No, not like every drama show ever. I love this show and look forward to it every weekend and would never call it garbage. But this complaint about the "dull, mechanical, unnatural dialogue" is a LEGITIMATE complaint. Dialogue in most shows are a little shorter, quicker, more like real people chatting.
Here's an example of what "Black Sails" does that's so frustrating. Rogers tells Eleanor (with dramatic pauses):
When I informed Sarah of my intent to formally end our marriage, I did not know what the consequences would be.... I didn't imagine they would be significant... We'd barely spoken in years. Her reaction was more significant than I'd anticipated.
Great. But it could've been said faster, with fewer words. Now take that kind of dialogue and multiply it by 10, and you have Season 3 and
some of Season 4's first episode.
I have to accept that this is how these characters are forced to talk by these writers, but it IS rather dull (get to the point!), mechanical (static shots, emotionless delivery), and unnatural (who talks like that, least of all pirates?).
Still a fan, though.
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dbossy
8 years ago
True enough. I do find Woodes Rogers and Elanor to be incredibly boring and half the time I zone out. Max and Ann Bonny as well though they've been getting progressively better. That being said, they often nail the dialogue. Silver and Flint's dialogue is mostly excellent.
Overall, it's not perfect but there's so much good to be had that their's no sense in getting hung up on something like this. If a minor flaw such as this distracts the viewer to the point where he/she gives up on the show, then I wonder if the viewer can tolerate any show. Even shows with some of the best dialogue suffer from this from time to time. GOT and Breaking Bad certainly had their share of boring and mechanical dialogue. Just look at the recent Arya arc and you'll see what I mean. You have to expect that it occurs when you have dozens of hours of content. Black Sails had a limited budget so you can't expect the best actors and biggest set pieces. Despite that, it has some of the very best production, cinematography, character developement, costume design etc.
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RomaVictorrrr
8 years ago
But it's NOT a "flaw." It's intentional. The writers WANT to make their dialogue sound like this. They think it's fanciful or poetic or deeply philosophical or something. While other shows may slip on it once in a while, "Black Sails" slips on it more often than not. And the show took me to the brink of frustration last season, especially when almost ALL the characters talk like that.
EDIT: Woodes Rogers especially has been saddled with a lot of clunky dialogue where he's explaining the plot. And the scene when Eleanor blathers for a bit before saying "What the f happened back there?" should've STARTED with her saying, "What the F happened back there?"
Contrast that with GOT, where every character has their own way of talking.
Despite that, it has some of the very best production, cinematography, character developement, costume design etc.
Mos def. A visual treat.
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danconia
8 years ago
Yeah I like this show but the dialogue is just dreadful. Whereas Game of Thrones's dialogue is concise and uses connotations, the dialogue in Black Sails always seems to be long-winded as if they are trying to explain things to the viewer. The problem is, at least for me, I don't care to pay close attention to every little twist and turn... and it definitely makes the dialogue sound completely unnatural.
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Bioparadoxous
8 years ago
You people are all insane.
--
There's no such thing as the establishment. Everyone knows that!
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