Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 3 brings the fun back to a galaxy far, far away

With Episode 3 of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Disney+ might just be starting to break the curse that's hung over their attempts at making a live-action TV shows set in the Star Wars universe.

In the third episode of the show, oddly titled "Very Interesting, As An Astrogration Problem," Silver (Jude Law) manages to escape from the brig with the kids, and then flees the spaceport in their ship. After learning that they come from the legendary planet of At Attin, Silver goes to see Kh'ymm, an old associate who has star maps to just about every planet in the galaxy. He manages to get some information out of her, but she calls in the New Republic to arrest him before she finds the exact location.

The first two episodes of the show were a little slow in places, with plenty of set up for the story and characters. They were okay, but nothing special. After the latest episode, I have to say I've been won over completely. Skeleton Crew isn't a mind-blowing show with a really intricate plot, but rather a great small-scale adventure.

It's also helped by the fact that "Crimson Jack" Silver is now a main character. Jude Law is an incredibly charismatic actor and is excellent at playing the "lovable rogue" kind of pirate, much like Jack Sparrow. The name "Silver" is a reference to the infamous character Long John Silver from Robert Louis Stevenson's classic book Treasure Island. I wonder if this also hints at a similar kind of character? Long John was also a likable guy with a two-faced personality, who made an immediate impression on young Jim Hawkins, even getting him to join his crew.

With his Jedi abilities, Crimson Jack has managed to win over Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith) at least, but there's not much been revealed about his past, or why he was imprisoned. Sure, he seem to want to help these kids get back home, but if At Attin really does have great treasure on it, he'll be wanting his cut.

All of the characters really start to come together in this episode, even if they remain pretty simple for the most part. Wim thirsts for adventure, Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) wants to be in charge, Neel is scared of almost everything, and KB...Well, to be honest, I'm not entirely sure what KB (Kyriana Kratter) wants or what her character is. I hope she'll come into the plot more at some point, but right now we don't really see much from her, except that she's probably the most skeptical of Silver.

Review: Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Episode 3, "Very Interesting, as an Astrogation Problem"

I'm sure there'll be plenty more character moments for the kids over the next five episodes. Probably the best scene in this one is when the kids have to take on a couple New Republic X-Wings that are chasing their ship on the hunt for Silver. Guided by Silver, Neel takes the helm, Wim and Fern are put on the guns, and KB programs the hyperdrive. It's the kind of thing any kid who loved Star Wars would dream of doing, and it's done in a realistic way without falling into the dreaded Mary Sue trap.

While that's all good fun, I really couldn't care less about the subplot about At Attin being some sort of hidden planet, part of an Old Republic scheme of some kind. There's a scene with all the kids parents which really doesn't do anything except show that they're concerned for their missing children. Maybe if they had made the planet look really old or detached from the rest of the galaxy somehow, it might have made sense. But it kind of looks just like any other place, so much so that I mistook it for a New Republic world in the first episode. Just show me a pirate and a group of kids having an adventure, that's what I'm here for.

After so many ups and downs for Star Wars in the last decade or so, I didn't have very high expectations for this show, which means it was easy for Skeleton Crew to exceed them. This show has surprised me with how enjoyable it is, with plenty going on to keep you interested. I still don't know if it's targeted at 10-year-olds or 50-year-olds, but either way, it's the most fun live-action show this franchise has ever done.

Yes, it can be very convenient with its plot at times, and we've yet to see whether all the set ups will be paid off in a satisfying way, but right now the Force is with Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, and it's being wielded by a mysterious pirate who may or may not be a Jedi.

Episode grade: B+

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