This article contains spoiler for “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew,” Season 1, Episode 4, “Can’t Say I Remember No Attin.”
“Skeleton Crew” was the biggest “Star Wars” surprise since “Andor” took the world by storm with its poignant political drama. The series was originally sold as a lighter type of Star Wars adventure inspired by The Goonies, and has proven to be one of the most original and compelling Star Wars projects in years. Sure, it’s aimed more at children and has a lighter tone, But “Skeleton Crew” doesn’t shy away from giving us some of the scariest images in the series (Whether it’s a series of scary, bloodthirsty alien pirates or a killer robot hunting a group of children in a dark spaceship).
In Episode 4, “Can’t Say I Remember No Attin,” the series moves away from the fun pirate shenanigans and instead delivers a dark and poignant story about the effects of war on children and the cycle of violence, featuring everyone’s favorite story The blue elephant alien Neel (voiced by Robert Timothy Smith and, everything points to the opposite, Is not Max Rebo’s relative) and advocates finding other solutions than sending children to the front. It’s a fantastic episode that also has a surprising connection to a tradition that began in the Clone Wars animated series: planets embroiled in endless wars have a very French code.
When Star Wars is about the French Resistance
“Can’t Say I Remember No Attin” follows the young heroes of the “Skeleton Crew” to their home planet At Attin (this is essentially the titular world in Treasure Planet), but is actually another of the Nine Jewels of the Old Republic and a place called At Achrann. Far from the idyllic suburban home the children know, At Achrann is a planet constantly at war. (You could even call it the Upside Down version of At Attin.) The conflict involves two tribes, the Troik and the Hattan, who have been fighting for generations. When we first meet the Troik, they have a distinct feeling. On the one hand, they are at least a little inspired by the Lost Boys from “Peter Pan”, as there are several children fighting against the adults on the other side. However, once we meet some of the key players, including their general, it becomes clear that the Troik specifically speaks French – at least that is the case with their leader, General Strix (Mathieu Kassovitz). his daughter Hayna (Hala Finley).
This is reminiscent of the Ryloth arc from Star Wars: The Clone Wars, in which a group of Jedi are sent to the planet Ryloth to help the Twi’lek Resistance fight their separatist oppressors. Part of what makes the arc memorable is that all of the Twi’leks we meet speak with varying French accents, which showrunner Dave Filoni has described in the past as a direct request from Star Wars creator George Lucas. It’s not hard to see this creative choice as a great homage to La Résistance, the French resistance during the Nazi occupation in World War II. Considering how much of a WWII nerd Lucas is, it makes sense that he incorporates some influences from that era into Clone Wars – and he brings in a lot more, starting with the war-era radio news announcements at the start of each one Episode.
Episode 4 of Skeleton Crew offers a different perspective on the war itself
Shifting the focus slightly from pirates to a planet at war where children are sent to the front lines, “Skeleton Crew” Episode 4 offers more than just a cool nod to the animated series “Clone Wars.” What really makes the episode shine is the way it challenges the very idea of Star Wars as a franchise centered around war. The moment the series’ young heroes are drawn into the conflict, most of them seem to accept their situation without much protest. But Neel? He refuses to believe that war is the only way forward. Instead, he befriends Hayna and tells her that if he were in command of a tribe engaged in a generational war, he would simply apologize and move on. After all, war is no place for children.
This simple but poignant conversation expresses the fact that the Star Wars franchise has always been shaped by war, while contrasting nicely with the hot-headed desire for adventure and action that Neel’s sidekick Wim (Ravi Cabot -Conyers) expresses. Additionally, it serves as a flashback to Rose Tico’s (Kelly Marie Tran) speech at the end of “Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi” when she stops her rebellious Finn colleague (John Boyega) from doing something senseless, accusing her of suicide. “This is how we’re going to win,” she tells Finn. “We don’t fight what we hate.” “Save what we love.” Sure, “Star Wars” has the word “Wars” in the title and conflict has been at the forefront of every project on the property, but it’s ” Skeleton Crew” – the show with the most vulnerable protagonists (literally children!) – that finally raises the question of whether the franchise could look beyond warfare.
Considering how well “Skeleton Crew” does with a simple story about children wanting to return home, or how “The Acolyte” delivers an emotional and suspenseful story about the darkness behind the righteousness of the Jedi Order without it to a time of war, the answer seems to be yes.
New episodes of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew arrive Tuesdays at 6:00 p.m. PST on Disney+.
