Captain Hook by halitosis, beady black eyes, a pock-marked face, and perpetual filth of his person and surroundings, contrasting strongly with J. M. Barrie's Etonian gentleman. The novel, which takes place before the Captain meets Peter Pan, calls Hook "Black Stache" for his prominent moustache, and his ship is called the "Sea Devil"; he captures the "Jolly Roger", originally a British ship called the "Wasp", later. Black Stache is renamed 'Captain Hook' in the second instalment, "Peter and the Shadow Thieves". In Barry and Pearson's book, his left hand is accidentally cut off by Peter. In Rick Ellis' theatrical adaptation of the
Captain Hook the blue of the forget-me-not" ("save when he was plunging his hook into you, at which time two red spots appeared in them and lit them up horribly") and long dark curls resembling "black candles". In many pantomime performances of "Peter Pan", Hook's hair is a wig and is accompanied by thick bushy eyebrows and moustache. The hook is fixed to his right hand (often changed to the left hand in film adaptations) and is used as a weapon. He is also described as having a "handsome countenance" and an "elegance of ... diction" – "even when he [is] swearing".