YOU HAVE A LOT TO LEARN ABOUT PIRATES
The kids and Jod learn whose ship they are on and go to his secret lair to find the coordinates to At-Attin. Meanwhile, a bounty hunter informs the pirates where they are as she tries to collect the bounty. And they learn what’s so special about their home world.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Parents Grieve
The episode begins with Wim’s father at work when Neel’s mother visits him. She’s trying to get him to get a message beyond the barrier but a security droid catches him. The droid takes him to Fern’s mother who shuts down the droid and insists they continue to ask the Supervisor for help. She’s insisting on using the proper channels, but it’s clear Wim’s and Neel’s parents are becoming impatient with the lack of communication from the higher up on At Attin.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Tak Rennod
After SM-33 tried to attack the children in the previous episode, Jod Na Nawood turned it off. KB has reprogrammed the droid who no longer attacks anyone trying to learn about At Attin, he reveals the captain of his ship was Tak Rennod, a legendary pirate in the Star Wars universe (at least according to this show’s mythos), hid the coordinates away at his secret lair on Skull Ridge Mountain. Fearing mutiny, he locked his crew out of the controls of the ship, the Onyx Cinder. He was proven right when his crew challenged his command and then he was stabbed to death with his own blade by his concubine.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
SM-33 leads his new crew to the location only to find out the planet is a luxury spa. SM-33 is outraged, and the kids aren’t meant to be allowed as it is “adults only.” Still Jod is happy to be somewhere that appears to be more friendly than his previous locations of a brig, betrayed by a friend and a planet at war.
Luxury Spa
Jod has the children pretend to be “elders” so he can try to sneak in as he pretends to be one of the guests who had reserved a room. He uses the Old Republic credits to bribe their way into the best room at the spa. However, he runs into an old bounty hunter acquaintance who tells the kids not to trust him as he previously betrayed her. A later scene reveals the bounty hunter is in contact with the pirates chasing Jod/Captain Silvo/Crimson Jack/Dash Zentin (depending on what episode someone addresses him), and they now know where he and the kids are.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Meanwhile, Jod and the kids work out a plan to search the spa for the location of Tak Rennod’s lair. It’s here where we get some information about KB. She says she can’t go where there is steam. Fern thinks she’s worried about corrosion to her headgear, but KB dismisses that. Later, in the episode, we see her recoil when a blast of steam hits her in the face. Previous episodes have revealed she suffers from some sort of illness, and it appears steam may be part of the problem.
Pirate Chase
Of course, the pirates who are chasing them have arrived at the luxury spa and are seeking Jod more than anyone else. The crew has to flee, where they endure several trials that border on escapades in either Indiana Jones or The Goonies. They make their way through these trials where they come across a pool of liquid. After testing it, they learn that it’s acid not water and they can’t swim across it.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
After getting the pool empty, they make their way across. Jod then orders SM-33 to refill the pool with acid. The pirates’ deaths are not shown but aching screaming can be heard behind the door. Some of the pirates are surely dead. Of course, it’s unlikely the characters played by Jaleel White (Steve Urkel from Family Matters) or Alfred Molina (Dr. Octopus from Spider-Man 2) are dead. You don’t cast those names just to kill them off screen.
Captain’s Lair
With the pirates no longer chasing them, the crew is able to investigate Tak Rennod’s lair. Here, they find the coordinates that will take them home to At Attin and a recorded message from Captain Rennod. The message reveals At Attin was a money mint in the Old Republic. This seemingly unlimited supply of Old Republic credits is what makes it seem like a literal treasure planet to the space pirates at the time the series is set.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
The kids try to remind Jod of the promise he made to them as they were fleeing from the New Republic X-wings, but Jod, knowing the pirate code, challenges Fern for her captainship. SM-33 explains the rules and Jod threatens her until she yields. He then orders the kids to the brig. Of course, Wim activates a trap door in the lair that allows the kids to escape from Jod and SM-33.
Is Jod a Jedi?
A running theme through this series seems to be the question about Jod and whether or not he is a Jedi. Wim believed him to be a Jedi when they first met in the brig of the pirates’ ship. Jod’s actions made it seem like he was Force sensitive. However, when they were fleeing the New Republic, they asked him point blank and he made it clear he “never said” he was a Jedi. Now, they assume he’s not a Jedi.
CREDIT: Lucasfilm Ltd.
In this episode, Wim finds a lightsaber and tries to play hero to rescue Fern during Jod’s inevitable betrayal. He ignites it and it’s immediately facing the wrong direction. Knowing he’s overwhelmed by his lack of skills, he deactivates it and tosses it aside. Jod grabs the weapon before leaving Captain Rennod’s lair. He appears to be Force sensitive and now has a lightsaber. Is he a former Jedi padawan who managed to escape Order 66? Is he a fallen Jedi who left the order to become a pirate before they were betrayed? No one knows for sure.
Rating
This episode features some of the most fun and wackiest moments of this series while still holding true to what this series has built so far. It was a bit silly at times, but the best Star Wars is a bit silly at times. Taking it too seriously can damage any entertainment from a universe that, at its core, is meant to appeal to the kid in all of us. Skeleton Crew keeps hitting where other Star Wars series failed. I can’t wait to see what’s next for Jod or the kids.
Check out Star Wars: Skeleton Crew streaming exclusively on Disney Plus.
Article Written By: Jeremy Brown for Stelmach Brown Media 2024
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