Unidentified pirate shanty

A pirate shanty narrated the fate of Tak Rennod, a legendary pirate captain rumored to have plundered the planet At Attin. A Jewel of the Old Republic yielding infinite supplies of credits, At Attin was long considered as a myth, until the pirate Silvo discovered Tak Rennod's datalog and determined the coordinates of the isolated world. Around 9 ABY, Silvo sang the shanty during his trial, prompting many other pirates to join in.

Characteristics

The pirate shanty recounted the tale of Tak Rennod, who departed on the vessel Onyx Cinder and vanished forever after plundering At Attin.^[1] An iambic with varying meter, the song was composed in Galactic Basic Standard and consisted of a single quintain following an irregular rhyme scheme. The lyrics featured a single repetition of the particle away in the second line and an emphatic use of did in the final clause.^[2]

History

By the New Republic Era, Captain Tak Rennod had became a well-known figure in pirate lore, with a pirate shanty recounting his history.^[1] Infamous for his bestiality, Rennod would plunder multiple starships with ferocity, going down in history as the most feared pirate to have ever lived. According to a story shared by the pirate Silvo, Rennod was after the treasure of At Attin when he suddenly disappeared with his crew and ship, the Onyx Cinder.^[3] Unlike the pirate shanty,^[1] Silvo's narrative did not specify whether Rennod had ultimately reached At Attin.^[3]

Around 9 ABY,^[4] the story of Tak Rennod keenly interested former pirate Captain Silvo.^[5] Following a munity that ousted^[6] him^[5] in favor of the Shistavanen Brutus,^[6] the man^[7] shared a brig with four younglings who claimed to hail from the legendary planet of At Attin.^[8] Intrigued by their story, Silvo joined forces with the children and escaped aboard their ship.^[5] Over time, his investigation led him to conclude that the younglings' ship was none other that the legendary Onyx Cinder. Furthermore, the pirate droid SM-33—whom the youngsters had reactivated after their departure from At Attin—claimed to have once belonged to Rennod. In addition to providing a more detailed account of Rennod's final moments, such as his crew's mutiny and death by his concubine before crashlanding on At Attin, SM-33 led to the way to Captain Rennod's Lair on the planet Lanupa. Following Silvo's betrayal, he and the children parted ways,^[3] and the pirate was apprehended by his crew pending trial.^[1]

While originally sentenced to death, Silvo was allotted "equal time" to defend himself following Chaelt's intervention. By invoking the Pirate's Code,^[1] she^[9] had secured Silvo's Right of Last Appeal, and the defendant seized that opportunity to deliver a defense speech. The main motive running through his appeal was the hunger for money. According to Silvo, credits were never enough, a situation he wanted to remedy by finding the legendary At Attin. When he pronounced the name "Tak Rennod," Captain Brutus interrupted, noting that Tak Rennod was dead. Rather than argue with the Shistavanen, Silvo simply started singing the shanty. Some crew members joined in, including Kona, Vane, and Pax, the latter gently striking^[1] his^[10] chest to the rhythm. Others, however—such as Gunter—refrained from joining altogether. The singing suddenly cut off at and never was he seen again. Therefore, Silvo asked what the last line was, and pirate Kona hurried to recite the ending. With the line reminded to them, the pirates were free to finish the shanty. When this spontaneous singalong came to an end, Silvo's death sentence was suspended pending the pirates' arrival on At Attin.^[1] In spite of Brutus's pushing for the execution, the convict ultimately not only avoided the punishment, but also reclaimed the leadership of the crew by shooting his predecessor dead.^[11]

Behind the scenes

The pirate shanty debuted in "Zero Friends Again," the sixth episode of the live-action television series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew,^[1] aired on December 31, 2024.^[13] The song's division into verses and stanzas, in turn, was specified in the subtitles prepared by Disney+.^[2]

As revealed by "Zero Friends Again" director Bryce Dallas Howard, the pirate shanty was supposed to be a poem before Silvo's actor Jude Law suggested that he could sing it. According to Law, shanties were a characteristic feature of pirate lore. Howard and other series creators took keenly to Law's proposition. In this way, the poem made its way to the episode in a musical form.^[12]

Appearances

• Star Wars: Skeleton Crew — "Zero Friends Again" (First appearance)

Notes and references

External links

• Bryce Dallas Howard Reveals How Jude Law Changed a Pivotal Moment in 'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Episode 6 [Exclusive] on Collider.com (backup link archived on January 7, 2025)