In Steven Spielberg’s spectacular 1982 film “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” there is a sweet little scene where a couple of bike-riding youths wander through their eerily sweeping suburban streets on Halloween. As they attempt to hide the titular extraterrestrial visitor by disguising him as an adorable ghost, they humorously encounter a kid dressed up as Yoda who E.T. mistakes as an alien friend and toddles over to. It’s a fun throwaway scene which, while more than a bit cheeky considering the longtime friendship between Spielberg and Star Wars creator George Lucas, brought the creations of the duo together for a brief moment in a manner that now feels downright quaint. This is because “Skeleton Crew,” the newest entry in the evergrowing Star Wars universe, plays like it is taking the self-referential ethos of this scene and stretching it into an entire show. Oh, and they even brought the suburbs along with the youthful angst that comes with them.
The result is an occasionally clunky yet charming smashing together of the vast universe Lucas created decades ago with an early Spielbergian sensibility that manages to mostly win you over. It’s no “Andor,” which remains the best Star Wars show to date, and one of the best, most incisive works in the franchise writ large. Of course, besting that will always be a mighty high bar to clear. Instead of trying, “Skeleton Crew” has different, more humanist and humble aspirations rather than potently political ones. Yes, there are no actual wheels on their flying bikes and the tone isn’t as balanced as Spielberg’s films, though it has heart where it counts. It will most appeal to younger viewers, but adults who remember the Amblin era may too get swept up in it.
Namely, “Skeleton Crew” offers up just enough hints of darkness to give the story stakes, with “The Goonies” serving as another clear reference. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always fully live up to this, often following a safe structure with little in the way of genuine intrigue. In the first three episodes of eight shared with critics, the show falls into a pattern of clear deceptions and quick resolutions you can see coming from lightyears away. While meant for younger viewers, this blunt and inelegant approach underestimates their ability to enjoy multifaceted storytelling. At the same time, for all the ways it falls short, “Skeleton Crew” boasts good narrative bones and a playful mind it can largely call its own in a galaxy that doesn’t feel quite so far, far away.
Created by head writers Jon Watts and Christopher Ford, the duo most known for the recent hit-and-miss Marvel film “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” they drop us into a Star Wars story that is set during a familiar time. Specifically, we are in the New Republic era after the fall of the Empire in “Return of the Jedi” in the same general time frame as the initially good fun “The Mandalorian” and the painfully exposition-heavy “Ahsoka.” However, and most refreshingly, the series feels unburdened from the tiresome requirements of connecting to the many other parts of this universe. At least for now, it’s something that can just be a little silly and focused on its own story. Following a quick yet effectively well-staged opening space battle where pirates take a ship in search of treasure, blasting their way through an unsuspecting crew before a mutiny arises, we are whisked away to the isolated home planet of Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter) and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith). It is there they must navigate even more perilous challenges: the suburbs, tests at school and absent parents.
Namely, both Fern and Wim, while not friends initially, are united in that both of their parents, played by the great duo of “The Banshees of Inisherin” star Kerry Condon and TV On The Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe respectively, are generally focused more on work than they are their children. This will soon prove untenable when said kids make a surprising discovery that sends them into the universe behind the barrier that has been created to hide their planet from anyone outside it. This provides an interesting undercurrent about how this planet cut itself off from a galaxy that is still full of people struggling to get by, but it also leans heavily into the mirthful above all else. For all the ways this can feel like a missed opportunity, it’s hard to complain too much when flying along with the blue, elephantine alien being Neel. Of all the youthful characters, he is the most fun, with the combination of CGI and practical effects in his design proving to be truly seamless. Even as other effects are rougher around the edges if you look too close, it’s the interactions between Neel and the rest of the young crew as they get into trouble that makes this forgivable.
Initially, there are parts of this small-scale corner of “Skeleton Crew” that almost resemble the underrated recent sci-fi anthology series “Tales From the Loop” in how it takes familiar genre elements and makes them feel more immersively ordinary as opposed to purely adventurous. It is not quite as thoughtful and interested in existential questions as that was, though this is a sacrifice that must be made for its more charming core to shine through. At the center of this is Wim who, in addition to relatably having trouble catching the school bus on time before a test, is a winning character whose fascination with the Jedi and a desire for greater adventure outside his mundane life holds the story together. To a lonely kid like him, the Jedi are mostly just myths that can bring him meaning on his journey. However, the reality is far more complicated than that.
It lightly recalls the strongest parts of “The Force Awakens” and “The Last Jedi” with the healthy skepticism they brought about the universe’s Jedi mythology (before all this was abandoned in the utterly soulless “The Last Jedi” for cheap callbacks). Thankfully, this is a show that doesn’t take itself or its glorified Space Wizards too seriously as it launches its characters into space. There are fleeting hints of a more potentially subversive thematic undercurrent surrounding who gets left behind in this new Jedi order, but it also isn’t afraid to poke fun at itself in key moments. Though Star Wars as a whole is in a shaky place with the upcoming Rey movie recently being pulled from the release calendar and “The Acolyte” being canceled outright, it’s good to see a series like “Skeleton Crew” is willing to shake things up rather than just reheat familiar stories.
Namely, this is where Jude Law’s Jod Na Nawood (or Crimson Jack for those who don’t want to say that mouthful of a name) comes in. He’s a loner the lost kids soon encounter after finding themselves in a mighty tough spot. Without tipping anything off, we quickly piece together he is more than what he seems to be even if the kids take far longer to catch up. Wim hopes he might be a Jedi like he read about in his stories even as Jod is more akin to a Han Solo figure while still bringing his own distinct layers. Law is excellent in the role as, in addition to clearly having a ball playing around in what is a space pirate adventure, he brings the needed bits of gravitas and charisma to balance out the more youthful innocence of his co-stars. Reuniting with his “Peter Pan & Wendy” collaborator David Lowery, who directs the second and third episodes, he plays a more likable pirate who may bring more trouble for the young kids than they realize.
It’s this dynamic between Law and the kids, as well as a delightfully gruff robot voiced by Nick Frost, that gives “Skeleton Crew” its greatest spark. While by no means the first or even the best most recent work to attempt to put itself in conversation with Spielberg’s films, you can still get a sense of that sincere charm in not just these characters bouncing off each other, but the way the camera lingers on plants in the woods as a light shines through them or a rather familiar plastic tunnel being used for a space ferry down to a remote outpost. These small details not only bring a film like “E.T.” back into the mind but serve as the texture to the universe “Skeleton Crew” is setting out to reintroduce us to. It’s got potential to continue to succeed in doing so as long as those kids don’t phone home too soon. After all, there are plenty more adventures to be had. To paraphrase another Star Wars scoundrel with a heart of gold, here’s hoping this is where the fun begins.
The “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew” two-episode premiere is now available to stream on Disney+.