Skully

Skully is a male character who appears in Jake and the Never Land Pirates. He is a parrot and the look-out for Jake, Izzy and Cubby. Voiced by David Arquette, this parrot watches out for Captain Hook who targets the kids as his various evil plots.

Creation
The character of Skully is a sort of homage to the traditional pirate parrots that sit aside the pirate captain on their shoulder. Arquette who enjoys playing his part, once noting in an interview: "It's great to sort of perform with just using your voice. I sweat, actually, when I start doing the thing, because I really get into it. You really have to convey all of the excitement into your voice. It takes a lot, but it's really rewarding, especially when you see the little fans that love it." Arquette has also said that he enjoys performing Skully with material outside of the actual show itself, such as at a debut of the Jake and the Never Land toy line at the annual International Tou Fair in New York City.

Personality
Skully is wise and very responsible with the kids. He is much appreciated and worries for their safety when doing dangerous task. Skully is friends with Jake and his crew and like them seems to be annoyed rather quickly by Captain Hook. Unlike Jake however, Skully feels no remorse for Hook when the villainous pirate is in peril. Skully sometimes acts like a small child being very playful and speaking in third person occasionally. Skully can also be very wise-cracking, often giving a joking remark on a certain situation, usually at Hook's suspense.

Jake and the Never Land Pirates
Skully joins every adventure Jake and his crew enjoy. Skully is often the one to notice things the others miss, making him a strong advantage when it comes to dealing with Hook. In the end of every episode, Skully reveals their secret Team Treasure Chest where they store their gold doubloons.

Several episodes revolve around Skully. In the episode "Captain Hook's Parrot", Skully is kidnapped by Hook to become his new pet. Skully spends the day locked in a cage but uses his brains to keep Jake, Izzy and Cubby on Hook's trail. According to Cubby, Hook kidnapping Skully is the worse thing the Captain ever did to them.

Skully was the lead character in the episode "Skybird Island Is Falling", where he actually led Jake and the crew in their mission to stop Skybird Island from plunging to the sea after Hook stole the magic leaves that keeps the Island afloat. In spite of his small size, Skully was actually responsible for saving the team in a few occasions, including "The Pirate Princess", where he had his shadow resemble a wicked witch, scaring Hook away. He also saved the team when they were swallowed by a whale by tickling the roof of its mouth and making it laugh.

Playing with Skully
On July 27, 2012, Disney announced a short series titled Playing with Skully that premiered in the USA September 19, 2012, tying in with both the premiere of the Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Jake Saves Bucky special and to a lesser extent, International Talk Like a Pirate Day. The show is currently airing on other Disney Junior channels worldwide.

Disney Junior Live
Skully appears as an audio animatronic in the live stage show in Disney's California Adventure and Disney's Hollywood Studios. In the show, Captain Hook steals the team treasure chest, so Jake and the crew hurry to get it back. At the climax, Hook refuses to give up the chest, but Skully reminds everyone that only the Croc can scare Hook, thus giving Jake the idea to mimic the croc's tick-tocking noise.

Trivia

 * How Skully met Jake and origins all together are currently unknown although many believe he learned the ability to speak fluently from Jake.
 * Skully's AA is similar to the AAs Iago and Zazu in The Enchanted Tiki Room: Under New Management.
 * In the Jake and the Never Land Pirates themed Disney Junior logo the "R" resembles Skully.
 * Skully's catchphrase "Crackers!" echoes the phrase "Polly want a cracker?".
 * Skully has only collected gold dubloons twice so far, in Hide the Hideout and Peter Pan Returns.