Not The Clore Wars, Droids and Ewoks Marked Star Wars’ Franchise’s First Venture Into Television

Today, Star Wars is as synonymous with television as it is with blockbuster theatrical releases. Disney+ series such as The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and Andor have turned the franchise into a major streaming staple, while theatrical releases remain a central part of Lucasfilm and Disney's long-term strategy.

For many fans, the franchise's television legacy began with the debut of Star Wars: The Clone Wars in 2008. Unlike the earlier 2003-2005 Clone Wars microseries, which consisted of short episodes aired between commercial breaks, The Clone Wars was a fully developed half-hour animated series featuring serialized storytelling and recurring character arcs.

But many don't know that The Clone Wars wasn't the first TV show. Star Wars first arrived on television 23 years earlier. According to Screen Rant, Lucasfilm launched two animated series in 1985 on ABC, Star Wars: Droids and Star Wars: Ewoks, marking the franchise's first dedicated television productions. 

The shows aired on ABC as part of a one-hour programming block called The Ewoks and Droids Adventure Hour. Droids followed the adventures of C-3PO and R2-D2 before the events of A New Hope, chronicling their journeys through a variety of owners and galactic escapades. Ewoks focused on the furry inhabitants of Endor before Return of the Jedi, centering on Wicket W. Warrick and incorporating fantasy-inspired elements such as witches and other magical things.

Although neither series is considered part of Disney's current Star Wars canon, they remain significant milestones in the franchise's evolution. The animated programs represented one of Lucasfilm's earliest efforts to transform Star Wars from a successful film trilogy into a broader multimedia property.

Both series also expanded the universe in ways that had not yet been explored on screen. Droids offered one of the first looks at the lives of C-3PO and R2-D2 before they came into the service of Princess Leia. 

By the end of the series, the pair eventually become associated with Captain Antilles, linking the show to the opening events of A New Hope.

The series also introduced concepts that would later echo throughout the franchise. One episode featured high-speed racing competitions that many fans view as an early creative precursor to the podracing sequences seen in 1999's The Phantom Menace.

Star Wars: Ewoks, meanwhile, explored life on Endor prior to the Galactic Civil War's climactic events. Set before Return of the Jedi, the series depicts the Empire beginning to establish a presence on the forest moon, explaining why the Ewoks are already familiar with Imperial forces by the time Luke, Han, and Leia arrive. 

Rather than simply helping a group of strangers, Ewoks suggests they already had reasons to distrust Imperial activity in their world.