STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW. George Lucas Should Be Proud [REVIEW OF EPISODES 1-2]

“This is a series for children. It has always been a series for children,” said George Lucas himself at the last Cannes Festival. He previously referred to the beloved global brand as a “Saturday afternoon kids’ serial” and once expressed surprise that fans disliked cartoonish comedic characters. The father of Star Wars can thus be proud. Skeleton Crew is a children’s series that today’s adult fans might have enjoyed watching on their parents’ living room CRT televisions, holding a plastic Luke Skywalker figure in one hand and a sugary drink bought with saved-up lunch money in the other.

The show fits squarely into the archetypal mold for this type of production. A distant galaxy is styled like the suburban neighborhoods of small-town America, and the protagonists are a group of kids bonded by busy parents, nerdy inclinations, and a desire to experience a “real adventure, not a pretend one.” The antagonists? Galactic pirates in pursuit of a lost treasure.

The series seems to sideline the mythological characters and key moments of the universe that has been built over nearly 50 years, situating itself in the safest timeline for casual viewers—just after the fall of the Empire, as seen in Return of the Jedi. This invites audiences to enjoy the adventure without needing to memorize the entirety of Wookieepedia or even having more than a vague familiarity with the Skywalker Saga. For instance, the only notable Easter egg so far is a subtle nod to the opening of A New Hope in the series’ first moments.

The first two episodes, which debuted yesterday on Polish Disney+, mark the beginning of an eight-chapter adventure. They were overseen by Jon Watts, known for Cop Car and the last three live-action Spider-Man films. Watts assembled an impressive roster of directors, including David Lowery (The Green Knight), Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan (Everything Everywhere All At Once), and Lee Isaac Chung (Minari).

The opening episodes succeed in setting the tone for the series, introducing its characters and positioning them within the story’s framework. The family-friendly, adventure-driven atmosphere immediately evokes productions like Steven Spielberg’s E.T. or The Goonies. The series maintains the Star Wars aesthetic without merely imitating George Lucas’s original vision, and the unfolding mystery of the characters’ origins is intriguing.

However, the characters themselves come across as rather bland, lacking the energy and magnetism essential to this genre—qualities that were so effectively achieved in titles inspired by classic adventure films, such as J.J. Abrams’s Super 8 or, of course, the Duffer Brothers’ Stranger Things. Hopefully, the titular crew will develop more depth as the story progresses, especially when juxtaposed with the show’s star, Jude Law. His role in the first two episodes is extremely minor, and it remains to be seen whether Kerry Condon, known for The Banshees of Inisherin, will get a chance to shine, as her current role feels like it could be handled by a lesser-known actor.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew undoubtedly has potential, striking a nostalgic, adventurous chord in a fresh tone compared to Disney’s previous Star Wars offerings. The challenge now is to build something more substantial on this foundation. The potential is undeniably there.