By George & Josh Bate
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: Skeleton Crew – Episode 6
In a roundtable interview with the cast of Skeleton Crew that we participated in, three of the four actors who play the young kids said that Episode 6 was their favorite episode of the series, in part because it was directed by Bryce Dallas Howard. The testimony of the actors and Howard stepping into the director’s chair again had us similarly excited for what’s to come and, thankfully, Episode 6 did not disappoint.
Episode 6, titled “Zero Friends Again,” sees Jod and the four kids split up after the dramatic ending of Episode 5. With the coordinates to At Attin, Jod tries to escape Skull Ridge Mountain and make his way to the Old Republic Mint, but is interrupted by his former crew of pirates. Meanwhile, the kids narrowly escape the treacherous Jod and are also still determined to find their way back home to At Attin.
The episode begins with the kids plummeting down a slide/tunnel system (which actually looks like it would be pretty fun to go down, if it weren’t for the dangerous circumstances the kids find themselves in). Finding themselves at the bottom of the resort, the kids soon discover that something isn’t right with KB. Immediately, it’s clear that the focus of this episode will be on KB, the main character who has had the least amount of the spotlight so far in the series. Similar to how Episode 4 focused on Neel and provided greater depth to his character, Episode 6 does the same for KB, in what ultimately pans out to be a deeply touching and important piece of Star Wars storytelling.
Elsewhere, Jod escapes Rennod’s lair and makes his way to the surface, ready to flee the resort and make his way to At Attin. We found Jod’s treacherous turn at the end of Episode 5 to be a little jarring and out of character, especially considering the fatherly role he was beginning to adopt for the children and how illogical it was for him to stage a coup immediately after discovering At Attin’s coordinates. Unexpectedly, Episode 6 sees Jod revert back to the character we saw in the previous episodes, prior to that turn at the end of Episode 5. That darker side to Jod that emerged out of nowhere takes a backseat here, which, while allowing Jude Law to play up the charming elements of his character once again, feels a tad inconsistent with where we last saw Jod in Episode 5. Regardless, it’s entertaining to see this version of Jod return.
Jod’s attempt to escape is interrupted by the pirates that have been after him all season. It’s not exactly clear how they survived the acid trap Jod set for them in Episode 5, although seeing more Kelly Macdonald’s Pokkit and Jaleel White’s Gunter makes it easy to overlook that.
Out of nowhere, X-Wings suddenly show up. The pirates, now with Jod and SM-33 captured, quickly flee in a moment that shows just how scary the New Republic can be to the criminal underworld.
Also catching a glimpse of the X-Wings are the four kids, still stuck at the bottom of the resort. Seeing Wim and the others realize that the X-Wings are the good guys, contrary to what Jod told them, is really fun and parallels the sort of reaction we and many other Star Wars fans would have if suddenly we were greeted by X-Wings.
Unfortunately, the kids are unable to attract the attention of the X-Wings, but receive good news when KB reveals that she has stored the coordinates to At Attin in her brain. This is great to hear for the crew, as it means they can feasibly make it back home without the help of the treacherous Jod and SM-33. All they need to do is retrieve their ship – the Onyx Cinder – and then follow KB’s coordinates back to Attin.
The kids, however, differ in their views on how to retrieve their ship, which sparks Episode 6’s primary conflict. Whereas Fern believes they should climb up a tall ladder back to their ship, KB insists that this isn’t the way. Fern and Wim have butted heads before, but this conflict between Fern and KB marks the first time there’s really been division among the kids. Understandably, the stress of their predicament was eventually going to bleed in their friendship, and Episode 6 plays this conflict very well and realistically, as we’ll soon see.
Back with the pirates and things aren’t looking good for Jod. Jude Law’s character finds himself before Captain Brutus and his former pirate colleagues, quickly sentenced to death. Thankfully for Jod, another pirate brings up the part of the Pirate’s Code that says someone sentenced to death has a Right to Last Appeal, in which they can profess their innocence. This isn’t the first time the Pirate’s Code has been mentioned in Skeleton Crew, but, every time it does, we crack a smile. The Pirate Code was an actual code of conduct developed in the 17th and 18th centuries to govern the rules of pirates, and featured heavily in the beloved Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Its inclusion in the Star Wars universe is a first and, in some ways, feels like how The Mandalorian expanded the world of bounty hunting with the Bounty Hunters’ Guild and Bounty Pucks. Not only is Skeleton Crew spotlighting pirates more than ever, it’s also building out what it means to be a pirate in a galaxy far, far away, the rules they follow, and the ins and outs of their profession.
Given a Right to Last Appeal, Jod makes his case to Brutus and the others. What ensues is a terrific monologue from Jude Law that ends up being the character’s most compelling scene in the series yet. Episode writer Myung Joh Wesner pens a non-traditional monologue, in which Jod begins by talking about how hungry he is. Jod connects to the other pirates through their hunger, their desperation to survive and the fact that they are always on the hunt for their next meal or shelter. The ever-charming Jod convincingly informs the pirates that he knows of a place that will eliminate their hunger forever, that will give them everything they want and more, that will give them “the entire kriffing galaxy” – At Attin. After taking a moment to appreciate the use of ‘kriffing’ in the episode (this was a curse word that first appeared in the Legends novel Vision of the Future by Timothy Zahn), Brutus agrees to believe Jod for now. He charts a path for At Attin, with an understanding that, if Jod is lying, he will be killed.
This is the last we see of Jod this episode, which is a tad unfortunate considering how compelling his two seasons in this installment are. The lack of more Jod speaks to our main issue with Episode 6 – the leanness to its story and brevity of its runtime – which we’ll go into more later.
Meanwhile, the kids have split into two groups – Fern and Neel are climbing up the ladder to the Onyx Cinder, while Wim and KB follow the Trash Crabs with the hope that their knowledge of the planet will help them get their ship. The Trash Crabs are wonderfully designed, a cross between old droid parts and the crabs we know of in real life. Each of them has a unique design and, if you pause the episode, you can take a look at each Trash Crab and begin to recognize some recognizable droid parts that the crabs are made of.
Wim and KB’s pursuit of the Onyx Cinder is interrupted, however, as KB becomes paralyzed after her augs have corroded. The following scene ends up being the series’ most heartfelt so far, one that champions inclusivity and consideration of an underrepresented and marginalized group. KB explains, “Ever since my accident, Fern always assumed I could do anything she could. Like I’m not different…But I am different.” This is a poignant line that will likely resonate with many audience members who struggle with chronic illness or disability. KB, as many people exhibit in real life, has an invisible disability of sorts. On the surface, she appears completely fine and capable of everything the other kids are, but this is not the case. And the fact that Fern, once again, assumed that KB’s accident did not impact her functioning and abilities hurts KB in a manner that will parallel the experiences of audience members with similarly affecting disabilities. It’s a really touching scene, especially given that differences in ability are seldom addressed in media, especially big budget franchise projects like Star Wars. The scene reminded us of the conversation Tech and Omega had in The Bad Batch Season 2 in which Tech explained the ways in which he is different (a moment that resonated with many in the Autism community). KB continues to explain her fear that, if she were to express to Fern these concerns, that she would have “zero friends again,” a heartbreaking moment that hits so hard. In yet another brilliantly touching moment in this scene, Wim says, “You can just be friends with me and Neel.” Shortly after, Wim is able to help KB avoid total system shutdown and restore her functioning, which leads to KB touchingly calling Wim a “Jedi” for saving someone’s life. We never expected Skeleton Crew to be as touching as it is, but, between Episode 4 with Neel and Episode 6 with KB, the series is really proving to be so endearing. The fact that a project so high profile as Skeleton Crew spotlighted disability awareness and the impact of disclosure of invisible disabilities in such an organic way warms our hearts and has us hopeful that many audience members will receive this much-needed message.
Continuing this theme of the disability and differences in functioning is the conversation between Fern and Neel as the two journey up a massive ladder. The athletic Fern assumes that Neel is capable of ascending the ladder with the same speed as she is, to which Neel responds, “I’m sorry, but not everyone can do things the same way you can.” This leads to Fern tying a rope around Neel and helping him up, yet another touching moment in the episode.
Wim and KB then make their way to the queen of the Trash Crabs (which is beautifully brought to life with a stop-motion miniature created by Phil Tippett and his team). Like Wim, we expected the Trash Crabs would lead to them getting back to this ship, although this is not the case as the Trash Crabs led Wim and KB back to their queen seemingly to eat them.
Thankfully, Fern and Neel managed to climb the ladder and jump aboard the Onyx Cinder, which was in the process of being transported to the garbage area of the resort. Just in time, the Onyx Cinder swings by so Wim and KB can jump aboard and narrowly avoid becoming supper for the Trash Crabs.
Upon landing, Fern runs to hug KB, after which Wim and Neel join in to make up a big group hug (just when you think this show can’t get anymore endearing, it tops itself). KB confesses that she was afraid to tell Fern that there were things that she can’t do, while Fern apologizes for assuming too much.
After this, the kids see the Oynx Cinder on the verge of destruction and sweep in to rescue their ship. Aboard the Oynx Cinder, each of them begin to fulfill specific roles – with Neel and Fern piloting, Wim on guns, and KB maintaining the engine. More than ever, the four kids feel like a real crew here, each of them playing an integral part in their functioning as a unit.
Struggling to escape the clutches of the garbage incinerator, the kids launch the emergency hull demolition sequencer (despite SM-33 warning them to never ever ever touch it). Doing so sees the hull of the ship explode and a new ship emerge from the old ship. All of it makes for a really enthralling sequence, and unexpected given the Oynx Cinder basically had another ship within the ship.
With that, the episode comes to an end. If there’s any criticism to be had of “Zero Friends Again,” it is that it all goes by a tad too quickly and leaves one wanting more. Usually, in terms of weekly released television, the latter is a good thing, but, in the case of Skeleton Crew Episode 6, this refers more so to a feeling that the episode was more lean, lightweight, and breezed by. Without credits and recap, Episode 6 is approximately 26 minutes long. Tons of episodes of Star Wars animation and various episodes of The Mandalorian have had similarly short lengths, while still feeling more substantive that Skeleton Crew Episode 6. So, the brief length doesn’t capture the totality of the problem. If anything, this issue speaks to how much we’re enjoying Skeleton Crew and how we simply want to see more story advancements and character developments in a given week than what Episode 6 had to offer.
The only other criticism to be had of “Zero Friends Again” is its failure to address last week’s cliffhanger of Jod claiming the lightsaber of Tak Rennod’s lair. We fully expect episodes 7 and 8 to follow-up on this cliffhanger, but episode 6 not addressing at all felt both like a missed opportunity and a false tease.
VERDICT: 7.5/10
Skeleton Crew’s sixth episode sees Bryce Dallas Howard step into the director’s chair for a fast-paced, action-packed installment that excels in its attention to disability, in particular invisible disabilities and advocating for oneself when of a different ability status. For the first time this season, KB takes the spotlight as more is revealed about her background, injury, and how this affects her friendships and ability to function. Actress Kyriana Kratter is fantastic at delivering some of the series’ most heartfelt moments to date, while director Howard more broadly helms such a touching and endearing episode with the kind of craft and class we’ve come to expect from the veteran Star Wars director. Brisk pacing, lack of substantial story developments, and a brief runtime mean Episode 6 ended with us wanting a bit more from this installment, including a follow-up to last week’s cliffhanger with Jod claiming a lightsaber. Nonetheless, Skeleton Crew continues to shine as the four kids become a true crew more than ever before, an underrepresented identity group is given much-needed and appreciated attention, and the series shows once again that its greatest strength is its ability to tug at the heartstrings.