'Star Wars Skeleton Crew' Episode 3 Recap - I'll Meet You on the Dark Side of the Moon

2 weeks ago 9

Editor's note: The below recap contains spoilers for Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 3.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 3 picks up right where the two-episode premiere left audiences with the core four—Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), and KB (Kyriana Kratter)—and Jod Na Nawood (Jude Law) attempting to escape from the brig on Port Borgo. David Lowery returns to direct the script, penned by series creators Christopher Ford and Jon Watts, which delivers even more of the Captain Hook and the Lost Boys vibes that last week’s episodes doled out.

The episode opens on At Attin, where Wim’s father, Wendle (Tunde Adebimpe), Fern’s mother Fara (Kerry Condon), and KB’s mothers are dutifully waiting for news about their runaway children. The security droids relay the news that they have discovered that the starship the children were on breached the barrier, and the planet’s leadership can’t “risk” contact outside of the barrier. The parents rail against this verdict, but for whatever reason, it doesn’t sound like anyone is going to be willing to go after them.

Across the first three episodes, it has been teased that there is something different about At Attin, and with Episode 3, it becomes even more apparent that it was hidden for a reason. Between Undersecretary Fara referencing the Republic (not the New Republic), Wim’s obsession with the Jedi (who are long gone by this point), and the children having no knowledge of the war or Alderaan’s destruction, it sounds like At Attin has been purposefully excluded from the narrative.

Jod Is So Not a “Keeper of the Peace” in 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Episode 3

After Jod’s eleventh-hour introduction in "Way, Way Out Past the Barrier," Episode 3 makes strides in establishing who he is as a character, or at least who he wants the children to believe he is. There is no questioning the fact that Jod can clearly use the Force, but just because Wim thinks he is a Jedi does not mean he actually is a Jedi. Aside from the fact that Order 66 wiped out the majority of the Jedi two decades ago, it doesn’t really make sense for Jod to be a bonafide Jedi, even if he is hiding behind a myriad of identities. Throughout the episode, it is revealed that he is, in fact, the Captain Silvo that audiences were introduced to in Episode 1, and he has also gone by the title of Crimson Jack. It’s clear that he is an unscrupulous fellow, and he has no qualms about lying to children or killing people.

Their prison break is surprisingly successful (in part, because Jod has the Force), and Wim is so overjoyed to be working alongside a Jedi and “keeper of the peace.” But, Jod is no “keeper of the peace,” and Fern and KB see right through his bravado, while Wim and Neel are blinded by the awe of meeting a real life Jedi. Jod doesn’t really care about saving the children, but he needs a ship out of Port Borgo and they’re his only way out, which forces him to be beholden to them and their childish whims.

Jod informs the children that he has someone who should be able to help them chart a course back home, but rather than seizing on the opportunity to escape largely unnoticed, the children decide to guilt Jod into returning to the portto rescue Smee — I mean, SM-33 (Nick Frost). Jod doesn’t regard droids as anything worthy of risking his life for, but he has no choice but to do what the children want. While trying to retrieve SM-33 from the droid scrap room, Jod is identified as Captain Silvo by one of his former crewmembers, who is surprised to learn that Brutus (Fred Tatasciore, Stephen Oyoung) has released him right before his trial. Of course, that isn’t the truth and Jod does his best to charm his former shipmate into not ratting him out, which doesn’t go exactly as planned. Jod escapes the port once again, with SM-33 this time, taking on fire as the pirates try to recapture their prisoner.

Jod and the children run into yet another dilemma as they try to escape the planet entirely: the ship is attached to the fuel line, preventing them from leaving. While Brutus readies the cannons to fire at their ship, Jod decides that their only option is to jump to hyperspace, which they shouldn’t do while tethered to the fuel line. While they leave chaos in their wake in Port Borgo, the crew manages to jump to hyperspace without too much of a hassle.

'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Episode 3 Builds the Mystery Around At Attin

Jod commandeers the kitchen to make himself some food while the four starving children sit and watch him. It’s a hilarious scene, made even funnier by the clear disdain that SM-33 has for Jod as he carelessly orders the droid to clean up his mess. While Jod wanders off to find a swanky new wardrobe courtesy of the late captain, the children chow down on his leftovers and mull over the last few hours. Neel suggests that the treasure that is apparently on At Attin must be part of the “Great Work” their parents are all involved in, and everyone except for Wim suspects Jod is only helping them because of the potential payout on their homeworld. Later that evening, after claiming that none of them are tired, Jod checks in on the sleeping children, only to discover that KB is still wide-awake and seriously suspicious of his motives. Jod does his best to assuage her concerns, but it’s clear that she isn’t buying the whole Jedi shtick, and neither of the girls trust him the way the boys do.

Once they reach their final destination, Jod warns the children that he doesn’t trust his supposed friend Kh'ymm (Alia Shawkat) and believes that she might stab them in the back (a concept the children don’t really understand). Jod has good reason to believe his feathered friend might betray him, because she does. As soon as she spots him and the children approaching her observatory, she contacts the authorities, believing that he has likely kidnapped the children.

Kh'ymm lets “Crimson Jack” and the children into her observatory and gladly offers her resources to help them locate At Attin. While trying to unravel the mystery of their homeworld, she suggests that At Attin was purposefully hidden from the galaxy, which accounts for why there are no star maps or directions there. Despite the planet only being documented in songs, myths, and rumors, Kh'ymm claims that she has always believed in the planet, and she’s eager to exhaust her resources to discover it. She begins picking the children’s brains, and they know shockingly little about their homeworld or the surrounding planets. They have a passing knowledge of Coruscant and Alderaan, which they learned about in school, but they don’t know Alderaan was destroyed and they have no idea there was ever a war. Kh'ymm is able to narrow down the list of potential locations because of their description of the barrier, and then narrow it down even further after she spots Fern’s patch on her jacket, but that’s when Jod realizes Kh'ymm is stalling.

18:47

Easter Eggs, Fan Theories, the Timeline – 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Showrunners Answer All Your Questions

Jon Watts and Christopher Ford dig into the details of their series including why it isn't a "kid's show," plans for Season 2, and their planet bible.

Kh'ymm warns the children that Crimson Jack is a scoundrel and Jod quickly tries to save face by reminding the children that he warned them about Kh'ymm. They scuffle and Kh'ymm winds up caught under a pile of books and maps as Jod leads the children out of the observatory. KB lingers behind to make sure Kh'ymm is alright, fueled by her own mistrust of Jod, and Kh'ymm cautions her to trust her head and not her gut when it comes to Jod, vowing to always be of help if the children need her. When they get back to the ship, Fern decides she’s also had enough of Jod and his lies and half-truths, and she bars him from boarding the ship until he tells them who he really is. He tries to evade her demands, but SM-33 is more than willing to enforce his captain’s orders. Jod admits that he never said he was a Jedi, he simply didn’t correct Wim when he made the claim. Jod tries to reason with the children, going so far as to compare them as “lost” people, while promising to help get them home—especially if there’s a reward involved. KB tells Jod that he works for them, not the other way around, and Jod reluctantly agrees to their rules.

The episode ends with Jod and the core four having to evade the pair of X-Wing fighters that Kh'ymm hailed when “Crimson Jack” showed up with the children. The sequence is a bit like a dramatization of how it feels to get paired with children on Smuggler's Run at Disney, particularly when it comes to having pint-sized gunners getting you out of a tight squeeze. Despite the odds, Jod manages to get them off the planet before they can be caught, with no real hint of what’s to come in Episode 4.

Where Does ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ Go Next?

Next week, Watts and Ford return to pen an episode directed by the Academy Award-winning directing duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, which is sure to be a delight, given their whimsical storytelling stylings. It will be interesting to see if the Captain Hook and the Lost Boys vibe persists throughout the series once Lowery isn’t behind the camera, but the dynamic works well for Skeleton Crew. The series has really set itself apart from the rest of the Star Wars fare by toying with a more Amblin style, hearkening back to the Spielbergian era of the late '80s and early '90s, which perfectly blends with Star Wars’ campier aesthetics. With three episodes under its belt, Skeleton Crew has crafted a very curious mystery to solve where At Attin and Jod are concerned. Hopefully, the creative team has given themselves enough time with the remaining episodes to answer both, while still exploring the larger galaxy around the characters.

The first three episodes of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew are streaming now on Disney+. New episodes drop at 9 PM ET every Tuesday.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew heads to the dark side of the moon in Episode 3.

Pros

Jude Law remains the driving force behind Skeleton Crew, and Episode 3 makes great strides in developing his character more and setting the stage for where his arc might go.
Ryan Kiera Armstrong and Kyriana Kratter are standouts in this episode as they go toe-to-toe with Jude Law's Jod.

Cons