Star Wars: Skeleton Crew eps 1-3

[sholio]

Shockingly not a MASH update. Without spoilers, this show is so FUN. I was braced for crushing disappointment (let's face it, it's Star Wars, I'm still braced for crushing disappointment) but so far I'm having a fantastic time.


It feels so much like A New Hope that I really can't get over it. I didn't quite get that so much in the first two episodes, but the latest one, with the X-Wing fight (eeeee!) and the owl lady and the moon/gas giant visuals was just ... *chef's kiss*

And having the kids (essentially) living in the Star Wars universe while not knowing they're in the Star Wars universe and then getting to explore it with completely unjaded eyes is such a great idea for making it feel new and fresh. It is really hitting the spot for me for PG-rated old-school Star Wars space opera with just enough mystery and twists that I'm legitimately curious where it's all going.

It was completely obvious in the prologue scene in the first episode that the pirate captain whose face we don't see is almost certainly Jude Law, so I was pleasantly surprised that they didn't drag out the top-level mystery about him at all - he's a space pirate, the kids know he's a space pirate, 90% of the people they meet along the way know he's a space pirate, and the kids also know that he's helping them because he wants the treasure he thinks is on their planet and not for any other reason. (At least at this point.) As far as his loyalties go, the question isn't whether he'll betray them, because he absolutely will betray them at the drop of a hat and they know it. The question is whether there will come a time when he has an opportunity to betray them and doesn't, and I am here for the ride.

And the mysteries are genuinely mysterious! I'm looking forward to finding out more about the kids' planet and whatever the Force sensitivity thing going on with Jude Law is. (I saw speculation on Tumblr that whatever is his deal is also something KB -- the girl with silver hair -- can do, and I think they're right, whether it's actual Force sensitivity or whether he's doing it with implants and she also has similar implants and doesn't know how to use them yet.)

I also like the dynamic with the boys being younger and more credulous, while the girls are older and more skeptical and untrusting.

And generally it's just - fun! It's very unsubtly Treasure Island/Peter Pan IN SPACE, and they legit did a good job with that and also with making it feel like Star Wars and also its own thing. It has enough connections to main Star Wars continuity to feel like Star Wars (old school Star Wars, even), while it still feels enough its own thing that it won't completely lose people (me, I am people) who haven't been keeping up on canon developments and can't really remember most of it.

I'm also enjoying going week by week, and just really looking forward to savoring the rest of it!

And possibly being clubbed upside the head with massive disappointment at the end, because Star Wars.


I guess I'll go ahead and use my movies tag for it even though it's TV; I think I did that with Mandalorian as well.

Comments

[yalumesse]

I'd heard almost nothing about this show - interesting! Not sure I'll try it but nice to hear they're being creative. (And yeah brace yourself for disappointment and fully ignoring canon from some point. But until then, fun!)

[sholio]

Managed expectations are the secret to enjoying Star Wars. :D

[ambyr]

I'm enjoying it, too! It's not making me feel fannish in the sense of wanting to write anything (though, never say never), but it's something pleasant to look forward to on Tuesday nights.

[sholio]

Yeah, I'm not feeling fannish either at this juncture, just really enjoying the fun! I might want to vid it at some point, I think; the visuals are nice (but then, that's one thing Star Wars can usually be counted on for!). I'm glad you're enjoying it!

[yhlee]

Have not looked at spoilers but I should check this out!

(...I am quasi-obliged to watch An Indiana Jones movie at some point lolol as everyone at my master's program is very nicely teasing me for being the last person on earth studying film scoring to have never seen one. Or James Bond for that matter. But surely I can sneak in some Star Wars haha.)

[sholio]

I had no idea you'd never seen Indiana Jones! Even I, as a non-music person, can tell the scoring is really great in those. :D (Not that I've seen one in absolutely forever. But I remember loving the music when I was a kid.)

[yhlee]

I know The Famous Theme cold! I've just never watched it because of my galloping migraine issues. XD

[recessional]

Cool I’ll let you be a stalking horse for that last bit. xD

(I have essentially taken the fact that for me, Rogue One was actually perfect and the manifestation of what I have wanted from SW since I got old enough to notice the flaws and declined to bother with much else. xD)

[sholio]

I THROW MYSELF ON THIS GRENADE.

(I mean tbh if you know you really like one thing from the universe and don't like most of the rest, that's perfectly valid data to carry on with. I also enjoyed Rogue One a lot!)

[sheron]

I'm going to watch this once I can binge the whole thing :D

[sholio]

<3333333

[genarti]

Ooh, fun! I'd heard of it in very general terms but wasn't sure how excited to be, especially as current Star Wars shows have a certain tendency to end up with a bunch of cameos from other Star Wars shows. (Not inherently bad, and I have seen several of them, but I always want a show to stand as a self-contained thing even for viewers who have never seen another show in the franchise, and some of them do that better than others.) This sounds like a great time so far!

[sholio]

Yeah, I'm bracing myself for someone to turn out to be a secret Skywalker or the sudden cameos of 12 characters I haven't heard of. But if it can hold up 'til the end, it might end up being one of my favorite things in the 'verse.

[genarti]

lol, yes, exactly! But I'll be interested to hear as you progress.