Pirates of Dark Water

Thirteen treasures of ancient time,         thirteen lessons of rule in rhyme. To find the jewels in secret places,         follow where the compass faces.

If returned from the shore beyond,         a new day dawns for Octopon. But if they should fall into evil hands,         darkness descends on all the lands.

For these riches two shall vie,

        in the realm of Dark Water where the treasures lie...

N-Spiration:

The Pirates of Dark Water

About the Show

N. C. Wyeth

The brain child of David Kirschner and the byproduct of collaboration with Hanna-Barbera, The Pirates of Dark Water is an animated series best considered in three parts: first, a miniseries - Dark Water - aired in 1991 on the Fox Kids programming block; second, a first season with eight new episodes from the Dark Water miniseries, aired on ABC also in 1991; and finally, a second season - again, eight new episodes - airing between 1992 and 1993 on syndication.  Inspired in Kirschner's mind by the writings of Robert Louis Stevenson and the artwork of N.C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle, The Pirates of Dark Water is a unique fusion of pseudo medieval fantasy and the romantic swashbuckling adventure inherent to the Age of Sail.

At the time of its creation - the Dark Water miniseries was the most expensive animation ever attempted at Hanna Barbera: with double the cels of a standard production aimed at the same audience - each episode coming with a production price-tag of half a million dollars - unheard of for a pilot, but adjusted for inflation, putting it into the cost realm of established, prime-time media akin to Family Guy or Adventure Time. Starring a frankly stunning cast of voice talent - Jodi Benson (Ariel of The Little Mermaid), Brock Peters (beyond his Tony Award nomination and recurring role in the Star Trek motion picture franchise, perhaps known best for his portrayal of Tom Robinson in 1962's To Kill a Mockingbird), Tim Curry... - Hanna-Barbera truly gave it their all to launch and succeed at this surreal and genre-defying yarn.

The Pirates of Dark Water - especially in the first season - is characterized by amazing visuals and a completely alien world. The viewer experiences the sensation of exploration even by watching as the characters navigate through the world of Mer: which is simultaneously familiar yet dramatically different from our own historical reality. 

This is especially powerful in the first five episodes - where the high production values lend themselves, in addition to the all-star cast, to a stunning visual experience: fluid motions of both characters and objects, dynamic and natural interaction between elements in the frame, and lighting and contrast enviable by live-action television firmly grips the eye. 

Hours pass - dragon riders, alien beings, mystic encounters, open battle across the high seas or through lush jungles brimming with vibrant, unknown flora - the only cue as to that reality being the buffering of a new episode loading on stream.

The technology level is approximately medieval - and the world is filled with magic: enough that the citizenry will be aware of it (perhaps fueling the superstition of piratical characters), but not so much that magic is the answer to every problem. The thrust of the show is that thirteen mystic gemstones - the Treasures of Rule - use to keep a substance called Dark Water (a malevolent, semi-sentient liquid that drowns ships and men and causes lands it poisons to wither) at bay: and having been lost, the Dark Water is spreading unchecked. But in the meantime, the workaday adventurer leverages a series of tools - clockwork rigging, gliders, and other DaVinci-emulative technology - to accomplish their ends: and in addition to this plethora of almost Waterworld styled equipment, a wild and diverse assortment of animals and plants fill in the gaps. Tough octopus being used for grappling; leeches with acidic wash being thrown into the sails of enemy vessels to cripple their mobility, or cephalopods with air bladders being worn about the head to facilitate breathing beneath the waves.

(same actor)

They substitute technology for purpose-use animals? Kind of like the Flintstones. Quiet, you!

Whats to Like

First and foremost - the characters in the series, including the majority of the protagonists, are all pirates. They are cut-throat thieves who carry their own motivations and their own interests at heart: something that is perfectly in line with the OSR adventurer. The common attack against the Thief class in 0e communities is that "Everyone is a Thief" - this is absolutely true of The Pirates of Dark Water. 

Spoiler to follow (and conclude with this paragraph) - Niddler, the monkey-bird (a hybrid, sentient creature which is composed of precisely the chimeric mix the species name might suggest), upon rescuing the main protagonist, Ren, threatens to drop him into the sea if he doesn't want to stop for refreshments along their path. More deviously, in the fourth episode, Tula - the bar wench turned stowaway and unlikely ally - reveals her long-con: having gained the trust of the others, she poisons them and uses the treasure as barter to try to retrieve a kidnapped magician from her home island, sacrificing her allies in the process!

This mercenary nature - for both villains and heroes, alike - lends itself towards the treasure focus of the series. Most seamen are always looking for treasure, for gold - and on several occasions, the attempt to acquire it leads to problems. Enemies frequently outgun or outnumber the treasure-seekers: so force is rarely the answer. Instead, the party has to think on its feet and rely on cunning, rely on their environment, and push their luck to make it through and to win their objective. This parallels the OSR tabletop experience - where a party is going to be frequently outgunned, out-leveled, and is going to have to likewise embrace tactics outside the obvious to walk out of the adventure both enriched and alive. The energetic nature of an age-of-sail romance likewise serves to energize the process: getting the players into the mood for the adventure.

Further - the series combines two key elements of OSR play: the overland and the underground adventure. Seeking the Treasures of Rule, at a minimum - the primary objective of the main character's quest - entails in each episode where one is sought out from its hiding place an over-sea voyage to arrive where it was hidden or lost, an overland trek through unknown territory to find where its hidden, and usually a crawl through a complex, dungeon, or adventure site where puzzles, traps, and monsters make it more difficult to obtain! Even in episodes where a Treasure of Rule is not the main focus - other treasures usually are: for example, a flock of monkey-birds to be sold as pets or slaves; or a treasure map which (spoiler to follow) leads to an island of spiders and a cave with a chest... which was a trick! The treasure having moved to a silk-wrapped chrysalis and the chest having been left empty to draw in unwary pirates as prey!

Melnibonéans?

We see this pattern emerge and repeat: in beautiful parallel to the gold-for-experience feedback loop tacitly endemic to OSR campaigns.

Lastly - in regards to villains and other "NPC' characters - there is usually a faction involved. Very few, if any, characters outside the main group operate on their own. The primary antagonist - Bloth - commands a ship with dozens of crew; the Dark Dweller commands a cult of followers. Alternatively - allies are never just allies: Zoolie, a pirate making several appearances, commands a tavern / game-house and several employees. And among these characters - the only "solo" character springing to mind is Teron - the mystic "ecomancer" (a magician with nature powers) whom the party rescues and befriends: which likewise falls into Appendix N: the lonely wizard in his tower; the secretive druid in his grove.

The Pirates of Dark Water is permeated with OSR themes and tones - sure to inspire characters or home-brewed supplements to your personal campaign. 

Concerns and Considerations

Re-watching The Pirates of Dark Water on Amazon Video streaming service, one sees a rating which varies for each episode - some of which recommend an age of as high as 13 as the appropriate minimum: requiring a code to unlock if watching on a child-profile. This is - however - utter hogwash: as the show is - undeniably - a program aimed at children.

• The plot of multiple episodes proceeds only because of obvious, easily solved miscommunications or uncharacteristically stupid players about the stage. Falling into Dark Water? Danger! Nevermind that I am holding a Treasure of Rule, which I should remember will force the Dark Water back and save my skin like it did last episode!
  
  
• Plots become formulaic: local stranger seems helpful, but betrays the party to Bloth! - strange phenomenon occurs; Tula activates ecomancer powers - problem solved! It becomes predictable in the latter episodes to older eyes.
  
  
• There is a notable cessation of violence: with being knocked over, being thrown in the water, or being subjected to sleeping gas/powder replacing sword fighting, ship ramming actions, and heaving victims into the lair of carnivorous creatures.
  
  
• Character development after the miniseries seems capricious - season two, in particular, being weighed down with episodes hinging on character traits or inter-party conflicts with either no precedent or in active opposition to events in prior episodes: as though the offenders were written in isolation.

Villain, Early Series

Even in the miniseries, it is evident that the target audience was young: the hero, Ren, is naive; the quest, to save the world. All true violence is implied, off camera, and a vernacular for curses and insults (noy jitat, you kreld-cruising sea-hog!) is invented for Mer, itself, in evasion of profanity without compromising in tone.

Villain, Late Series

More disappointingly, however, in the latter episodes of the first season (and truly noticeable in the second) budget concerns severely impact the magic of the visual and audio presentation. Where once, an entire scene is painted together - later on, the hallmark difference in saturation occurring when one element of an animated scene is moving or interactive against a background which is static rears its ugly head. 

Sea Monster, Early Series

Where once, a character listening to the tale or plan might shift eagerly, moving weight from one side to the other, their hair shifting in time a moment later as they do - later on, listeners are as still as stone: a cheaper pose without that annoying requirement of animation due to being animate.

Sea "Monster," Late Series

But the disappointment of what could have been - were the series allowed to complete rather than cancel as costs mounted and reduced production quality and thematic faithfulness restricted distribution or audiences: this still stings a bit harder.

Lastly... for some reason, the production decided to make Tula into a magician where she was a perfectly acceptable rogue and scrapper before - and along with the class shift comes a sexier costume. Simpler - at at a minimum: perhaps easier (cheaper...) to color and animate. In so doing, an element of fantasy is added, but at the same time, an element of character is taken away. While a child might like new Tula (Newla?) - the "ecomancy" she learns is not akin to Vancian magic. It instead serves as a crutch: providing exactly what she needs at the exact time. And truthfully, this is my only gaming-specific complaint against the series: that the magic does not match the spirit of TSR D&D - which makes it deviate a bit from what an OSR party might experience.

Where to Watch

In terms of streaming, while I am not aware of a streaming option that is free to use, the complete series, The Pirates of Dark Water, is available for purchase on Further Media 
For readers who find themselves intrigued and pursue The Pirates of Dark Water, but are left unsatisfied by the two dozen odd episodes they find, a companion comic book was released by Marvel around the time the show was still running. Physical copies can be found, or digital copies exist that can be read online. YouTube from Warner Brothers media, on Vudu, and also available to buy or to rent on Amazon Video. While it is possible there are more avenues - I personally watched on Amazon out of convenience - it will be the responsibility of you, the reader, to seek them out.

For physical media - DVDs of the series (season 1, season 2, or the both together) can be found used or new in various outlets - Amazon, Ebay, Walmart, or - again - likely other resellers.

In another interesting note - there were two Pirates of Dark Water themed video games also released - one, for Super Nintendo; the other for Sega Genesis. The former is a side-scrolling brawl style game: the latter bears more role-play elements. It has been long enough since I have seen them - perhaps longer than some of my readers have been alive - that I cannot remember to vouch how well they suit the genre or how faithful they are to the source material.

In Conclusion

The Pirates of Dark Water is a solid, largely well-written fantasy adventure romp: leaning deeply into pseudo-medieval mystic fantasy and sea-soaked swashbuckling. The crew survives sometimes by strength, but more frequently by wits and by coin - and in the case of the villains: that coin is purposed to flesh out bands, armies, or factions which then compete with one another for control of the treasures and also for control of the waves. The only element holding it back is the later syndication: where quality suffered due to cost and marketing concerns.

For this reason, I rank The Pirates of Dark Water in two parts - first, the miniseries (and by extension season one) as 1: Tré OSR; and second, season two and the scraps in season one which foreshadow it, 3: OSR by Association. An over-all rating of 2 is probably fair for the whole of the pot.

This show is a relic of a better time - when adventure, exploration, and a deep yearning for what was beyond the horizon permeated Saturday mornings, filling the heads of those young enough, cereal in hand, to invest those precious hours into ingested imagination: fueling a similar yearning to roam - in local lands or beyond. It's something I remember fondly from my childhood, and something I have had the pleasure of sharing with my own children - gladly thereafter witnessing their conversion of existing toys and playthings into piratical accouterments. 

A table which sets its campaign in the world of Mer is a table at which I would happily sit. 

Delve on!

The Pirates of Dark Water, originally produced by Hanna-Barbara, is property of Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All imagery related thereto is likewise property of Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. The Rocky Horror Picture Show produced by 20th Century Fox is wholly owned by The Walt Disney Company via The Walt Disney Studios division. Art piece of a pirate and a snake by N. C. Wyeth, name unknown to Clerics Wear Ringmail, retrieved from IllustrationHistory.org. Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Dungeons & Dragons, and D&D and all imagery or references thereto related are property of Wizards of the Coast.

Clerics Wear Ringmail makes no claim of ownership of any sort to any of the aforementioned media, texts, or images and includes references to them for review purposes under Fair Use: US Code Title 17, Chapter 107. 

The slide-in of Gary... I got from a meme.