Black Sails - The Complete Collection [DVD]

I missed Black Sails when it first aired. I recently purchased the individual season DVDs and have spent hours with the denizens of 1715 Nassau; and I have to wonder how those who watched the show on Starz managed to wait from week to week and season to season for the next episode. Each episode made me more and and more anxious to see what would come next. This series was built for binge watching!Yes, there is gratuitous sex and pirate violence. And just when I thought there were no more ways to kill another human being, I learned I was wrong. There is plotting and counter-plotting, partnering and changing partners, and motives both obvious and hidden. Some have said that the first season was slower than the following seasons; but for me it was what I needed to learn who was who, who was sailing on which ship, and whose motives were good and whose weren’t. Suffice it to say that the “weren’t” often outnumbered the “good.”Why did I stick with it, being as I’m a person who doesn’t really watch movies or TV shows that feature the aforementioned gratuitous sex and violence? Black Sails grabbed me and pulled me in. The acting is outstanding, the plotting is complex, and the writing is first-rate. Add to that the ships, the sets, and the costumes, and the series is unforgettable.Why was there no Emmy nomination for Toby Stephens? His Captain Flint is the most conflicted, complex, and compelling character I’ve seen in a very long time. He’s also the glue that holds this drama together. Flint is not a nice man; far from it. Nevertheless, I found myself caring about what happened to him. After learning of the reasons for his rage against England, I wondered how long that rage would fuel him; and by the end of the series he seemed older, wiser (perhaps), and very tired. When he said that all he wanted was to leave the sea and find some peace, I believed him.I can’t say enough good things about Toby Stephens’ portrayal of Flint. From his striding across the deck of his ship to the small facial tics that belied his apparently calm exterior, I couldn’t take my eyes off him. And he could set events into motion simply by uttering a near-whisper “Fire!”. When Flint told John Silver (Luke Arnold, also a fine actor whose character grew up — for better or worse — under Flint’s tutelage) about those who “paint the world with shadows and then tell their children to stay close to the light,” the moment was stunning and the delivery of his speech nigh on Shakespearean. The story about Odysseus being told to take “an oar and walk inland ... until someone mistakes the oar for a shovel” peeled another layer off the mystery that was Captain Flint. Fabulous acting, more than doing justice to a beautifully written script.For me, this series is a “keeper.” I know I’ll be returning to it in the future, and I’m sure that it will continue to fascinate me for a long time to come.

Well made series. Good production value and great story

really neat examination of an interesting time in the history of pirates, also, treasure island prequel fanfiction. i heard about this online not long after it finished airing and assumed the gay subtext was just subtext as usual, but no it is not, gay love is in fact integral to the plot. this series will always have a special place in my heart.

When I was shopping for this, I found the reviews of the physical set more helpful than the series itself. It's a great series, and I wanted the Blu-ray for a rewatch. So this is coming from the perspective of someone who watched on streaming and wanted to see how the Blu-ray held up.The Blu-ray set is 12 discs (3 per season). One disc in my set did not stay in place, but happily there were no scratches. I've watched nearly the entire series with no technical snafus.The end of each season contains some special features. These are usually short (around 5 minutes). IMO the features about the special effects are the most interesting, the historical ones are glancingly informative, and the ones on the character directions are skippable (you should be picking up on the character motivations from watching the show itself).The show itself is excellent. It's very violent and intense, and I would recommend taking a breather from it when you need that on a first watch. The characters are well-rounded, even when a character makes a mistake its clear why they are doing what they are doing. It's fun to see the alliances shift like the sands of Nassau.

Great show

I never watched Black Sails when it aired. So I just took a chance and bought it on bluray. And it has been a very entertaining series thus far (almost finished with S3). But what really stands out to me is the well mixed and mastered soundtrack. Such an outstanding example of 5.1 done right. The surrounds are alive and the mix puts many things off to the sides where there are no speakers at all. From the even crickets to the dogs barking in the distance. Then there is the water pounding against the hull of the ships whilst they are sailing with the wind pummeling the cloth sails. It is all just awesome! If you have a nice surround setup, I would highly recommend this series. I have over 100 series in total on bluray and/or 4k disc, and this is one of the absolute best in terms of audio quality. A+

They are not many Pirate Adventure series or films out, but this one is the grandest of all. Based more on historical fact, than stylized Hollywood, it is definitely not for the faint of heart. Extreme vulgarity, full frontal nudity, and brutal violence.The unknown cast, and the writing, are superb. Great character studies. High production values, filmed along the coast of South Africa.It's 4 seasons are a wonder to behold. The version I bought from Amazon played flawlessly. NTSC w/subtitles.If you are into a grand pirate adventure, no holds barred, BLACK SAILS is the one!