On November 11, 2019, the world let out a seismic “aww” that was heard around the world as the final moments of The Mandalorian’s premiere introduced the world to Grogu, then known in the story as “The Child” but colloquially known as Baby Yoda. While other Disney franchises have tried their own cute characters, with Pixar having baby Dory in Finding Dory or the Marvel Cinematic Universe going for cute/weird vibes with the likes of Goose the Flerkin from Captain Marvel or Morris from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, no franchise does cute adorable characters like Star Wars. R2D2 was the first kid-friendly character in the franchise, but as the years have passed, there have been Ewoks, BB-8, and Porgs before culminating in the seismic arrival of Grogu in The Mandalorian.
Now, five years later, Star Wars has introduced a new character that sent the fandom into a frenzy over how adorable he is: Neel from Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Ever since the first photos of Skeleton Crew hit the web, and it appeared one of the new characters would be an alien child that resembles a blue elephant, fans have been immediately drawn to this character. Neel was a breakout character before the series debuted, and now that Skeleton Crew has aired its first two episodes, his popularity has only grown. Whenever Neel is not on screen, fans ask, “Where is Neel?”. Here is everything to know about Neel and why he is so popular.
Cast
Jude Law
, Ravi Cabot-Conyers
, Ryan Kiera Armstrong
, Kyriana Kratter
, Robert Timothy Smith
, Tunde Adebimpe
, Kerry Condon
, Nick Frost
Main Genre
Sci-Fi
Seasons
1
The presence of a blue elephant in Star Wars is nothing new, as the most famous is, of course, Max Rebo from Return of the Jedi. Since Max Rebo and Neel are both blue space elephants in Star Wars, Neel earned the fandom name “Baby Max Rebo.” Yet despite some similarities, Neel and Max Rebo are two different species. Max Rebo is part of a species known as Ortolan and, notably, only has two limbs (yes, he plays music with his feet). Neel, on the other hand, stands upright and has four appendices, two arms, and two legs, making him a more humanoid alien species than Max Rebo. Currently, Neel’s species have not been identified in the series.
Skelton Crew creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford cleared up the Neel and Max Rebo connection. “Obviously, we drive our car right into that controversy. We just went right in there and did it.” Ford jokingly responded. “People really want to know and we don’t mind going on record saying that he is not,” said Jon Watts. He added, “It’s a big galaxy. There’s a lot of blue, trunked elephant creatures out there.”
What Makes Neel Great in ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’
When fans are introduced to Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), he is introduced as Wim’s (Ravi Cabot-Conyers) best friend. Neel feels very much modeled in the Milhouse mold to Wim’s Bart Simpson, the best friend who seemingly goes along with his friend despite how it would go against his own self-interest. Neel is a sweet, kind, and caring friend who is seemingly willing to get held back in school to stay with his best friend despite wanting to move forward and be around the girl he has a crush on.
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Neel also has a very happy home life. While Wim’s father seems distant and preoccupied with work, Neel has loving and attentive parents. He also apparently has siblings, two younger twin siblings, and a baby brother. Unlike Wim, who desires a grand adventure or the rebellious nature of Fern or KB, Neel seems rather happy with his life and wants to get back safely and not get in trouble. His statement to Wim, “I just want to go home,” makes him relatable to young audiences and likely many adults.
He is vulnerable in a way that many of the other characters are not, making the viewer easily empathetic to him and having the urge to protect him. Yet that also excites fans for how this series will test him and allow him to grow as a character. After all, the greatest strength is not being fearless but overcoming one’s fear. Neel might be scared now, but there likely will come a moment when he proves himself a hero.
More Neel in the Future, Please
What is great about Star Wars is that the franchise tells stories from many different eras, allowing characters to pop in and out of the story. Fans can hope for Skeleton Crew Season 2, although seeing as how Disney+ canceled The Acolyte and is scaling back the Star Wars television series, that might be a long shot. Skeleton Crew takes place during the New Republic era of stories like The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka, which opens the door for Neel and the rest of the Skeleton Crew cast to cross over those stories.
While it is unlikely that the characters of Skeleton Crew will appear in The Mandalorian & Grogu, as the movie has already finished shooting, the door remains open for future crossovers. With Dave Filoni planning an epic team-up film of the various Disney+ series, that could be a great place for Skeleton Crew to continue. That could even feature a scene between Neel and Grogu, which might create a collective aww from the audience so powerful it could make a singularity.
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Neel being a kid during the era of the New Republic means he would be an adult, likely in his late 30s to early 40s, by the time of the sequel trilogy. What Neel and the rest of the kids of Skeleton Crew did after the series during the events of the sequel trilogy could make for a fun novel, comic, or even animated short series. An older Neel could also factor into the upcoming Star Wars movie set to follow Daisy Ridley’s Rey as she rebuilds the new Jedi Order. While Neel wouldn’t be a Jedi (although we’re not opposed to it), he could be a fun cameo for fans of Skeleton Crew.
What makes characters like Grogu and Neel, as well as the rest of the cast of Skeleton Crew, appealing is that they are new characters. Star Wars is a vast galaxy with seemingly an endless array of new characters from various timelines, but time and time again, the franchise often returns to the same core group of characters that defined the original trilogy. The decision to center the main films as a generational conflict between the Skywalkers and the Palpatines is a major fault with The Rise of the Skywalker. With the digital deep fake Luke Skywalker, casting live-action versions of animated characters, and bringing back various characters from the past Star Wars, like Boba Fett and Obi-Wan Kenobi, it can feel like the series is afraid of taking a chance on new ideas or characters.
Yet additions like Neel and Grogu show that Star Wars is willing to embrace new characters, and this is the best course for Star Wars’ future, as these become the new faces that can carry the franchise forward. A blue elephant face like Neel is a good look for Star Wars. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is streaming on Disney+.
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