Star Words: Episode VI, Part 22

[matril]

After Han's little blunder, there follows a thrilling speeder chase. It's quite fascinating to learn the behind-the-scenes tricks that make this sequence look so convincing, though of course SFX aren't the subject of this series. Leia and Luke pursue the forest troopers, split up and defeat their enemies in various ways, and Leia ends up falling and getting knocked out.

She is awoken by a spear-bearing creature who would be quite terrifying...if he were three times bigger. It's comical, yes, but once Leia gets her bearings, her diplomatic instincts kick in. She doesn't fight him, even though her size would probably be enough to overpower an armed Ewok. She doesn't get angry, more just resigned that she's stuck in the forest with no idea how to rejoin the Rebels. And then she realizes this little guy could be an ally.

It's a simple exchange, but watch how deftly Leia navigates this encounter. She attempts to reassure him that she's not a threat. When his distrust, plus the language barrier, keep him anxious, she turns to something universal to all cultures -- food. She takes a bite herself and offers it to him. That gesture makes a huge difference. He's already beginning to warm up to her when she takes off her helmet and sends him into a frenzy again, so she gently explains its innocuous purpose. Then she muses:

"You're a jittery little thing, aren't you?"

Let's imagine the situation on Endor's moon. Perhaps it's been a year or so since strange monstrous birds descended from the sky, bringing faceless giants who tore down sections of the forest to build their towering shiny huts. If any Ewok ventured close, they would have been struck by deadly fire-weapons. Quickly they would have learned to keep out of sight, and dread any sign of a faceless giant approaching. Their hunting patterns would have been disrupted; all their trails and familiar paths would have to be rearranged. The lesson is clear. They cannot trust any giants.

Leia and the Rebels have their work cut out for them, if they want the Ewoks' help. But what a miracle it must seem, when these new giants actually show them kindness and peace. To show compassion rather than dismissing them as savage little nuisances, sweeping them aside like vermin. No wonder, once they're allied, the Ewoks fight so fiercely.

I'm not one of those detractors who think they were just invented to be cute teddy bear merchandise. They're a wonderful symbol of the power of defending your home and your way of life over cold, heartless imperialism. And that all begins with Leia's crucial first encounter.

Next, an interlude with the Sith....

Comments

[krpalmer]

I did have to turn to my own copy of the script to get a better sense of Leia already thinking Wicket might be an ally (and then have to admit remembering certain smugly barbed comments from others about "the Rebels getting the Ewoks to sacrifice themselves," to say nothing of the learned proclamations the Death Star's glowing vapour would fall on the forest moon after exploding and sear its surface). So far as "invented to be merchandise" goes, there was a comment in the "Making of Return of the Jedi" book published for its thirtieth anniversary about preproduction having trouble with "small, furry beings" when it was decided to just "lean into the cuteness," if also an unfortunate amount of insinuations most people in the production were already disdainful of the Ewoks ever afterwards. The online unpleasantness a decade afterwards didn't appeal to me at all (to say nothing of what targets it fixed on afterwards), but I'll admit to liking in the 1990s how the Return of the Jedi novelization developed the characters of the Ewoks (even if nowadays I'm not so enthused over how it seemed to have "Vader's return to the good side" come out of just about nowhere).