Jorts the Cat and Jean dress as pirates to renew 'Our Flag Means Death'
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TV

Jorts the Cat Wants ‘Our Flag Means Death’ Renewed. We Are All Jorts the Cat.

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Kaila Hale-Stern
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Published: May 12, 2022 03:47 pm

Jorts the Cat desires more soft pirate TV content from the folks behind Our Flag Means Death, and we are right there with Jorts. The wildly popular feline Twitter account sprang from a viral Reddit thread in December 2021 and is now a vibrant voice for labor advocacy and social justice online, winning praise from figures like Senator Elizabeth Warren.

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Sometimes I like to imagine how to explain to people from the future, or perhaps to my mother right now, how a cat that emerged from a forum called “Am I the Asshole” is now one of the foremost proponents of union organizing and protecting reproductive rights and the rights of LGBTQIA+ people in America. It’s one of those things where you just had to be there to watch the sequence of things progress, but we are grateful for @JortsTheCat every day. Posts are written from the perspective of Jorts himself, an orange and white tabby whose image frequently graces the account alongside tortie cat and partner in fighting for equality, Jean.

Beyond their work toward a more just nation, Jorts and Jean sometimes comment on other topics. Today I was delighted to see Jorts advocating for another season of HBO Max’s smash-hit pirate romcom series Our Flag Means Death. Despite the fact that the show just spent its 7th consecutive week as the #1 most in-demand new series—topping Moon Knight and Heartstopper—HBO Max remains mum on any plans for renewal. 49 days have passed since the season finale, and the wait to hear about the show’s fate has become agonizing. Even for cats.

“We are all doing so much really hard stuff WHY WON’T THEY RENEW OUR PIRATE SHOW?!,” Jorts the Cat wrote on Twitter, attaching a picture of Jorts in a “Gentleman Pirate”-esque ruffled cravat a la main character Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby). With her steely-eyed stare, I assume Jean here is embodying the Blackbeard role (played by Taika Waititi). They’re joined by a seagull (RIP, Karl). Jorts went on: “I know it doesn’t solve everything but I just want more tender pirate tv.”

This is, as the kids might say, a mood. (Actually, the kids probably don’t say that anymore, but it is for sure a mood.) The fan campaign to renew Our Flag Means Death has been going strong for months now, with tons of new content on social media every day. You can check out the hashtags #RenewOurFlagMeansDeath and #RenewAsACrew for beautiful fanart, excellent memes, and unending pleas to the HBO Max gods.

We continue to hold out hope that Our Flag Means Death will be renewed (as do the show’s creatives). Not doing so would be madness on HBO Max’s part: OFMD is a massive success, features a beloved cast, doesn’t have a giant budget, brought together one of the most devoted fandoms in decades, and has generated wave upon wave of press for its groundbreaking representation across the board. Unabashedly queer, gorgeously diverse, deliciously subversive, resoundingly body-positive, equal parts sweet, devastating, and raucously funny, Our Flag Means Death is the show we need now. With politics in America growing more awful and oppressive by the day, we also need a win and a wonderful diversion to look forward to. As Jorts put it, “We are all doing so much really hard stuff.” Please, HBO Max.

Here are some of the replies to Jorts’ renewal push, including from some fellow cat pirate aficionados:

Jorts had previously expressed an affinity for Our Flag Means Death, volunteering to go to sea and join the crew of The Revenge. The idea was endorsed by showrunner David Jenkins:

Two things are clear: Our Flag Means Death needs to be renewed, like, yesterday, and the series should have a ship’s cat (or cats) in season 2, at least for a star-studded cameo. Jorts (and Jean) are ready for their closeup.

(via/image: Jorts the Cat on Twitter)

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Author
Image of Kaila Hale-Stern
Kaila Hale-Stern
Kaila Hale-Stern (she/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.
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