Boston Celtics and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

(Warning: This may contain a few spoilers.)

Just recently, I went to see The Hangover 2 in hopes that it would be just as funny as the first. However, many others apparently had the same plans as I did and the show was sold out. This left me with a choice: Do I go home empty-handed, or go see a different movie?

I chose to go to see the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean series which was playing at the same time and, unlike the first in the series, was not sold out. In fact, this particular showing was very lightly attended.

I was not exactly ecstatic to be watching it because I had higher expectations earlier to see The Hangover 2. But while I was watching Pirates, I couldn't help but see the similarities between the movie and the Boston Celtics.

The most obvious similarity is that this was the fourth movie in the series—and last season was the fourth season of the New Big Three.

And for both series of movies and seasons, the first installment was by far the finest performance we would see.

From there, the quality of both the movies and the Celtics seasons slowly dropped off. The ensuing movies were by other standards very good, but after the high bar set by the original, the following movies paled in comparison.

Similarly, many people are jealous of the seasons the Celtics have had after winning it all in 2008, but after seeing them hold the Larry O'Brien trophy, no other season is quite the same—unless it yields that desired result of a championship.

And in both cases the fourth edition did not seem to be the answer, nor did many expect it to match the original. Yet, many still watched both, knowing that there was a chance that the odds could be beaten.

Both the movie and the 2010-2011 Celtics faced an uphill challenge when they were left without an integral part of their previous success: Kendrick Perkins had been traded and Orlando Bloom was not in this latest Pirates installment.

And most importantly, throughout the season and the movie, both protagonists went on the same quest. Jack Sparrow was seeking the Fountain of Youth, while the Big Three (along with the O'Neal brothers) were looking for the same thing.

And both needed it, badly.

If Jack could not navigate to the Fountain, he would likely be killed by Blackbeard. And if the Celtics could not find the Fountain, they would be destroyed by their youthful foes, the Miami Heat.

Jack was able to find the Fountain; the Celtics were not as lucky. They never had the youthfulness that they needed and lost to the Heat in five games.

But in the end, both had the same result.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was okay, but not nearly as good as the first one; it was perhaps the worst of the series.

Likewise, the 2010-2011 Celtics season was good, but not nearly as good as the first season with the Big Three. 

Neither was all that bad though, because the expectations were not as high as they had been before.

But the worst part about watching both was not that they were not as good as the original, but that both series were clearly on the decline, leaving you with the lingering feeling that you would never see the greatness that their original products produced again.