Seto Kaiba Posted January 3 Posted January 3 22 minutes ago, Keith said: Hide contents The New Republic may also have incorporated a higher redemption/conversion rate on "Old a Republic" credits vs "Imperial" credits. This would play into the importance of finding a large suoply of, or means to mint new "authentic" old reoublic credits, if say they were given a 2 to 3 times the value of Imperial credits. Spoiler Seems unlikely, IMO... mainly because the capital emphasis OLD Republic ended 1,000 years before The Phantom Menace when the Sith were "destroyed" (went underground) and the Republic government was reformed. We know the New Republic phased out the Empire's credits and instituted their own, and we know the Empire did the same to the Republic's credits. It's pretty likely that the post-reformation Republic did the same to the pre-reformation Old Republic's credits too. It'd be kind of like rolling up to a bank in modern Berlin with a brick of Weimar-era papiermarks trying to exchange them for Euros. The bank would likely, very politely, inform you that your papiermarks hadn't been legal tender for a century and that the official currency had changed three times since then. 14 minutes ago, Duke Togo said: Who cares how the mint works? This is Treasure Island meets the Goonies, not To Live and Die in LA. It's the macguffin and central mystery driving the entire f***ing story. It's the entire reason the kids home planet was hidden from the rest of the galaxy and thus the reason they're on this adventure trying to get home. It's also the reason the Onyx Cinder ended up on their home planet to begin with, Jod's motivation for helping the kids, and now what's motivating Jod's entire former pirate fleet. You'd think something that central to the entire story would at least make sense in context, no?
jvmacross Posted January 3 Posted January 3 1 hour ago, Duke Togo said: Who cares how the mint works? preach!
Duke Togo Posted January 3 Posted January 3 7 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said: It's the macguffin By the very definition of the word, that is exactly why it doesn't matter how it works.
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 (edited) 51 minutes ago, Duke Togo said: By the very definition of the word, that is exactly why it doesn't matter how it works. In this case it kinda does. It could end up the entire downfall of a show centered around it. It could be that thing that totally ruins an overall great show in the grand way that Gundam Unicorn totally flopped when its mcguffin turned out to be pointless piece of crap. A show with it’s decent characters, good music and a great look can easily be destroyed by simply being pointless. I’ve never forgiven Unicorn for letting me down so badly and now instead of seeing what I originally thought looked great, now I only see it for its massive flaws. I don’t want to rewatch it, because I never want to get to the end that let me down Edited January 3 by Big s
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 On 12/31/2024 at 6:50 PM, Seto Kaiba said: This episode officially confirms that KB is a cyborg. That thing on her head is part of her brain. I thought this had already been confirmed before the show even started. I didn’t realize anyone was still questioning this so long into the series
Thom Posted January 3 Posted January 3 12 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said: Hide contents Yeah, any way you shake it the whole "At Attin is a planet of eternal treasure" thing doesn't really work. At Attin has apparently not had contact with the greater galaxy in many MANY years, so... If the Old Republic Mint on At Attin is minting credits using rare and intrinsically valuable materials, then the treasure isn't the mint and isn't eternal because there has to be a finite quantity of the precious raw material held in whatever reserve is supplying the mint. If the Old Republic Mint on At Attin is minting fiat money then the only value the credits have is neumismatic, meaning they will quickly lose all their value once any collector checks into them and realizes they were minted recently or the very limited market becomes saturated. If there is still some government or governments out there honoring the fiat money of the long-defunct Old Republic... WHY? That government fell over a thousand years ago. The more you think about it, the less it makes sense. The one possibility I can think of that makes this make sense is that the actual prize is the mint facility itself and... Hide contents ... the pirates goal is to use the mint's equipment to mint unlimited quantities of (potentially undetectable) counterfeit New Republic or Imperial credits. Think about it. At Attin may well be the only place in the galaxy where Old Republic credits are still in circulation as legal tender. A finite supply of raw material would run out, and the value of the credit chips as antiques would quickly collapse as supply outstripped demand. But if the mint facility can be used to make modern currency... well... then the pirates would not only have all the makings of an industrial-scale counterfeiting operation, but a base of operations for it on a planet so far off the grid that almost everyone in the galaxy believes it's a myth not a real place. That would really make At Attin a Planet of Eternal Treasure... the ability to print unlimited modern money there and spend it elsewhere in the galaxy. Spoiler The 'eternal treasure' thing is pirate slang for 'follow me and I'll give you all your dreams.' It doesn't really work, as it's a pipe dream, but tell that to pirates all throughout history. All that has to be there are the raw materials, the precious metals. Get that and retool the mint to make New Republic credits and you are literally 'printing' your own money. the previous metals will run out, but you could have years, maybe even centuries, before that happens, especially if the mint was build by a mine.
Roy Focker Posted January 3 Posted January 3 11 hours ago, Duke Togo said: Who cares how the mint works? This is Treasure Island meets the Goonies, not To Live and Die in LA. Exactly. This time it is a show featuring kids aimed at kids. Only the logic of Saturday morning cartoons apply. If one of these kids get stabbed through the middle of the chest with a light saber and survives I'm not going to question it like I would in some of their other shows.
Thom Posted January 3 Posted January 3 1 minute ago, jvmacross said: Star Wars "kids"..... That is NOT me on the right!!
Dynaman Posted January 3 Posted January 3 4 hours ago, Duke Togo said: By the very definition of the word, that is exactly why it doesn't matter how it works. Yes it does. If this were a Bugs Bunny short, sure the entire credits thing would not matter. This is closer to "We have a plan" or that Fiasco that Lost ended up being. The sad part being is a modicum of thought or a single line of exposition could handle the whole thing without any change to the rest of the story.
Duke Togo Posted January 3 Posted January 3 1 hour ago, Dynaman said: This is closer to "We have a plan" or that Fiasco that Lost ended up being. This is not the show you're looking for. I know it's pretty much the same crowd that spends page after page in every Star Wars thread complaining, but man, have you guys missed the mark on this one.
Thom Posted January 3 Posted January 3 For me, I'm pretty much just enjoying the ride. I would like a comprehensive resolution that isn't just a 'tack-on' to the end, I mean, Goonies gave us a whole freaking pirate ship, but even if it is, as long as the fun is kept coming, I'll be fine.
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 The whole mint thing is kinda slim as is, why not just invade a planet that is known to exist with a mint. And if security is the reason not to, they don’t really know what the mystery planet has as far as security. It also brings into question what the other secret planets had that was of value and if the mint even was the real treasure. I guess we’ll hopefully find out soon
jvmacross Posted January 3 Posted January 3 That last episode of Pirate's of the Outer Rim even went as far as to ripoff the pirate's code! I think I even heard Captain Wolfman Jack bark out a derogatory "bilge rat" to his crew at some point...because that's what pirate's say in galaxies far, far away too....lol
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 51 minutes ago, jvmacross said: That last episode of Pirate's of the Outer Rim even went as far as to ripoff the pirate's code! I think I even heard Captain Wolfman Jack bark out a derogatory "bilge rat" to his crew at some point...because that's what pirate's say in galaxies far, far away too....lol Maybe all the pirates of our world actually ripped off the ones in this show since it takes place such a long long time ago. I mean, even Captain Jack Sparrow was in a ship advanced enough to have safety rails, even if the construction was sub par.
Seto Kaiba Posted January 3 Posted January 3 I gotta say, I find your lack of faith disturbing. Skeleton Crew's writing team has shown us nothing but narrative competence so far, so I'm not sure why y'all are so convinced the writing team didn't care about making sure their plot-critical macguffin had a cogent explanation. Come to that, Skeleton Crew being a "kids show" doesn't mean the plot is immune to scrutiny. It's not a cartoon so it's not running solely on Rule of Funny, and its target audience according to Disney is tweens and young teens. Maybe it's different where you guys live, but around here kids in that age group are no dummies. They've got critical thinking skills and they know how to use 'em, making them more than capable of spotting when a narrative's plot doesn't make sense. I'm betting on Skeleton Crew sticking the landing, though. The writing team have done a great job so far. This is no Acolyte or Rise of Skywalker where the writers are just BSing their way through the runtime.
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 5 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said: I'm betting on Skeleton Crew sticking the landing, though. The writing team have done a great job so far. This is no Acolyte or Rise of Skywalker where the writers are just BSing their way through the runtime. I’m hoping you’re right and I definitely agree about kids these days. They’re not as accepting of total bs like kids from the 80’s. We rode with all the idiocy of those Superman sequels and just let them happen. I don’t know if it’s that kids these days are more intelligent or that they just have more peers voicing their opinions or if it’s a mix of both, but even kids know when a show sticks the landing or flops on the landing deck.
jvmacross Posted January 3 Posted January 3 56 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said: I'm betting on Skeleton Crew sticking the landing, though.
Thom Posted January 3 Posted January 3 55 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said: ... I'm betting on Skeleton Crew sticking the landing, though. The writing team have done a great job so far. This is no Acolyte or Rise of Skywalker where the writers are just BSing their way through the runtime. I've seen a couple of shows that have been pretty good, IMO, right up until the last episode, where it's like the writing team started dancing in clown shoes. Hopefull for Skeleton Crew though. May the Force be with them!
Seto Kaiba Posted January 3 Posted January 3 9 minutes ago, Thom said: I've seen a couple of shows that have been pretty good, IMO, right up until the last episode, where it's like the writing team started dancing in clown shoes. YMMV of course, but my impression of the current direct-to-streaming model is that most shows end up being too short for the writers to have the luxury of waiting for the finish line to trip. When a series is going to end badly, it's usually bad right out of the gate like The Acolyte or Star Trek: Discovery and doesn't really improve. Disney+ Star Wars titles seem to be particularly committed to telegraphing their quality as early as possible. Often before the series even airs. If the series pitch sounds like it's "by fans, for fans" it's almost guaranteed to be a turd.
Dynaman Posted January 3 Posted January 3 The writing for SC has been decent if not great. Besides the McGuffin having no intrinsic value to make it worth being sought out the show has done well enough. The only real time it seemed to go off a bit was the planet at war that was not much at war. The obvious "this is a kids show so we have to tone it down" bias brought that episode down. Then again I'm not 11 anymore (when Star Wars came out) so I'm a bit more jaded, but Star Wars only had to keep me entertained for 2 hours of spectacle and this has to do that over a longer run time with a much longer time between all the episodes to have stray thoughts about it. All that said it is a heck of a lot better then the more "Adult" The Acolyte or The Book of Boba Fett (outside of the Mandolorian season 2.5 bits)
Big s Posted January 3 Posted January 3 Unfortunately on a ranking scale of worst to best of these shows, most really suck overall. Acolyte was the worst followed closely by the Obi show and then boba show and Ahsoka very closely. Mando gets a middle ground spot because that third season drags the show down pretty hard. Then so far in the overall I’d say this show is better than overall Mando, which would have a higher rank if I was just judging individual seasons and the lead would be Andor even though it had a pretty bad start, it made up for in the rest of the season.
Seto Kaiba Posted January 4 Posted January 4 8 minutes ago, Big s said: Unfortunately on a ranking scale of worst to best of these shows, most really suck overall. [...] Can't really say I disagree. A lot of it, IMO, goes back to Disney+ Star Wars and its obsession with fanservice. The few good shows like Skeleton Crew and the first 2/3 of The Mandalorian are mostly focused on just telling a fun space adventure story in the Star Wars universe. The ones stinking up the joint are mainly sequels, spinoffs, and side stories tying into Dave Filoni's work to do continuity porn like The Acolyte, Ahsoka, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian season three, etc. My hope is that Skeleton Crew (and possibly The Mandalorian and Grogu) will convince Disney+ to focus its future Star Wars endeavors on new characters and new stories.
Big s Posted January 4 Posted January 4 45 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said: Can't really say I disagree. A lot of it, IMO, goes back to Disney+ Star Wars and its obsession with fanservice. The few good shows like Skeleton Crew and the first 2/3 of The Mandalorian are mostly focused on just telling a fun space adventure story in the Star Wars universe. The ones stinking up the joint are mainly sequels, spinoffs, and side stories tying into Dave Filoni's work to do continuity porn like The Acolyte, Ahsoka, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian season three, etc. My hope is that Skeleton Crew (and possibly The Mandalorian and Grogu) will convince Disney+ to focus its future Star Wars endeavors on new characters and new stories. It’s weird that we’ve gotten to a point where the best stories stay far far away from the Jedi as a main plot or character
Dynaman Posted January 4 Posted January 4 1 hour ago, Big s said: It’s weird that we’ve gotten to a point where the best stories stay far far away from the Jedi as a main plot or character Not really. This has been true ever since Episode 1 came out. Lucas messed up their pre-downfall culture very badly and nobody has really tried to break that mold since. Besides making them even worse that is.
Seto Kaiba Posted January 4 Posted January 4 1 hour ago, Big s said: It’s weird that we’ve gotten to a point where the best stories stay far far away from the Jedi as a main plot or character I don't think there's anything weird about that, honestly. The Jedi, like the Sith, are an inherently self-limiting concept in the Star Wars universe. Because the Force exists as a rigidly self-enforcing system of simplistic moral absolutes, the characters who wield it are inevitably far more limited in their potential development than those who don't. The inevitable polarization into either a selfless hero or a sadistic villain makes them extremely predictable, and not just to the audience. It's such an overbuilt trope that the Jedi's uncontrollable chronic hero syndrome is the cornerstone of the Empire's strategy for hunting them. Characters who aren't locked into the Force's binary moral choice system can be written with a good deal more depth and complexity and be more believable and relatable as a result. Like Din Djarin, or Cassian Andor, or the kids on the Onyx Cinder. There's this old saying "only the dose makes the poison". The Jedi can be cool and interesting in small doses (e.g. Mando season 2), they're just painfully overused most of the time.
Big s Posted January 4 Posted January 4 13 hours ago, Dynaman said: Not really. This has been true ever since Episode 1 came out. Lucas messed up their pre-downfall culture very badly and nobody has really tried to break that mold since. Besides making them even worse that is. I can’t argue with the fact that those prequels were almost just as bad as the sequels. They were pretty trashy and hard to look at. 12 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said: I don't think there's anything weird about that, honestly. The Jedi, like the Sith, are an inherently self-limiting concept in the Star Wars universe. Because the Force exists as a rigidly self-enforcing system of simplistic moral absolutes, the characters who wield it are inevitably far more limited in their potential development than those who don't. The inevitable polarization into either a selfless hero or a sadistic villain makes them extremely predictable, and not just to the audience. It's such an overbuilt trope that the Jedi's uncontrollable chronic hero syndrome is the cornerstone of the Empire's strategy for hunting them. Characters who aren't locked into the Force's binary moral choice system can be written with a good deal more depth and complexity and be more believable and relatable as a result. Like Din Djarin, or Cassian Andor, or the kids on the Onyx Cinder. There's this old saying "only the dose makes the poison". The Jedi can be cool and interesting in small doses (e.g. Mando season 2), they're just painfully overused most of the time. as far as thinking it’s weird , I grew up with the old stuff. The live action stuff focused mainly on the whole Jedi thing, while live action wise there were those awkward Ewok movies that were the split away from the Jedi thing, and I can’t really call those good. Basically until D+ Rogue One and Solo were kinda the only things somewhat separate from the Jedi thing, although not by too much. The D+ era seems to have tried a few things that mostly deal with the Jedi and those were the worst of their shows. Mando, Andor and Skeleton Crew are the only ones that aren’t trash at this point although I do feel that Mando took a few too many stumbles in season three
Duke Togo Posted January 5 Posted January 5 They did some pretty stellar work with that crab creature. https://www.starwars.com/news/skeleton-crew-tippett-studio-interview
Seto Kaiba Posted January 5 Posted January 5 1 hour ago, pengbuzz said: On the note of the Force: strange that an energy generated by life would polarize to either of two opposite spectrums, when life exists in such diversity. I prefer to think of the "Force" as simply energy generated, with the inherent light and darkness magnified in the person using it. But I know that's probably not Stat Wars' take on it. Just my musing. Yeah, as I understand it, the official take is actually worse. Apparently the Force in its natural state is just the light side. The dark side is a distortion of the Force created by misusing it. Balance is the absence of darkness... 12 minutes ago, Duke Togo said: They did some pretty stellar work with that crab creature. https://www.starwars.com/news/skeleton-crew-tippett-studio-interview That they most assuredly did. The effects work in Skeleton Crew has been pretty impressive throughout, minus a few minor moments of green screen awkwardness.
Big s Posted January 5 Posted January 5 1 hour ago, Duke Togo said: They did some pretty stellar work with that crab creature. https://www.starwars.com/news/skeleton-crew-tippett-studio-interview Yeah, I totally loved the crabby action
Big s Posted January 7 Posted January 7 25 minutes ago, pengbuzz said: I hate to complicate matters then, but wasn't it described (unless I'm horribly misremembering something) that order 66/Anakin ended up bringing balance to the force by eliminating most of the Jedi and evening the light/ dark ratio? Or did I use decaf instead of regular coffee this morning? O.o I thought it was supposed to have been when he made up for murdering a bunch of sand people and a whole bunch of children by dropping one guy down a hole. But then again since that one guy survived, I guess he didn’t do anything to make up for any of that and really wasn’t redeemed after all
Dynaman Posted January 7 Posted January 7 26 minutes ago, pengbuzz said: I hate to complicate matters then, but wasn't it described (unless I'm horribly misremembering something) that order 66/Anakin ended up bringing balance to the force by eliminating most of the Jedi and evening the light/ dark ratio? Or did I use decaf instead of regular coffee this morning? O.o Well, the Jedi, even being the idiots they were portrayed as, would not have been TRYING to help that outcome along...
Seto Kaiba Posted January 8 Posted January 8 "We're gonna be in so much trouble" is an apt, if somewhat overdue, title for an episode of this series. Spoiler So we're back with the parents at the start of this one. Apparently they're making progress with their plan to send a transmission to the kids in the hopes of helping them get home by building a bootleg radio in the woods. They get busted before they can even turn it on by a huge group of safety droids, who stun them in quick succession when they try to run away. Fern's mom manages to get the communicator, which is some kind of drone, working and launch it. Back on the Onyx Cinder, Wim is pretty upset about going home because he realizes it means a return to the status quo. The authorities will probably impound the ship, he'll have to go take his standardized test, etc. Neel is extremely cavalier about death now... apparently a real adventure, in his book, is "being about to die half the time". Brutus's ship arrives at At Attin, and he immediately starts declaring it's a fake. He really really wants to toss Jod out the airlock. SM-33 confirms that, according to Captain Rennod, the treasure planet of At Attin was hidden inside an endless storm. The barrier seems to be more than just for show, considering it seemingly destroys the fighter Brutus sends down to check it out. The kids arrive just as they're getting ready (for the fourth or so time) to toss Jod out the airlock. Jod concludes that the Onyx Cinder itself is somehow the key that'll get them to At Attin, and they immediately capture the ship in a tractor beam. The kids immediately catch Brutus in the ship's cargo claw like it's a crane machine and try to take him hostage. Jod somehow gets out of his handcuffs and shoots Brutus dead, before condemning him as a mutineer. They capture the kids in short order, and Jod (now wearing his Captain Silvo helmet again) orders SM-33 to find and remove whatever lets the Onyx Cinder pass the barrier safely and transfer it to the frigate. While he's stomping around, he finds the message from the kids parents. I love how Jod sarcastically says "oops" when Wim's dad lectures them not to tell anyone where they're from. Apparently the kids would've learned about At Attin's state of affairs after graduation... so whatever's going on there is more like an open secret. Wim tries to Leeroy Jenkins his way into retaking the ship, only to immediately get caught and made a hostage. So, who had SM-33 is adding "rules lawyer" to his CV alongside "space pirate", "droid", and "Disney film reference"? Spoiler SM-33 oh-so-helpfully points out that the Pirate Code limits a pirate captain to commanding one and only one ship at a time. When Jod usurped/reclaimed command of the frigate from Brutus, he unthinkingly relinquished ownership of the Onyx Cinder and SM-33. The kids... shout him down and declare their own claim on the ship. SM-33 is such a scene-stealer... best new droid since K-2SO. Spoiler Jod tries to lecture the kids about how "it doesn't work like that"... only to be cold-cocked by SM-33's right hand as he declares "it's close enough". Sadly, 33's second rampage of the series is cut for time and we jump cut to poor Jod waking up on the deck of his frigate as the Onyx Cinder takes off behind him. Jod's crew are falling over each other to yell at someone to do something. They manage to launch a few fighters, and we get to see the huge machines that apparently keep the storm going. Apparently the Onyx Cinder was more special than just being legendary pirate Tak Rennod's personal ship for his last, doomed mission... Spoiler ... it was a transport ship belonging to the mint that Tak Rennod stole and uparmored to make into a pirate ship before attempting a landing on At Attin and dying in the attempt due to a mutiny. The defense grid is apparently content to ignore it because it registers as friendly. There's a great visual effects moment when the Onyx Cinder finally breaks through the storm and we see At Attin sitting in the center completely undisturbed. Just like At Achran, they get brought in on an autopilot landing. Just as things are looking up, Jod is revealed to have somehow gotten aboard the Onyx Cinder... and decapitates SM-33 with the lightsaber that Wim found in Tak Rennod's pirate haul. He takes over the ship again, and discovers he can't reach anyone outside the barrier. He has a bit of a meltdown at the kids and threatens to murder their parents. Back on At Attin, we see the security droids try to lecture the kids parents... only to be cut off by the thus-far unseen Supervisor over the PA, announcing that all nonessential work is suspended because a Republic emissary is coming for a shipment. It makes you wonder if the Supervisor is a real person, or just an automated voice over the PA as they don't seem aware that the Onyx Cinder isn't on legitimate business. There's another great effects shot of the Onyx Cinder landing on a concealed platform under a grassy field in the middle of town. Apparently they converted it into a park or something due to disuse, and so we see people falling off the suddenly sloping ground as it opens without warning. The elevator ride is quite a long one... passing some massive machines of unknown purpose and arriving at a vault door that has to be hundreds of feet across. It's got a very Chamber of Secrets sort of vibe to it. I have to admit, I am definitely disappointed by the big reveal. The great treasure of At Attin really is just... Spoiler ... a really big bank vault full of uncirculated Old Republic credits. Well, a bunch of really big bank vaults, actually... 1,139 of them according to the safety droid escorting hi. Downright Scrooge McDuck-ian in scale... enough so that Jod is briefly rendered laughing mad by seeing and touching a pallet of the same low-value credits that Wim was given for lunch money at the start of the series. It's over-the-top to the point that it feels like it's going to have to come with an ironic twist at the end. Either Jod's going to be late to the realization that the credits are worthless now that the Old Republic is gone, or he's gonna suffer a death-by-greed and get locked in one of the vaults or crushed by a pallet of loose change. The episode ends with Jod coming out of the vault and lighting the lightsaber he stole to take the kids and their parents hostage. Very good episode. Very action packed. Jude Law and Nick Frost (SM-33's actor) are kind of running away with this one... but 33 always has been a scene-stealer. It's kind of starting to feel like Jaleel White's character Gunter is an advertised extra and has no real importance to the story. I remain convinced Skeleton Crew is going to stick the landing and finish as one of The Good Ones. 4 hours ago, pengbuzz said: I hate to complicate matters then, but wasn't it described (unless I'm horribly misremembering something) that order 66/Anakin ended up bringing balance to the force by eliminating most of the Jedi and evening the light/ dark ratio? Or did I use decaf instead of regular coffee this morning? O.o That's a common joke fans make... but I don't believe that's canon. Per Lucas, the concept of Balance in the Force meant the absence of darkness. Anakin theoretically brought Balance to the Force when he turned back to the Light, chucked the Emperor down a pit to his death, and then died from his injuries leaving 0 dark side practitioners. Rey technically stole his thunder there, since Palpatine somehow walked it off and came back, only to for Kylo Ren to die saving Rey and Rey to destroy Palpatine for good this time(?).
Thom Posted January 8 Posted January 8 (edited) 19 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said: "We're gonna be in so much trouble" is an apt, if somewhat overdue, title for an episode of this series. Hide contents So we're back with the parents at the start of this one. Apparently they're making progress with their plan to send a transmission to the kids in the hopes of helping them get home by building a bootleg radio in the woods. They get busted before they can even turn it on by a huge group of safety droids, who stun them in quick succession when they try to run away. Fern's mom manages to get the communicator, which is some kind of drone, working and launch it. Back on the Onyx Cinder, Wim is pretty upset about going home because he realizes it means a return to the status quo. The authorities will probably impound the ship, he'll have to go take his standardized test, etc. Neel is extremely cavalier about death now... apparently a real adventure, in his book, is "being about to die half the time". Brutus's ship arrives at At Attin, and he immediately starts declaring it's a fake. He really really wants to toss Jod out the airlock. SM-33 confirms that, according to Captain Rennod, the treasure planet of At Attin was hidden inside an endless storm. The barrier seems to be more than just for show, considering it seemingly destroys the fighter Brutus sends down to check it out. The kids arrive just as they're getting ready (for the fourth or so time) to toss Jod out the airlock. Jod concludes that the Onyx Cinder itself is somehow the key that'll get them to At Attin, and they immediately capture the ship in a tractor beam. The kids immediately catch Brutus in the ship's cargo claw like it's a crane machine and try to take him hostage. Jod somehow gets out of his handcuffs and shoots Brutus dead, before condemning him as a mutineer. They capture the kids in short order, and Jod (now wearing his Captain Silvo helmet again) orders SM-33 to find and remove whatever lets the Onyx Cinder pass the barrier safely and transfer it to the frigate. While he's stomping around, he finds the message from the kids parents. I love how Jod sarcastically says "oops" when Wim's dad lectures them not to tell anyone where they're from. Apparently the kids would've learned about At Attin's state of affairs after graduation... so whatever's going on there is more like an open secret. Wim tries to Leeroy Jenkins his way into retaking the ship, only to immediately get caught and made a hostage. So, who had SM-33 is adding "rules lawyer" to his CV alongside "space pirate", "droid", and "Disney film reference"? Hide contents SM-33 oh-so-helpfully points out that the Pirate Code limits a pirate captain to commanding one and only one ship at a time. When Jod usurped/reclaimed command of the frigate from Brutus, he unthinkingly relinquished ownership of the Onyx Cinder and SM-33. The kids... shout him down and declare their own claim on the ship. SM-33 is such a scene-stealer... best new droid since K-2SO. Hide contents Jod tries to lecture the kids about how "it doesn't work like that"... only to be cold-cocked by SM-33's right hand as he declares "it's close enough". Sadly, 33's second rampage of the series is cut for time and we jump cut to poor Jod waking up on the deck of his frigate as the Onyx Cinder takes off behind him. Jod's crew are falling over each other to yell at someone to do something. They manage to launch a few fighters, and we get to see the huge machines that apparently keep the storm going. Apparently the Onyx Cinder was more special than just being legendary pirate Tak Rennod's personal ship for his last, doomed mission... Hide contents ... it was a transport ship belonging to the mint that Tak Rennod stole and uparmored to make into a pirate ship before attempting a landing on At Attin and dying in the attempt due to a mutiny. The defense grid is apparently content to ignore it because it registers as friendly. There's a great visual effects moment when the Onyx Cinder finally breaks through the storm and we see At Attin sitting in the center completely undisturbed. Just like At Achran, they get brought in on an autopilot landing. Just as things are looking up, Jod is revealed to have somehow gotten aboard the Onyx Cinder... and decapitates SM-33 with the lightsaber that Wim found in Tak Rennod's pirate haul. He takes over the ship again, and discovers he can't reach anyone outside the barrier. He has a bit of a meltdown at the kids and threatens to murder their parents. Back on At Attin, we see the security droids try to lecture the kids parents... only to be cut off by the thus-far unseen Supervisor over the PA, announcing that all nonessential work is suspended because a Republic emissary is coming for a shipment. It makes you wonder if the Supervisor is a real person, or just an automated voice over the PA as they don't seem aware that the Onyx Cinder isn't on legitimate business. There's another great effects shot of the Onyx Cinder landing on a concealed platform under a grassy field in the middle of town. Apparently they converted it into a park or something due to disuse, and so we see people falling off the suddenly sloping ground as it opens without warning. The elevator ride is quite a long one... passing some massive machines of unknown purpose and arriving at a vault door that has to be hundreds of feet across. It's got a very Chamber of Secrets sort of vibe to it. I have to admit, I am definitely disappointed by the big reveal. The great treasure of At Attin really is just... Hide contents ... a really big bank vault full of uncirculated Old Republic credits. Well, a bunch of really big bank vaults, actually... 1,139 of them according to the safety droid escorting hi. Downright Scrooge McDuck-ian in scale... enough so that Jod is briefly rendered laughing mad by seeing and touching a pallet of the same low-value credits that Wim was given for lunch money at the start of the series. It's over-the-top to the point that it feels like it's going to have to come with an ironic twist at the end. Either Jod's going to be late to the realization that the credits are worthless now that the Old Republic is gone, or he's gonna suffer a death-by-greed and get locked in one of the vaults or crushed by a pallet of loose change. The episode ends with Jod coming out of the vault and lighting the lightsaber he stole to take the kids and their parents hostage. Very good episode. Very action packed. Jude Law and Nick Frost (SM-33's actor) are kind of running away with this one... but 33 always has been a scene-stealer. It's kind of starting to feel like Jaleel White's character Gunter is an advertised extra and has no real importance to the story. I remain convinced Skeleton Crew is going to stick the landing and finish as one of The Good Ones. That's a common joke fans make... but I don't believe that's canon. Per Lucas, the concept of Balance in the Force meant the absence of darkness. Anakin theoretically brought Balance to the Force when he turned back to the Light, chucked the Emperor down a pit to his death, and then died from his injuries leaving 0 dark side practitioners. Rey technically stole his thunder there, since Palpatine somehow walked it off and came back, only to for Kylo Ren to die saving Rey and Rey to destroy Palpatine for good this time(?). Actually Anakin did kill the Emperor. The one Rey killed was a clone. As for this episode of Skeleton Crew, entertaining all the way. Spoiler I love the way they get through the 'barrier,' as the Onyx Cinder is an antique used by the Republic to visit the Mint, and possibly the other treasure worlds as well. Before they got blowed up. As for the vault, I can understand how seeing that could drive Jod 'mad' for a moment. Imagine something like Fort Knox* pumping out gold coins for who knows how many decades or centuries, and then just piling it all up because there's been no one to pick up the shipments! It looks like it's all automated, and no one told the droids to stop making the credits, hence the need for over a thousand vaults! And they aren't worthless either. Whether made into a faceless coin or a Republic credit, they are still made from a rare metal, which is the true value of it. Now yes, if they dumped every single credit from the vaults onto the market, the market would tank, but if you control yourself and it miserly, you are literally sitting on a mountain of treasure! One more to go and I really hope this delivers a fantastic kick. *and yes, I know fort Knox doesn't mint coins, it's just a loose analogy. Edited January 8 by Thom
Duke Togo Posted January 9 Posted January 9 Good episode. I'm excited to see how this ends, but it's a shame this adventure is almost over.
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