Wicket the Ewok - Star Wars - Return of the Jedi - Doodlewash
By Charlie

Little Ewoks

Written by Charlie O'Shields

Since I mentioned yesterday I am a huge Star Wars fan, I thought today I’d try to doodlewash an Ewok. For anyone unfamiliar, these little guys were all the rage in the 80’s after first appearing in Return of Jedi in 1983. They even got two made-for-TV movies and an animated television series. So many of the Star Wars creatures that weren’t droids were kind of weird and sort of ugly, so having a bunch of tiny primitive teddy bears appear was a welcome surprise when I was a kid.

The original Star Wars movies came out at a perfect time for me as I was between the ages of 6-12 when they hit the theaters. It was pretty magical to grow up with such an amazing universe of characters, not to mention all the fun toys that came with it. The little figure shown here is called Wicket and he was supposed to be played by the same actor who was inside R2-D2, Kenny Baker. Unfortunately, Kenny became ill during the shoot and the role went to another actor.

George Lucas wanted a tribe of primitive creatures who could take down Empire forces even without sophisticated technology. A lot of fans didn’t like the “fluffy fighting bears” and thought these creatures were a mistake. No doubt, these fans must have had the unfortunate timing of already being in high school or college by the time the last movie was released. Because anyone who wasn’t a teenager immediately loved these little guys, myself included. They were adorable little bundles of fur who could really kick some ass!

I remember when Star Wars first came out and seeing it in a drive-in theater for the first time. I, of course, wasn’t allowed to drive a car back then, but I did have a much older sister who actually let me tag along on her date. I was hooked the moment the music started and have remained a fan ever since. When I went to see the latest installment, I was equally excited, though it just wasn’t the same. Now I see dads in Target telling their little boys about the figures they had, and moms buying more Star Wars merchandise for their husbands than their kids. But there’s still a new crop of kids eager to grab a light saber and join in the fun.

But for me, I’ll always miss those little furry Ewoks and their amazing treehouse village. Everything about their world seemed simpler than ours, and yet they seemed so happy. Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to live that way, but I imagine it would be terrifying simply to lose a Wi-Fi connection at this point, much less a smartphone. At least I can enjoy the wonderful memories of days spent imagining life in the trees with the coolest little furballs from a galaxy far, far away.

About the Doodlewash

M. Graham watercolors: Burnt Sienna, Quinacridone Gold, Ultramarine Blue, Pyrrol Red, Azo Yellow, Azo Orange and Neutral Tint. Lamy Safari Al Star pen with Platinum Carbon black ink and second pen with Platinum Carbon sepia ink in a 5″ x 8″ 140 lb. (300 gsm) Pentalic Aqua Journal

 

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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57 thoughts on “Little Ewoks”

  1. Wow! This is a FANTASTIC doodlewash Charlie! I’m impressed with all your details! 👍🌟🎨 I wasn’t much of a Star Wars fan for some reason that I cannot remember now. But I do enjoy your little Ewok! 😄

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  2. I’m a Star Wars fan myself and my 14 year old son developed a love for it as well as he watched the older movies growing up. It was so fun to go see the new film with him – I loved it. As it happens, we were doing some “organizing” in his room yesterday and came across a stuffed animal Wicket, which looks exactly as you picture here. I asked him if he needed to keep it, and of course the answer was “yes”!

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  4. Fantastic Ewok! You are now a master of textures!! I loved them. Even though they looked fluffy and cute, they were fierce fighters! I loved that scene in the forest where Luke and Leia along with the Ewoks were zipping through the forest fighting the storm troopers.

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  6. Dare I admit I am not a Star Wars fan? Will you still love me? I still, however, am BLOWN away by this ewok doodlewash! Seriously, Charlie….. how do you even live with yourself with so much talent?!

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  8. Well, glancing at the comments above, at least I’m not the only one that has let Star Wars drift by. However, if I’d been told there were characters in it as cute and fun as this, my childhood might have been very, very different! Again… the fur you’ve achieved is utterly, utterly ridiculous. The Force, whatever it is, is clearly with you, Charles 😉

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  13. I can always count on you for the Star Wars deep love! Its so cool that it had such an impact on you. I loved the first few movies and then lost interest, probably an age thing…and storyline but I’m back on track, big fan! Love your Ewok Charlie!

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  15. I must say you have totally nailed the Ewok…both in physical look and also that expression that they often have on their faces (sort of a cross between a grin and a grimace…LOL!). Return of the Jedi was the one SW movie I never watched. I sat through 1o minutes of that SW Christmas special featuring singing…well, everyone who could talk. Creepiest thing ever…and I hadn’t had a yearning to watch RotJ since. 😀 But you’re right…I was probably in university by the time the movie came out and it didn’t hold the magic for me that ANH did. That said, I was a huge fan of Transformers. When that movie came out in 1986, I went to watch it with my sister. We asked for 2 adult tickets and the gal at the counter got up and looked around to make sure we weren’t sneaking in little kids because no other adult there was there willingly without taking kids. Hahaha!

    Anyway, all that to say, love your Ewok, Charlie, even if I don’t actually like Ewoks! LOL! <3 😉

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    1. Lol! Glad you liked my version of the thing you don’t really like! You crack me up! ❤️😃 Yeah…I think I was just at that magic age so catch all three movies. I never really watched Transformers though. But now you make me wish I had! Philippe and I both love kids movies. We don’t miss a single Pixar flick. 😊

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      1. Toy Story and A Bug’s Life are two of our favorite Pixar movies (well, all of the Toy Story movies). We don’t so much like kids movies as we like cartoons/animated shows and movies. 🙂 You are Philippe are just too adorable! <3

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          1. We only watch things on Netflix anymore because I can’t stand theaters…no matter how many layers I wear, I still freeze to death. And then, 1/3 of the way into the movie, I always have to hit the bathroom. Oy vey. LOL!!

      1. Of course, excellent work, as usual…goes without sayin’, although I will…say it, i.e. 🙂
        PS: I watch one of the plethora of U.S. programs on our new lifestyle channels, called House Hunters and House Hunters International, Sale of Two Cities and so on. They covered Kansas City recently, which was nice to see what the place looks like.It seems it is called the city of fountains as there are around 110 of them, and also has the most boulevards outside of Paris! No wonder Philippe likes the town! Maybe you could draw us a fountain or two or stretch of boulevard mit cafes?! That would be nice, but nothing too difficult for you, just impressions. 😀

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        1. Awww I did a month long tour of Kansas City back in September. (It’s under my project galleries link) I didn’t do a boulevard and was only brave enough to paint one fountain at the time. Hehe. I’m sure I’ll do more in the future once the weather gets nice again and I’m not indoors all the time. 😊 I wish I had time to paint and sketch more, but it’s getting tough lately so I can barely do the single one for the monthly theme. I used to be able to sneak in an extra one or two! Hehe

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          1. Yes, I started visiting your blog during your Kansas City series of doodles, ‘tho I must admit I don’t recall seeing a fountain…I guess I missed that one! Time and starting off with a bang can often not be kept up, that’s for sure! I do enjoy your work and am hoping that, possibly one of the other thoughts you may have for 2016, is to find an art gallery willing to show your doodlewashes, for real! So that you can sell some to real people! Like that idea?! <3

          2. Hehe…I’ve sold a few prints, but since they’re really just pages out of a sketchbook, I can’t really do framed originals. If I ever find any little bit of time I might try to grab for a full sheet of Arches paper and have a go, but I have had more than an hour a day to paint in weeks! Only my early France series was on single sheets of paper! But thanks for thinking they’d be of interest to a gallery! I hadn’t really considered it. 😊

          3. Yes, you could do a Toys series…and you have a scanner, haven’t you? Who said anything about originals only. Limited editions of five or ten. Take your sketchbooks to some galleries in KC, and just see what they say! Initiative, and just having a go, is all it takes, Charlie. 🙂

          5. Well, Charlie, it’s only an idea! I’m sure if you really were keen, you’d be more proactive, right?! 😀
            PS: I’m curius. What does a Packaging Specialist do?

  17. OMG, I love Wicket!! I wanted to live with the Ewoks when I was little. I was only 4 when Return of the Jedi came out, but remember growing up with the Ewok movies/tv shows. Fantastic painting. It’s been so fun seeing all of these nostalgic items as you paint them. Keep ’em coming, Charlie!

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