Malani the Warrior

"Malani the Warrior" is the twenty-second and final episode of the second season of Ewoks. Written by Stephen Langford and directed by Dale Schott, the episode originally aired on ABC on December 13, 1986.
==Plot summary==
===Coveting the Sunstar===
The episode opens with Chief Chirpa and Master Logray releasing energy from the Sunstar to mark the start of the Ewok Warrior Games. Watching from the forest, the elephantine beings Bothel and Trud covet the Ewoks' Sunstar, hoping to use its powers to reshape the Forest Moon of Endor into a muddy paradise. Trud wonders how they are going to get the Sunstar. Bothel says they will steal it.
During one of the game events, Chirita wrestles with Weechee Warrick, causing him to fall into the mud. A smitten Wicket awards her with a garland. Latara teases Wicket about his feelings for Chirita. Wicket claims that she is just a great warrior. Teebo's younger brother Malani arrives with a basket of sunberries that she has harvested especially for him. Wicket says that he will share some with Chirita. Believing that Wicket likes warrior girls, Malani aspires to be one too.
===Malani's aspirations===
Meanwhile, Bothel and Trud take the opportunity to sneak into Bright Tree Village and steal the Sunstar. They hide when they hear Malani approaching. Malani calls out to her older brother Teebo but he is embarrassed. She blackmails him by warning that she will tell their mother that he wrecked her favorite hood in his last lizard experiment. Teebo obliges and climbs onto a high branch per Malani's instruction. Malani hopes to convince Wicket that she is a warrior girl by saving Teebo.
While Wicket is walking with Chirita, they hear Teebo calling for help. As Wicket and Chirita approach, Malani tries to "save" Teebo by swinging her lasso towards him but she keeps missing. She loses her grip and lands on top of a branch before getting her scarf caught on another. As she cries for help, Teebo tries to reach her but slips and falls off the tree. Wicket catches in time. Malani dangles with her scarf above a three-headed snake.
Her scarf breaks but Chirita rescues her with a lasso. The snake approaches but Chirita chases it away with her stick, prompting it to flee into the same trunk where Bothel and Trud are hiding. The two thieves fleet. Chirita asks if Malani is okay. An impressed Teebo tells Malani about an earlier rescuer but Chirita is not interested. Distraught that her plan to convince Wicket that she is a warrior failed, an upset Malani runs into the woods crying.
===Stealing the Sunstar===
Overhearing Malani's sobs, Bothel tells Trud that the little Ewok is their key to getting the Sunstar. While Malani sobs in the woods, Bothel and Trud meet her, claiming to be good fairies who have the power to make her a great warrior. They convince her to let her steal the Sunstar so that she can return it and impress Wicket.
Malani enters Master Logray's hut and retrieves the Sunstar. In the process, she drops the artifact. Malani has second thoughts but thinks she is doing it for Wicket. Meanwhile, Wicket tells his friends about hoping to go for a canoe ride with Chirita. Latara is skeptical since she thinks that Chirita regards him as a wokling. Malani runs past them while hiding the Sunstar. Teebo is concerned that his little sister will pull another warrior stunt.
Malani passes the Sunstar to Bothel and Trud, who are hiding in a muddy swamp. She asks when she will save it. Bothel then reveals he and his accomplice's true colors. Malani tries to stop them by clutching to Bothel's tail but Trud captures her. Bothel says they have to get out before someone hears them. Bothel uses the Sunstar to turn a log into a flying object. Malani clings on to dear life. Wicket and the others catch up as the two thieves race through the forest with Malani and the Sunstar.
===The rescue===
Reaching a secluded part of the forest. Bothel and Trud use the Sunstar's powers to transform their surroundings into mud. Wicket asks why Malani is trying to stop those "lurdos." Kneesaa thinks that Malani is trying to impress Wicket due to her crush on him. Teebo explains that Wicket ignored her just as Chirita ignores him and Latara ignores Teebo. Latara agrees while Wicket expresses regret.
Approaching a forest of mushrooms, they discover that the thieves have summoned a sea of mud, which engulfs the forest. The four Ewoks climb up a mushroom where Kneesaa spots Bothel and Trud dancing with the Sunstar. Malani is standing on a rock. Wicket comes up with a plan and tells Teebo to call over the raichlings. Teebo convinces the snail-like creatures to give the Ewoks a ride. Wicket tells his friends that he and Teebo will get the Sunstar while Kneesaa and Latara distract the thieves.
Seeing her friends circling by, Malani is encouraged and jumps on top of Bothel, covering his eyes. The raichling splatters mud over Trud, allowing Wicket and Teebo to grab the Sunstar. Trud tries to recover it but Wicket and Teebo recover it. Wicket uses the Sunstar's powers to turn the mud to solid ground, trapping the two thieves. Wicket thanks Teebo for his efforts. The five Ewoks leave on their raichling steeds.
===Malani and Wicket===
Back at the village, Malani serves out her punishment of carrying wood for three moons. Out of kindness, her big brother Teebo opts to help her serve her sentence. Teebo hopes that she learns not to steal the Sunstar again while Latara learns that she does not need to change herself to please someone else. Malani still fancies Wicket.
Meanwhile, Wicket invites Chirita for a canoe ride but Chirita reveals that she is already in a relationship with his older brother Weechee. She hopes that some other wokling will go with him. Taking pity on her, Wicket invites Malani for a short boat ride.
==Credits==
==Appearances==
==Sources==
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==Notes and references==
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