Koehler

Koehler was a cursed pirate serving under Hector Barbossa. A skinny, dark-skinned man with dreadlocks and a Jamaican accent, Koehler served on Barbossa's crew, and had no qualms about killing when ordered, and was often paired with his compatriot, Twigg. Koehler was killed aboard the HMS Dauntless after being stabbed by Commodore James Norrington of the British Royal Navy.

Biography

Treasure of Isla de Muerta

Little is known of Koehler's life prior to joining the crew of the Black Pearl under Captain Jack Sparrow prior to the search for the treasure of Hernán Cortés at Isla de Muerta. One night, three days into the venture, Koehler and the rest of the crew stood by the first mate Hector Barbossa in a mutiny against Sparrow, who was then marooned on an island and left to die, while the crew of mutineers continued to Isla de Muerta. Captain Barbossa's crew found the treasure, took all 882 pieces of Aztec gold from the stone chest, and spent it all on life's pleasures, only to realize that the treasure was cursed, despite not believing the tale told to them by Sparrow. Like the rest of the crew, Koehler found himself unable to die and suffered a living death, feeling and tasting nothing, as well as becoming walking skeletons under the moonlight. To lift the curse, Koehler and the rest of Barbossa's crew had to return every piece of Aztec gold to the stone chest from which it came and the blood repaid, the latter part they didn't learn they needed until William "Bootstrap Bill" Turner was sent to the bottom of the ocean.^[1]

Attack on Port Royal

Captain Barbossa's crew took part in the raid on Port Royal to obtain the final coin, with Koehler and Twigg having fought their way inside the Fort Charles prisons. There, Koehler and Twigg encountered their old captain Jack Sparrow, locked up by Commodore James Norrington, and made jokes at their former captain's expense. Jack reciprocated the taunts by angrily insisting that the deepest circle of Hell was reserved for betrayers and mutineers, angering Koehler enough to grab at Jack's throat through the bars, and in doing so revealing his skeletal appearance through a shaft of moonlight. Sparrow had heard rumors that the treasure was cursed, but he learned the truth when Koehler grabbed him through the bars. As the moonlight falls on the pirate's skeletal arm, Sparrow muttered, "So there is a curse. That's interesting."^[5][6] Koehler then responded, "You know nothing of Hell." Both Koehler and Twigg left, leaving Jack to mull over this interesting development.^[1]

Attempting to lift the curse

Koehler and Twigg accompanied the crew back to Isla de Muerta after the capture of Elizabeth Swann. During the voyage he and the other crew members worked on the ship in the moonlight, which caused their skeletal forms to be revealed. When Elizabeth emerged from the captain's cabin, she was frightened by the cursed pirates. Koehler and the rest of the crew laughed when Barbossa frightened Elizabeth and made her run back into the cabin.^[1]

When the Pearl reached Isla de Muerta, Koehler and Twigg escorted Elizabeth and brought her to the treasure cave. There, however, the crew learned that Elizabeth's blood was not the type needed for the sacrifice, and Koehler briefly entertained the idea of overthrowing Barbossa, accusing him of all the misfortunes that happened. However, Koehler was not prepared to fight Barbossa for his position, and instead, the hunt began for Will Turner.^[1]

Attack on the Interceptor

The Black Pearl ultimately caught up with Will Turner's ship, the commandeered HMS Interceptor, which Koehler and Twigg rigged to explode after its crew had been captured and held aboard the Pearl. In the end, Will made a deal with the pirates: he would take part in a blood sacrifice if they released Elizabeth and the captured team. When Jack and Elizabeth were about to be sent to walk on the board, Jack falsely told Koehler that he always liked him in order to avoid having to walk the plank, but Koehler saw through his ruse and simply grunted at him in response. Then, he and the team laughed when they were thrown into the sea and marooned.^[1]

Lifting the curse and death

When the second blood ritual began, this time with Will Turner as a victim, Koehler was shocked when Jack appeared and was revealed to have escaped off the island once again. Koehler then watched while Jack made a deal with Barbossa: he will become the captain of the Black Pearl while Barbossa will become the Commodore of the fleet that they will build together.^[1]

Koehler, like most of the other pirates from Barbossa's crew, fought against the British Royal Navy onboard the HMS Dauntless when Commodore Norrington's men launched an assault on the island. Koehler battled Norrington himself, shrugging off a pistol shot to the face before engaging the Commodore in single combat. The sword fight that was cut short when Will Turner lifted the curse back on the island. Norrington stabbed Koehler at the moment the curse was lifted, and the pirate slumped to the deck, dead.^[1]

Personality and traits

Koehler was a tall, skinny, dark-skinned man,^[1] with a head full of long, black dreadlocks, and wore the grungy garb of a man long at sea.^[3] He also had a Jamaican accent.^[1]

Behind the scenes

Koehler first appeared in the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, where he was portrayed by Treva Etienne.^[1] Fred Tatasciore provided the character's voice in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow.^[7] In 2011, Koehler's name appears in the Black Pearl crew roster book at Walt Disney World's Tortuga Tavern restaurant.^[8]

In Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's early screenplay draft of The Curse of the Black Pearl, Koehler was described as a handsome blond man with gold earrings. Koehler first appears when Governor Weatherby Swann turns to go barricade himself in Commodore Norrington's office, but found himself face-to-face with Koehler, with more pirates coming up over the far wall during the attack on Fort Charles. After Koehler and Twigg step in the cell block, Koehler's first line to Twigg about Captain Jack Sparrow was spoken with a Dutch accent. Koehler's last role in the script was after Barbossa shoots the pirate next to him, Jacoby, square in the chest, only to not die.^[9] By the final version of the film, Koehler was redesigned from Dutch to African, likely to account for the casting of Treva Etienne, and the character's role expanded to the film's climatic battle.^[1]

For unknown reasons, Koehler doesn't appear in the 2003 junior novelization,^[10] but did appear in the 2006 junior novelization.^[3] While the film portrayed Koehler as having brown eyes,^[1] Koehler had emerald green eyes in the 2006 German novelization.^[2]

A pirate similar in appearance to Koehler is seen in the background of several Disney Adventures comics, set after the character's death. It is unknown if this is an attempt to retcon his death (into merely a wounding), a different character altogether, or simply a mistake on the artists' part.^{[citation needed]}

Koehler's skeleton in concept art is very similar - if not exact - to the Undead Raiders in Pirates of the Caribbean Online.^{[citation needed]}

Appearances

• Pirates of the Caribbean: Isles of War
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (First appearance)
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2006 junior novelization)
  • Fluch der Karibik
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
• LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game (Non-canonical appearance)
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Gods and Ghosts M (Non-canonical appearance)

Sources

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide

Notes and references

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23} Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} Fluch der Karibik, pp. 80-81
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2006 junior novelization)
4. ↑ The timeline established in Dead Men Tell No Tales (which takes place in 1751) sets the events The Curse of the Black Pearl around 1728.
5. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
6. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide
7. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
8. ↑ Photo of the Tortuga Tavern book
9. ↑ Wordplayer.com: WORDPLAY/Archives/Screenplay - PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio
10. ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003 junior novelization)

v • d • eCursed Crew

Captain: Jack Sparrow Black Pearl Hector Barbossa – Bo'sun – Clubba – Dog Ear – Grapple – Hawksmoor – Jacoby Katracho – Ketchum – Koehler – Mallot – Maximo – Monk – Nipperkin – Pintel –Ragetti Scarus – Scratch – Simbakka – Twigg – Bootstrap Bill Turner – Weatherby Captain: Hector Barbossa Black Pearl Bo'sun – Clubba – Dog Ear – Grapple – Hawksmoor – Jack the Monkey – Jacoby Katracho – Ketchum – Koehler – Mallot – Maximo – Monk – Nipperkin – Pintel –Ragetti Scarus – Scratch – Simbakka – Twigg – Weatherby