Star Wars: Ewoks

Star Wars: Ewoks, also simply known as Ewoks, is an animated series featuring the Ewok characters introduced in Star Wars: Episode VI – [Return of the Jedi] and further discovered in Caravan of Courage: An [Ewok Adventure] and its sequel Ewoks: The Battle for Endor. The series was co-produced by Canada-based Nelvana Limited on behalf of Lucasfilm and broadcast on ABC from September 7, 1985 to December 13, 1986, with its sister series Droids, and then by itself, as The All-New Ewoks.

Premise

The series centers on the adventures of Wicket W. Warrick and his friends on the forest moon of Endor before the events of the original Star Wars film and Caravan of Courage. The primary recurring villains are Morag the Tulgah Witch, who had a personal grudge against the tribe's shaman, Master Logray, and the Duloks, a rival species.
The penultimate episode, "Battle for the Sunstar", which was reaired as the series finale, shows the Ewok heroes leaving the forest moon's surface when they go aboard an Imperial Star Destroyer that has traveled to their system. An Imperial scientist attempts to destroy the Emperor, whose shuttle makes an appearance. The episode has been noted as forming a link with Return of the Jedi, which features the Empire using Endor as its base of operations for the second Death Star.

Cast and characters

The Ewok tribe

Warrick family

Wicket Wystri Warrick – The youngest brother of the Warrick Family. He is headstrong and determined and often takes the initiative. Wicket really wants to be a great warrior, which often gets him into trouble. Has dark brown fur and wears an orange hood, but wears a green hood in season two.
Widdle "Willy" Warrick – The middle brother of the Warrick Family. Originally called Widdle. He is clumsy, gluttonous and overweight, but exceedingly nice.
Weechee Warrick – The eldest brother and the strongest of the Warrick Family.
Winda Warrick – The youngest child of the Warrick Family.
Deej Warrick – Father to Wicket, Weechee, Willy and Winda and his wife is Shodu. A very respected warrior of the Ewok tribe. Has dark grey fur and wears a purple hood.
Shodu Warrick – Deej's wife and mother to Wicket, Weechee, Willy and Winda.
Erpham Warrick – Wicket's great-grandfather, once a great warrior for the Ewok tribe and is still looked up to by young Ewoks. Not much is known about Erpham, as he died years ago, but he makes a brief appearance as a ghost when Wicket tries to repair his old battle wagon and instructs him. He was a golden-colored Ewok with a green hood.

Kintaka family

Princess Kneesaa a Jari Kintaka – Younger daughter of Chief Chirpa and Ra-Lee. Often the voice of reason and wisdom to her friends, but usually ends up in just as much trouble. She seems smitten with Wicket. Has white and grey fur and wears a pink hood with a blue gem dangling near her forehead.
Asha – Older daughter of Chief Chirpa and Ra-Lee. Went missing during Ra-Lee's death and eventually was reunited with the Ewoks.
Chief Chirpa – Widowed father to Kneesaa and Asha. He gives order to the warriors when they are fighting against the Duloks.
Paploo – Kneesaa's cousin, Great Chief Chirpa's nephew and son to Bozzie. He is close friends with Wicket and Teebo. He sometimes joins in when the young Ewoks go on their adventures. He is older, but often acts with less maturity than the younger Ewoks. Has grey fur, with a white face and wears an orange hood with a feather.
Bozzie – Chief Chirpa's sister / sister-in-law and mother to Paploo. She can be very bossy and domineering towards the young Ewoks.

Teebo's family

Teebo – Wicket's best friend and the older child of Warok and Batcheela. Fascinated by tales of sorcery and magic becomes his Master Logray's Apprentice. He is a bit of a dreamer, and sometimes a little clumsy. Teebo often lacks discipline, but this is something he learns to master over time from Logray, and eventually becomes a respectful young Ewok. Has ochre fur and he wears a tan, baggy hood with a feather.
Malani – The younger child of Warok and Batcheela. She is a close friends with Wiley, Nippet and Winda. She has a crush on Wicket and desperately tries to impress him. Has beige fur and wears a blue hood with a flower in it.

Latara's family

Latara – Has dark grey fur and wears a yellow hat with a pink feather in it in season one; in season two her fur is light brown and cream, and her hat is heather with a greenish-blue feather. Kneesaa is her best friend. She dreams of being a great musician with her flute, though her main job appears to be looking after her younger siblings. She has a huge crush on Teebo, though he rarely notices it. In the second season, it is the other way round.
Nippet and Wiley – Latara's younger siblings. At times, Latara has to stay home to watch over them.
Zephee – The mother of Latara, Nippet and Wiley. She was seen in three episodes: "The Haunted Village", "The Travelling Jindas" and "The Curse of the Jindas".
Lumat – The father of Latara, Nippet and Wiley. He was seen in two episodes: "The Travelling Jindas" and "The Curse of the Jindas".

Various

Master Logray – The Ewoks' shaman, and often the dispenser of wisdom and knowledge about the world of Endor.

Others

King Gorneesh – A leader of the Duloks
Queen Urga – King Gorneesh's wife and the only female Dulok in the series
Umwak – Gorneesh's right-hand man, a Dulok shaman
Morag – The Tulgah witch and evil magic counterpart of Logray
The Phlogs – A race of giants who live on Endor
Baga – A young gentle bordok and Wicket's personal pet
The Hanadak – A purple monster which lives in the forest
The Jindas – A race of canid aliens who live on Endor, and are cursed to an eternal nomadic lifestyle by the Rock Wizard. The Ewoks free them from their curse. Notable Jindas include their leader, Bondo, and magician Trebla.
The Raich – A tree demon that eats animals and was imprisoned by brave Ewok warriors with a magical hat, made by the Gonster, which was placed on its head, turning it into a tree. He is revived when Wicket takes the hat, but eventually defeated again.
The Gonster – A two-headed magician whom Ewoks seek out for spells, potions and traps to defeat monsters. His two heads constantly argue.
The Leaf Queen – A plantlike deity or spirit who dwells on Endor and is entrusted to the care of all its plants. Although kindly, she can be roused to great anger if her plants are harmed.
Dr. Raygar – An Imperial scientist who wants to steal the Sunstar and use it to overthrow the Emperor. After Kazz eventually learns of his treachery, he is arrested for treason.
Admiral Kazz – An Imperial officer tasked with assisting Raygar, who does not know his true intentions. Kazz thinks the Sunstar is a myth and considers the Ewoks not worth bothering over.
PD-28 – An Imperial droid assisting Raygar and Kazz. He eventually tires of working for the abusive Raygar and becomes friends with the Ewoks.
Ploob - A one-time character from the episode "Horville's Hut of Horrors" is a floating green monster that frightens the Ewoks and steals their honey and jam.

Production

The series is a follow-up to the two Ewok films: Caravan of Courage and The Battle for Endor, which were themselves spin-offs of Return of the Jedi. The first season of the series was somewhat sophisticated, but in the second, the writing and visual style were both simplified.

Episodes

Season 1 (1985)

The theme song for the first season was written and performed by Taj and Inshirah Mahal.

Season 2 (1986)

With this season, advertised as The All-New Ewoks, episodes are now shorted the 11-minute format meaning two segments per half-hour. This season introduced a new theme song, "Friends Together, Friends Forever", written and performed by Patrick Gleeson.

Broadcast and home media

Ewoks was broadcast on ABC, originally with its sister series Droids, and then by itself, as The All-New Ewoks. The series ran for two seasons of 13 half-hour episodes between 1985 and 1986 and was later shown in reruns on Sci-Fi Channel's Cartoon Quest.
Almost all of the episodes were released on VHS in the 1980s and 1990s, most notably the UK PAL releases over six cassettes, which had the opening sequences and credits edited out. On April 2, 2021, the entire series was released on Disney+.
During the making of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, its producer, Rick McCallum, oversaw two direct-to-video compilation films, each compiled from four episodes of the series. The first, The Haunted Village, was released on VHS in 1997. The second, Tales from the Endor Woods, was released by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment in 2004 on a DVD titled Star Wars: Animated Adventures – Ewoks. The newer film includes narration from "Adult Wicket".

Title	Content	Format
Ewoks 1: Morag's Revenge	"The Haunted Village", "The Cries of the Trees", "Rampage of the Phlogs", "Sunstar vs. Shadowstone"	VHS
Ewoks 2: The Gupins and the Jindas	"To Save Deej", "The Land of the Gupins", "The Traveling Jindas", "The Curse of the Jindas"	VHS
Ewoks 3: Wicket the Hero	"Wicket's Wagon", "The Tree of Light", "Asha", "Blue Harvest"	VHS
Ewoks 4: Wicket's Adventurers as He Becomes a Warrior	"The Crystal Cloak / The Wish Plant", "The Totem Master / A Gift for Shodu", "Horville's Hut of Horrors / The Tragic Flute", "Just My Luck / Bringing Up Norky"	VHS
Ewoks 5: Wickett's Adventurers	"Home Is Where the Shrieks Are / Princess Latara", "Gone with the Mimphs / The First Apprentice", "Party Ewok / Malani the Warrior", "Hard Sell / A Warrior and a Lurdo"	VHS
Ewoks 6: Battle for the Planet Endor	"Battle for the Sunstar", "The Season Scepter", "The Raich", "Night of the Stranger"	VHS
The Haunted Village	"The Haunted Village", "The Cries of the Trees", "Rampage of the Phlogs", "Sunstar vs. Shadowstone"	VHS / DVD
Tales from the Endor Woods	"Wicket's Wagon", "The Traveling Jindas", "To Save Deej", "Asha"	DVD

Reception

According to David Perlmutter, Ewoks was "unremarkable both technically and creatively." Screen Rant says the series was made at a time when "television executives had no idea what constituted good children's animated television", comparing it to series like The Smurfs, Snorks, or Care Bears. SyFy Wire calls the series "more a marketing ploy for Lucasfilm than a worthwhile extension of the franchise... designed to sell toys, cereals, and action figures", though mentions that it "featured a few surprisingly entertaining installments that appealed to both parents and kids, particularly the penultimate episode, 'Battle for the Sunstar.'"

Legacy

Elements from the series are featured in Star Wars reference media, such as A Guide to the Star Wars Universe and the Star Wars Encyclopedia. A Dulok was shown on Coruscant in Chapter 21 of the 2D animated Clone Wars. Ewoks was excluded from canon status in 2014, but some elements appear in the canon Ultimate Star Wars and later reference books, as well as the canon web series Star Wars Forces of Destiny.
The series' opening titles are briefly featured in an episode of Stranger Things fourth season.

Merchandising and media

Action figures

In 1985, Kenner Products produced a series of action figures based on the series. A second wave of figures were prototyped but ultimately cancelled due to poor sales of the initial wave. Several previously released Ewok themed vehicles, play sets, and accessories were advertised on the card backs of the figures but were curiously never offered in Ewoks Cartoon branded packaging.

Comics

In 1985, Star Comics, an imprint of Marvel, published a bi-monthly Ewoks comic based on the animated series. It ran for two years, with a total of 14 issues. Like the TV series, it was aimed towards a younger audience and produced parallel to a comic spun off from Droids. Issue #10 of Ewoks continued the "Lost in Time" crossover story from Droids #4. Additionally, Spanish comics publisher Editorial Gepsa produced two-page Ewoks comics as part of an anthology series.
A one-shot graphic novel bridging the gaps between the cartoon, the two Ewoks films, and Return of the Jedi titled Ewoks: Shadows of Endor was released in 2013.