Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Ep 3 Review
Most people know the phrase, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and that rings especially true in Star Wars. Palpatine spent the Prequels acting like he was a mild-mannered politician, but was the greatest evil the Galaxy ever knew. Darth Vader looked and acted like a monster, but underneath the mask lay a man drowning in pain and sorrow. And Han Solo may have been a scoundrel, but underneath that cynicism lay a heart of gold. However, the same may not be accurate for the skeleton crew’s answer to Han, Jod Na Nawood. As the third episode of the show really gets the ball rolling, not only does it provide hints to the greater mystery at large. It also makes us reconsider if Jod should go on the list of Jedi survivors.
Something is Up with At Attin
Over the last week since the premiere of Skeleton Crew, fans have offered their two cents about the overarching mystery surrounding At Attin. Many of them, though, have one thing in common: that something is off about At Attin. And they were right. The episode opens with the parents of the missing kids trying to get answers from those in charge, but all the security droids can do is say how it’s illegal to leave the planet or go past the Barrier. Obviously, this greatly upsets the parents, and will likely lead to them continuing to demand action from the leaders of the planet. Should that not happen, this incident could be what causes the entire planet to undergo some kind of significant change. There might actually be a reason why At Attin is hidden from the rest of the Galaxy, though.
As a few YouTubers speculated in their reviews of the premiere, At Attin might be a secret redoubt from the Old Republic. The reason for this is the mentioning of the “Great Work,” a term for grand projects undertaken during the High Republic era. As the children and Jod discover for themselves, At Attin was likely founded during that time to serve some currently unknown purpose, only for it to be lost, forgotten about, or kept hidden. In other words, these kids have no clue that the Republic they think they’re a part of no longer exists, or of the chaos that’s happened in the last forty years. Case in point, when they’re trying to locate At Attin with Jod’s “friend” Kh’ymm mentions the Galactic Civil War. The kid’s response: “What war?”
Ignorance is truly bliss, isn’t it?
Jod: Jedi or Not?
Speaking of ignorance, it becomes apparent to everyone, both in-universe and out, that Jod is not actually a Jedi. In fact, he’s quickly revealed to be Silvo, the former Captain of the pirates seen in the opening of the first episode. The only reason that he’s helping the quartet of kids is because he sees At Attin as his ultimate score to get back on top. While Wim takes his claims of being a Jedi at face value at first, all four kids realize that he’s a liar by the end of the episode. Rather than let him string them along, they hash out a deal with Jod: he gets them home, and they give him some kind of reward. Simple as that.
It’s possible that Jod was once a Jedi when he was younger but gave that up when the Order fell. That would explain how he can use the Force so well. However, it’s not impossible for him to be self-taught; it would be challenging, but it can happen. Jedi background aside, Jude Law does his scoundrel predecessors proud throughout this episode. He’s shown to be resourceful, unorthodox, and can make people like him as much as they want to punch his face in. Unfortunately for the kids and SMEE, Jod manages to put them all on the pirates and New Republic’s radar. While having the New Republic find At Attin might seem a good outcome…remember what’s going to happen to them in 25 years?
With most of our players now in the game, the rest of the series will likely be a race to get to At Attin. A good old-fashioned treasure hunt on a galactic scale! With a premise like that, Star Wars may finally have a way to win back its audience after the misfire earlier this year. And, truth be told, even if Jod isn’t a Jedi, Jude Law plays him as a pretty interesting character. May the Force be with this unlikely crew, because they will need it!
