Edward, Jeff, Blackbeard, Kraken

In the first season of the speculative television show Our Flag Means Death (2022–23), the main character, Edward/Blackbeard (Taika Waititi) uses a series of names to signal and disavow identity aspects relating to his positionality as a queer, mixed-race leader. I combine close readings and theoretical approaches from sf studies, queer studies, and sociolinguistics to argue that these name-changing processes reflect Edward’s ambivalence about his evolving identity, as well as his embeddedness in relationships with people who seek to affirm or dehumanize him. Edward’s relationships with the three men closest to him showcase a range of naming practices that reflect racialized dynamics, recasting our real-world history through a speculative lens to comment on present-day intersectional identities.