Until recently, one thing that Cape Town was not known for was hosting a roving group of scurvy-ridden scallywags. That all changed when the cast and crew for the television series Black Sails stormed into town, destroying all manner of pirate-related myths as they went along.The series, about a group of pirates on New Providence Island, serves as a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. If you are expecting a swarm of dirty patch-eyed men hobbling around with wooden legs then you will be sorely disappointed. Black Sails is the gritty love child of shows like Spartacus and The Fixer. There are breasts and blood aplenty but also intrigue.Now in its second season, the show is throwing up some rather unexpected curveballs and bringing characters to the fore that were previously just floating in and out of the plot. One such character is Miranda Barlow played by South African-born Louise Barnes."It has been fantastic to see my character morph into one of the central players in the series," said Barnes.Barnes's character is a somewhat mysterious noblewoman who has a complex relationship with the main character and seduces priests that come too close to discovering her secrets. Barnes said of her character's milieu: " If you were a woman in my character's situation then your life was basically owned by your husband. The women involved in piracy, however, were a little freer ."Season two of Black Sails is an improvement on what was already a good show. Where its predecessor was occasionally overly concerned with swashbuckling and clever quips, this season aims for a grand crescendo rather than a series of big bangs.Season 2 of 'Black Sails' starts on DStv Channel 186 next Tuesday at 9:20pm..