#got annoyed by willfully dumb izzy takes again

[gydima]

I feel like this shouldn't have to be said, but:

IZZY KNOWS WHO EDWARD IS.*

Izzy's repressed as fuck, no doubt, but he's not an idiotic turnip who's actually in love with "Blackbeard." HE KNOWS IT'S JUST A PERSONA. It's a persona that benefits Izzy by helping keep him in a "safe" (for pirate values of "safe") position of power, but Izzy hasn't been serving as first mate to depressed, restless Edward** without seeing beyond the persona and sticking by Edward's side nonetheless.

And -- I can't stress enough how important this is -- Izzy doesn't throw his "Blackbeard is my captain" snit until AFTER Edward sings his emo song in front of the crew, tells them he wants to be called Ed, and asks "Why are we even being pirates?"

That's a vital turn of events, because Edward being a mess in private is one thing. But outside of the captain's cabin, appearances matter. Which is why Izzy was lying to the crew (albeit badly) that Blackbeard's doing OK, you guys!

Whether Izzy really believes the crew would attempt mutiny against "Ed," I don't know, but they'd already mutinied against HIM mere days ago. So maybe Izzy's thinking they're capable of more than he gave them credit for?

My takeaway is that Izzy cares about Edward during his highs AND lows, but within his frame of piratical experience he is unable to conceive of this version of "Ed" being able to protect himself and, by extension, Izzy. He KNOWS the power of the Blackbeard persona, though. And that's one driving force for Izzy goading him to re-emerge.*** It's not because Blackbeard is his true love, ffs.

* He doesn't know all of Edward, because there are parts of Edward that he hides and some that come out for the first time during the show, once he meets Stede. Likewise, Stede doesn't fully know Edward because there are parts of Edward that Edward doesn't want him to see, or parts of Edward he's trying to leave behind.

** To say nothing of whatever their relationship was like before canon began, which we are largely left in the dark about.

*** Yes, that's an infantilizing move that shows Izzy thinks he knows better than Edward, but I never said Izzy isn't an asshole, just that he isn't in love with the Blackbeard persona.