series have similar vibe to OFMD if you’re interested.

Spoiler!!!! Spoiler!!! Spoiler!!! Lucius's actor (Nathan Foad) was spotted in the s2 filming. Was in a picture taken by one of the directors on the set of s2.

We already know Lucius is in season 2. A photo of Nathan (Lucius) on the set got leaked. One of the episode directors (also played Alfeo de la Vaca) uploaded some pics from the last day of filming in New Zealand. Nathan was in costume flipping off the camera. That happened a few months ago.

Ed separated all the couples, including the room people. Jim has the ability to appear out of nowhere; we just accept This show is the perfect showcase of how toxic masculinity will destroy everyone, including the people expressing it. After Ed was confronted by Izzy, he heard the crew chanting his name. It no longer felt like camaraderie; it felt like mockery. And Lucius is still alive, dammit! Wonderful reaction!!💜🌈🏴‍☠️

I(and many other ofmd fans) refuse to believe that Lucius is dead. My headcannon is that he was screaming when he went into the water because he dropped his wooden finger.

A popular theory is that Lucius somehow found his way back on the ship and is hiding in the secret passageways 😂

That title made me scream! You're evil 😂

Yeah, don't think that's Izzy genuinely smiling, that's Izzy trying to force a smile because he's gotten what he THOUGHT he wanted and it was baaaaaaaad.

god i loved watching this show with you, all your thoughts and commentary were great, i cant wait for season 2!!

Lucius will be back😏

It's wild that it took you 15 weeks to watch this. You said in one of the recent episodes that you'd rather have binged it and I agree. The first time I watched it, I did it pretty slowly because my sister was visiting and I didn't have the free time for a full binge and even that felt a little slow. I can't imagine waiting so many weeks. I'm glad you're settling into your new place though. To your point about Stede, I think he's going to be in a world of pain in s2. David Jenkins has said that the season will be about heartbreak and I think Stede is going to really feel it even though the show will still be funny. I for one would really like to see Oluwande as captain and Stede having to humble himself and earn his keep for once. I love that you really weren't sure about Lucius there for a minute in episode five but then came around. He's hard not to love. I'm really glad Taika happened to discover Nathan Foad on Twitter. And yeah, as everyone here has already said, the fandom has no doubt that Lucius is still alive. (Everyone I know though, including me, came out of this episode sad the show killed him off only to have someone else say, "Oh no, don't worry.") Watching Ed feeling better and cleaning up the room only to have Izzy say what he says hurts my heart every time. This episode was such a surprise to me. I ended episode nine angry at the writers and the last person I wanted to see at the start of the last episode was Mary, but spending time with her was exactly what we needed. They say the historical Stede Bonnet (boo, hiss) abandoned his family because his wife was a nag. So glad the writers knew that and decided to make her sympathetic and give her painting talent and a supportive boyfriend instead. I hear you about this episode needing to be two episodes! That would have helped with Jim's return especially. It makes zero sense, but we all accept it because it's what we wanted to see (and it's the bone they threw us before breaking our hearts). Loved your point about Ed having to be hard and Stede being soft. I love how in this episode, each of them do what they think the other might (Ed: make room for his emotions and connect with the crew and Stede: drink too much and threaten someone). I'm so glad that your Patreon folks chose this show for you to watch and I really hope you'll be back to react to the second season!

I feel like you were a lot fairer to Izzy in previous episodes than you were this one? I can understand where your interpretation might have changed but it does make me a little sad to see. You have to consider, in this episode, Izzy is kind of shitting himself (no pun intended) at the idea of Ed showing weakness (which, yeah emotions aren't inherently weakness but its definitely not the NORM in the culture of piracy we've seen so far to be building blanket forts because you're sad your boyfriend left you, in the first episode even Stede's crew were used to 'bottling it up' after all) especially around people who were trying to kill him in just the past episode. He's not trying to distract the crew/hide Ed's breakdown from them out of like, embarrassment or anything, he's scared that Ed showing his belly to the crew could be dangerous (because on any other ship it would be). As far as Izzy's insistence on the crew calling Ed 'Blackbeard', you have to remember that Izzy's ALWAYS called him Ed or Edward when he's addressing him directly. I see it less as 'not seeing him as a person' and more 'being upset that other people are being allowed something only he was allowed previously'. Calico Jack told Stede that the Blackbeard he new wouldn't have allowed anybody to call him 'Ed' and sure, you could make the argument that he was lying to upset/unsettle Stede but I can't see why he would have lied about something like that when he himself clearly doesn't call him 'Ed'. I definitely think its more complicated than 'Edward doesn't think Blackbeard was ever real', I think he's aware it was a persona but its still a PART of him just like the part of him that's making blanket forts and tidying up after a depressive episode. He wouldn't have put so much emphasis on wanting to 'just be Edward' if he didn't think he was previously 'being Blackbeard'. Izzy's definitely not in the right in the hurtful things he said to Ed in the cabin but, imo, its coming from the same place of upset that Ed's choking him out comes from. Consider the 'we just can't seem to stop hurting each other' line, Ed and Izzy are a parallel to Stede and Mary (highlighted in ep 4 'Discomfort in a Married State') but they haven't had the chance to have that heart to heart the way that Stede and Mary have in this episode (yet, I've got my fingers crossed for s2/possible s3). Strongly disagree that Izzy's 'smile' when he says 'Blackbeard is himself again' is anything approaching genuine though. We see two smiles from Izzy that come across as genuine, one blink and you'll miss it one in the background when Ed asks 'why don't we have a bird guy?' and when he's telling Ed '[he's] still got it' after Ed tells him the plan to kill Stede/retire. The 'smile' in this scene is closer to a grimace, much more 'I am telling myself I am happy about this and this is what I wanted' than 'I am genuinely happy that a person I am meant to be able to trust has physically hurt me like this'. Ultimately I'm of the opinion that Izzy did a very good many things wrong but he's not unique in that aspect and he's often given far less grace in his wrongdoings than, say, Stede or Ed. A lot of people tend not to take into consideration that the same environment that hurt Ed so thoroughly ALSO hurt Izzy and shaped his mindset. He's still not in the right, but he's got reasons for what he does and, in his eyes, they're valid ones. Outside of Izzy Opinions, I don't think its THAT much of a leap for Ed going Kraken in this one episode? I know there's this tendency to read him as steadily healing/recovering in this episode but he's in a really fragile place pretty much the entire time and the rapid swinging from 'sobbing in the blanket fort' to 'baring his soul to veritable strangers' to 'physically assaulting his first mate in his sleep and murdering the one person who's seen him at his most vulnerable/who reminds him the most of Stede' shows his instability pretty well in my opinion? There's more of Blackbeard/the Kraken in Ed than, I think, a lot of people are willing to see. On the topic of Lucius, consider: It makes for a better/bigger cliffhanger if they don't tell us that he survived. We're operating on 'if we didn't see the body, they're not dead' rules here though, as pretty much every other fan will tell you: ain't no way that boy is capital D Dead. That said, and hoo boy I apologize for the essay lol, this reaction series was very enjoyable and it was very refreshing seeing a different approach to Stede than what a lot of other people come away with on their first watch and, even where I disagree with you on some of your interpretations of Izzy, I'm also glad that you, for the most part, extended him much more grace than a lot of people do on their first watch! I hope you react to season 2 when it comes out!

I think Ed emotionally reacted and got rid of Lucius as not only was he was 'the angel' (vs the devil) but maybe more importantly he is the reminder of his love for Stede as it was Lucius who basically held up the mirror and told him he loved him. Mary is in Barbados has nowt to do with the USA and the American revolution. Barbados was an English then British colony and part of the Commonwealth until 2021. How women and widows were treated/constrained was not the same as in the continental colony or as on the British Isles for that matter - but a widow of means, land-owning and of good birth could have had (for the time) considerable rights and freedoms. In history the winner was not Izzy or any of these 'characters' it was the English crown/navy/banks and other colonial powers, unfortunately (at least of a few centuries)

oh i don't think lucius is gone.

I need october to come so mych quicker

Jim came back in that episode where they ended up having sex with Oluwande, unless I'm confused. I just watched all these last week, but I've been watching a lot of reactions since, so I could be. Did they leave again after that? I don't think so . . . They were one of those picked for Blackbeard's new crew and not to be stranded on the island. These were all split pairings, friends and/or lovers. Oluwande for the island, Jim for BB's crew, etc.

I’m positive Lucius is coming back, if only because the actor has been in tons of interviews and stuff. The guy that plays Fang, however, has already confirmed he won’t be back for season 2.