Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ On Disney+, Where Jude Law Helps Four Kids Lost In The Far Reaches Of The Galaxy

One of the big reasons that the original Star Wars (now subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope) was such a gargantuan hit 47 years ago was that the story was taken right out of movie serials of the ’30s and ’40s, and the simple good-guys-bad-guys story appealed to kids as well as adults. A new Disney+ series in the Star Wars universe goes back to the kind of simpler story that made the original film such a hit, only this time the ragtag crew that’s bucking the odds is literally full of kids… and Jude Law.

STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: An opening paragraph explaining that in the era of New Republic rule, remote hyperspace routes are plagued by pirates, whose ships are inscribed with the phrase “Surrender or Die.”

The Gist: We see one such attack, as a group of pirates board a New Republic starship and essentially take it over, killing most of its crew. The problem is, the vault that the captain of their ship promised them had untold riches had one measly credit. Let’s just say that he wasn’t captain after that.

In the meantime, on a very earth-like planet called At Attin, Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) gets ready to go to school, with his dad Wendle (Tunde Adebimpe) telling him he’ll be on his own that night due to a busy day at work. He meets his buddy Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), an Ortolan; they pretend to fight a light saber battle as they wait for the bus. On the ride in, Wim admires the speeder bike being ridden by two girls, Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) and KB (Kyriana Kratter).

During a visit from Undersecretary Fara (Kerry Condon), Wim talks about wanting to make a difference in the planet’s “Great Work” instead of being an systems analyst like his father, and the assessment test that’s given the next day will go a long way to determine the kids’ career path. However, he misses the bus the next day, and takes his own speeder bike across a shortcut. But when he slides into a crevasse, he finds a hatch embedded in the ground.

When a truancy droid finds him and takes him back to school, he meets Fern for the first time, and tells her he thinks he found a secret Jedi temple. Sure enough, when Wim convinces Neel to come with him to the hatch, they’re met by Fern and KB, who claim “takesies”.

They reluctantly team up to dig and try to get the hatch open; when they find themselves inside, they’re surprised to find that it’s a ship, one covered in skeletons, presumably of its crew. There’s also an old deactivated droid. Wim lets the curiosity get the better of him, and the four kids find themselves lifting off. Imagine their reaction when the ship gets ready to make the jump into hyperspace.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Skeleton Crew, created by Christopher Ford and John Watts, is pretty much a cross between Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and The Goonies.

Our Take: The first episode of Skeleton Crew takes its time to introduce us to the four kids; in fact, most of the second episode is spent with these unlikely space travelers as the ship’s ornery droid, SM 33 (Nick Frost), takes them to the nearest port he knows, which is full of pirates. One of the things they find out is that either no one has heard of At Attin or they think it’s a “lost planet.” Then, after being thrown in the brig, they meet Jod Na Nawood (Jude Law), who helps them get out in exchange for hitching a ride on their starship. Wim thinks Jod is a Jedi, but the rest of the people there know him more as a pirate named “Crimson Jack.”

So we really don’t get going with the entire group until the third episode, and at that point we can see what the show is going to be. These kids and this maybe-Jedi, definitely-Pirate Crimson Jack are going to be hopscotching the outer reaches of the galaxy in an effort to get the kids back to At Attin. The kids will have conflicts but become more confident in their abilities, guided by Jod Na / Crimson Jack.

Jude Law’s character is the most intriguing part of the series, mainly because we don’t know if he’s a pirate, a Jedi or both. His backstory will reveal itself as the series goes along, but Law can pull off the the slyness that a man playing both sides of the moral fence needs to have. There are moments where he sounds like the Jedi he might just be, but in others, the pirate in him comes out.

The four kids have a good chemistry right off the bat, and we’re always on board for a “band of kids go on adventures” series if the kids have a presence. It’s why we stick with Stranger Things even though the show’s “kids” are now old enough to rent a car. But the four stars of Skeleton Crew have the presence and balance each other out: The impulsive dreamer Win, the overachiever Fern, the analytical and controlled KB and the curious and friendly Neel. Sure, they’re archetypes, but that’s just fine in a show that’s aiming for kids as well as their Star Wars-loving parents.

What Age Group Is This For?: There is some bloodless death in battle in the first segment, so we’re thinking this is best for kids 8 and up.

Parting Shot: The kids scream when the starship launches into a hyperspace jump.

Sleeper Star: We like Nick Frost’s very pirate-like take on SM 33. Also, a familiar face shows up as a pirate in the second episode; we won’t spoil it here.

Most Pilot-y Line: “I’m just so proud of you!” says Fara, who is Fern’s mother, as Fern walks away from her and slams the door. Ah, it doesn’t matter what part of the universe you’re in, preteens are always a pain in the butt, aren’t they?

Our Call: STREAM IT. Skeleton Crew has a lot of the feel of the original Star Wars, where it’s more about an underestimated group bucking the odds than a complicated, layered story. But it’s also a good way into the Star Wars universe for kids and preteens.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.