Crossbones

Crossbones is an American action-adventure drama television series that aired on the NBC network from May 30 to August 2, 2014. The series is a fictionalization of the life of the pirate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach, who is still alive in 1729 (historically, he died in 1718). The show was created by Neil Cross, James V. Hart, and Amanda Welles. Crossbones is based on Colin Woodard's book The Republic of Pirates. The show was originally supposed to be a part of NBC's midseason schedule, but it was later pushed to summer. The series premiered on May 30, 2014, at 10:00 pm EDT. On July 24, 2014, NBC announced that Crossbones had been canceled, and the final two episodes were removed from the schedule. However, both episodes were later aired on August 2, 2014. Plot In 1729, the island of Santa Compaña is home to pirates, thieves, and cutthroats all ruled by the feared pirate captain Edward "Blackbeard" Teach, who the British Empire believes is dead, but who in actuality is merely in hiding. Calling himself "Commodore", he now uses this island as his base of operations. According to the first episode: At its height, the British Empire was the most powerful force humanity had ever known. Fully of the world's population lived and died under the British flag. Yet its true power was not on land but on the sea where they ruled with the most brutal and efficient military force that has ever been: the British Navy. But the oceans that this navy sought to control were vast, unknowable and full of terrible danger. And for all the Crown's might, its ships were often lost to starvation, to storm and tempest, and to pirates. So it was in 1712, the Crown offered a prince's fortune to whoever could create a device that would allow its navy to navigate this great emptiness with a precision never before known. With this device, the Empire would increase its dominion over the world. But without it, the ships of the Crown would continue to be easy prey, not only from the gods and monsters of legend, but from a monster far more brutal and far more real.