I’m only four episodes in, but I’d say “To Save Deej” is a pretty run-of-the-mill episode of Ewoks, in that it features imaginatively designed creatures, has a by-the-numbers plot, and adds yet more major characters to its already massive cast.
Nelvana is at its best with non-human characters, and Ewoks allows its animators’ creativities to run wild. My favorite are the Dandelion Warriors, who are literally giant dandelions, standing motionless in their field until intruders approach, at which point they tilt their heads back and hurl their dandelion spears. We also meet the frosch, lizard-like creatures with huge circular mouths and limbs like crawling bipeds. They’re creepy as hell, looking like they just slithered out of a Hieronymus Bosch painting, or possibly Yellow Submarine.
The imagination of the designs doesn’t quite extend to the plot, unfortunately, which is a standard quest for a MacGuffin. Wicket’s dad Deej is poisoned by a mushroom and the three Warwick sons have to retrieve three ingredients for the antidote. The mushrooms are razor sharp and grow right by the Ewoks’ river; you’d think they’d keep the antidote on hand, but I guess there’d be even less of a story if they did.
In grand Ewoks tradition, we are given more characters to remember. The story focuses on Wicket’s family, so his dad Deej and his brothers Weechee and Willie take center stage, but his mom, Shodu, is also there, and his sister, Winda, makes her first appearance in the show. Also crowding the stage are Kneesaa, Wicket’s girl friend (but probably not girlfriend); Logray, the shaman trying to heal Deej; and Teebo, another of Wicket’s crew, all of whom we met before, and none of whose names I remembered. Yes, I’m looking them up. I find it so hard to keep these characters straight that I thought Kneesaa was another of Wicket’s sisters, and she is the second-most main character on the show after Wicket.
New to our tale is Mring-Mring, who looks like the mascot for a cereal you’ve never heard of. He’s a Gupin, whatever that is. Wicket says “it’s a long story” and glosses over it, which honestly took me by surprise, as if I’ve learned one thing about Ewoks it’s that its writers loooooove complicated backstories. Anyway, Mring-Mring can shapeshift into animals that other people picture in their minds, or something? I think that’s how it works. I wasn’t paying attention. I said the writers love complicated backstories, not me.
I am, admittedly, finding it harder and harder to write anything interesting about individual episodes of Ewoks, but, like the show itself, I’ll just keep going. At least I get to watch Droids next…
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