Every Skeleton Crew character who warned Wim, Fern, KB, and Neel not to trust Jod Na Nawood was proven right this week when Jod shocked his young companions by challenging Fern to a duel.
Since Fern is no match for a grown man, she surrendered, which means that Jod is the captain of their ship now, and the kids will all be kept as prisoners. Where they go from here is anybody's guess, as their fates now rest in Jod's hands. He's eying the treasure on At Attin, but if he finds it and lets the kids go, he could be caught in the process.
The remaining three episodes can take several possible directions, but one thing I hope the series avoids this season is Jod's redemption or something that leads to his change of heart. Episode 5 paints him as an untrustworthy, greedy, and unpredictable pirate, so it's safe to throw other shades of his personality out the window. If he could be mean to a group of lost children, he could stoop to any low. He's a lifelong pirate who finally has a big treasure in sight. It wouldn't seem right for him to leave his life's biggest purpose to save a bunch of kids he just met.
We need to learn more about his background and why he is the way he is. Even then, three episodes seem like it won't be enough time to redeem one of the season's main characters. Although there have been moments where Jod has seemed like he's grown fond of the children, based on the latest episode, he's dangerous and untrustworthy. There have been only a few moments where he's bonded with the kids, and even if he has, it's been on a surface level. He hasn't developed an emotional attachment to them. Until he does, I won't buy it if he has a change of heart about them.
Jod's redemption has to be done slowly after we learn more about his mysterious background and after he decides these children are worth more than any treasure. He's betrayed their trust after they chose to believe in him after being warned by several people not to. From here, they're unlikely to trust him again the same way, and the most probable route they'll take is to go off on their own at some point. They could end up in dangerous situations, but it might look like a better choice than being kept prisoner by a dangerous pirate.
Now would be a great time for those New Republic X-Wings we saw in the show's trailer to appear and take the kids to safety. As for Jod's change of heart, I hope the writers have saved that for a possible Season 2.
Skeleton Crew is streaming on Disney+.