– Spoiler Review –
The pirates, with Jod in tow, find At Attin just as the kids return as well, leading to a fateful and tense penultimate episode of Skeleton Crew with “We’re Gonna Be in So Much Trouble.”
Knowing the end is nigh with only one episode left, I realized my only disappointment with “We’re Gonna Be in So Much Trouble” stems not really from something the episode did itself, but rather how much Skeleton Crew feels tailor made for a different era of TV but lives in a streaming world. Back in the 90’s and 00’s, network TV thrived and shows like Lost, Alias, The X-Files, The O.C. and more were running 20-plus episodes of TV per season, allowing for better character building and investment by fans, and I could easily see Skeleton Crew having been 5-10 episodes longer, at the least, with the kids going on a bunch of adventures with more lessons for them, and for viewers at home, to learn along the way. Skeleton Crew has already been made in a similar vein, with different planets and different adventures, all while moving plot and characters along each episode, and with such a great cast, writing, and directing, it easily could’ve done more. I’ve really enjoyed what we’ve gotten, but as we near the end, it’s clear this could’ve been so much more, though there’s nothing to be done about this and I’ll learn to be happy with what we got.
The episode begins with both the kids and the pirates, with Jod as their hostage, arriving over At Attin, both with very different agendas. With the children, they are all eager to get back home, even if they think they’ll be in so much trouble, as while all the adventures were fun, and too often close to death, normalcy and their way of life, their families, is what they really want now. It’s only Wim who doesn’t share such a sentiment, regretting his choice to push the button and launch their adventure because returning means it all has to end. After tasting adventure and freedom, it seems to have lived up to his wild expectations, even if it didn’t completely match them, and he can’t imagine going back to their normal, mostly mundane lives. It’s not until later in the episode where Wim changes his mind, as when Jod, aka Captain Silvo again, has them hostage on the Onyx Cinder (I’ll cover this in a moment!), they see the message their parents risked their lives over sending up and out past the Barrier. His father Wendle is the final part of the message, revealing they seem to know the truth of At Attin, but in his apology to his son, Wim realizes the adventure is great, but he’d rather have his dad back in his life even if it meant mundanity. He’s so encouraged by this moment, he tries to lead a minor mutiny against Jod, and while it quickly backfires, Fern’s able to get SM-33 back on their side and seemingly kicks Jod off the Cinder before they head off the pirate frigate for At Attin. The pirates pursue in a few small ships, but the Cinder makes it through the Barrier and the pirates don’t, with SM-33 revealing the ship is actually from At Attin, hence how it can make it through! Does this mean Tak Rennod was from At Attin, plundered, and returned?! I’ve got some thoughts, but first…
As for Jod and the pirates, he’s eager to prove he’s not wrong about the planet and its plunders and the rest are ready to follow whoever’s lead will grant them rewards. The initial attempts to pierce the veil of At Attin’s barrier don’t go well, ending in the death of a pirate, and Brutus is ready to shove Jod out the airlock like promised, but when the kids arrive in the ship, Jod stays his execution by understanding the Onyx Cinder is somehow the key. When the pirates pull in the ship, the kids try to fight back, capturing Brutus with the cargo arm, but it only leads to Jod showcasing his true colors, as he frees himself from his handcuffs with the Force and kills the defenseless Brutus, commanding the pirates once again thanks to his ruthlessness. They capture the kids and he begins scouring the ship, hoping to find the key which allows the Cinder to pass through the barrier unharmed, which is when the parent’s broadcast gets to them, inspires the kids and SM-33 joins them in taking down Jod in his Silvo helmet. As the kids escape to At Attin, they think they are safe, but Jod managed to sneak aboard before they took off and holy cow, does Jude Law commit to the bit here, as Jod’s pretenses and charming presence has been burnt away and the true scoundrel underneath comes out. Igniting his lightsaber (finally!), he cuts off SM-33’s head (oh no!), doesn’t step on the little alien mouse (phew!), and commands the children to shut up and get on the ground, out of the way. It’s quite the sequence, as Law brings out every bit of Jod’s exhausted demeanor, frustrated the children still vex him, not growing up and toughening up like he was forced to, and tells them how he’ll use his saber to cut up their parents if they get in his way again. There’s a lot to Law’s performance here, as he’s truly a prick now and seems like a lost cause, but the little things, from the way he doesn’t step on the mouse or his almost resigned face as he tries to menacingly tell the kids he’ll kill their parents, seems to hint my theories he’ll turn good and help the kids in the end aren’t quite dead yet. Either way, it’s fascinating to have a Force user who isn’t a Jedi or a Sith, but just a selfish dick given the world he was put into, and Jude Law really knows how to capture it well.
As the Onyx Cinder is being autopiloted in for landing with Jod as its Captain, the kids’ parents are corralled in a room, about to get a scolding from the Supervisor via the security droids. The episode began with the parents, minus Neel’s dad (maybe staying back as cover-up?), assembling their transmitter beacon and being interrupted by the droids (maybe Neel’s dad ratting them out?!), who manage to stun them one by one, as they pass the beacon like a baton, before Fara, Fern’s mother, sneaks away and launches it to the sky. Now about to face recrimination for their actions, the parents barely get started on their rebuttal before the Cinder’s arrival cuts things short, with the Supervisor addressing all of At Attin’s citizens for the very first time in the show, informing them of the arrival of a Republic Emissary. Jod takes to the role like a glove, though he’s anxious, eager to see if all this trouble was really worth it, as he paces around the landing pad as they are taken deep, deep down into At Attin’s core. They arrive at a vault, one of thousands it’s revealed, and when it opens, Jod’s wildest dreams come true, as the vault is lined with a seemingly endless ocean of Old Republic credits! Approaching one of the sleds, he’s basically in tears looking at it, his dreams, his hard work, his toils and troubles, all finally, finally worth it, and he’s in so much surprise and delight that he loses it, laughing as the credits tumble down on him. While he’s basking in the glory of the spoils, the kid’s parents somehow are transported down to the vault, whether by their own accord or the Supervisor’s, we don’t know yet, and the kids are finally reunited with their parents. Then comes the big, scary cliffhanger, as Jod approaches the happy reunion, giving the kids a look which says he warned them, and ignites his lightsaber…
Will he kill some or all of the parents? How will they stop Jod? Will he get away and no one will be hurt? And will the Supervisor and/or Tak Rennod factor into the finale? And why did the Supervisor think or even believe Jod was a Republic Emissary in the first place? Just because of the ship? There’s a lot left unknown about what can and will happen next, but I’ve got some ideas regarding the Supervisor and Tak Rennod. We know now who voices the Supervisor, at the very least, as the credits outed comedian Stephen Fry* for the role. I don’t think they would reveal who voices the Supervisor if he ended up being Tak Rennod since they didn’t reveal who was playing Rennod in the hologram via the credits, so I’m betting these are two different people. Or even…only one of them is a person. Part of me thinks the Supervisor is a robot, as it would make sense it would notice whatever key lets the Cinder through and assumes it’s a Republic Emissary, as Rennod must’ve stolen the ship from one. But the way the parents talk about the Supervisor, and seemingly know the secret of their home given the message they sent to the kids, I might be wrong on the robot part, but I’m sticking to the idea the Supervisor and Rennod are two different people. I’ve been wrong most times before, but we’ll find out next week!
*While the casting of Stephen Fry would normally be a delight, and maybe when he was casted and this was filming it might have been, but between his 2022 comments about not abandoning JK Rowling, who spews hateful transgender rhetoric and should be abandoned at all costs, and his December 2024 ones about the LGBTQIA+ organization Stonewall is “shameful and sad” for its recent support of trans rights, Stephen Fry also should’ve been abandoned as the choice for the Supervisor role. This is mostly why I’m hoping it’s just a droid and he doesn’t have any real significant part in the finale.
Here are a few other things:
- We’ve seen plenty of lightsabers on screen, especially in the TV shows like The Acolyte, but there was something about seeing one in Skeleton Crew, where it’s the only one, being wielded by a right prick, and really comes off as a lethal weapon instead of its usual elegance given who is using it, which made it look so good!
- There’s a new look at some of the effects which went into making the Onyx Cinder, Neel, SM-33, and even the Barrier!
- Over at Collider, Maggie Lovitt interviewed Bryce Dallas Howard about her involvement with the show and working in Star Wars, and it’s really worth the read!
Skeleton Crew’s “We’re Gonna Be In So Much Trouble” is an exciting penultimate episode where Jod sheds his skin, much like the Onyx Cinder did last week, and the kids finally make it home, but the trouble has only gotten started.
+ Jod’s dastardly real face revealed
+ Kids trying their best to get home, even eventually Wim
+ What a cliffhanger!
– Feels like so much potential being missed by not expanding the show
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Bluesky, Twitter @MynockManor, and Instagram @mynockmanor.
SKELETON CREW REVIEWS:
Season One: 1.1/1.2 “This Could Be a Real Adventure” & “Way, Way Out Past the Barrier” | 1.3 “Very Interesting, As An Astrogation Problem” | 1.4 “Can’t Say I Remember No At Attin” | 1.5 “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates” | 1.6 “Zero Friends Again”