Pirate’s life has never been boring for the United States. According to a recent Business Insider research, the new HBO Max series Our Flag Means Death, which follows the exploits of an odd group of pirates, is currently the biggest new show in the United States.
As per the analysis, the series’ first season was the top new series in the US for the previous hundred days, when the first season ended last week. In the United States and abroad, the series was also the tenth most popular show, an outstanding feat for a show that isn’t based on a well-known franchise or concept.
The popularity of the series is due, at least in part, to the involvement of director Taika Waititi, who previously worked on the similarly hilarious series What We Do in the Shadows, which was based on the 2013 film of the same name.
Waititi, on the other hand, has taken a break from What We Do in the Shadows to star in Our Flag Means Death, in which he portrays none other than the iconic pirate Blackbeard. “In a horrible turn of events… HBO Max’s ‘Our Flag Means Death‘ is the biggest new series in the US right now,” Waititi joked in response to the series’ popularity. He also included a link to a Business Insider article about the show’s amazing streaming ratings.
“This is what happens when a large media business invests in inclusive mainstream tales,” series creator David Jenkins remarked of the high ratings. Jenkins isn’t the only one who thinks this way. Our Flag Means Death has received appreciation for its abundance of gay tales, which do not tokenize their queer characters or avoid true romance plotlines. The romance narrative between Waititi’s Blackbeard and Rhys Darby’s Stede Bonnet, the series’ protagonist, carried most of the series’ key suspense and was neither avoided nor disguised.
There has been no news on whether HBO will continue the series for a second season, but the ratings have been nothing but positive. The series has also been a hit with reviewers, having an 89 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. On Rotten Tomatoes, Our Flag Means Death got a 94 percent approval rating from viewers.
If you want to relive the swashbuckling score of seafaring scallywags, HBO Max is now streaming the complete first season of Our Flag Means Death. You can also see Taika Waititi‘s tweet about the series’ success below:
