Skeleton Crew Episode 7 Review
Audiences get to learn a lot in the seventh episode of ‘Skeleton Crew’, in an episode that hurtles audiences to the finale of the season. Jod fully commits to his old pirate role, while the kids find out At Attin’s true purpose and despite arriving home find themselves in a sticky situation. It’s a non-stop episode, though there are some baffling choices made that come to undermine it.
Checking back in with the parents, audiences see them all hiding in the woods to craft what audiences later learn is a communications buoy. They quickly get caught by the security droids, and audiences see that the parents aren’t adept action heroes, as they get stunned one by one, playing a game of relay of it. It’s a fun reversal of typical action tropes. Fara manages to launch it. The message it contains is really heartfelt and sweet, showing the fears the parents have for all their children.
Outside At Attin, Captain Brutus arrives with his massive pirate station. Seeing the storm, he quickly dismisses the idea the planet is At Attin is near. He expands a snub fighter to test, which is rather hilariously and morbidly destroyed. He turns to throw Jod out the window, but is stopped by the arrival of the stripped down Onyx Cinder. Quick thinking Jod realises the ship is key to passing through the storm, and a tractor beam is activated, holding the children from getting home.
The kids attempt to hold the pirates off by snatching Brutus, but is shocked when Jod shots Brutus with his own weapon. It is a bit disappointing that Brutus didn’t get to do much in the show, as he had a menacing appearance but not much to back it up. This allows Jod to take control of his pirates again, even donning his mask from episode one. It’s here he goes full villain, which is a rare thing for ‘Star Wars’, as they’re usually redeemed/killed. Jod captures the kids, but they find a loophole to escape their predicament. SM-EE helpfully explains that this ship is different from the Onyx Cinder, and per the Pirates’ Code Jod can only be Captain of one ship. Jod quickly claims this new ship, which Fern “unclaimses” and declares this new ship to be for kids only. Apparently this is good enough for SM-33 to knock out Jod and the other pirates off the ship, though Jod stows away.
Now, this is incredibly goofy, and is contrived as to allow the kids to beat fully grown pirates. The tractor beam also suddenly goes away, as the ship flees the pirates and jumps to At Attin. Snub fighters follow, but in an underwhelming action sequence are blasted out the sky by At Attin’s defensive grid, the same that generates the thick storm. The kid’s ship is safe, as SM-33 explains that it’s actually a ship from the mint on At Attin, so won’t be targeted. There’s absolutely no danger. It begs the question of how Rennod got his hands on this ship, but that’ll likely be revealed in the finale.
As mentioned, Jod hid on the ship. When he reveals himself, he quickly slices SM-33 with his saber, and goes full villain on the poor kids. Jude Law puts in a strong performance, enjoying this deliciously evil turn. Jod lets all the pent up rage he’s been feeling towards to kids out, calling them scared and sheltered, hinting at his own likely unsheltered upbringing. He threatens the kids with the saber, mirroring Anakin’s own attack on the Younglings. Jod’s plan is to impersonate a Republic Emissary, something he heard from the parents’ message. He also explains, in great detail, how he will murder the kids’ parents if they blow his cover.
On the planet, the supervisor announces the arrival of the Emissary, though in what sounds like a suspiciously automated voice. Jod’s plan works as he and the kids are taken to the vaults below, revealing just how many credits the mint has made – and it’s a lot. A cheeky reference to 1138 is made when Jod asks how many vaults there are. He repeatedly asks the droids to allow him to make contact with his pirate crew, something which they deny and tell him to take it up with the supervisor. Jod requests to see the supervisor, so audiences will likely meet them in the finale.The parents come down too, reuniting with the children. Jod then makes the baffling choice to threaten them all with his saber, blowing his cover for reasons unknown. The episode leaves off here.
While there are some confusing decisions made in the penultimate episode of ‘Skeleton Crew’, it is still enjoyable. Jod’s full-tilt villain turn was very enjoyable to watch play out, with Jude Law crushing it with his acting. The cliffhanger was a bit forced, but nonetheless leaves intriguing questions for the finale to answer.
