Book licensees from several countries would publish a myriad of Droids and Ewoks titles, ranging from storybooks to pop-ups. France, Spain, and the U.K. all made offerings to the coloring book market, with an American publisher mysteriously missing from the lot. Random House in the U.S. managed to put out a generous selection of young reader books, which are somewhat scarce but generally still affordable. Spain printed a series of four pop-ups each for Droids and Ewoks, which would be the last mechanical Star Wars books to be printed for over a decade.
Following action figures and books, the array of products made available from the few domestic and international licensees becomes more categorically scattered, and consequently, more interesting. U.S. manufacturers produced no less than seven different belts depicting the Ewoks or Droids, with Artoo and Threepio making their third appearance in cast brass on The Leather Shop's quality examples.
Bradley Time released a single Droids digital watch, capping off an extensive line of Star Wars timepieces originating almost a decade earlier. Spectra Star designed an 80-inch Droids streamer kite for weekends at the park, while Droids lunchboxes by Thermos could be spotted on school-day playgrounds. After school hours could be filled reading Droids or Ewoks comics published by Marvel, which ended their short-lived runs at #8 and #14 respectively. Droids and Ewoks merchandising unfortunately met a short end in the U.S., but would find extended life in a country far, far away.
As it happens, Spain would produce the most varied array of products depicting the Droids and Ewoks likenesses, leaving many fans wondering why some of the product lines were not adopted domestically. For example, board games seem a natural choice for installing into the U.S. marketplace, since, afterall, Kenner's first offering in 1977 was its Escape from Death Star board game. But, alas, it was not meant to be -- Spain would manufacture the only Droids/Ewoks board game to reach consumers, although the game board would be distinctly rendered in the Ewoks style with Droids character game pieces.
Continuing the gaming trend, Heraclio Fournier released a wonderful Droids/Ewoks card game which consists of 33 cards depicting different images of characters on each. Though the game rules may not be fully understood by collectors, the myriad of series artwork represented in the set is enough to give them high collector's appeal.
A pair of costumes manufactured by Josman of C-3PO and Wicket are extremely rare, and have a markedly superior quality than comparable children's costumes sold concurrently in the U.S. The boxes these were marketed in are also much larger than those released domestically, lending a grand presence to these highly sought-after collectibles.
Although Kenner in the U.S. released an extensive line of plush Ewoks shortly after their debut in Return of the Jedi, the only examples distinctly designed after the animated characters were those made by Quiron, which are relatively large and include plastic facial features.
Rounding out the assortment of items unique to the Spanish market are various jigsaw and block puzzles ("rompecabezas"), a set of figural key chains, a tin bank, a video game cartridge, and an extensive array of various food-related premiums and prizes. Obscure items like these continue to be uncovered from Spain and its European neighbors, fueling speculation among collectors as to the extent of international Droids and Ewoks merchandising.
The legacy of the Droids and Ewoks animated series has survived over two decades on video, which found distribution in the U.S., France, Germany, Japan, and the U.K. France made a noteworthy submission to the collectibles market with a press kit package containing a nice assortment of related items, including an exclusive Ewoks watch. The U.S. market received an abridged edition of the Droids and Ewoks series, offering a handful of episodes from each on two separate cassettes. Later, several episodes were released on DVD as well.
The upcoming Clone Wars series is sure to provide collectors with a slew of worthy pieces to add to their collections, just as the 2D Clone Wars "microseries" released a few years ago gave Star Wars animation fans a renewed enthusiasm for this field of Star Wars collecting. For collectors who might be reluctant to start into a line of merchandise with a look so unique to the hobby, they would be well advised that all collections can occasionally benefit from a little fine-tooning.
