Our Flag Means Death is an American period romantic comedy[1][2] television series created by David Jenkins.

[16][17][18][19][20][21] Our Flag Means Death garnered critical acclaim, including praise for its LGBTQ+ representation, and was named one of the best series of 2022 and 2023 by Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes.

In 2024, Our Flag Means Death received the University of California’s Greater Good Science Center Award for series that represent the best in humanity.

[27][28] Set in 1717, the first season depicts the early days of Bonnet's career as a pirate after abandoning his family and his comfortable life as a member of the landed gentry of Barbados.

Aboard their ship, the Revenge, the newly minted Captain Bonnet and his dysfunctional crew struggle to survive against deadly threats both from naval warships and other bloodthirsty pirates.

Creator and showrunner David Jenkins was inspired to write the show after learning about Stede Bonnet from his wife and subsequently reading his Wikipedia article.

While Rhys Darby's name was mentioned early in the process, it was not until after an unsuccessful round of auditions and most of the script had been written that he was again brought into consideration.

[45] Jenkins had begun writing the role with Waititi in mind, and eventually approached him over text asking if he would be interested in playing Blackbeard.

[43][46] In the official casting announcement Jenkins said of Waititi "Our Blackbeard is a legend, a lover, a fighter, a tactical genius, a poetic soul and quite possibly insane.

[48] In August, it was announced that Leslie Jones, Nat Faxon, Fred Armisen and Samba Schutte were cast in recurring roles.

[65] The high-profile cancellation of Our Flag Means Death, along with a general decline in the production of scripted content across the streaming industry, marked the end of the Peak TV era.

[80][81][82][83][84][85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97] Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter stated "I am really still confused by [the cancellation of] Our Flag Means Death, because that is a show that for a long time was in the Top 10 on Max.

"[98] A fan-funded campaign dubbed "Renew as a Crew" was launched and raised enough funds to rent both a billboard in Times Square and a plane flying over Hollywood with the message "Save Our Flag Means Death".

"[105] An official Our Flag Means Death podcast was in development at Max with Schutte set to host, but was also canceled due to Warner Bros.

[106] In June 2024, on the Talking Strange podcast with Aaron Sagers, series star Rhys Darby expressed his disappointment with the cancellation and confirmed there was "a financial element" involved in the decision.

The website's critical consensus reads, "Our Flag Means Death's gentle sensibility doesn't quite strike comedic gold, but its bemusing band of buccaneers are endearing enough that viewers seeking a comforting watch will find bountiful booty.

[219] The series was named one of the best shows of 2022 based on Metacritic's year-end compilation of major television critics' top 10 lists.

[128] In a review for IndieWire, Ben Travers referred to the series as "pure joy" and "a sweet, splendid farce", with Darby and Waititi portraying characters that are "perfectly suited to their strengths".

"[225] The series was praised for its substantial LGBTQ+ representation, which consists of three queer relationships, one of which involves a nonbinary character (Jim Jimenez).

[231] Critics praised the series for subverting the common queerbaiting trope by making Bonnet and Teach's relationship explicit before the end of the season.

[240] TV Guide hailed the second season as "a triumph", calling it "sentimental yet satirical, with thoughtful hidden depths: a rare and welcome combination.

"[249] The Daily Beast applauded the second season's "incredible" ability to "balance its quirkiness, its romance, and its darker themes ... while never feeling either too frivolous or too heavy-handed.

"[251] SlashFilm wrote "its comedy, emotional core, and thrilling sense of peril all balance on a knife's edge," adding "even in its darkest moments, the show's writing is brilliantly snappy and deeply quirky.

"[253] The first season debuted to popular acclaim and ranks among the top five most watched HBO Max comedy series launches.

[260] It remained the most in-demand breakout series across all streaming platforms for seven consecutive weeks before being surpassed by the premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

[267] According to Max's public ranking system, Our Flag Means Death became the streaming service's top series during its second season run.

[269] The instant success of the second season elevated the series to flagship status at Max,[266] resulting in a new line of official merchandise sold through the HBO Shop.

[270] In a November 2023 interview with TV Insider, series star Rhys Darby commented on the second season's viewership: "not that anyone gives out numbers, but I heard on the ethos that people [are] watching it, and it's rating really high.