– Spoiler Review –
With Skeleton Crew’s “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates,” tracking down the secret lair of the ship’s previous captain leads to a really fifth episode with quite the cliffhanger ending.
With the show’s fourth episode, I felt the combination of its shorter run time and the lack of depth to the situation on At Achrann worked against it. Thankfully ““You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates” doesn’t have either of those problems, as the longer length gives it the time to set up and deliver on its new location, while helping other aspects of the show to flourish, resulting in a very engaging episode, especially with the secret lair and Jod Na Nawood choice at the end. Given Myung Joh Wesner wrote this episode and the next, and Bryce Dallas Howard steps behind the director’s seat, I have some high hopes the follow-up to an already great episode will be just as good.
The idea of ‘expectations versus reality’ ends up being an important part of “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates,” with the most obvious, and my favorite example of it: the truth of Lanupa, the new planet the kids and Jod visit. SM-33, apparently over his old Captain’s orders to kill anyone who comes after the At Attin coordinates thanks to KB’s rerouting of circuits, is much more willing to offer answers, revealing pirate Captain Tak Rennod used to own the ship and he hid the coordinates for At Attin in his secret lair. The droid really hypes up Skull Ridge Mountain, Rennod’s lair and base from which he launched his plundering campaign of the galaxy, which has bubbling mud where bodies of his enemies are left to rot, so when the episode reveals the lair is now the Skull Ridge Mountain Hotel & Spa, and the mud is the bathing area for all sorts of species to relax, doubts begin to rise for us and the kids and the laughter flows from the differences. The theme also applies to Wim, who goes off to read his stories again because this adventure they’re on doesn’t match up with what he hoped it would be, which leaves Jod to try to console the kid as much as he doesn’t want to. It also happens with the giant creature Fern and Wim find deep in the spa, Cthallops, who seems threatening at first but ends up being a chap with a love of a good story and even helps them get into the lair. Heck, even when Wim picks up the lightsaber, his expectations from his stories of how being a hero would be like and the reality of using the weapon come at odds in a hilariously way. And lastly, it really comes out in Jod’s choices at the end, as the kids have an expectation for adults but the reality out in the galaxy is far different than what they’d hope, as he decides to turn on them. I found it most interesting the only time the episode has expectations match reality is when we learn At Attin is the site of an Old Republic mint, so the expectation of it housing “eternal treasure” actually matches reality, a point the episode ensures audiences catch by Neel reiterating the “eternal treasure” line. By putting such a theme at the forefront, it feels like Skeleton Crew is offering a reminder to viewers old and young the hazards of not living in the moment, as expectations rarely live up to reality, something I’ve definitely struggled with throughout my life.
In this episode, Jude Law gets to do the most with Jod since the show started, as we see Jod’s excitement as he recounts the tale of Captain Rennod and the Onyx Cinder, his discomfort over attachments and what spending time with the kids is doing to him as he chats with Wim, his desperation as he rushes them to Rennod’s lair, and lastly his reluctance and sense of unavoidability in his betrayal of the kids. Viewing Jod’s talk with Wim after experiencing his betrayal adds some great layers to both moments, as the simple act of him talking to Wim betrays the depth behind his choices in the final moments, while his turn on the kids can be explained in what he tells Wim. Jod initially doesn’t want to talk to the boy, doing his best to help Wim push it away, but when Wim says he won’t be able to see his mother again, Jod decides he’s got to say something. What he says shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, as he offers comfort based on his experiences and what got him through life, which means his advice is forgetting attachments like parents, fear, and anxieties, and then suggests making your life the one you want to live. Between those bits of advice and him spouting a line Qui-Gon Jinn says to Anakin Skywalker, I feel like Jod could’ve been a young Padawan and then Order 66 hit, though unlike most Padawans, he was probably a renegade already and/or as adventurously minded as Wim, so watching the Order/his support system crash around him or not knowing what happened and feeling abandoned, it tracks he could’ve decided to take the Order’s lack of attachments to heart and use it to forge a life he can make on his own and never have to rely on others besides himself again.
Switching names was probably something he first did not to avoid the Empire, but to shed his past and be who he wanted to be, which is why he’s not against reinventing himself time and time again, always changing to something new to get what he wants. To have suffered and fought for a treasure like what At Attin stores all these years, to be this close and find himself in a deal with a bunch of kids, it’s no surprise Jod turns on them in the end, as he’s obviously sacrificed too much of himself, and has pushed against attachments for too long, to see any other way forward than take over as Captain and take the plunders of At Attin all for himself. It’s clear he doesn’t completely commit to the choice, though he feels like it’s the only one on the table for him, as he tells Fern to just submit so he doesn’t have to hurt her and, despite so callously killing the pursuing pirates by refilling a room with acid moments before, doesn’t immediately cut Fern’s throat when he gets his blade against her neck, her pleading the whole time for him to be like the adults she knows. It felt like he had genuine concern for them when they decide to use the booby-trapped chair in the room to escape, despite his smile when grabbing the lightsaber and igniting it, as he wanted them in the Cinder’s brig so they’d be out of his way but safe with him. I’m sure he’ll still turn around before the season is over, and we’ll get to see him wield the lightsaber in some capacity, but this was a great reminder of the severity of the stakes and how out of their element these kids really are.
Since the opening episode, Skeleton Crew hasn’t let the kids have a chance to really be kids again, instead they’re chased by pirates or getting involved with a civil war on At Achrann, yet “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates” manages to sneak a few moments in to help remind us of where they come from and how out of place they are, despite getting as far as they have. When Jod capitulates to allowing them to follow him into the spa, despite the security patrol’s warning about no kids, they come out in the most ridiculously silly disguises, preferring a dramatic entrance instead of coming down the ramp as well, and they try to do their best to keep up the ruse as long as possible. Once in the room Jod bribes their way into so they can discuss the plan, it doesn’t take long before they get into a pillow fight on the luxurious bed, which was a cute moment and a big reminder of how out of their league they are, as Jod starts shouting at them about the severity of the situation. And even when faced with a potential danger in the big alien Cthallops, they make friends instead, gaining his assistance, while it’s clear Rennod and any other pirate for that matter didn’t think of kids much when stopping pursuers, as the laser trap Neel sets off in the pirate’s lair is set to kill someone older/taller than them. The kids making friends with Cthallops was a big favorite of mine, but other kid-focused moments I really enjoyed were KB coming in clutch with a simple wrench, the fact Wim and Neel are still using the walkie-talkies despite being in the same room, and I laughed quite a bit when Neel smells Jod once Cthallops says he doesn’t smell trustworthy. There are little ways every episode which remind us of how naïve to the greater galaxy they are, with some of the best and biggest in a while in this episode, but I appreciate the show always finds ways to make it the kids’ strength and not their weakness.
The opening of “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates” starts on At Attin, where Wim’s dad Wendle meets with Neel’s mom Nooma, who hands him a device in hopes he’ll use it on his computer to get them access codes to the Barrier. He’s reluctant at first and then way too nervous about it, and completely unready for being deceptive, so the security droids catch him and bring him to Fara. Though she deletes the droid’s memory of the incident, she’s upset they aren’t waiting for her and the official channels to help them locate the kids, but when Wendle points out it’s not working and the Supervisor won’t help, she breaks down and decides to join their plan. Getting even more time with the parents each episode would be greatly appreciated, as while I’m enjoying their parts here, I think the show could benefit from more time with them. Maybe next episode their plans will get more focus while the kids try to escape?
Here are a few other things:
- I really really really hope this isn’t the one and only time we see Pokkit, the Umbaran bounty hunter! Kelly MacDonald (who voiced Merida in Brave!!) sticking to her Scottish accent helped immediately gain one’s attention as we don’t hear it too often in Star Wars, while she brought such a good presence you could already sense the history between her and Jod. And a new female bounty hunter of a species we don’t often see on screen is also a big reason why we need more of her. She did mention working for a bigger client than the guilds now, which I don’t think is Brutus despite her calling him with the information on seeing Jod, so I’m curious who it could be!
- While her character goes unnamed this episode, simply referred to as Hotelier, Julie Ann Emery was such a delight to see! I’ve enjoyed her in Better Call Saul and Preacher and she didn’t disappoint here, while Pablo Hidalgo revealed she’s a big Expanded Universe reader! Glad she got to be in Star Wars and hopefully she’ll get a part in the next episode/find her way into another role again one day.
- Cthallops was voiced by Patrick Seitz, who is best known as Dio Brando from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, but he’s also worked on several English Dubs of Visions Vol. 1 episodes!
- Who do we think Tak Rennod will be played by?! They obscured him in the hologram and his voice isn’t credited (though they did credit a performance artist), so who do you think they got to play the dreaded pirate?! A famous actor from a previous pirate film/franchise? And could Rennod be a character we already know? Or will Rennod and the Supervisor be one and the same?
- PSA: As you can see, my review for this was delayed due to the holidays so expect something similar for next week’s episode, as I’ll be nursing a hangover from New Year’s Eve most likely and back to work a day later. Should be more timely for the final two episodes!
Skeleton Crew’s “You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates” embraces the pirate aspect of its world to fun effect, resulting in the show’s best episode yet.
+ Theme of expectations vs reality
+ Treasure hunt
+ Jude Law really gets to let loose
– Parent stuff was good but needs a bit more time
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”