| Star Wars: Droids | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | |
| Based on | Star Wars byGeorge Lucas |
| Developed by | |
| Directed by |
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| Voices of | |
| Opening theme | "In Trouble Again" byStewart Copeland |
| Ending theme | "In Trouble Again" (instrumental) |
| Country of origin |
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| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 + 1 special |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Miki Herman |
| Producers | |
| Running time |
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| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 7, 1985 (1985-09-07) – June 7, 1986 (1986-06-07) |
| Related | |
| Ewoks | |
Star Wars: Droids: The Adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO is a 1985 animated television series spin off from theoriginalStar Wars trilogy. It focuses on the exploits ofdroidsR2-D2 andC-3PO between the events ofRevenge of the Sith andA New Hope. The series was produced byNelvana on behalf ofLucasfilm and broadcast onABC from September 7, 1985 to June 7, 1986, with its sister seriesEwoks (as part ofThe Ewoks and Droids Adventure Hour).[1]
The series ran for one season of 13 half-hour episodes; an hour-long special broadcast in 1986 serves as the finale.[2]
The opening theme, "In Trouble Again", was performed byStewart Copeland ofthe Police. During their adventures, the droids find themselves in the service of successive new masters. The original trilogy charactersBoba Fett andIG-88 appear in one episode apiece.
Droids follows the adventures ofR2-D2 andC-3PO as they face off against gangsters, criminals, pirates, bounty hunters, theGalactic Empire and other threats. During their adventures, the droids find themselves in the service of successive new masters and in difficult situations as a result.
The series wasretroactively placed two years afterRevenge of the Sith and fifteen years before the events ofA New Hope.[3] In the latter film,C-3PO tellsLuke Skywalker that his and R2-D2's "last master was Captain Antilles."[4] The droids are placed in Antilles' care byBail Organa at the end ofRevenge of the Sith,[5] creating an apparent continuity error. This is explained by the droids being accidentally separated from Antilles during the events of the animated series.[6]
The series was produced by the Canadian studioNelvana forLucasfilm. Several episodes were written byStar Wars sound designerBen Burtt.Hanho Heung-Up Co. was the Korean studio hired to animate the series.[7]
In the United Kingdom, theBBC bought the rights to broadcast the series in its entirety between 1986 and 1991 as part of itsChildren's BBC programming strand. The entire series was shown twice within this time (in 1986 and 1988 to coincide with the full release of theStar Wars trilogy as well as Droids on VHS).The Great Heep only made one showing in 1989 on the BBC's Saturday morning children's showGoing Live! — it was split into two parts over two weeks.[citation needed] Different episodes from different cycles were also screened across the five-year licence, with the Trigon cycle being shown in full in early 1991 on another BBC Saturday morning children's show calledThe 8:15 from Manchester.
The opening theme, "In Trouble Again", was performed byStewart Copeland ofthe Police and written by him andDerek Holt.
The series was broadcast in the U.S. onABC with its sister seriesEwoks (as part ofThe Ewoks and Droids Adventure Hour). It debuted in 1985 as part of a fitness special hosted byTony Danza and live-action versions of the droids.[4] It ran for one season of 13 half-hour episodes; an hour-long special broadcast in 1986 serves as the finale.Droids andEwoks were later shown in reruns onSci-Fi Channel'sCartoon Quest in 1996, although somewhat edited for time.[citation needed]
In the UK, this series, along withEwoks, was released on VHS as part of a promotion withDairylea Cheese. Families could send in empty packages of the cheese and in return get one of six VHS tapes. These videotapes are now rare and sought after amongst collectors.[10]
Over the course of the series, the droids team up with three different sets of masters. The series falls into three cycles or arcs;[4] the droids usually run into their new masters at the beginning of each, and at the end are forced to leave.The Great Heep, a 48-minute television special following the series, is set before the final arc.[9]
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Trigon One | ||||||||||||
| 1 | "The White Witch" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | September 7, 1985 (1985-09-07) | ||||||||
After being jettisoned over the deserts of Ingo by an unscrupulous former master, C-3PO and R2-D2 are taken in byspeeder bike racers Jord Dusat and Thall Joben. Kea Moll sees them accidentally cross a restricted zone, and helps protect them from several deadly droids. One of gangster Tig Fromm's droids kidnaps Jord, and the droids assist Thall and Kea in rescuing Jord from Fromm's secret base, destroying much of his droid army in the process. | ||||||||||||
| 2 | "Escape Into Terror" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | September 14, 1985 (1985-09-14) | ||||||||
After C-3PO lets the hyperdrive of Kea's starship float away into space, he, R2-D2, Jord, and Thall stay with Kea and her mother, Demma, on Annoo while trying to secure a new hyperdrive. The droids discover that Kea is a member of theRebel Alliance. While Jord stays with Demma, Thall, Kea and the droids sneak onto the Fromm gang's ship in order to infiltrate the secret base on Ingo. There, they capture the Trigon One, a weaponized satellite created by the Fromm gang to take over the galactic quadrant. | ||||||||||||
| 3 | "The Trigon Unleashed" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder & Richard Beban | September 21, 1985 (1985-09-21) | ||||||||
After the Fromm gang raids the speeder shop on Ingo and captures Thall, Kea and the droids, Tig reveals that he has kidnapped Jord and Demma, refusing to release them unless Thall reveals the location of the Trigon One. Thall does so, but the group is imprisoned with Jord—until the droids outsmart the guard. When Tig pilots the space weapon back to the base of his father, Sise, he discovers that its controls have been sabotaged and programmed to crash into the base. Jord goes to commandeer an escape ship while Thall and Kea rescue Demma, and the droids do what they can to help. | ||||||||||||
| 4 | "A Race to the Finish" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder &Steven Wright | September 28, 1985 (1985-09-28) | ||||||||
The team goes to Boonta to take part in a speeder race, but is pursued by the Fromm gang and forced to crash land. Sise hires Boba Fett to help exact his revenge, despiteJabba the Hutt having placed a bounty on the crimelord. Tig plants athermal detonator on theWhite Witch, and Fett chases Thall into the race. In the melee, the explosive is used to destroy Fett's speeder. The despondent bounty hunter rounds up the Fromms to take to Jabba. Thall, Jord and Kea are offered careers with a speeder corporation, but refuse when they realize that R2-D2 andC-3PO would have to be reprogrammed. The droids leave their masters so they can take the job. | ||||||||||||
| Mon Julpa | ||||||||||||
| 5 | "The Lost Prince" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | October 5, 1985 (1985-10-05) | ||||||||
C-3PO, R2-D2, and their new master, Jann Tosh, befriend a mysterious alien disguised as a droid. Captured by crimelord Kleb Zellock, they are forced to mineNergon-14, a valuable unstable mineral used inproton torpedoes, which Zellock plans to sell to the Empire. In the mines they meet Sollag, who identifies their friend as Mon Julpa, Prince of the Tammuz-an. Together they defeat the crimelord and escape the mines before they are destroyed in aNergon-14 explosion. | ||||||||||||
| 6 | "The New King" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | October 12, 1985 (1985-10-12) | ||||||||
The droids, Jann, Mon Julpa, and Sollag, along with freighter pilot Jessica Meade, travel to Tammuz-an to thwart Ko Zatec-Cha, an evil vizier with ambitions to seize the throne of the planet Tammuz-an. To achieve his sinister plans, Zatec-Cha hires bounty hunterIG-88 to capture Mon Julpa and his royal scepter, but the heroes manage to recover it, and Mon Julpa is made king of Tammuz-an. | ||||||||||||
| 7 | "The Pirates of Tarnoonga" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | October 19, 1985 (1985-10-19) | ||||||||
While delivering fuel to Tammuz-an, Jann, Jessica, and the droids are captured by the pirate Kybo Ren-Cha. Aboard his stolenStar Destroyer, Kybo Ren takes them to the water planet Tarnoonga. After the heroes escape a giant sea monster, Jann and the droids distract the pirates by going after a decoy while Jessica recaptures the real fuel. After Jann and the droids escape, Mon Julpa sends forces to capture Ren. | ||||||||||||
| 8 | "The Revenge of Kybo Ren" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Peter Sauder | October 26, 1985 (1985-10-26) | ||||||||
Kybo Ren is freed and he kidnaps Gerin, the daughter of Lord Toda, Mon Julpa's political rival. The droids, Jann, and Jessica go to the planet Bogden to rescue Gerin before Mon Julpa is handed over as ransom. Ren's men arrive with Julpa, but Lord Toda and a squad of Tammuz-an soldiers have smuggled aboard Ren's own ship. Ren is sent back to prison and an alliance is forged between Julpa and Toda. Jessica decides to return to her freighter business and says goodbye to her friends. | ||||||||||||
| 9 | "Coby and the Starhunters" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Joe Johnston & Peter Sauder | November 2, 1985 (1985-11-02) | ||||||||
C-3PO and R2-D2 are assigned to chaperone Lord Toda's young son, Coby, only to be captured by smugglers. They are eventually rescued by Jann, only for the droids to learn that he has been accepted into the Imperial Space Academy, leaving them once again masterless and on their own. | ||||||||||||
| The Adventures of Mungo Baobab | ||||||||||||
| 10 | "Tail of the Roon Comets" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Story by :Ben Burtt Teleplay by :Michael Reaves | November 9, 1985 (1985-11-09) | ||||||||
Mungo Baobab, with R2-D2 and C-3PO in tow, begins searching for the powerful Roonstones, but runs into an Imperial entanglement. | ||||||||||||
| 11 | "The Roon Games" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Story by : Ben Burtt Teleplay by : Gordon Kent & Peter Sauder | November 16, 1985 (1985-11-16) | ||||||||
Having escaped, Mungo, C-3PO and R2-D2 once again make their way for the planet Roon, but it turns out that they have not seen the last of General Koong, ade facto governor desperate to win the support of the Empire. | ||||||||||||
| 12 | "Across the Roon Sea" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Story by : Ben Burtt Teleplay by : Sharman DiVono | November 23, 1985 (1985-11-23) | ||||||||
Mungo has just about given up hope on finding Roonstones, and accompanied by the droids, is about to return to his home planet, Manda. | ||||||||||||
| 13 | "The Frozen Citadel" | Ken Stephenson & Raymond Jafelice | Story by : Ben Burtt Teleplay by :Paul Dini | November 30, 1985 (1985-11-30) | ||||||||
Mungo and the droids continue their search for the Roonstones, but Koong makes trouble for them. | ||||||||||||
| Hour-long special | ||||||||||||
| SP | "The Great Heep" | Clive A. Smith | Ben Burtt | June 7, 1986 (1986-06-07) | ||||||||
C-3PO and R2-D2 travel to Biitu with their new master, Mungo Baobab, and confront an Abominor-class droid named the Great Heep, which builds onto itself from the remains of other droids. | ||||||||||||
In 1985,Kenner produced a toy line based on the series, includingaction figures, ship models, and other items. Two action figures, Boba Fett andA-wing Pilot, were repackaged figures from the mainStar Wars line.[7] The toy line was canceled after the first group of 12 figures[7] due to decreasing popularity withStar Wars. In 1987 and then 1988, Glasslite of Brazil issued remaining Kenner stock and produced a very limited run of remainingReturn of the Jedi andDroids toys from a sell off. Certain vehicles, mini-rigs and action figures were issued by the company in new packaging. The character Vlix (Tig Fromm's henchman) was an action figure exclusive from unused molds by Kenner. Like the remainder of the Glasslite line, very few were made, even less were sold and most were recycled due to the failing economy when money was tight across the country.[11] Vlix was the most valuableStar Wars action figure (at about $6,000 carded or $1,200 loose),[7] until a Fett figure sold for £69,000 ($USD 92,000) at an auction.[12]
Between 1985 and 1987, a number of episodes were adapted into children's storybooks.[13]
A computer game was released in 1988 for theZX Spectrum,Amstrad CPC andCommodore 64 byMastertronic.[14]
In 2021, for Lucasfilm's 50th anniversary,Hasbro released aTarget-exclusive line of action figures based on the series, featuring the titular droid duo and Boba Fett. Fett was also released as a largerBlack Series figure.[15]
In 1986,Marvel'sStar Comicsimprint published aStar Wars: Droids comic series spun off from the cartoon. Thebi-monthly series ran for eight issues.[7] Four issues and issue 5's cover of the series were drawn byJohn Romita, Sr. The "Lost in Time" crossover story fromDroids #4 was continued in an issue ofEwoks.[7][16] The last three issues are part of an arc recounting the originalStar Wars film from the droids' point of view. Additionally, Spanish comics publisher Editorial Gepsa produced two-pageDroids comics as part of an anthology series.[17]
OtherStar Wars comics subtitledDroids have featured C-3PO and R2-D2, but not in direct connection with the series.
Almost all episodes of the series (except "Coby and the Starhunters") were released onVHS in the 1980s and 1990s, most notably the UK PAL releases over four cassettes (Droids 1–3 andThe Great Heep), which had the opening sequences and credits edited out. In 1996,Rick McCallum producedThe Pirates and the Prince, adirect-to-video film compiled from four episodes.[18] In late 2004, McCallum and Lucasfilm produced a DVD titledStar Wars: Animated Adventures – Droids, which featuredThe Pirates and the Prince andTreasure of the Hidden Planet, a new compilation film including narration from Mungo Baobab (voiced byAlex Lindsay). This was released by 20th Century Fox in 2005. Both titles included some soundtrack changes.
On April 2, 2021, it was announced that the entire series would be released onDisney+ later in 2021.[19] All 13 episodes, along with the special, were added on June 18, 2021.[20]
According to David Perlmutter, compared withEwoks,Droids "was rudimentary, with short enough story lines for as many as four narratives in a single episode. Obviously, neither Lucas nor the animation studio had enough faith in the characters to trust them as anything other than second bananas."[21]SyFy Wire writes that "Droids struggles to find a way to make the duo's live-action antics as entertaining on the small screen as they are on the silver one; the show tries to serve up a very, very kid-friendly take on that galaxy far, far away and it doesn't always hit the mark."[22]ComicBook.com calls it a "must-watch".[23]
Ben Burtt wrote liner notes for theShadows of the Empire soundtrack, which referenced the Roonstones he had written about inDroids;[24] Burtt made a cameo appearance inEpisode I – The Phantom Menace, and named his character after the Baobabs. Several references to the animated series are made in the prequels, such as the Boonta Eve Classic inThe Phantom Menace, the planet Bogden and a four-armed cook inAttack of the Clones, andGeneral Grievous' wheel bike design inRevenge of the Sith.[25]
Genndy Tartakovsky gave C-3PO moving, expressive eyes inClone Wars (2003) to pay homage to his previous animated appearances in Nelvana'sStar Wars Holiday Special (1978) andDroids.[26] WhileDroids was excluded in the 2014 rebranding ofStar Wars canon,[27] recurring villain Admiral Screed—whomA Guide to the Star Wars Universe describes as "theEmperor's right-hand man during the early days of the Empire"[28]—makes appearances in canon novels such asTarkin (2014) andAftermath: Life Debt (2016). Additionally, possible sources of inspiration forsequel trilogy main charactersRey andKylo Ren have been noticed.[29][4][30]
