Governor Broadside

Class 3

Governor Broadside

Theme:

Pirates

Subtheme(s):

Imperial Soldiers

Variations:

Admiral Woodhouse (S@H, LEGO Racers)
Governor Tierney (LEGO Battles)

Years:

1989

Appearances
5704 LEGO Racers 6274 Caribbean Clipper 6276 Eldorado Fortress 4850307 LEGO Battles LEGO Battles: Ninjago

Governor Broadside is the Imperial Governor of the Imperial Soldiers in the Pirates theme, introduced in 1989.

Description

Governor Broadside is distinguished from the other Imperials by his black bicorne with a white trim, which has a yellow or red plume; his yellow epaulets, which are shared with Lt. de Martinet; and his blue naval frock jacket, which has a more elaborate look to it than the other Imperial Soldiers' uniforms. His face has notable sideburns, stubble, and a black mustache.

When depicted as a human in The Golden Medallion and the Ladybird book series, Governor Broadside has a portly build. He wears a white powdered wig, which would not be released as a physical LEGO piece until the Revolutionary Soldier in 2013.

In LEGO Racers, Governor Broadside uses the appearance of Admiral Woodhouse, who is nearly identical to Broadside except with red clothing, white gloves, and red hair. In 4850307 LEGO Battles and LEGO Battles: Ninjago, Governor Broadside uses the appearance of Governor Tierney, albeit with Broadside's original decorated bicorne in the first LEGO Battles.

Identity

Consistently, Governor Broadside is the leader of the bluecoat Imperial Soldiers faction, appearing in two sets from the original 1989 lineup. This is established by various sources, including the Shop At Home product description for 6276 Eldorado Fortress;^[1] United Kingdom catalogs describing the story;^[2] and in the continuity of The Golden Medallion, the Ladybird book series, and the German audio dramas.

After the redcoat Imperial Guards took over from the Imperial Soldiers as the Pirates navy faction, it became unclear whether Governor Broadside continued to be featured as a prominent character. According to European sources including German audio dramas and United Kingdom catalogs, the new leader of the Imperial Guards is a separate character named Admiral Woodhouse, who is canonically described as thinking poorly of Broadside's handling of the pirates.^[3] However, American Shop At Home catalogs refer to the Imperial Guards' leader as Governor Broadside in the product descriptions for 6271 Imperial Flagship and 6277 Imperial Trading Post, the two sets in 1992 featuring Woodhouse's minifigure.^[4] Furthermore, some box flaps from late sets (i.e. 6268 Renegade Runner) associate Governor Broadside with the Imperial Guards rather than the Imperial Soldiers. These sources would suggest, in direct contradiction with the more in-depth European storyline, that Governor Broadside and Admiral Woodhouse are the same character. This is explicitly the case in LEGO Racers, in which Admiral Woodhouse's minifigure appears under the name Governor Broadside.

When the Pirates theme relaunched in 2009, the new governor of the Royal Navy redcoats was left unnamed in the sets and storyline. LEGO Battles explicitly identifies the new governor as Governor Broadside, which would not apparently contradict any existing sources regarding the governor's identity. However, it should be worth noting that LEGO Battles also changes the redcoats to bluecoats, presumably to better fit Broadside's history of leading the bluecoat Imperial Soldiers, although if Broadside and Woodhouse are the same character then there would also be precedence for Broadside leading the redcoats as well. Furthermore, one of the cutscenes depicts Broadside burying Captain Brickbeard neck-deep in sand, which is most likely a reference to Admiral Broadside doing the same thing to Captain Redbeard in LEGO Chess. The game's sequel LEGO Battles: Ninjago continues to identify the 2009 governor as Broadside. However, more recent video games such as LEGO Quest & Collect and LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed do not continue this trend, instead giving the governor new names such as Royal Feather and Governor Tierney, and presumably consider him a separate character from Broadside.

Although the 2015 relaunch contains multiple references to the original 1989 theme, Governor Hacienda has never been officially referred to as Broadside in any capacity, meaning that they are always considered separate characters.

Background

Governor Broadside is the Governor of Port Royal on the island of Sabatina, where Eldorado Fortress has been established.^[5]^[6] He was appointed by the King to try and stop the pirates that served under Captain Redbeard. He has a sister, Prudence, and a young niece, Camilla. As characterized in The Golden Medallion, Broadside is rather gluttonous and frequently shown eating copious amounts of food; has a short temper and does not tolerate any insults, even from a parrot; and has no qualms about hanging pirates, including someone as young as Bo'sun Will. He loves nothing more than peace and quiet.^[2] Since Governor Broadside struggles with handling the pirate activities, Admiral Woodhouse considers him to be a fool, likely leading to tensions between the Imperial Soldiers and Imperial Guards.^[3]

In The Golden Medallion, Governor Broadside received word from an Imperial spy who was tracking the Blackheart cousins' treasure, but the supply ship was plundered by the Black Seas Barracuda en route to Port Royal. When Lt. de Martinet informs Broadside that they had captured one of the Barracuda's crewmen, Bo'sun Will, Broadside orders him to be whipped and then hanged; Camilla pleads with her uncle to show Will mercy, but Broadside merely decides to leave out the whipping. The next morning, Broadside is angry about Redbeard using gunpowder to blow a hole in his fortress, although he is concerned about potentially damaging his crystal glass collection than about Camilla's disappearance. The Imperial Soldiers bring in Popsy the parrot, who first repeats one of Redbeard's insults towards Broadside before revealing the location of the Blackheart treasure on Shipwreck Island. Upon learning this information, Governor Broadside and the Imperial Soldiers set out in their flagship and arrive on Shipwreck Island, just in time to witness Captain Redbeard's pirates battling Captain Foul's crew. Broadside notices Popsy panicking, just before the island's volcano erupts; Broadside grabs Camilla and brings her back aboard his ship, too concerned with getting to safety to attack any of the fleeing pirates.

An ad for the United Kingdom tells a similar story to The Golden Medallion. During a battle with the Dark Shark, Spinoza jumps to the Governor's Sea Hawk with the treasure map, which they follow to a volcanic island. There, Governor Broadside forces Captain Redbeard to walk the plank, then they row ashore to find the treasure. However, the volcano erupts, and the Governor and his Imperial Soldiers are forced to flee empty-handed.

In Will and the Gold Chase, Governor Broadside gives Camilla a golden heart-shaped pendant, which she wears everywhere. One day, she loses it while boating. She is so distressed that Broadside issues a reward to whoever finds the pendant.

In Captain Roger's Birthday, it is revealed that Governor Broadside and Captain Redbeard coincidentally share the same birthday. In preparation for his birthday party, Lt. de Martinet reports to Governor Broadside that barrels are waiting on the quay with enough food to feed a hundred. Broadside notices Popsy and angrily closes the window. However, Bo'sun Will steals the box containing Broadside's large birthday cake.

In The Royal Visit, Broadside's massive flagship Ironram bears down on the Black Seas Barracuda, with Broadside himself ordering the pirates to prepare for boarding, but Redbeard manages to lose the Ironram in the fog. A few days later, the King is planning a state visit to Port Royal, and Broadside is to receive him in full dress uniform. Unfortunately, he is missing his badge of office and believes one of the pirates has taken it, leading him to step up efforts to harass the pirates, and with good reason: without his badge, Broadside could lose his head. Fearful that Broadside might be replaced with an even worse governor, Redbeard and the other pirate captains agree to halt their piratical activities until the badge is found by Bo'sun Will. On the day of the royal visit, Anne disguises herself as a washerwoman and smuggles the badge into Eldorado Fortress with the Governor's laundry. The Royal Visit is a great success, and the King even gives Broadside a medal. Broadside goes back to governing and leaves the pirates to their own devices.

In LEGO Racers, Governor Broadside (using Admiral Woodhouse's appearance) is a CPU racer on Circuit 1 and Circuit 4, representing the Imperial Grand Prix racetrack. His minifigure parts are unlocked by beating Captain Redbeard in Circuit 1.

In LEGO Battles, Governor Broadside (using Governor Tierney's appearance) is the main Hero unit of the Imperial Story campaign, and the antagonist of the Pirates Story. His stats are 4/5 strength, 1100 life, and 1/5 speed, and he can be built at the cost of 500 bricks. Governor Broadside's Magic Spells are Area Damage Boost, Area Armor Boost, Jungle Growth, and Artillery. As the primary Hero of the Imperial Story, Governor Broadside is playable in all Imperial levels, and it is his goal to locate Captain Brickbeard's secret cove and destroy it.

In the Imperial Act 1 cutscene, the stern and uptight Governor Broadside is disgusted by his Builders' lack of discipline and Captain Brickbeard's mocking impression of him. In the Imperial Final cutscene, Governor Broadside buries Captain Brickbeard and the Oarsman neck-deep in the sand after destroying their secret cove; this scene is also depicted in the unlockable "Imperial Scene 2" concept art.

Notes

In German audio dramas, Governor Broadside is voiced by Rudolf Weber-Lange.
Governor Broadside does not make a direct appearance in LEGO Chess. However, Admiral Woodhouse is the Bishop for the Pirates-themed chess set and therefore appears nearly identical to Broadside when on the blue team, aside from the differently-colored hair and hands.
In the Spanish version of LEGO Racers, Governor Broadside is named Governor Flinn (Governador Flinn). In the Dutch version of LEGO Racers, he is named Captain Port (Kapitein Bakboord); this does not match either Governor Broadside or Admiral Woodhouse's Dutch names in Netherlands catalogs, where they are called Governor Mainsail (Gouverneur Grootzeil)^[7]^[8] and Admiral Blowhard (Admiraal Blaaskaak),^[8] respectively.
Port and Starboard are collectively referred to as the Broadside Brothers, although it is unknown if they have any familial relationship to Governor Broadside. Incidentally, Port's Dutch name, Bakboord,^[9] is shared with Governor Broadside's Dutch name in LEGO Racers.