‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ Episode 6 Recap: Friendship Is the Real Treasure

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Star Wars: Skeleton Crew

Editor's note: The below recap contains spoilers for Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 6.

After Jod’s (Jude Law) crushing betrayal last week, the core four—Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), and KB (Kyriana Kratter)—find themselves in a heap of trouble and a pile of trash on Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Literally. It turns out that the trap door in Tak Rennod’s secret lair leads to a giant trash chute filled with adorable Trash Crabs. Episode 6, aptly titled “Zero Friends Again,” is penned by Myung Joh Wesner once again, and directed by the ever-talented Bryce Dallas Howard, who has helmed some of the most memorable episodes of The Mandalorian. After last week’s 45-minute stress-inducer, this week’s episode clocks in at a cool thirty-four minutes, the second-shortest episode of the season thus far—though every second is filled with entertainment.

With Jod out of the picture, Fern quickly discovers that her friends aren’t as receptive to her throwing her weight around as “captain” as he was. As she sees it, they only have one way out: to climb up the side of the treacherous mountain to get back to the Onyx Cinder. Unfortunately, not everyone is as able-bodied as she is, or as willing to let her boss them around. After revealing that her augs have been corroded, like she was worried they would be if they stayed on Lanupa for too long, KB expresses her concern about how Fern has been leading them. When Fern is out of ideas, she never even bothers to ask the rest of them if they have any. Fern is taken aback by her friends’ sudden disapproval of her, and doesn’t think much further about why KB might be reacting the way she is. She decides that she is going to climb the mountain with Neel (by volun-telling him) and KB and Wim can do whatever they want to.

Episode 6 is the first installment of Skeleton Crew that truly feels like a series aimed towards children, and it works so spectacularly well. It takes so many of the core themes of Star Wars and shifts the focus toward a younger audience, repackaging lessons about friendship, teamwork, and leadership into a story that should resonate with viewers in the same age bracket as the younger cast members. While Fern’s plan, ultimately, helps to save everyone, she doesn’t learn that she’s always right. The moral of the story is that you can be right, while also understanding your friends’ perspectives and recognizing their limitations.

Jod Has Always Been Hungry in 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Episode 6

While Fern learns important lessons about friendship, Jod reminds all of us that no matter what a pirate says, they're always out for themselves. After divesting himself of those meddling children, he decided to stow away with as much of Tek Rennod’s treasure as he and SM-33 (Nick Frost) could carry, but he didn’t factor in the fact that he still has a bounty on his head. As it turns out, refilling the chamber with acid did not kill off Pokkit (Kelly Macdonald), Gunter (Jaleel White), Vane (Marti Matulis), or any of his erstwhile crew looking to haul him back to Brutus (Fred Tatasciore/Stephen Oyoung). Jod tries to escape, which leads to SM-33 being shot and left for scrap, but even X-Wings showing up to run the pirates off doesn’t sway things in his favor.

Jod is brought before Brutus and once again deemed guilty of his crimes — and this time, he is sentenced to death by airlock. Jod invokes his Right of Last Appeal, which Brutus must honor as it is one of the numerous pirate codes they live by. Brutus puts out a plasma-filled hour glass, and Jod’s Equal Time begins. At first, “Silvo” remains silent as his time starts to slip away, but after a little goading from the disgruntled crew, he dramatically states: “I am hungry.” Admittedly, it is a rather persuasive speech to rally a bunch of pirates. Jod speaks to the fact that he is hungry and has always been hungry, just like everyone else aboard the ship. They’ve been abandoned, left to fend for themselves, and fight over crumbs. But his “glitter-speak” is precisely that: Pretty words to get himself out of trouble. Even his apologies to his crew ring hollow, because it’s all part of his scheme to circumvent death.

Jod brandishes the last remaining Old Republic credit he pinched off Wim and promises the crew that this time, he really does know the location of endless treasure. Jod reveals that he learned of At Attin’s location from Captain Tak Rennod (which technically isn’t a lie, even though Brutus sees it as one) and sings a little shanty about the famed pirate’s discovery. Jod taunts Brutus, calling him a capable first mate, all in his pursuit of undermining his authority and winning back the crew. Jod’s plan works to an extent, but probably not how he intended. Brutus agrees to let Jod live, at least long enough for him to get them to At Attin.

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Back on Lanupa, KB’s situation becomes a lot more dire. As she and Wim follow the Trash Crabs to points unknown, her augs finally give up, and she can no longer move. While Fern has some basic understanding of how to “fix” KB in situations like this, Wim does not, but he’s got a willingness to learn. She instructs him on how to gather up droid servos to use as replacement parts for her augs, and then explains how to do the repairs since she can barely move.

This moment really allows KB to talk more than she has all season. She tells Wim that Fern has never really understood that she was different after her accident, and she worries that Fern lacks the patience to understand that she has limitations now. Throughout their adventures after leaving At Attin, she has been struggling in silence because she was afraid that she would lose her only friend if she told her the truth. Wim promises her that he and Neel will be her friends if she does lose Fern, and KB seems genuinely surprised by the kindness extended to her. In the end, Wim is able to save her from going into a total system shutdown and KB returns his kindness by calling him a Jedi when she thanks him.

Meanwhile, Fern is proving to be a real task master as she pushes Neel up the perilous cliffside. But, in her defense, she does devise a way to make it a little easier for him to follow her up the ladder. As they reach the midway point, they see the Onyx Cinder being dragged off by the salvage ships, destined for the garbage heap they were just in. Some fast thinking leads them to commandeering one of the smaller droid ships—and right in the nick of time for Wim and KB, who were being led straight into the claws of a giant Trash Crab by all the adorable little ones. When Fern and KB reunite, KB is a little standoffish toward Fern, but Fern and the boys launch straight into jubilant hugs, and it helps break the ice. Fern immediately apologizes to KB for not listening, and KB apologizes for not being truthful about her differences, and they once again declare each other best friends. It was such a minor misunderstanding, and it wouldn’t have made sense for Skeleton Crew to drag it out any longer—especially when the children find themselves in another deadly dilemma before the episode is over.

The Onyx Cinder is not only destined for the trash heap: it’s destined for the trash compactor! The core four prove that they don’t need Jod or SM-33. KB knows her way around the engine room, Neel and Fern have things under control in the cockpit, and Wim is at ease using the weapon system. They race against time to save the ship from the clutches of the trash compactor, but the ship just doesn’t have enough engine power or firepower to escape. But then, once again, Fern saves the day. She recalls that SM-33 told them to never ever press the Emergency Hull Demolition button, so she presses it. And it works! It turns out that the button allows the Onyx Cinder to shed its hull like an exoskeleton, which allows it to slip free of the compactor’s clutches and escape into the stars.

As Skeleton Crew heads towards the final two episodes of the season, it looks like the children and Jod will be reuniting on At Attin, but under very different circumstances. Is At Attin prepared for a pirate attack? Will Jod learn any lessons about betraying children for gold? One thing is for certain, Episode 6 leaves us with a lot to think about, particularly with its clever depiction of the Onyx Cinder shedding its old skin as the children chart a course for home.

The first six episodes of Skeleton Crew are streaming now on Disney+, with new episodes dropping weekly on Tuesdays at 9 PM ET.

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It turns out that friendship is the real treasure in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 6.

Pros

The way Skeleton Crew has been handling tough storylines through the eyes of children has really set this series apart from the rest.
KB is a standout among the young cast this week, and her storyline is proving to be one of the more compelling among the children.

Cons