Comedy
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Disney+’s ‘Skeleton Crew’ has some problems, but overall it’s a return to form, when the galaxy far, far away was relatively safe for the family.
Welcome to the oil business.
The plentiful fields near Midland, Texas, are filled to the brim with the black gold, and M-Tex Oil hopes to extract all of it. Should everything go to plan, the oil company will reap a staggering $4.3 trillion each year in revenue.
The easy part was getting the land leases set up so that M-Tex could start extracting crude oil. The hard part is managing all the people required to keep those pumps running.
Tommy Norris does the hard part.
The job’s difficult enough making sure crews work as efficiently as possible. It’s tougher when the media already condemns you simply for providing the world with the resource it desperately craves.
But when an oil pump explodes and kills three of your workers? Yeah. That just may break Tommy Norris.
People once rushed to California in the hope that a small speck of gold might make their dreams come true. Many still rush to Texas hoping to make a living on oil.
The oil fields are dangerous, Landman tells us. But they’re profitable, too. And they’re one of the only places where a felon with an eighth-grade education can earn a legitimate six-figure salary.
But there’s more than just dusty oil-field drama for viewers to deal with here. And as tough as oil is to scrub out, the content issues in Landman leave permanent stains.
We quickly see that while the oil brings in the cash, it comes with other problems, too. Characters die from gunshots and explosions, and those who survive injuries bleed heavily or are forced to amputate mangled appendages. Further sullying the story are nudity and plenty of sexual references.
But the most frequent issue is the show’s heavy language. Characters utter crudities about as often as “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” plays at Texan weddings. (Which is to say, extremely often.) And the few times they’re not throwing out such language, it’s usually because they’re too busy drinking.
We don’t expect the oil fields to be spotless. But the stains that come with this show likely won’t be worth it.
(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at [email protected], or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)
Tommy looks to resolve the sudden reappearance of a stolen plane. Meanwhile, his son, Cooper, starts his first day working in the oil fields.
A young woman (who’s 17 in the show though portrayed by an adult actress) pulls up her dress to flash her rear. She tells her father that she and her boyfriend are having sex, but she also goes into explicit detail about how she’s still trying to protect herself form unwanted pregnancy. The boyfriend later puts his hand on her rear, and he asks if they can have sex or engage in other sexual activity. We later see this young woman in her underwear. Another female character jokes crudely that her daughter’s boyfriend could get her daughter pregnant just from his photograph. There’s a reference to male genitals. Women in revealing bikinis serve coffee. A man is shirtless. A woman wears a revealing top. Two adolescents kiss.
Cartel members shoot and kill someone. They also punch a man in the face, causing his cheek to bleed. A truck rams through an airplane, resulting in an explosion and burning the people inside it to death; we later see a man’s burnt corpse on the ground. The man in the truck also dies from blood loss. Someone’s hand bleeds. An oil pump explodes.
We’re told that a plane contained a shipment of cocaine or heroin. People smoke cigarettes and drink beer. Someone injects himself with a variety of supplements. A concession-stand worker offers Tommy marijuana gummies.
We hear the f-word more than 50 times and the s-word about 35 times. We hear a vulgar reference to the female anatomy twice. Likewise, “a–,” “b–ch,” “d–n,” “h—” and “p-ss” are all heard a handful of times each. God’s name is used in vain seven times, including three instances immediately followed by “d–n.” Someone uses a crude hand gesture. (Other swear words are spoken in Spanish, too.)
Following an oil pump explosion that results in the death of three workers, Tommy takes it upon himself to tell the workers’ families the tragic news.
Tommy’s daughter (a 17-year-old girl portrayed by an adult actress) takes a shower. While in there, a man stumbles in naked, unaware of her presence. As she flees, we see her breasts and rear as she flees, yelling that there’s a “rapist in the bathroom.” Later, she wears a revealing bikini, and the camera intentionally lingers on her rear. A man decides to watch to see how she lathers herself with oil and decides to leave so as to avoid temptation. She’s also seen in her underwear.
There are references to sex, orgasms and erectile dysfunction. A woman talks to a man about genital size, and he compliments her breasts. Tommy’s ex-wife comments on the looks of her daughter’s boyfriend, claiming that she might try to have sex with him if they broke up. Someone jokes about having sex with another man’s wife. Characters also joke about going to a strip club and about a woman actually being a man.
Tommy accidentally smashes his finger with a hammer, and he cuts off the injured pinky tip onscreen with a knife. Someone gets punched in the face.
People smoke. Others drink liquor and beer.
The f-word is heard nearly 50 times, and the s-word is used 14 times. “A–,” “b–ch,” “b–tard,” “d–n,” “d–k” and “h—” are also occasionally used. God’s name is misused eight times, including seven uses with “d–n.” Jesus’ name is likewise used in vain four times.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
Disney+’s ‘Skeleton Crew’ has some problems, but overall it’s a return to form, when the galaxy far, far away was relatively safe for the family.
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