25 Years of Collecting Droids and Ewoks!

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September 7, 2010

By Pete Vilmur

Happy 25th Droids and Ewoks!

Or, as some may ask, just what is Droids and Ewoks?

With limited release on DVD and video, we understand that many people who were not yet Star Wars fans on September 7, 1985 when the Droids and Ewoks animated adventures debuted may not really know what the series were about. In short, Droids documented the exploits of R2-D2 and C-3PO just before the events of A New Hope, and included an all-new cast of characters with occasional cameos by some established Star Wars personalities (Boba Fett, IG-88, etc.). Likewise, the storylines portrayed in the Ewoks series took place before their official introduction in Return of the Jedi, and seem to have targeted a slightly younger audience than Droids, incorporating a softer, more romantic style of animation. For more information on the shows themselves, check out the links provided at the bottom of this page.

Since the shows have been out of circulation on TV for years now, much of the series' legacy has survived through the toys and collectibles produced by Kenner and others during the mid-to-late eighties. But some newer fans may not even be aware of these short-lived lines of action figures, toys, food premiums and more, which gives us occasion to provide a stack of coverage showcasing some rare collectible gems from Star Wars' animated past!

We've mined the collection of Steve Sansweet, our own licensing and video archives, and the collections of some hardcore fans to bring you this fond look back at a "lost" era of Star Wars animation history. Scroll down and enjoy a healthy dose of Droids and Ewoks goodness as we prepare to launch into the third season of The Clone Wars in a little over a week!


Droids!

Starting things off, we've posted a wealth of collectible imagery in the slideshows below showcasing the toys produced by Kenner for both the Droids and Ewoks series. In addition, we've also included some rare imagery of many of the unproduced toys and figures, and even dug out a pair of old TV commercials advertising the Droids and Ewoks toy lines! Be sure to scroll down after viewing the slideshows and ads to read Gus Lopez's excellent write-up on Kenner's Droids and Ewoks lines as well as Duncan Jenkins' revealing look at rare international food collectibles spawned by the series!


  • Produced Toys

  • Unproduced Toys

The "Unproduced Toys" slideshows above and below include several images of cardboard mock-up figures -- these were placeholder images for figures that had not yet been sculpted at the time these photos were taken (by Kenner photographer Kim Simmons, according to Gus Lopez). To check out the finished prototype figures mocked up in the slideshows, scroll down to Gus' write-up on Kenner's Droids and Ewoks toy lines...


Ewoks!


  • Produced Toys

  • Unproduced Toys


Kenner's Droids and Ewoks Toy Lines

By Gus Lopez

The Droids and Ewoks cartoon series from the mid 1980s may be the favorites of some Star Wars fans, but these series are legendary in the Star Wars collecting community. Droids and Ewoks are considered by most to be the end of the vintage Kenner Star Wars action figure line, before it abruptly took a decade-long hiatus due to waning interest. As a result, there were numerous toy concepts planned for both series that never made it to market, fueling collectors' passion for rare items from the series.

Kenner released an initial wave of cartoon action figures for both shows, but cancelled the lines prior to the second wave. Jessica Meade, Vlix, Gaff, Governor Koong, Admiral Screed, Kleb-Zellock, Mungo Baobab, and Mon Julpa from Droids and Weechee, Chituhr, Bondo, Paploo, Chief Chirpa, and Morag from Ewoks only exist in prototype form as production never began for these action figures. They are ridiculously rare in these early stages (called hard copy, protomolded figures, and first shots) and are estimated to exist in quantities of about dozen to two dozen for each character. The second wave also featured brightly-colored outfits, more elaborate and detailed sculpts, and some of the favorite characters from the series, including five villains from the Droids series. Assembling a set of all fourteen is a next to impossible feat that only a couple of collectors have managed to complete.

Vlix would obtain particular notoriety among collectors as the rarest production Star Wars figure ever made. Although the character was not issued for the Droids line in the US and Canada in 1986, Glasslite, a Kenner affiliate in Brazil, released the character as part of the Droids action figures for that country in 1988. The Glasslite Vlix has different details than the Vlix figured planned for the US market.

Other toys were planned for Droids and Ewoks, including reissuing many of Kenner's "Power of the Force" toys in new packaging, including the Tatooine Skiff for Droids and the Ewok Battle Wagon for Ewoks. The gold-metallized C-3PO action figure storage case made by Kenner for the Return of the Jedi line was updated in mold-injected yellow plastic for C-3PO's cartoon likeness, yet this version of the case was never sold to the public. New vehicles were even considered in the expansion of the line. Early prototypes of the White Witch vehicle from Droids were designed by Kenner but did not get past the planning stages as interest in Star Wars quickly diminished during that time.

You can see detailed views of many of the rare prototype figures discussed above at The Star Wars Collectors Archive. Be sure to also check out Gus' regular Vintage Toy Prototypes column on StarWars.com.


If there was one Droids or Ewoks toy you wished had been produced, what would it have been?

"I've always loved the Droids and Ewoks action figures and collected as many as I could find when they first came out. But I was disappointed as a kid (and still am today) that I couldn't get a figure of Mungo Baobab. It turns out that there was a prototype made, but the line was cancelled before it could be released. I would absolutely love to have had a White Witch speeder vehicle for Thall Joben and Jord Dusat to ride in, as well as a bordok for the Ewoks, but unfortunately neither of those saw production either. I'm holding out hope that someday Hasbro will be able to finally make all of 'em!" — Jim Cole (Droids&Ewoks.com;)

"As a kid I would have liked Mungo because there are a lot of adventures you can reenact with him. He's certainly not a friend of the Empire and he's kind of a freebooter, like Han and Lando. Mungo's always looking for solutions to improve the situation of the Baobab Merchant Fleet. He's an adventurer with a heart of gold who has a lot of (yet) untold adventures." — Tim Veekhoven, StarWars.com blogger "Sompeetalay"

The White Witch from Droids

"The White Witch vehicle, which was prototyped by Kenner but never released, is easily one of the coolest unproduced Star Wars items ever. In the Kenner style it was to be a vehicle chock full of features and a spot for a pilot and R2-D2 as in the Droids series." — Gus Lopez, co-author of Gus and Duncan's Comprehensive Guide to Star Wars Collectibles

"I think the White Witch would have been an amazing piece and had lots of play value, however I can't fathom how they didn't make Teebo, Kneesa or Latara figures especially considering they were in every episode." — James Gallo, Droids and Ewoks collector

"The White Witch racer would have made an exciting toy. Ever since I first saw a photo of Kenner's protoype of that vehicle, I envisioned the possibilities of the finished toy and wished that it had been produced." — Duncan Jenkins, co-author of Gus and Duncan's Comprehensive Guide to Star Wars Collectibles

"There's no doubt that the entire line of unproduced Droids and Ewoks figures should have been made, but if i have to pick one, it would be Morag. I love this character. Her colors are amazing, she was Logray's arch-nemesis, and those furry little critters from Endor needed another plastic antagonist as the Duloks just weren't enough!" — Shane Turgeon, author of The Force in the Flesh

"I would love to have a White Witch racing speeder on my shelf, with my Thall Joben and C-3PO figures sitting in it. And next to it, Boba Fett's Silver Speeder with Boba and BL-17 -- but, I'd want it to be as detailed as the cartoon. I might have to make it myself. As to unproduced figures, I'd love to have Proto One, the droid who helps the kids against Boba Fett -- or the droids from 'The Great Heap' episode." — Jeff Carlisle, official Star Wars artist

(Looks like White Witch still tops many-a-collector's want-list...)


Droids and Ewoks Food Premiums

By Duncan Jenkins

Rare plastic figures and stickers by Spain's Panrico company

Although the Droids and Ewoks cartoons had decent merchandise support with the Kenner toy line, there were very few other licensees in the U.S. and no food promotions. To find Droids and Ewoks food promotions we have to look to Spain and the United Kingdom. Kraft Foods in the UK, which had already had a great tie-in with their Dairylea cheese spreads during the release of The Empire Strikes Back, returned to the Star Wars universe (this time in animated style) with a cartoon videocassette offer. Each cheese wheel also came with small triangular paper labels of the "major" Ewoks characters plus R2-D2 and C-3PO. The set of 12 include some of the only products featuring secondary characters Malani, Winda, and Shodu.

As if they were trying to make up for the dearth of food promotions in the rest of the world, Spain had tie-in promotions on potato chips, pastries, flan, and even batteries (unless you are an electronic appliance, we won't consider batteries "food"). Crecspan offered a set of 20 different animated stickers in their "Estrellitas" Aperitivo de Patata Chip bags. Flan is a tasty custard and caramel desert popular in Spain. So what better food to use to promote the Droids and Ewoks cartoon? Boxes of the Potax brand flan featured either Wicket or the two droids.

The most prolific Spanish Droids/Ewoks food promotion was done by Panrico. Their line of pastries came with one of 25 different stickers or one of 20 different small plastic figures. Half of the figures were Droids characters and half were Ewoks characters. Likewise, the stickers featured images of both cartoon series. Each of the plastic figures could be found in four different colors: blue, green, yellow, and orange. So a full "set" of all variations consists of a staggering 80 mini-figures. That's a lot of pastries to eat while sitting in front of the television set watching the Droids and Ewoks!

Most all of these items are extremely difficult to find today. Some packaging and wrappers are almost impossible to get since very few were saved. Of all the items listed here, only the two mail-in videocassettes from Dairylea cheese are common enough to be found on the secondary market today without much effort.

Be sure to check out Duncan's regular Vintage Food Premiums column on StarWars.com.


Need more Droids/Ewoks? Check these sites/features out:



Early Star Wars Animation Collectibles -- This StarWars.com feature explores the many collectibles spawned from the pre-Clone Wars era of Star Wars animation



Droids et Ewoks de Marchandises -- Another StarWars.com feature showcasing rare licensing photographs of international Droids and Ewoks collectibles



Droids&Ewoks.com; -- Probably the most comprehensive fansite on the Droids/Ewoks shows and lore. Also features a great regular column called "Underused Aliens of Droids and Ewoks"...



The Star Wars Collectors Archive -- An incredible showcase of rare Kenner prototypes from the Droids and Ewoks series



Droids Animated Adventures Encyclopedia -- StarWars.com blogger and contributor "Sompeetalay" (Tim Veekhoven) painstakingly lists the characters, hardware, locales and more from Droids in this entry from the StarWars.com Blogs



Droids References -- Another Veekhoven StarWars.com Blog entry listing the many sources for Droids info available from published materials



Droids and Ewoks: A Home Video History -- Author and collector Shane Turgeon outlines the various releases of select Droids and Ewoks episodes on video



Jeff Carlisle's Droids Gallery from Polyhedron Magazine -- Check out some very nice recent illustrations by Star Wars artist Jeff Carlisle of characters and hardware from Droids




Keywords: Classic Animation, Retro, Television, Kenner

Filed under: The Movies, Saga, Vault, Collecting, Video

Databank: Warrick, Wicket W., R2-D2 (Artoo-Detoo), C-3PO (See-Threepio)
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