Line #9 Film/StarWarsEwokAdventures


1	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/evokadventures.png]]
2	In the mid-1980s, two ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' [[MadeForTVMovie Made-for-TV Movies]] were produced: ''The Ewok Adventure'' (1984), later retitled ''Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure'', and ''Ewoks: The Battle for Endor'' (1985). They star a young child, Cindel, whose family has crash-landed on Endor, and Wicket, the Ewok who befriended Leia in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. The success of these movies led to an animated series, ''WesternAnimation/{{Ewoks}}'', which ran for two seasons. The main character, Cindel, got a cameo much later in the ''Legends'' novel trilogy ''Literature/BlackFleetCrisis'' as a reporter, and Teek was featured in the safety video for ''Ride/StarTours'' prior to the 2011 refurbishment.
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4	In 2004, the movies were released on a double-feature DVD under the title ''Star Wars: Ewok Adventures'', and later launched on Creator/DisneyPlus in April 2021.
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8	!!''Caravan of Courage'' contains examples of:
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10	* AlienSky: Both films feature several shots of the Endor gas giant in the sky.
11	* AllThereInTheManual: Supplementary materials give "Towani" as the family's surname, but only their first names are ever mentioned onscreen.
12	* BadassAdorable: All the Ewoks count, but special points go out to Chukha-Trok for doing things like chasing down a galloping horse and taking on the Gorax with only an axe.
13	* BadassFamily: Wicket's family, which include his two older brothers and father volunteering to go on a dangerous journey no Ewok has ever returned from.
14	* BeautyEqualsGoodness: The humans and their alien allies are cute, but the dangerous things they meet are ugly monsters who can be killed without any thought.
15	* BigGuyFatalitySyndrome: Well, he's big for an Ewok, and sadly [[spoiler:Chukha-Trok does not make it.]]
16	* BottomlessPits: In the Gorax's cave fortress.
17	* ChekhovsGun: The gifts the shaman Ewok gives the caravan before they leave come in handy several times on the trip.
18	* TheClan: The Ewok tribe appears to be a variation of this trope.
19	* ContinuityNod: The music played during Cindel and Wicket's first meeting is the same one played during Leia and Wicket's first encounter.
20	* DisneyVillainDeath: The Gorax falls down [[NotQuiteDead twice]] into a bottomless pit.
21	* GiantSpider: The Rearing spiders that lurk in the caves under the Gorax's fortress. Unlike Earth spiders, these have ''six'' legs like insects.
22	* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Cindel.
23	* HandInTheHole: Mace sees a cute furry critter sticking out of a hole in a tree so, against the advice of everyone else present, he tries sticking his hand in the hole to catch it. The "cute furry critter" turned out to be the lure of a much larger creature that promptly bites his arm and the only reason he gets away is because the Ewoks fight it off.
24	* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Chukha-Trok]] dies during a rockslide when he tries to buy time for the others to escape from the Gorax.
25	* HitchhikerHeroes: The Ewoks join with Cindel and her brother Mace on their quest to find their parents.
26	* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: The only thing Mace manages to hit with his blaster is a giant boulder. Justified in that he's a teenager who's possibly never had to use a gun before.
27	* MamaBear: Cindel's mother picks up Mace's blaster rifle and shoots the Gorax in the back, causing it to fall to its [[NotQuiteDead apparent]] death, as it threatens Cindel on the other side of a giant chasm.
28	* ManlyTears: Mace cries when Chukha-Trok gets crushed. Fortunately he avenges his friend a little bit later.
29	* MarketBasedTitle: Originally, the film aired in the U.S. under the title ''The Ewok Adventure'', and the title ''Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure'' was only used for overseas theatrical releases. For the 2004 DVD release, Lucasfilm decided that the ''Caravan of Courage'' title would henceforth be used in the U.S. as well.
30	* TheMillstone: Mace. Pretty much all he does the entire film is be moody and doing stupid things that endanger himself and force the Ewoks to rescue him again. Justified in that he's not supposed to be a hero or anything, he's a scared kid way out of his depth, and feels he has to be brave to reassure Cindel. Only in the final battle [[CharacterDevelopment does he learn humility]] and, subsequently, pull his weight.
31	* MissingChild: The first two scenes, of two different families. The Towanis are shown looking for their kids, then Deej gets worried about two of his sons going missing and looks for them.
32	* MyNewGiftIsLame: Mace is visibly unimpressed with the very plain rock he gets, while everyone else gets cool toys. After an unsuccessful attempt to trade it for something else, he throws it away. Unfortunately, [[AlwaysNeedWhatYouGaveUp they kinda]] ''[[AlwaysNeedWhatYouGaveUp need]]'' [[AlwaysNeedWhatYouGaveUp it much later on]]... [[spoiler: Fortunately Wicket had more sense and took the rock with him when the kid ditched it.]]
33	* {{Narrator}}: A first for a ''Star Wars'' project, replacing the title crawl. The voice is by Creator/BurlIves of ''WesternAnimation/RudolphTheRedNosedReindeer'' fame.
34	* OurGiantsAreBigger: The Gorax is essentially a sci-fi version of a classic fairy tale giant.
35	* ParentsInDistress: The entire film is about Mace and Cindel rescuing their parents from the Gorax.
36	* PlanetaryRomance: In contrast to the SpaceOpera of the main ''Star Wars'' series, this one is effectively a kid-friendly fantasy adventure that happens to be set on another planet. Or moon, if we want to get technical.
37	* {{Prequel}}: This movie and the sequel is established by later sources to take place before ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi''. Interestingly, the actor who played Mace, Eric Walker, said in an [[https://starwarsinterviews1.blogspot.com/2010/01/eric-walker-interview.html interview]] that this was not the original intention: Producer Tom Smith said during filming that it was supposed to take place 150 years after ''Return of the Jedi'', which was overwritten once Cindel appeared in post-Endor expanded universe material - though this creates a bit of a ContinuitySnarl (see YouNoTakeCandle under ''The Battle for Endor'', below.)
38	* RogerRabbitEffect: Izrina, the queen of the Wisties, is clearly cartoonish, and interacts with people who are live-action.
39	* SavageWolves: A gigantic wolf-like monster - called a boar wolf in supplementary material, though never named as such in the film - features in some of the movie's more intense scenes.
40	* SingleBiomePlanet: Averted, despite having been played straight when Endor first appeared in ''Return of the Jedi''. There it was called a "forest moon" and seemed to have no other type of environment, but this film and its sequel show the moon to have more varied environments.
41	* SoapOperaDisease: At the beginning of the film, poor Cindel comes down with this tragic ailment. Fortunately, it's cured by the random medicine that the Ewoks have on hand.
42	* TakeUpMySword: [[spoiler:In his final moments, Chukha-Trok gives Mace his axe. Mace uses it to deliver the final blow to the Gorax]].
43	* TreetopTown: The Ewok village, though they're featured less due to the film's reduced budget.
44	* WhatMeasureIsANonCute: While crossing the webbed bridge, a baby rearing spider dangles above Mace who cut its web and it screamed down to the bottomless chasm.
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46	!!''Ewoks: The Battle for Endor'' contains examples of:
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48	* AchievementsInIgnorance: In an attempt to save Noa when Terak was about to kill him, Wicket swung a sling at the Marauder and struck the ring around his neck. [[spoiler:Not only did this result in Terak's death, but Charal was left trapped in the form of a raven forever]].
49	* AcidPool: Upon arriving at the Marauders' fortress and finding it surrounded by a moat, Wicket tried to swim across it. Noa stopped him and used a tree branch [[AteTheSpoon to show him that the moat was sulfuric]].
50	* ActionizedSequel: This one contains quite a bit more action than the first one, as evidenced by the fact that it has the word "battle" in the title.
51	* ActorAllusion: There's a scene of Creator/WilfordBrimley eating what he calls "some kinda porridge". Brimley is best-known to many viewers for the porridge commercials he did for Quaker Oats.
52	* ArtifactTitle: It's weird that this movie is titled after the Ewoks, considering Wicket is the only Ewok that's actually onscreen for most of it. The rest of the Ewoks spend the majority of the film in cages at Terak's castle. Moreover, the film seems to be more focused on Cindel and Noa's relationship than anything to do with Wicket or the other Ewoks. Even the villains' plans revolve around Cindel and Noa, with the Ewoks essentially only being involved because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
53	* BigBad: Terak.
54	* BreakoutCharacter: Cindel's role is expanded from the first movie, as [[spoiler:the death of her entire family]] turns her into the ''de facto'' main character. Well, unless you count Wicket, whose role is also expanded in the second movie.
55	* CallForward: The Ewoks fight against the Marauders at the climax is similar to the climax of ''Return of the Jedi''.
56	* CaughtInASnare: This happens to Wicket after he and Cindel find Noa's ship, and it happens to him again during the climax.
57	* ConnectedAllAlong: Retroactivetly, Charal the Witch was established as being a Nightsister from the planet Dathomir, with the EU reference guide ''Book of Sith'' establishing that [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars Mother Talzin]] knew Charal directly. It also means that Charal shares the same homeworld as [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsCloneWars Asajj Ventress]] and [[Film/ThePhantomMenace Darth Maul]].
58	* ContentWarning: The network warned before its first airing that young children might find the film upsetting.
59	* CoolOldGuy: Noa
60	* DarkerAndEdgier: The cute bits are the only things keeping you from breaking down and crying.
61	* DeathOfAChild: [[spoiler: Mace,]] who can't be much older than thirteen, is killed in the opening.
62	* DemotedToExtra: Aside from Cindel and Wicket, this happens to everyone from the first movie.
63	* DisneyVillainDeath: Two Marauders that chase after Cindel and Wicket who freed themselves, end up falling off a cliff.
64	* DoNotGoGentle: [[spoiler:Cindel's brother and father]] are both last seen defiantly shooting at forces who have them outgunned and outnumbered, before [[spoiler:their life-monitoring signals on Cindel's bracelet go out.]]
65	* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler:The deaths of Mace and the children's parents]].
66	* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Charal the witch.
67	* EvilTowerOfOminousness: The brutal Sanyassans live inside a large castle which is introduced in a creepy fashion.
68	* GoodColorsEvilColors: Charal has black hair, wears a black dress, and has a black horse. [[spoiler:To throw Cindel off guard, she takes the form of a beautiful young woman with blonde hair, wears a white dress, and has a white horse.]]
69	* GreatEscape: Upon infiltrating the Marauders' fortress, Noa and Wicket free Cindel and the captured Ewoks.
70	* HappyEndingOverride: [[spoiler: In the first few minutes, Cindel's entire family is ''murdered'' by the new BigBad's minions. The fate of Cindel's family can feel downright ''jarring'' after the relatively lighthearted first film.]]
71	* HeartwarmingOrphan: [[spoiler:Cindel becomes one after her family is killed.]]
72	* HopeSpot: Cindel wakes up hearing a feminine voice calling her name. She thought it was her mother at first, but [[spoiler:it was Charal in the form of a young witch to draw her out]].
73	* HorseOfADifferentColor: While the Ewoks tend to ride regular old horses (alien horses?), the Marauders' wagons are pulled by blurrgs, peculiar creatures that look like a cross between a tadpole and a ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. Blurrgs would return in a smaller form in ''Series/TheMandalorian'', years later.
74	* InsufficientlyAdvancedAlien: The Sanyassans can’t tell the difference between an amulet of ultimate power and what is essentially a car battery.
75	* IShallReturn: Before the Marauders attacked, Cindel tells Wicket that she'll return to visit one day. She says it again as she and Noa leave Endor.
76	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold. Noa didn't want Cindel and Wicket in his hut. Eventually he starts to warm up to them, especially Cindel.
77	* KillItWithFire: When Wicket use his slingshot to destroy Charal's ring which Terak wore in a pendant round his neck, the talisman shattered, releasing a great amount of energy, and the Marauder king was burned from the inside-out.
78	* LightIsNotGood: Exploited by the villains, when [[spoiler:Charal]] takes the form of a beautiful golden haired maiden with a white dress and horse to [[spoiler:capture Cindel]].
79	* LockAndLoadMontage: Noa of all people gets one, prepping his walking stick and a blaster before he goes off to [[spoiler:rescue Cindel]].
80	* MutualKill: Teek tricks two Sanyassans into shooting each other by framing one of them for cheating at cards.
81	* OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo: Complicated by the fact that the first film has two titles, ''The Ewok Adventure'' and ''Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure''. However, ''Ewoks: The Battle for Endor'' does not logically follow either of those titles.
82	* OurDragonsAreDifferent: Wicket fights a dragon-like creature - called a "condor dragon" in the EU - in a cave early on.
83	* PapaWolf: Deej goes completely to town on the Marauders after they surround Wicket. He fires his stolen blaster pistol at them until it either malfunctions or runs out of ammo, and then commandeers a catapult and launches himself onto the remaining one.
84	* TheRuntAtTheEnd: The littlest Marauder.
85	* ScavengedPunk: The Marauders' technology is clearly scavenged from other sources. They have crude ray-guns that look held together with spit and glue.
86	* SenselessSacrifice: [[spoiler: Cindel's father]] buys time to let Cindel escape. This accomplishes nothing besides getting himself killed, as she's captured right afterward.
87	* ShapeshifterModeLock: The ultimate fate of Charal. According to the EU reference guide ''Book of Sith'', the ring she used was a Talisman of Transformation, a dark side artifact used by the Nightsisters of Dathomir. They allowed their wearer to take the shape of another creature. Hers was the raven. When her ring was destroyed she was [[AndIMustScream stuck in the form of a raven]].
88	* StupidEvil: Terak has a vague idea of what he wants, a swift blade, and an itchy finger. To say the least, this is counterproductive for ''all'' concerned.
89	* SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome: Barely 10 minutes into the film, [[spoiler: Mace is killed, and so are both parents.]] Cindel is the only human protagonist from the first film to survive the second one. Considering how the goal of the first movie was to save the parents, it's a good example of a sequel making the previous work seem like a ShootTheShaggyDog. According to Lucas, his daughter was really into ''Literature/{{Heidi}}'', so the sequel contrived to give Cindel the same kind of relationship with Noa.
90	* SuperSpeed: Teek, and presumably his species, can run really fast.
91	* TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:Terak's ultimate fate]]
92	* TooDumbToLive: The Marauders think the energy crystal for a star cruiser is a source of absolute power. Unfortunately, [[IgnoredExpert they refuse to listen when others try to explain that's not how it works]].
93	* TookALevelInBadass: Mace's ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy aim has improved, as he makes a few kills during the opening battle with the Sanyassans. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, this motivates them to focus on targeting him.]]
94	* VineSwing: Ewoks swing from vines while striking at Marauders in both the opening and final battles.
95	* WaterWakeUp: Wicket splashes a bucket of water onto Noa to wake him up after Cindel was missing.
96	* WholePlotReference: The idea of an orphan girl living with an old hermit came from George Lucas having just seen a film version of ''Literature/{{Heidi}}'' with his then-7 year old daughter.
97	* YouNoTakeCandle: Wicket has learned some basic English from Cindel. This creates a bit of a ContinuitySnarl, since this is supposed to be set before ''Return of the Jedi'', but he can only speak Ewok in that one.

Context Film / StarWarsEwokAdventures