The Cries of the Trees

"The Cries of the Trees" is the first episode in the Star Wars: Ewoks animated television series, and the first episode in season one. Written by Paul Dini and directed by Raymond Jafelice, the episode originally aired on September 7, 1985.

Synopsis
It is a time of drought. Wicket W. Warrick and his friends are in the Happy Grove searching for aura blossoms to use in the upcoming Festival of Hoods. They come across Queen Izrina and a group of Firefolk. Suddenly, a band of rakazzak beasts and Yuzzums attacks. The Ewoks escape, but the Yuzzums capture the Wistie queen. The Yuzzums bring Izrina to Morag, the Tulgah witch.

Back in Bright Tree Village, the young Ewoks do their chores, including bathing Baga the bordok. Paploo approaches them and suggests that they play drop the sack instead.

Back in Morag's lair, Umwak the Dulok shaman, begs Morag for a bug bite cure for the Duloks. She treats him to the spectacle of casting a spell on Izrina to turn the queen into an evil creature who causes anything she touches to catch fire. She releases the queen to infect the other Firefolk with the curse and to burn down the Ewoks' Soul Trees. She then gives the shaman his bug bite cure but tells him that he now owes her a favor.

Meanwhile, Paploo, Wicket, and Teebo play drop the sack in the Happy Grove. They accidentally drop a sack of mud on the matronly Bozzie and then lie about what they were doing. The young Ewoks are sentenced to cleaning duty on the forest floor. As they work, Izrina flies by and sets the area ablaze. Chief Chirpa and some other elders arrive on the scene and put out the fire. They refuse to believe the boys' claims that the Wistie caused the blaze. The trio is sentenced to a night in a detention hut.

That night, the three young Ewoks share the same dream: The Soul Trees are burning and crying out to them for help. The Ewoks rush outside to discover that the forest is, in fact, ablaze. They interrupt the Festival of Hoods to inform the elders, but no one believes them. However, the cursed Izrina appears again and one of the Ewoks douses her in water, ending her curse. She explains the situation to Logray. The shaman and Wicket retrieve Logray's magic foam, which proves to be useful against the blaze and the cursed Wisties. However, the rest of the forest is out of reach for them. Wicket volunteers to fly his Ewok hang glider above the trees to drop more bags of foam. The Wisties offer to lead the airborne Ewoks through the flames safely. Wicket, Kneesaa, and other Ewoks then take to the skies and douse the flames from above. The Soul Trees are saved.

Characters

 * Baga
 * Bozzie
 * Chirpa
 * Izrina
 * Kneesaa
 * Latara
 * Logray
 * Malani
 * Morag
 * Night Spirit
 * Paploo
 * Teebo
 * Umwak
 * Deej Warrick
 * Weechee Warrick
 * Wicket W. Warrick
 * Widdle Warrick

Species

 * Bordok
 * Duloks
 * Ewoks
 * Firefolk
 * Munyas
 * Rakazzak beasts
 * Thunderbats
 * Tulgah
 * Yuzzums

Locations

 * Bright Tree Village
 * Forest Moon of Endor
 * Happy Grove
 * Morag's lair

Vehicles/vessels

 * Ewok catapult
 * Ewok gliders

Other items

 * Aura blossoms
 * Morag's bug bite cure
 * Drop the sack
 * Festival of Hoods
 * Latara's flute
 * Magic foam
 * Paploo's horn
 * Soul Trees
 * Spirit Tree

Behind the scenes

 * This episode was released on DVD in 2004 as part of the The Haunted Village feature film. It can be found on side 2 of the disc.
 * Although this episode is the first chronologically, the DVD places this episode after "The Haunted Village," which is the second episode chronologically.