Once again, Crossbones continued its alternating level of quality with a better episode that focused almost entirely on the frightening lady who haunts Blackbeard. In addition, this episode made strides toward resolving some of the more random storylines that have surfaced during the first season.
A Hole in the Head is set directly after Lowe’s escape from Jagger’s troops on Jamaica as he is arriving back on Santa Compana. His mission to retrieve the surgical drill was technically a success, but not everything went according to plan. Selima has discovered that Lowe was captured and injured during his time on Jamaica and questions him about why he should be allowed to drill a hole in Blackbeard’s head. This would seem to be a prominent storyline during this episode, but A Hole in the Head quickly changes direction to reintroduce Antoinette.
As hinted earlier in the season, Antoinette is the creepy lady who haunts all of Blackbeard’s headache-induced dreams. Occasionally, she has bleeding eyes and carries a baby with her. Her existence had been revealed during a previous episode, but this major moment was forgotten while Lowe was gallivanting around Jamaica. Thankfully, Crossbones returned to Antoinette and actually explained why she even matters to the story. Apparently, Antoinette is a former resident of Santa Compana as well as Blackbeard’s ex-wife. This explains why she hates him with such passion, but it doesn’t explain how she can keep showing up in his visions.
Actually, this lack of explanation is something that has been persistent about Crossbones. Not once has the show actually revealed whether voodoo magic is something that exists and affects the different characters. The rest of the show has been based in reality, with the exception of Antoinette. This magic will probably never be explained, but I would still like to find out some information about it.
A Hole in the Head was one of the better episodes, but it still didn’t reach the quality of the pilot episode. One aspect that I did enjoy was a partial payoff of the story involving Nenna and another prominent character. Nenna’s story had been lingering throughout the season, and I definitely enjoyed seeing her take action to protect her interests. Plus, it was nice seeing Nenna return to some of the more…pirate-y actions that made the pilot so entertaining.
There were actually quite a few good moments during this episode, but digging into the details would completely spoil the entire season. However, I can say that actual details are being revealed more often instead of simply being hinted at. We now know what Blackbeard is trying to achieve with his master plan. In addition, there is a growing list of characters that know Lowe’s true mission on the island, but they can’t decide what to do with this knowledge. It definitely appears that Crossbones is building to a final episode that will feature a major battle and roughly five other storylines. The combination of so many plots could become overwhelming if it isn’t handled well, or the end of the first season could become an entertaining masterpiece. First, Crossbones has to make it through three other episodes that could very well wrap up some of these storylines.
As Crossbones nears the end of season one, motivations become clear and loyalties are tested. At least, that’s what the show is aiming for. The quality of each Crossbones episode has fluctuated between better and worse throughout the first season, but the overall quality has been slowly declining as well. I’m finding that I actively root for certain characters to die gruesome deaths in hope that better characters might replace them. Hopefully, the final episodes in the first season will all reach a higher level of quality while tying up the main story.
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