By George & Josh Bate
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew has come to an end and, while we mourn for the conclusion of the fantastic eight-episode Star Wars series and keep our fingers crossed that there’s more of these characters to come, we’re taking a look back at all of the series’ hidden details and easter eggs.
Below is an episode-by-episode breakdown of easter eggs, hidden details, and references in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew….
Episode 1: This Could Be A Real Adventure
There are a variety of known Star Wars species on display during the beginning action sequence. Notably, the pirate Brutus is Shistavanen, the wolf-like species first depicted in the Mos Eisley Cantina scene of A New Hope and also in Genndy Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars series.
The opening sequence is reminiscent (in more ways than one) of the beginning of A New Hope in which Darth Vader and a group of stormtroopers raid Princess Leia’s ship. In addition to both involving raiding enemy forces taking over a ship, there is a parallel to a line from the original Star Wars too. In Skeleton Crew, one of the crew members pleads to the pirates that they have no credits, to which Captain Silvo grabs him by the throat and responds, “If this is a bulk freighter, why is your vault magnetically sealed?” This is similar to a line in A New Hope when a rebel urges that their ship is a consular ship, to which Vader, while grabbing the Rebel’s throat, replies, “If this is a consular ship, where is the ambassador?”
The pirate captain is introduced as Captain Silvo and is played by Jude Law. Silvo’s helmet is reminicent of a classic pirate’s hat, like that worn by Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
The subtitles on display as Wim plays with action figures confirms that he is doing a “Jedi voice” and a “Sith voice” when playing as the different light sided and dark side characters.
For breakfast, Wim has blue (or gray?) milk with his cereal. Blue milk, of course, was also what Luke Skywalker notoriously drank in A New Hope. It has also been seen in numerous Star Wars projects since, including Andor, and can be purchased as a tasty treat at Galaxy’s Edge.
The shot of Wim’s street is reminiscent of American suburbia depicted in E.T. The Extra Terrestrial and other movies.
Contrary to rumors, Neel is not an Ortolan (the same species as Max Rebo).
Neel and Wim have a pretend lightsaber duel when they meet before school. In our exclusive roundtable interview with series creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford, it was confirmed that Neel and Wim purposefully don’t use the correct sounds when pretending to wield lightsabers as people on their planet haven’t had direct exposure to Jedi. Yes, they know of Jedi legends and admire Jedi, but it’s not like they’ve ever actually seen a Star Wars movie and know what a lightsaber actually sounds like.
The droid on Wim and Neel’s school bus is an RX-series. This is the same kind of droid that once piloted the ride Star Tours at Disney Parks.
On the bus, Wim reads about Jedi on his datapad. The first look at the datapad appears to show a history book rendition of Luke in the Wampa’s cave on Hoth from The Empire Strikes Back. The second image on the datapad appears to show a Jedi and a Sith dueling. The Sith looks somewhat like Count Dooku, but it is difficult to tell. These details are neat in that they convey how regular, everyday people perceive Jedi like Luke Skywalker as celebrities.
The Career Assessment that Wim and Neel take is said to help their planet determine how everyone can best serve their world’s Great Work of the Republic. This phrasing is similar to a concept from the High Republic comics and books. Chancellor Lina Soh created the Great Works of the High Republic, a group of projects designed to promote the Galactic Republic and their achievements. Starlight Beacon is the most notable example of one of Chancellor Soh’s Great Works.
Fara in Skeleton Crew is played by Kerry Condon, who is known for her roles in The Banshees of Inisherin, Better Call Saul, and as the voice of FRIDAY in the MCU.
One of the kids who wants to race KB and Fern is named Bonjj Phalfa. This is a reference to Harrison Ford’s character Bob Falfa from George Lucas’ American Graffiti.
Wim and Neel need a power converter for their hoverbike. Luke Skywalker wanted to go to Toshi Station to obtain power converters in A New Hope.
Wim tells Fern that her hoverbike is “pretty wizard.” This is a slang term meaning ‘cool,’ which was first used by Anakin Skywalker and his friends in The Phantom Menace and was more recently used by Din Djarin in The Book of Boba Fett.
In the episode’s coolest easter egg / hidden detail, Neel’s siblings can be seen watching a scene from The Star Wars Holiday Special involving a circus-type performance on their hologram which the Wookiee Lumpy wanted in the special. In our exclusive roundtable interview with Jon Watts and Christopher Ford, the series creators discussed just how much work went into this seemingly minor reference.
Episode 2: Way, Way Out Past the Barrier
Episode 2 is directed by David Lowery, who previously directed The Green Knight and the Disney+ film Peter Pan and Wendy, the latter of which (like Skeleton Crew) was a pirate story starring Jude Law.
The droid SM-33 is voiced by Nick Frost, known for his roles in Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead. SM-33 is akin to the name Smee, which is the name of Captain Hook’s first mate in Peter Pan.
SM-33 rattles off some names of planets as he tries to identify the lost children’s homeworld. One of these planets is Aldhani, which is the planet that Cassian Andor and others stage a daring heist on in Andor Season 1. Another planet mentioned by SM-33 is Atolon, which is where Chopper Base is located in Star Wars Rebels.
The kids leave their ship and are taken to a port by a Teek ferryman. The Teek are a species native to Endor, who first appeared in the live-action Ewok movies.
The kids find themselves on Port Borgo, a pirate port on an asteroid in the Outer Rim. In canon, Port Borgo was first mentioned in the 2018 reference book Star Wars: Smuggler’s Guide, although its history in Legends dates back over 30 years prior. In Legends, Borgo Prime was a colony established by the Rakata, an ancient alien empire, who ruled the galaxy before the founding of the Jedi Order. Centuries later, the location became inhabited by the Imperial Remnant and subsequently became a financial hub for the Remnant, as detailed in Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta’s Young Jedi Knights novels.
One of the cages on Port Borgo features what appears to be Fuzzball from the 1986 short film Captain EO. This short film was directed by Francis Ford Coppola, co-written by George Lucas, and starred Michael Jackson. It originally aired at Disney Parks in the 1980s. In the short film, Jackson plays a captain of various aliens, one of whom is Fuzzball. Now, Fuzzball has taken the leap from one Lucasfilm project to another by appearing in the Star Wars galaxy.
One of the pirates in Episode 2 is Vane, who first appeared in The Mandalorian Season 3.
Another pirate in Port Borgo is getting a tattoo of the Hutt Clan sigil. This likely confirms that the Hutt Cartel is still active in the New Republic era.
Another pirate, meanwhile, is named Gunter, who is played by Jaleel White. White is best known for playing Steve Urkel in the sitcom Family Matters.
When the kids get locked up in a cell, they try to send a rat to retrieve the keys to the cell for them. This is a reference to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and the film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, in which imprisoned pirates try to coax a dog into giving them the keys to their cell.
The iconic Binary Sunset/Force theme hums in the background as Jude Law’s mysterious hooded figure seemingly uses the Force to float the keys to the prison cell over to him. It has been teased that Law will play a Jedi in the show, although we think there is certainly more to be uncovered about his character.
Episode 3: Very Interesting, As an Astrogation Problem
Episode 3 is also directed by David Lowery, who is known for directing the acclaimed The Green Knight.
The mural at the beginning of the episode appears to be of similar design as the painting of the Mortis Gods on Lothal.
Nawood uses the Force to distract pirates, just like how Ben Kenobi does to distract stormtroopers on the Death Star in A New Hope.
Wim refers to Jedi as “defenders of justice and keepers of peace in the galaxy.” In Attack of the Clones, Mace Windu refers to Jedi as “keepers of the peace.” There is also an episode of The Clone Wars titled “Defenders of Peace.”
One of the ships seen on Port Borgo is The Katooni, which is the ship of the infamous pirate Hondo Ohnaka. Hondo is arguably the most well-known pirate among Star Wars fans, debuted in The Clone Wars, and also plays a key role in the Millennium Falcon ride at Galaxy’s Edge. The Katooni is named after the Jedi padawan Katooni, who Hondo met during the Clone Wars.
Another ship on Port Borgo appears to be the Star Tours speeder the StarSpeeder 1000.
Jawas are seen on Port Borgo. These little creatures first appeared in A New Hope.
When Nawood returns to Port Borgo to rescue SM-33, a pirate can be heard in the background saying, “Silvo has escaped from the brig!” This confirms that Captain Silvo, the masked pirate at the beginning of episode 1, was indeed Law’s character. Why he introduces himself to the kids as Nawood, but is known by Silvo to the pirates, remains a mystery.
There’s several notable droids present as Nawood rescues SM-33. One of the droids is a CZ-series droid, a type of droid that first appeared in A New Hope.
Another droid here is a battle droid! When Nawood turns it on, the battle droid asks, “Did we win?” This is likely a reference to the battle droid questioning whether the Separatists won the Clone Wars.
Nawood’s attempt at rescuing SM-33 is interrupted by an old friend named Benjar Pranic. The credits reveal that Benjar Pranic is voiced by Alfred Molina, who is known for playing Doc Ock in Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man: No Way Home. Molina also becomes the latest actor to have roles in both Star Wars and Indiana Jones (Molina played Satipo at the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark).
Some of the musical cues that play as Nawood tries to fly the Onyx Cinder away are borrowed from the Coruscant speeder chase in Attack of the Clones.
KB tells Nawood that the odds suggest he is not a Jedi. This is similar to how C-3PO calculates odds throughout the saga.
As Nawood and the team arrive on the moon to visit his old colleague Kh’ymm, theremins can be heard playing as part of Mick Giacchino’s score for Skeleton Crew. A theremin is an electronic musical instrument that was frequently used in retro sci-fi projects.
Nawood is greeted by TT-8L/Y7 gatekeeper droids at his old colleague’s home. These are the same kind of gatekeeper droids that guard Jabba’s Palace in Return of the Jedi. They also appear in The Mandalorian Season 1 as droids outside of The Client’s base on Nevarro.
Nawood’s friend Kh’ymm refers to Law’s character as Crimson Jack, which is arguably the episode’s coolest hidden detail. Crimson Jack was a pirate who first appeared in the original Marvel Star Wars comic series all the way back in 1977. In those comics, Crimson Jack was a rival of Han Solo’s, even robbing him of his reward from the Rebel Alliance that Han was going to use to pay off Jabba the Hutt . Crimson Jack made his canon debut in the comic book miniseries Halcyon Legacy. The character brandishes a distinct beard and ginger mullet in the comics, quite different from how Law presents in Skeleton Crew. Nonetheless, Law being referred to as Crimson Jack can’t be a coincidence. Is it possible that the creators of Skeleton Crew have purposefully ignored how Crimson Jack has appeared in canon so far in order to make Law play this character? Or is Law’s character merely using Crimson Jack as a pseudonym?
Kh’ymm is voiced by Alia Shawkat, who is known for playing Maeby in Arrested Development and Dory in Search Party. She most recently starred in the psychological thriller Blink Twice.
Kh’ymm shares a number of attributes with Aughra from The Dark Crystal.
Fern questions Kh’ymm’s statement that she has trinkets from 1,000 worlds. Fern’s confusion at this statement continues to emphasize just how sheltered they were on At Attin. This is also emphasized later when Neel asks, “What war?” as Kh’ymm mentions the Galactic Civil War.
Kh’ymm shows a scroll of “Jewels of the Old Republic,” which are “planets of wonders kept hidden for their protection.” The subtitles capitalize ‘Old,’ suggesting Kh’ymm is not just referencing the Galactic Republic seen in the prequels, but the older institution featured heavily in Legends.
KB says that in school they learned about Coruscant and Alderaan. Coruscant was once the galactic capital and the home of the Jedi Order, featuring prominently in the prequel trilogy. Alderaan, meanwhile, was Leia’s homeworld, which was destroyed by the Death Star in A New Hope.
Kh’ymm chuckles when saying, “Alderaan? Missed the war, did you?” This is a reference to Alderaan’s destruction during the Galactic Civil War.
The New Republic X-Wings that come to arrest Jod (aka Crimson Jack) are classic T-65 X-Wings, the same used in the original trilogy.
Episode 4: Can’t Say I Remember No At Attin
The fourth episode is directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (collectively known as Daniels). The directing duo is known for writing and directing Everything Everywhere All At Once, which won the Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.
The ruined planet the kids land on is called At Achrann. This is similar to the Irish word ‘Achrann,’ which means conflict. Given At Achrann is a planet ruined by war, this name is particularly fitting.
The shot of the Onyx Cinder landing on the ruined planet At Achrann mirrors initial concept art for Skeleton Crew, which was one of our first looks at the show from several years ago.
Jod Na Nawood says the planet tastes like “ashy dust,” which reminds him of his homeworld. This is the first hint at Nawood’s background. When thinking of planets that could be described as “ashy dust,” a number come to mind, including Dathomir and Mustafar. It’s unlikely that Nawood is from Dathomir or Mustafar, however. But you never know!
Inside the rundown house the children uncover on the ruined planet, the same mural featured in the home of Fern on At Attin. Both murals seem to depict At Attin and the other Jewels of the Old Republic. This is the first of many hints in this episode that At Attin and the other 8 planets that constitute the Jewels of the Old Republic were designed similarly, with near identical buildings and architecture.
Wim hypothesizes that they may actually be on At Attin after falling asleep for 100 years. He mentions that this is like the “Tales of the Knights of -” before being interrupted. Any mention of ‘Knights’ in Star Wars obviously gets us thinking about Knights of the Old Republic, the iconic Star Wars video game. A number of stories have characters wake up from a long sleep and emerge to a changed world, including Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving, the Buck Rogers story Armageddon 2419 by Phillip Francis Nowlan, and The Forever War by Joe Haldeman.
When going through the kids’ belongings, Nawood turns on a recording of the performance that Neel’s siblings were watching in Episode 1. This performance is taken from The Star Wars Holiday Special.
SM-33 once knew of At Attin, but his memory has since been scrambled, hence the confusion and disorientation the droid often experiences. This is not the first time that Star Wars has featured droids with lost or impaired memories. Most notably, C-3PO underwent a procedure in The Rise of Skywalker that saw his memory temporarily wiped. A more striking parallel is to the underappreciated Disney animated film Treasure Planet. In that film, an old robot named BEN (voiced by Martin Short) has his memory erased in order to prevent others from finding a lost treasure.
Wim asks Hayna if she and the other children on the planet are fighting the adults for control of the planet. In that Skeleton Crew is a Star Wars take on a pirate adventure, it is possible this is a reference to Peter Pan, in which Peter Pan and the Lost Boys team up against Captain Hook and his pirate crew. It may also be a reference to the 2015 comic series Star Wars, which featured Yoda uncovering a planet on which children were at war with adults.
Hayna’s blaster looks somewhat like a Dalek gun from Doctor Who.
The tribes on the ruined planet have Eopies. These camel-like animals were first depicted on Tatooine in The Phantom Menace and have since appeared in Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith, The Clone Wars, Battlefront II, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and more.
The damaged bus is driven by an RX-series droid, which is the same model of droid that originally piloted the Disney Parks ride Star Tours. An RX-series droid was previously seen this season as the driver of Wim and Neel’s school bus in episode 1.
Several of the Hattan soldiers wear the same kind of Imperial helmets that soldiers wore in the Battle of Mimban as depicted in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Later on, members of the Troik tribe can also be seen wearing similar helmets.
General Strix, leader of the Troik tribe, is played by French actor Matthieu Kassovitz. He is known for acting in See How They Fall and writing and directing the acclaimed Le Haine.
Members of the Troik tribe include people of various species, including a Rhodian (like Greedo) and an Ithorian.
Neel mentions the sport Slap Ball. Although this hasn’t been mentioned in Star Wars before, similarly named sports like Smashball and Shockball do exist in the galaxy.
Wim cranks up a blaster’s power setting, which is the first time this occurs in Star Wars canon. Previously, Alan Dean Foster’s novelization of the original Star Wars had a character doing this, as did several older Marvel comics. But this is the first time in canon that a character has been shown on screen changing the power of a blaster.
The episode reveals the names of several other planets that make up the Jewel of the Old Republic. These include At Achrann (which is where this episode is primarily set), At Aytuu, At Arissia, At Aravin, and At Acoda. None of these planets have previously appeared in Star Wars.
Neel passing out after ‘fighting’ SM-33 is somewhat like the Rancor and Grogu falling asleep after their showdown in The Book of Boba Fett.
Episode 5 – You Have A Lot to Learn About Pirates
Episode 5 is directed by Jake Schreier, who is also the director of the upcoming MCU movie Thunderbolts*. Schreier was also executive producer and director of the acclaimed Netflix series Beef and has directed music videos for Justin Bieber, Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Benny Blanco, Calvin Harris, Miguel, Halsey, Selena Gomez, Chance the Rapper, and more.
Some of Wim’s father Wendle’s coworkers at the office on At Attin include an Ithorian (commonly known as Hammerheads) and a Rodian (the same species as Greedo).
Fern’s mother Fara (played by Kerry Condon) shares the same first name as a character from Alexander Freed’s novel Shadow Fall. Fara Yadeez in that novel was a bureaucrat and eventual governor from the planet Troithe. Like Fara from Skeleton Crew, Fara Yadeez also has the title of undersecretary.
SM-33 reveals that his former captain was named Tak Rennod. The word ‘Rennod’ spelt backwards is ‘Donner,’ which is the name of The Goonies director Richard Donner. The work of Donner, who also directed Superman (1978) and The Omen, on The Goonies served as a major influence for the creators of Skeleton Crew in crafting their new Star Wars series.
Tak Rennod’s lair is called Skull Ridge Mountain. This is similar to Skull Rock, which is a key location in Peter Pan.
As Jod comforts Wim, he discusses the Jedi philosophy of not forming attachments. This is a major theme in the prequel trilogy, and serves as one of the primary reasons Anakin Skywalker turns to the darkside. Jod’s advice for Wim to “forget” his family and anxieties seems to suggest that Jod is indeed a Jedi, something we’ve gone back and forth on throughout the show so far.
Jod says to Wim, “Your focus determines your reality.” This is something Qui-Gon says to Anakin in The Phantom Menace.
When the team arrives to Lanupa, they observe pleasure yachts. Pleasure yachts like this have featured in various Star Wars stories, including Dryden Vos’ yacht in Solo: A Star Wars Story.
SM-33 mentions that Lanupa is also known as Battle World. While this isn’t a reference to anything in Star Wars, Battleworld is a key location in the Marvel comic series Secret Wars.
Jod mentions that the ‘Wise Elders’ do not speak Basic. Basic (which is English) is the standard language in the Star Wars galaxy.
Neel’s disguise as a Wise Elder makes him look somewhat like a Jawa.
Wim’s disguise, meanwhile, makes him look somewhat similar to Davy Jones from the Pirates of the Caribbean films.
Jod and the kids are adorned with what looks like a Star Wars equivalent of leis. A lei is a traditional necklace, which is often given to tourists at vacation resorts throughout the Pacific.
A restraining bolt is placed on SM-33. Restraining bolts have previously been placed on droids like C-3PO and R2-D2 in various stories, including A New Hope, The Clone Wars, Rebels, and Obi-Wan Kenobi.
The hotelier in the episode is played by Julie Ann Emery. She is best known for her role as Betsy Kettleman in Better Call Saul, and has also appeared in Preacher, Hitch, Gifted, and Fargo.
Some of the people enjoying the rejuvenating mud baths at the resort are Muun. Muun are a distinct looking species, who first appeared in Attack of the Clones as members of the Banking Clan. The most notable Muun is Darth Plagueis, who made his canon debut recently in the final episode of The Acolyte.
Speaking of the Banking Clan, the hotelier mentions that the resort has heightened security due to an economic summit of the Banking Clan. The InterGalactic Banking Clan was a financial commerce guild that aligned with the Separatists during the Clone Wars.
Jod is recognized by a former acquaintance Pokkit. Playing Pokkit is Kelly Macdonald, who is known for her roles in No Country for Old Men, Boardwalk Empire, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part II. More notably though is the fact that Macdonald becomes the latest actor to play a Disney Princess and a Star Wars character (just like Ming-Na Wen, who plays Fennec Shand in Star Wars and voiced Mulan in the Disney animated classic. That’s because Macdonald previously voiced Merida in the Pixar film Brave.
Pokkit visually looks like Kreia (aka Darth Traya) from Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. It’s also possible that Pokkit is of the Kage species, like Barash Silvain in the High Republic.
The bounty hunter Pokkit refers to Jod as Dash Zentin. Dash was also the first name of the mercenary and smuggler Dash Rendar, who made his debut in the Legends multimedia project Shadows of the Empire.
Pokkit mentions that she is now a bounty hunter for a private client as opposed to taking “low-rent Guild jobs.” Pokkit is referencing the Bounty Hunters’ Guild, which first appeared in The Mandalorian Season 1 and included members like Din Djarin, Greef Karga, and Fennec Shand.
Pokkit also mentions that she hasn’t “even checked the pucks.” She is referring to Bounty Pucks, which also first appeared in The Mandalorian. Bounty pucks are small holographic devices used by the Bounty Hunters’ Guild to identify targets.
Pokkit mentions that she is going to soak in a bacta tank. This is the same substance that was used to heal Luke in The Empire Strikes Back, and has since featured in countless Star Wars stories.
Pokkit refers to Jod as a “sleemo.” This is a Huttese insult first used by Sebulba in The Phantom Menace. It was the last word spoken by bounty Zam Wesell in Attack of the Clones.
A Hutt is one of the guests at the resort. This is the second reference to the Hutts we’ve picked up on in Skeleton Crew so far (the first of which being a pirate getting the Hutt sigil tattooed on his body in Episode 2). If you look closely, you can see a chin tattoo on the Skeleton Crew Hutt that is also the same chin tattoo one of the Hutt twins in The Book of Boba Fett has, which could suggest these are the same character. Regardless, with the Hutt twins in The Book of Boba Fett and now this Hutt in Skeleton Crew, it is clear that the Hutts are still around (and seemingly thriving) after the death of Jabba.
The Hutt eats a member of the Troglof species, which first appeared on Canto Bight in The Last Jedi.
Jod inspects various symbols engraved in a wall of the resort. One of these symbols appears to be in ur-Kittât, the ancient language of the Sith.
One of the resort works refers to Jod as Professor Gorelox of Scipio. Scipio is an ice-covered planet that is home to the InterGalactic Banking Clan. Scipio was first mentioned in The Clone Wars episode “Senate Spy” and appears for the first time in the episode “An Old Friend,” which is part of the Rush Clovis arc.
The massive creature Chtallops has a similar name and look as the cosmic entity Cthulu created by H.P. Lovecraft.
Rennod’s lair and tunnels filled with booby traps are below the spas of the resort, just like how One-Eyed Willie’s lair and booby trap-filled tunnels are below the Astoria Country Club in The Goonies.
The initial booby trap in Rennod’s maze of tunnels is much like similar booby traps in the Indiana Jones franchise.
Jod tells the kids, “Don’t touch anything” after narrowly avoiding a booby trap. This is exactly what Indiana Jones says to Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as Short Round tried to avoid activating a booby trap.
And, in Indiana Jones fashion, Jod and the kids need to complete a puzzle of sorts before entering the lair. We loved this moment of the episode as it highlighted their ability to work together as a team and reminded us of the sort of puzzles Indiana Jones tackles in his films and Nathan Drake solves in the Uncharted games. Proceeding forward requires brains, rather than brawn.
One of the golden statues in Rennod’s lair looks just like Hooter from the short film Captain EO. This would be the second reference to the short film starring Michael Jackson and co-written by George Lucas after Fuzzball appeared in Episode 2 of Skeleton Crew.
The lightsaber hilt in Rennod’s lair looks like it’s from the High Republic era. Specifically, examining Insight Editions’ The High Republic: The Lightsaber Collection shows that the lightsaber hilt in Skeleton Crew bares a number of similarities to lightsabers from this era.
Captain Rennod refers to At Attin as an Old Republic Mint. As far as we know, this is the first time a Mint (the institution that produces money, not the herb) is referenced in Star Wars.
Jod challenges Fern to the captaincy of the Oynx Cinder, citing the pirate code as he does so. The pirate code was an actual code of conduct for governing ships of pirates between the 17th and 18th centuries. The pirate code plays a role in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.
Wim tries to save the day by igniting the lightsaber. In a fun subversion of typical hero moments like this, Wim accidentally ignties the lightsaber backward and then drops it on the ground. This feels a lot more realistic as a child wielding a lightsaber for the first time would probably make a mistake like this.
The sixth and seventh episodes are written by Myung Joh Wesner, who was previously the executive story editor of the underappreciated Hulu murder mystery Death and Other Details. Wesner also wrote an episode of the comedy series High Potential.
Episode 6: Zero Friends Again
The kids falling down a slide at the beginning of the episode is very much like a similar sequence in The Goonies.
One of the aliens on the landing pad greeting Jod is a Xi’Dec. This species first appeared on Canto Bight in The Last Jedi.
Jod says to the pirates that he has a score that will get them “the entire kriffing galaxy.” ‘Kriff’ was a curse word that first appeared in the Legends novel Vision of the Future by Timothy Zahn.
The Trash Crabs are similar to the Noti from Ahsoka (although with more villainous motivations). If you look closely, you can see they’re made of all sorts of different parts, including a protocol droid’s leg, a stormtrooper helmet, and the top of a C1-series astromech droid (the same kind as Chopper from Rebels).
Captain Brutus’ base is a former Republic Haven-class medical station. These stations appeared in The Clone Wars. Most notably, a Haven-class medical station played a role in the Malevolence arc of The Clone Wars in which Anakin and Ahsoka had to defend one as General Grievous tried to destroy the facility after learning thousands of clone troopers were being treated there.
The queen Trash Crab was created using a stop-motion miniature by Phil Tippett and Tippett Studio. The creators of the miniature model included an R2-D2, C-3PO, and K-2SO in the design.
The big Trash Crab is named Tet’niss the Mama Crab. This is because the model featured many sharp, spiky protrusions that the animators kept jabbing themselves on.
The Trash Crabs leading the kids back to Tet’niss the Mama Crab reminded us of the spiders leading Harry and Ron to Aragog in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Episode 7: We’re Gonna Be In So Much Trouble
Neel’s mother Nooma is interrupted as she is about to say, “I have a bad feeling about this.” This is an iconic line in Star Wars dating back to the original in 1977.
Neel and Fern play grav-ball aboard the Onyx Cinder. Grav-ball is a sport that first appeared in the Legends comic series X-Wing Rogue Squadron. In canon, grav-ball featured in the junior novel Star Wars Rebels – Servants of the Empire: Edge of the Galaxy and is also mentioned in the novels Aftermath, Thrawn: Treason, and Resistance Reborn.
Jod says that “At Attin has been hidden for hundreds of years.” If Jod’s words are taken as accurate, this means At Attin has been hidden since the years of the High Republic era. This would make sense given the mention of At Attin as a Great Work of the Republic, which seemingly aligns with Chancellor Lina Soh’s Great Works from the High Republic publishing initiative.
Brutus refers to At Attin as a ‘treasure planet.’ Treasure Planet was a 2002 animated movie from Disney that put a sci-fi twist on Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Brutus says, “I’ll take that bet” to Jod. Qui-Gon says this same thing to Watto in The Phantom Menace.
Brutus sends out the pirate Glerb to investigate the atmosphere of At Attin. Before Glerb’s ship is destroyed, he uses the call sign “Ravager One.” The Ravagers were a pirate gang that originated in Legends. They made their debut in the Shadow of Revan digital expansion pack for Star Wars: The Old Republic and were known for their brutality toward others, including children. Glerb’s reference of Ravagers implies that the Ravagers exist in canon, although they may be quite different from the Ravagers from Legends.
Brutus’ crew flies pirate snub fighters that are the same as the ones flown by the pirates in Gorian Shard’s command in The Mandalorian Season 3.
The At Attin supervisor is voiced by Legendary English actor Stephen Fry, who is known for his roles in Jeeves and Wooster, Blackadder, Gosford Park, V for Vendetta, and The Hobbit. Fry also voiced all seven of the audiobooks of the Harry Potter novels and was just knighted for services to mental health awareness, the environment, and charity.
Jod poses as a New Republic Emissary. This title was also given to the Twi’lek Yendor in the novel Lost Stars and is also mentioned in the shows The Book of Boba Fett and The Clone Wars, in addition to the novels in the Aftermath trilogy, Bloodline, Brotherhood, Queen’s Peril, and the Thrawn: Ascendancy trilogy.
One of the safety droids leads Jod and the kids into the Old Republic Mint, a massive underground facility where credits are produced. The entire vibe of this introduction has the feel of Obi-Wan Kenobi being introduced to the cloning facilities on Kamino by the Kaminoans in Attack of the Clones. The musical cues from series composer Mick Giacchino are reminiscent of similar cues from John Williams’ Kamino theme in Episode II, and the safety droid itself sounds quite like a Kaminoan.
The safety droid mentions that there are 1,139 vaults of Old Republic Credits. This is one value short of 1138, which is a cell number in A New Hope, a reference to THX-1138 (George Lucas’ 1971 directorial debut), and a frequently used easter egg throughout Star Wars.
The shot of Jod’s ignited lightsaber in front of the kids and parents mirrors a similar shot from Revenge of the Sith in which Anakin ignites his lightsaber before a group of younglings he soon kills.
Episode 8: The Real Good Guys
The Supervisor’s tower looks like Palpatine’s throne room from Return of the Jedi.
The reveal of the Supervisor was very reminiscent of the end of The Wizard of Oz, in which the man (or droid) behind the proverbial curtain is finally shown. The Supervisor itself reminded us of HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The Supervisor tells Fara and Fern that he has been watching over them “with great interest.” This is similar to the line Palpatine says to Anakin at the end of The Phantom Menace, “We will watch your career with great interest.”
The Supervisor notes that the last message At Attin received from the Republic was that “all Jedi were traitors.” This is a reference to the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Empire, as depicted in Revenge of the Sith. Palpatine branded the Jedi as traitors and commissioned Order 66 to kill them all, which was seemingly the last contact At Attin ever had with the Republic.
Wim’s dad’s car looks similar to the transports you ride on in the Rise of the Resistance ride at Galaxy’s Edge.
The pirates arriving on At Attin felt very much like a similar sequence in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. These visuals also reminded us of scenes from adaptations of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds.
Fern tells her mother, “Everywhere we went, even the worst places, there were good people too. People that can help us.” This line harkens back to Anakin’s line in The Phantom Menace, “You’ve always said the biggest problem in this universe is that nobody helps each other.” It also reminded us of themes from The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker in which, despite overwhelming odds, good people still came together to help one another.
Neel finds the turbolaser on the roof of the school and uses it to cover KB. Many expected this to happen after Episode 4 showed the kids uncover a turbolaser on the roof of a similar building on Hayna’s planet At Achrann. The payoff is great here, as we see Neel’s bravery shine once again, taking control of the turbolaser and fighting against the pirates head on.
KB flies the Oynx Cinder above the clouds just like Batman did with the Batwing in Tim Burton’s Batman (1989). In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Jon Watts also paid homage to this iconic shot from Batman when Vulture was seen flying in the sky with the moon in the background.
One of the standout elements of the finale is Wim’s dad Wendle, who is played by Tunde Adebimpe. Adebimple is the founding member and co-lead vocalist of the band TV on the Radio, who are known for songs like “Will Do” and “DLZ” (the latter of which played during the iconic Breaking Bad “stay out of my territory” moment). Adebimpe previously appeared in another project from Jon Watts as he played Mr. Cobbwell in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
More of Jod’s backstory is revealed, which ties into key plot elements from the Star Wars saga. Jod says, “When I was your age, all I cared about was not starving. I was living in a hole in the ground, and a Jedi found me. She may have been desperate and ragged like me, but she told me I had potential. And that was…Well, she only taught me a little before they hunted her down. And they made me watch whilst they killed her. That’s the galaxy. It’s dark, with a few pinpricks of light.” Jod’s little monologue confirms that he is indeed a Jedi, who survived the events of Order 66 after his master was killed. It is unclear who his master was, although she is described as “desperate” and “ragged.”
Wim ignites the lightsaber successfully in a nice parallel to episode 5, in which Wim tried to have a big hero moment (only to ignite the lightsaber the wrong way and drop it on the ground).
Some of the New Republic ships that arrive on At Attin are B-Wings. This marks the first time that B-Wings fire all of their lasers in live-action, after it was previously shown in animation in the Star Wars Rebels episode “Wings of the Master.”
Another of the New Republic ships is a Corvette, like the Tantive IV seen in A New Hope.
One of the X-Wing pilots is played by Andy Powers, who previously played the titular clown in Jon Watts’ directorial debut Clown.
Jod looking upon the destruction of his pirate frigate (and, in turn, the destruction of his dream) felt like a visual parallel to the concluding shot of David Fincher’s Fight Club.
The end credits include pictures from Wim’s storypad of Jedi adventures. Some of these pictures feature recognizable moments or elements from the Star Wars saga. One of the first pictures is of a Jedi Temple. Another picture shows two Jedi training, seemingly in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Two Trandoshians (the same species as Bossk) feature in another image. What appears to be Dooku is seen dueling with Anakin (perhaps) in another picture.
The final page shows the four kids and the Onyx Cinder, indicating that the kids ultimately went on an adventure worthy of inclusion in a storybook like this.
