It all falls apart.. Black Sails Season Four Episode Nine
So, in the spirit of honesty, this was a difficult recap to write. I had anticipated it being so because Luke Arnold was so excited for us to see it. He described it as his favorite episode ever and I was positively giddy to view it. After viewing, I get why he loved it. The flashbacks were beautifully shot, the fighting was some of the best I’ve seen in four seasons and that scene between Madi and Woodes Rogers was chilling. Zethu was absolutely brilliant in it, but that one scene summed up pretty much everything I loved and struggled to love regarding this episode.
We start off the episode with a flashback of Silver walking to meet Flint on a hilltop. It’s evident that it’s a flashback scene because Silver still has his metal leg. We find out that Flint has summoned Silver to teach him how to “fight and not die”. The reason that this is so important now is because the invasion of Nassau is a few weeks away. Flint gingerly tells Silver that it would be better if he learned to fight with a crutch and is surprised when Silver doesn’t fight him on this. Clearly, the purpose of the scene is to show the trust that has developed between the two men since the Fireside confession in 3x10.
~ When the fighting truly begins all that matters is what makes for the greatest advantage~ Flint
~ The men, I have to manage how they see me. I understand that’s part of my job, but for pride to be an issue between you and I well, I think we’re plain past that by now. Don’t you? Do you really imagine that a few weeks of this is going to make that much difference? Am I not what I am at this point? ~ Silver
~ It’s better than nothing.~ Flint
~ You’re not concerned about this? ~ Silver
~ Well, you say you’ll be teaching me to fight. But if every man fights differently, seems to me what you’ll really be teaching me is how to defeat you.~ Silver
~ I’ll take my chances. Shall we? ~ Flint
When we return to the present, we see Silver traveling on a launch. He is heading to Skeleton Island to join Hands and the six man crew in their search of Flint. Silver mentions to Hands that the Governor gave him until sunrise to deliver the cache. Silver voices that he has doubts that the Governor will actually keep his word though. He knows that he is up to something. He just isn’t sure what that is.
While Silver and Hands are having this conversation, Rogers is seen asking Billy who he thinks will be the victor between Silver and Flint. Billy states that Silver has the men, motivation, etc… However, Flint is Flint, and he is at his best when backed into a corner. He encourages the Governor not to wait and see this thing done himself. Honestly, I thought at this point, I’d be over being disappointed by Billy. I’m not. Seeing Billy actively plotting and orchestrating the death of his brothers is painful. Little did we know that this was just the tip of the iceberg for him though. There is much more pain to come. Rogers surprises everyone by saying that he would like to speak to Madi and to have her brought to him. Billy, with all his false bravado, tells him that Madi will never accept a compromise. Rogers quickly reminds him that he is a means to an end and that he needs to remain useful or else end up dead. So essentially, play your position.
In the next scene we flashback to Maroon Island and Silver training with Flint. Somewhere in the midst of sweat flying, it dawns on Flint that Silver knows “his story, his past”, but he doesn’t know Silver’s. Silver repeats the story that he has told many times. He’s from White Chapel. Never knew his mother and grew up in an orphanage. Flint scoffs at that and tells him that he doesn’t believe it’s true and he encourages Silver to tell him the truth. Silver states it’s not important and yet Flint expresses disbelief that Silver refuses to share his past. Silver looks unnerved with the line of questioning and leaves.
Back again in the present, Flint attacks three of the men on his trail and kills them. We then see Jack sailing with his crew to find Skeleton Island.
And then we see the Queen… She’s been brought up to Rogers and she’s looking as defiant as ever. But wait… the two aren’t alone. Ghost Eleanor is sitting in the corner knitting because evidently she has unfinished business here. I’m assuming she’s his conscience now. Too bad it only took hundreds of women, men and children dying, including his own, for him to get one. Rogers starts off the conversation from a position of power and intimidation standing directly behind Madi. Little does he know, the Queen doesn’t really do scare tactics. I guess he didn’t decipher that from their last interaction.
~ You have no idea the restraint this takes. How urgent the instinct toward violence. How certain the conviction that it would be deserved, given what you and your partners have destroyed, what you’ve taken from me. To me, compromise seems a loathsome, unbearable act. What compromise can there be with the man responsible for the death of my wife? Or with those who follow him? You’re luckier than you know. So much luckier than you know that in this moment I can still hear the faintest of voices in my head arguing against the alternative. If I must compromise to avert a dark end, then so must you. I’ve offered you freedom for your people. I have offered you more than you have any right to expect. And still, you will not say yes. So I come to you one last time to ensure you cannot say no. Accept the treaty….~ Rogers
Madi interrupts him mid sentence. Just cuts him the hell off. Queen was like I’m tired of all this pontificating.
~ I will consider no treaty of yours.~ Madi
~…. and John Silver lives. Refuse and he dies. Along with the rest of the men who followed him here. And from what I understand, he is the one who matters most to you. The one with whom you might lead a life if you can set aside your pride in this moment. Do not make the same mistake I did. Do the deal.~ Rogers
~ The voice you hear in your head. I imagine I know who it sounds like as I know Eleanor wanted those things. But I hear the voices. A chorus of voices. Multitudes. They reach back centuries. Men and women and children who’d lost their lives to men like you. Men and women and children forced to wear your chains. I must answer to them and this war. Their war. Flint’s war. My war. It will not be bargained away to avoid a fight, to save John Silver’s life or his men’s or mine. And you believe what you will, but it was neither I nor Flint nor the Spanish raider who killed your wife. That, you did.~ Madi
I’ve always known Queen Madi Scott was special. Quite honestly, she is probably one of the best characters on television. A lot of that is due to writing, but Zethu is mesmerizing in this role. I watched this scene and wept. I wept for the pure defiance in her eyes. The conviction. The Calling. Yes, I said Calling. Like never before, Madi made me feel that she’s doing God’s work. In this moment, she is fighting to free her people. She’s fighting for the ones who died at the bottom of ships on the passage over. She’s fighting for the ones who made it over and lived in chains. She’s fighting for the ones who are “free” like her, but still aren’t and she fighting so that her children won’t have to. In this scene, Madi spelled out in no uncertain terms that Madi’s war, her Calling, is about freeing her people and making the world a better place for them.
I wept for another reason though. I wept because of the lip quiver. I wept because of the heaving chest and the quick swallowing. I wept because of the watery eyes. I wept because in one brief moment, we saw Madi Scott, the woman. Not the Queen of the Maroons or a Leader in the Revolution. We saw Madi that young girl who fell in love with a silver tongued, one legged Pirate. I wept because Madi in that moment realized that this war might take her love’s life as payment and she accepted that possibility. Not just that John’s life might be forfeited, but hers and her people’s as well. Again, she didn’t choose this war over Silver’s life. She chose her Calling of freeing her enslaved people over EVERYTHING. Freedom ain’t never been free. People have always had to die for it. That doesn’t mean that she doesn’t love John with everything in her soul. It just means that she has to realize that she was lucky enough to fall in love with a man who supports her Calling. And he does.. He proved that when he punished Billy. He proved that when he broke those chains at Underhill. He proved that with his respect of the Queen Mother and Ruth. Silver is more than ready to accept her Calling and his. Madi just needs to realize it. As a said before, freedom ain’t free, but sometimes there can be another way. Sometimes the entire world and everyone in it doesn’t have to burn. If anyone is smart enough to find a way, it’s Madi and Silver together.
Honestly, I could just stop here, because that scene was hard and I’m tired as fuck. But alas, The King is still searching for Flint and the cache. We next see him and Hands standing over the bodies of the men that Flint has killed. Silver is pissed and cursing Flint. Hands ain’t having it. He reminds John that both he and Billy tried to warn him that Flint ain’t shit and ain’t ever going to be shit. He also tells him that Flint will show up, spin a damn tale and your loyal ass “will not have learned a got damn thing”. He’s right too. Our blue-eyed Bae is loyal as hell to Captain Ginger and that self serving bastard has never deserved it, but yet here we are. Silver than has a moment of clarity and realizes that he may know where Flint has went.
We then see Flint and Dooley carrying the chest. Dooley is expressing concerns over Silver’s ability to remain a part of the alliance. Flint assures him that once Madi is safe, Silver will be fine, but Dooley disagrees. He believes that Silver may be permanently compromised and when the time comes he will deal with it so that Flint won’t have that burden on his soul. Dooley, sweetheart, Flint killed Gates with his bare hands. That motherfucker doesn’t mind doing the wet work. Just saying.
In the next flashback, the training continues. We see Silver telling Flint a whole lot of nothing about his backstory. Clearly, Silver’s backstory isn't relevant to his present life. And Jesus, wept or at least I did. I waited four years for this and got Zilch, Nada, Nothing.
So, we’ve reached the fucked me up portion of the recap. In the present day, Joji and one of the crew encountered Flint and Dooley. Flint kills the crew member, while Joji fights Dooley. Joji, a real friend to the end, harms Dooley just enough to put him out of commission. He could have killed his brother and chooses not to. Not Flint, though. No sir. He did what he always does. He kills Joji. In what world could Flint beat Joji in a sword fight? R.I.P, Joji, my Silent Bae. I loved you.
As this is happening, we see members of Rogers crew swimming to the Walrus, where they proceed to light it on fire. They also untie all the launches so the men can’t escape. So you see, Madi not trusting Roger’s word was kind of a safe bet. Roger’s word doesn’t men shit. Ask his wife and child. I’ll wait. Mr. De Groot gives the abandon ship command and my heart breaks. This ain’t gon’ end well.
Hands and Silver spot Flint and Hands rushes down to stop him. More fighting ensues and Flint gets the best of Hands and knocks him out. Yeah, you read that right. Hands, the Ginger Savage, was bested by Flint. You really can’t make this shit up. Silver finally makes it and demands that Flint tell him where the treasure is. Flint says the treasure is in the ground and it will remain there until Madi is free and they gather it and return it to the camp.
~ I know you cannot see why this must be. But it must be. And every moment we waste is a moment we could be working to retrieve her.~ Flint
~ That’s all this has ever been, isn’t it? A partnership only insofar as it enables you to do whatever it is that matters to you in any given moment. And right now it matters far less to you whether she lives or dies than it happens your way, on your terms.~ Silver
~ I think you know it’s far more complicated than that. I’m certain she does. Even if you could kill me, even if that somehow helped you see her alive again, how are you going to explain it to her? She believes in this as much as I do. You know this. If it costs the war to save her, you’ll have lost her anyway. Even you cannot construct a story to make her forgive you that. You do this and you’re gonna regret it.~ Flint
Well, clearly those were fighting words, because Silver drew his sword and the fight commenced. But before we proceed, let’s rehash some things. Flint just implied to Silver that he knew Madi better than him. Marinate on that… Flint told Silver that Madi would essentially side with him. She would want this war to go on in spite of everything. But…. Madi is fighting for her people’s freedom. She fighting for the “greater good”. Flint on the other hand, is not. Flint is fighting to destroy England because he loved and lost. THAT.IS.IT. So someone explain to me like I’m a toddler, how are Madi’s Calling and Flint’s Revenge Campaign the same? I’ll wait. So back to the task at hand, Dooley shows up to the fight and attempts to shoot Silver. Flint kills him to prevent it and then an explosion occurs. It’s the Walrus. It’s completely engulfed in flames and the men are being shot dead in the water as they abandon ship. Leading this slaughter is Billy. I don’t have the words. De Groot is shot in the head, but Billy spares Gunn. For, not the last time, I wept. All these dead bodies in the water. Men that I watched and loved for four seasons are now dead. Dead because there can only be one way and that’s Flint way.
Silver flashbacks to this beautiful moment of him and Madi. It looks as though, they are eating together back on Maroon Island before all the Death and Destruction happened. Madi looks so young and innocent and Silver is obviously trying to reassure her that Flint means him no ill will…
~ Can’t you see it? It isn’t utility that’s behind his investment in me nor necessity nor dependency. I understand you fear a false motive. But this much is clear to me now.. I have earned his respect. And after all the tragedies that man has suffered….. the loss of Thomas, the events of Charles Town. I have earned his trust. I have his true friendship and so he is going to have mine. And as long as that is true, I cannot imagine what is possible.~ Silver
Deep sigh…. Silver speaks of his friend with such deep respect and admiration. He even seems a little in awe that Captain Flint, chose him of all people to trust with a true friendship. This is why we needed Silver’s backstory. This is why it was so important to know what happened in his past that would make him sacrifice so much for a man that has never done the same for him. That said… the scene once again showed that Silver truly does love Madi above all else. There is nary a secret between them and I would assume that would also include his backstory. It’s so clear why this man will fight the Devil himself to see Madi returned. She is his everything.
This episode was hard guys. Hard because honestly, we are left with more questions than answers and we only have one episode to get them. One episode until it’s all said and done.
