The last two Pirates of the Caribbean movies put something of a damper on the franchise’s legacy, but that doesn’t mean they are devoid of good elements. Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl is not only the best movie based on a theme park ride ever conceived, but an amazing action-adventure romp on the high seas.

Though they were disparaged by contemporaneous reviews, the two follow-ups, Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man’s Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, make for a phenomenal trilogy when added to the first film. Those in the know will recognize just how lean of an action-adventure trilogy this initial volley of installments was and continues to be.

However, once the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise stopped being directed by Gore Verbinski, the genius mind behind films as varied as The Ring and Rango, the holes truly began to show. Many general audiences familiar with the first three don’t even realize that two more Pirates of the Caribbean movies exist in the first place.

The fourth film, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, follows up on the cliffhanger promise at the end of At World’s End that saw Jack set sail to find the Fountain of Youth. While it certainly pales in comparison to the first three movies, it’s a decent, fun little side quest presenting a so-so side story featuring Blackbeard.

Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Men Tell No Tales, on the other hand, is more deserving of its negative reputation. Not only are the performances of the series’ major stars tired and the pacing dreadful, but the fifth film actually drags up old lore from the first beloved movies and retcons it, retroactively soiling the best parts of the universe.

Both the fourth and fifth Pirates of the Caribbean films represent two dramatic steps down from the original Gore Verbinski trilogy, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing of value in them. Both films have redeeming qualities, and even if they don’t make up for all their pitfalls, they suggest the franchise might still have some small glimmer of life left.

The Designs Of Salazar And His Crew

One of the most amazing parts of Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man’s Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End that impresses even the most vocal of detractors is the special effects of the villain, Davy Jones. Nearly 10 years later, the slimy, writhing, tentacled face of Bill Nighy’s haunting villain is visually stunning, somehow looking genuinely real.

If there’s one improvement Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Men Tell No Tales makes over Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, it’s a chilling supernatural villain. Ian McShane’s Blackbeard is serviceable, but he comes across as a generic bad guy compared to both Davy Jones and Javier Bardem’s Captain Armando Salazar.

Once a fearsome Spanish pirate hunter who nearly eradicated piracy on the high seas, Captain Salazar was outsmarted by a young Jack Sparrow, leading him to his death in the mysterious Devil’s Triangle. The profane location’s supernatural energy forced Salazar and his crew to rise as ghostly spectral pirates cursed to wander the seas, never to step foot on land.

The design of Salazar and his crew’s ghostly forms is simply haunting, with each of them appearing as they did at the moment of their deaths. Their pale, charred, corpse-like bodies are sometimes missing entirely, with the curse doing its best to sтιтch together whatever was left, resulting in floating limbs or even missing heads making use of negative space.

Salazar himself is particularly striking, with his cracked skin and floating hair making it appear as though he is still lost at sea, drowned for all eternity. For all the mistakes the fifth movie made, the art department truly outdid themselves with the spooky designs of Salazar and his ghostly crew.

The Evolution Of Barbossa’s Character

Geoffrey Rush’s Barbossa is perhaps the single most beloved character in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise outside of Jack Sparrow himself. It was sheer popular demand that caused him to be resurrected for the third movie, and he’s one of the few original cast members to return alongside Jack in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

The fourth film takes the opportunity of his appearance to advance his character significantly, making him a privateer, or an officially licensed pirate granted permission to hunt the ships of political enemies, in the employ of the King of England. Seeing Barbossa lord his new lawful position over Jack, indulging in makeup and powdered wigs, is an amazing bit.

Of course, like all of his positions, his time as a privateer was an entirely self-serving one borne out of revenge and convenience. Barbossa loses his leg to Blackbeard in between the third and fourth movies, and he agrees to be a privateer solely for the chance to get his revenge.

His true, final bit of character development unfolds in Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Men Tell No Tales, where he sacrifices himself in order to save his daughter’s life. It’s almost hard not to get misty-eyed watching Barbossa finally care about someone else genuinely, calling his long-lost progeny “treasure.”

The Introduction Of Mermaids To The Pirates’ Lore

For being a seafaring adventure series with a focus on the supernatural, it’s a shock that it took the Pirates of the Caribbean Movies four movies to feature a mermaid. The mermaids are first introduced when it’s revealed by Blackbeard that one of the ingredients necessary for the Fountain of Youth’s ritual to work is a mermaid’s tears.

Thusly, his crew is able to capture Syrena, a timid mermaid whose tears are cruelly forced from her in order to enact the profane ceremony. Syrena is an interesting character, a literal fish-out-of-water dragged away by the pirates in order to be exploited for her own mythical qualities, only to fall in love with a human, the missionary Phillip Swift.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides joins the rare company of The Lighthouse and The Cabin in the Woods as a film that makes mermaids genuinely scary. The mermaids’ attack on Blackbeard’s bait perfectly embodies the mythical sirens of old, slowly seducing lonely sailors to peer too far over the edge before baring their fangs and attacking.

The Unᴅᴇᴀᴅ Shark Torpedoes

Mermaids aren’t the only sea creatures that the Pirates of the Caribbean movies went a surprisingly long time without introducing. Though fish-people and the kraken haunted the waters of the series, the movies somehow never indulged in a good old-fashioned killer shark.

Pirates of the Caribbean: ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Men Tell No Tales didn’t only rectify this, but did so in the coolest way possible. Captain Salazar uses unᴅᴇᴀᴅ ghost sharks as torpedoes in one action scene, sending them screaming after his enemies. If the movie isn’t worth much, it’s at least worth that idea alone.

Jack’s Cinematic Escapes From тιԍнт Spots

Even at its worst, the Pirates of the Caribbean series features amazing action setpieces in every movie. The first three films have some of the most hilariously creative battle scenes and energetic escape sequences ever put to screen, from the whirlpool ship battle of At World’s End to the three-way waterwheel sword duel of ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Man’s Chest.

Both the fourth and fifth Pirates of the Caribbean films manage to keep this up, despite their other shortcomings, especially when it comes to Jack Sparrow’s narrow escapes. The escape Jack makes from the King of England in the former is great fun, and his rescue from the chopping block in the latter has some phenomenal moments.

Part of the appeal of Captain Jack Sparrow is his bizarre sense of fortune and timing, leaving fuming villains wondering if he meticulously plans out everything or simply gets supernaturally lucky. This results in some amazingly choreographed action sequences throughout the fourth and fifth Pirates of the Caribbean films.