Skeleton Crew’s Andor Reference Is a Curious Star Wars Mystery

The following contains mild spoilers for “Star Wars: The Skeleton Crew.”

The “Star Wars” Easter egg industrial complex is alive and well in “Skeleton Crew,” the franchise’s latest TV outing on Disney+. Whether it’s the old Republic “data”, Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) pouring blue milk into his morning cereal or the Port Borgo pirates with Hutt clan tattoos, if you’re the kind of fan who has all the galactic encyclopedias in your bookshelf, there’s plenty here to keep your eyes and ears peeled, including allusions to certain planets from previous “Star Wars” stories.

In “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew” episode 2, “Far, Far Away from the Barrier,” as the kids try to get SM-33 (Nick Frost) to take them back to their home planet, At Attin, we get an Egg particularly curious Easter. Because At Attin, as we learn later, is essentially a myth and not found on any normal star charts, SM-33 begins listing similar-sounding planets in hopes of being helpful. These include Atollon, a remote world that hosted one of the first major battles between the Rebellion and the Empire (as seen in “Star Wars Rebels”), and Aldhani, the site of the Imperial payroll theft from the second arc of “Andor.” “. season 1.

The curious thing is that SM-33 refers to Aldhani as a “sulphurous swamp world”, when in “Andor” it is portrayed quite differently. Aldhani’s episodes of “Andor” were filmed in the Scottish highlands, and what we see of the planet is beautiful and green, full of winding rivers, hills, green fields and flocks of shepherds. So why does the pirate droid seem to think it’s actually an inhospitable swamp planet?

It is possible that SM-33 mischaracterizing Aldhani is just the result of a malfunction. He’s clearly not the most stable droid in the galaxy, and the series takes pains to show us the many ways he has deteriorated during his years buried in At Attin. It is also possible that some other part of Aldhani is quite swampy, although SM-33’s use of the word “sulfurous” suggests an atmospheric condition that would likely make the entire world uninhabitable for humans.

A third, more interesting option is that SM-33 (and by extension, its ship) is so old that its memory banks are reminiscent of a much older Aldhani, when the planet’s landscape looked quite different. Of course, that would raise a new question of how he also knows about Port Borgo, which appears to be exactly the same as when SM-33 was last there.

In short, it’s a mystery, but a fun one. While “Skeleton Crew” and “Andor” are very different Star Wars shows, they both succeed in bringing a different energy to the franchise than typically seen on the big screen or in other series like “The Mandalorian.” It’s fun to see one referencing the other, even if it’s just in a throwaway line. And if you’re an “Andor” obsessive like me, any mention of Aldhani is sure to make you think of “The Eye” heist, one of the best hours of “Star Wars” we’ve ever received. So thanks for that, Skeleton Crew.

New episodes of “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew” premiere Tuesdays at 6 pm PST on Disney+.