Since the old board hit 200k I thought it was time for a new board.

Don't think this has been mentioned for awhile...

Rumour has it that Luke, post-Death Star destruction, gets out of his X-Wing back at base and yells "Carrie!" instead of "Leia!" Some insist, however, that he actually just says something like "Hey!" and it got garbled in post-production.

So I listened really hard on my new 'remastered' tape, but can't make out what exactly Mark Hamill is saying...although it definitely does not sound like "Hey!"

Any thots?

I've heard he yells out a name of some friend from Tatooine who didn't go up. He talked to her in a scene on Tatooine that was cut from the movie. Maybe she was just mentioned. I've never seen the scene since it was cut and haven't seen the DVD yet.

Josh... the name you're thinking of is "Cammie". I don't think she gets involved with the rebellion to my knowledge. I imagine that Mark Hammill accidentally did yell out "Carrie" and it got past the editors.

Durning the X-wing battle, Biggs tells Porkins to "eject". Um, how does this work? He ejects and falls to the surface of the DS. Also, how is he supposed to breathe, he doesn't have a TIE-pilot-style helmet. I suspect GL got a little carried away and forgot there wasn't a safe ground below them. Of course, it COULD be something else, like ejecting the cockpit section from the engines, but I dunno...

As for the EV issue, I believe the novels bring out that a Rebel flight suit is equipped with life-support systems. I don't believe the X-Wing cockpits can detach. The pilot and pilot seat eject, as well at the R2, but not the cockpit.

You're right, ejecting was a bad idea, but there could have been support shuttles in the area to pick up ejected pilots, ones we just didn't see.

How could a Rebel flight suit have a life support system when the helmet leaves the face exposed?

I think there's something about personal forcefields in there.

I dunno, guys...basically this whole ejection thing is shaping up as: strap yourself up as best you can into a little bitty pilot chair; remember to activate the forcefields - assuming the controls haven't been shorted out by then; and shoot yourself off into the cold, empty blackness of space with a fierce battle raging all around you!
I'm guessing that this isn't a real popular option, in the Rebel fleet, during altercations.

Well, no sssssssssssssskidding.

It's probably better then getting blown into a spectacular fireball.

Good point. (And I bet it also provides tremendous incentive for the Rebel pilots-in-training to hone their evasive-maneuvering skills!)

HOW CAN EVERYONE be so DUMB?!

When the Falcon is tractored into the landing bay, everyone, including Vader, actually accepts that the Falcon's crew left the ship shortly after it left Mos Eisley.

Hey, this ship dropped out of supralight, maneuvered through the asteroids with deflectors up, then gave chase to a TIE fighter, then tried to pull out of the tractor beam, then gave up and yielded.

Ummm... who did they think programmed this? Is this kind of smarts common in the Empire?

Duhhhhhhh...

That opening line had better be about the Empire, GCapp.

Otherwise, very good point.

First off. I don't know if this has been resolved yet, but at the end (according to my sharp hearing), Luke yells "Hey! Hey!" This is also what's in the script.

Also, a great page that has good SW links: http://www.go2net.com/useless/useless/starwars.html

They also have a similar page on this for just about everything: Star Trek, Chickens, Movies, Pi, etc.

There's another SW bloopers up there. If you want me to link you, here ya go: http://www.helsinki.fi/~terho/bloopers.html

It's been taken offline. He's donating it to some SW page. Maybe we could put it up here. Would someone care to e-mail him? (I can't, because my e-mail has decided to go ghetto on me.)

After R5-D4 explodes and 3PO suggests R2 they cut back to R2, standing right next to him is R5-D4. They then cut back to the Jawas pushing R5 away. How can he be next to R2 and Luke/3PO at the same time?

Perhaps R5 is a Jedi droid.

(No, the idea's not original with me, but it fits here.)

Perhaps R5 is a Jedi droid.

R5-D4: I'm not the droid you want to buy.
Owen: This isn't the droid I want to buy.
R5-D4: You want that R2 unit over there.
Luke: I want that R2 Unit over there.

I'm no-body has ever mentioned here that Luke's light saber prop is made from an old camera flash mount with some windscreen wiper blades & an LED display stuck on. Also most of the guns featured are real-life projectile weapons with a few odds & ends stuck on as well. Some other web sites make a big issure of it. It's as if George Lucas gave the props maker a wodge of cash & asked them to go to the local army surpless sale & pick up a few interesting items & make them look hi-tech.

Well, do you have any better ideas, especially when you're on a shoestring budget?

Perhaps R5 is a Jedi droid.

No! I'm the Jedi Droid around here! There can be only one! (can't there...?)

I thought that was the Highlander droid?

I found at least one nit just rewatching this movie. Has anyone noticed that during the rebel briefing on how to destroy the death star, the simulation picture of the death star is wrong? It shows the dimple that destroys planets as straddling the equator of the station when, in actuality, it is quite a bit above the equator.

Second, in that same simulation, there is an awful lot of nothingness when it zooms in to show where the X-wings have to fly.

Third, those robotic things in the death star that roll around should probably roll nearer the wall- they are in the way of people walking!

Fourth, the Storm Troopers trust droids waaay too much- just look at what C-3PO was able to do when that guard let him out of the room he was guarding.

Fifth, in the shooting scene on the detention block, it looked like they shot out a window more than once. That would defininitely not be a good idea.

Sixth, why does Han talk to the bounty hunter in English but he responds in that other language? Furthermore, why doesn't C-3PO talk to R2D2 in bleeps? Obviously, they both would have to understand the other's language.

Seventh, why do Obi-Wan and Luke have to go to the edge of the cliff to overlook Mos Eisley? It's a good shot, but completely unreasonable to go there and then down.

Eighth, in several shots when Obi-Wan is fighting Darth, Obi-Wan's light saber beam disappears suddenly, then reappears.

Lastly, what is the purpose of having a helmet that completely blocks your vision? That doesn't seem too intelligent to use if the force isn't strong with you.

That's all I can remember.

Sixth, why does Han talk to the bounty hunter in English but he responds in that other language? Furthermore, why doesn't C-3PO talk to R2D2 in bleeps?

That makes sense in that addressing someone in their own language is frequently seen as a sign of respect and these guys have no respect for each other. They're both saying you're not important enough for me to address you in your own language.

I think those were camera lenses, not windows. Also, in the novels its explained that while some species can understand the languages of others, they lack the ability to speak it. For example, Han understand Wookie, but can't control his voice enough to make the growls. Chewie can understand whatever language it is that Han speaks, but doesn't have the ability to make the sounds necessary to speak it.

Lastly, what is the purpose of having a helmet that completely blocks your vision? That doesn't seem too intelligent to use if the force isn't strong with you.

The helmet Luke used while practicing against the remote? If I recall correctly, it was just a helmet that had a visor that flipped down when needed. It didn't block your vision all the time. I have seen in fiction similar devices---I believe the helmets on Star Blazers had a similar visor to shield the eyes of the crew when they fired the big gun, and the movie By Dawn's Early Light shows B-52s with heavy lead shields that the crew could run over the windows after dropping nuclear weapons so the flash wouldn't blind them.

The helmet had its "blast shield down"

Anakin Skywalker or Bail Organa?

In Leia's message she says, "General Kenobi...years ago you served with MY FATHER in the Clone Wars...."

She goes on about HER FATHER wanting Kenobi to assist in stopping the Empire and tells about the plans in R2's memory bank.

Another betrayal by Vader or was she referring to Bail Organa?

She goes on about HER FATHER wanting Kenobi to assist in stopping the Empire and tells about the plans in R2's memory bank.

Another betrayal by Vader or was she referring to Bail Organa?

Seeing as she has Bail Organa's family name she would call him her father, biological or not.

Yeah...and given that Kenobi immediately sets out for Alderaan, it's pretty obvious who Leia has in mind.

I don't think these have been posted yet, so I'll mention them now. These all appear in the original version; I don't have the special edition.

At least three times during the movie, you can see the actor's eye through the eye lenses in the Darth Vader mask. The first time is when he says, "Her resistance to the mind probe ..." The second is when he says, "They have just made the jump into hyperspace" (before Tarkin asks him about the homing beacon). The third time is in the final battle, when he says, "Let him go, stay on the leader."

When the stormtroopers arrive at the cell block, they blast open the door from the elevator. Watch the stormtrooper in the elevator. He points his gun as if shooting, but no shots are fired. (Maybe his gun needs to be recharged? This may explain why they can't hit anything. Their blasters are always running out of power!)

Princess Leia must be stronger than she looks. Several times in the trash compactor, she grabs a heavy metal bar, and it collapses in her grip! That same metal bar resumes its normal shape at the end of the scene.

After Ben Kenobi is killed, and Luke is shooting at the stormtroopers, watch R2 as he goes into the Millennium Falcon. He goes up the ramp twice!
(This is hard to see if you don't have the wide screen edition.)

Not only are the Storm Troopers lousy shots, it does not take-much to kill them. One shot is all you need. So what's the armor for? Decor?
Even Princess Leia survives a shot in the arm in Return of the Jedi.

In the cantina, after Han says "Someone's taken an interest in your handywork," Obi Wan and Luke look behind them to see stormtroopers scouring the joint. The stormtroopers walk over to the table about two seconds later, Obi Wan and Luke are nowhere to be seen, Han gives them a surly look, and they move on. So how did Obi Wan and Luke get away so fast? I assume it was by the force, but how? It's as if Obi Wan clouded their minds so they couldn't see him, as if he were the Shadow, or something? Since when could Jedi do that? In any case, why didn't we at least get a word of explanation as to how they got away?

I can't believe it took this long for someone to point that out... (but then I'm one to talk)

About the garbage chute: two things. First of all, it's Leia that shoots the hole. And second, how does she know it's there? Is that where you'd put a garbage chute?
And around the same time, she calls Han 'Fly Boy'. How does she know he's the pilot?
I thought I'd mentioned this before, but I'll mention it again. Leia's hairstyle is a copy, a cheap knock-off! I saw a reprint of a Batman story from the 40's, and there it was - on Barbara Gordon, aka Batgirl!
How can Owen be Luke's uncle? In The Phantom Menace, Annakin has no family. So where does the uncle come from?

Mei, see Episode II. Owen is Annakin's half brother. Annakin's mother married Owen's father.

That's a very rare Batman story you have, Mei. The original Batgirl (Betty Kane) didn't appear until the 1950s & Barbara Gordon didn't appear until the 1960s.

Actually, Owen is Anakin's stepbrother

The scenes set on Tatooine in "The New Hope" were filmed in Tunisia. Its southernmost province (or whatever they call them) is Tataouine. Coincidence?

So, I don't know if anyone's ever thought of this, but I thought I'd throw this out there...

After the Falcon shows back up at the end of the movie and blows Vader's escorts away, why doesn't Vader use the Force to regain control of his fighter?

How do we know he doesn't?

Steve, no it isn't. I believe Lucas named the planet after the film site.

NANJAO - In the X-Files movie, the corn and bee site in Tunisia was in Tatouine.

How do we know he doesn't?Jedi Outcast

Well, maybe he does eventually, but then why didn't he do so immediately. Had he done so he could have still picked off Luke's X-wing before he got his torpedoes away.

Sparrow - as to why Vader didn't pick off Luke before he shedded his load, I think it's because he sensed the Force was strong in Luke and, in an age where untrained Force-sensitive potential Jedi are scarce, he wanted to keep an eye out for him for the future.

Of course, by that time he might have realised Luke was his son.

Even Vader can have his concentration broken for a few seconds. He was surprised. I don't think that even Vader could have regained control fast enough to fire at and vaporize Luke.

I find his lack of concentration disturbing.

Even Vader can have his concentration broken for a few seconds. He was surprised.Josh M

Sure, he may be surprised, but he's still a Jedi. Aren't Jedi supposed to have better reflexes?

Sparrow,

yes, the jedi have enhanced senses, reflexes and so on. But the force isn't a mechanical thing - you turn it on and have force for the next 10 hours, its a living, flowing thing, so you never know how much you need, how much you have to concentrate... In all the movies and books, you can't explain the force linear or directly. The jedis use the force to achieve sth., but they can't do this all the time. Sometimes they can do several difficult things at once, at other times they seem almost empty.

They said Anakin could see things before they happen. Vader certainly didn't see the Falcon coming!

Wait a minute... maybe he did see the Falcon AND the subsequent destruction of the Death Star coming, but chose not to react! After all, as the saying goes, "the ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force" and the Death Star probably didn't matter to him in the grand scheme of things.
What was probably more important to Vader was sensing Luke's power and realising his potential to serve the Dark Side: as the saying almost literally goes, "the car in front is a Toy Yoda..."

They said Anakin could see things before they happen. - Sven

But they didn't say he could see everything before it happens. He's not omniscient. Constanze is right in her explanation.

Vader had 2 interesting lines during the trench run. When he said, "The Force is strong in this one", he appeared to be using the Force to read Luke. During these moments, the Falcon approached from the "space dogfight" and was able to line up for cover fire for Luke. Vader was probably too focused on Luke's presence in the Force to sense the threat the Falcon was posing.

Vader says, "I have you now", just as he locks his weapons on Luke. Did that mean he was going to make a kill shot, or that he just realized through the Force that he located his offspring? It's possible that he was intending to disable Luke's X-wing and to capture Luke.

Hmmmm...

When he said, "The Force is strong in this one", he appeared to be using the Force to read Luke. During these moments
It appeared that he just sensed that the Force was strong with Luke. I guess he would have to use the Force to sense it though.

Personally, I've always believed that he was going to destroy Luke (he appeared to fire enough shots to do the trick).

Maybe after the second fighter collided with his, it was impossible to stabilize his fighter, even with the Force.

Here's a nit:

After Luke & Ben find the destroyed "Jawas-Mobile", Luke says, "If they (the Stormtroopers) traced the ROBOTS...."

Excuse me....ROBOTS? They're DROIDS!

Dammit, Jim, I'm a Droid, not a Robot!

After Luke & Ben find the destroyed "Jawas-Mobile", Luke says, "If they (the Stormtroopers) traced the ROBOTS...."

Excuse me....ROBOTS? They're DROIDS! - John Lang

I don't understand why this is a nit.

ANH was the first Star Wars movie to be released. So if a character refers to Artoo and Threepio as robots, who are we to decide this is incorrect? There's certainly no indication in any of the films that they aren't robots... they're just usually referred to as droids.

While I agree that this may be the only time that droids are referred to as "robots," that makes it an interesting note, not a nit. One can reasonably argue that "robot" is an acceptable (albeit little-used) term in the Star Wars universe. Maybe it's a slang term.

When that Imperial commander referred to Vader's abilities as "sorcerer's ways," is that a nit? I don't think we ever heard that term before or after, either. Or when he talks about "clairvoyance" instead of "reaching through the Force" as we usually refer to it. Is that a nit?

I can come up with countless instances where something is referred to by a synonymous term only one time.

You could talk about "your car" or "your automobile", "your ride", "your vehicle", "your rig". Just because we don't usualy use some fo them doesn't make them wrong.

It appears also that Anakin Skywalker's (aka Darth Vader's) rise to power didn't happen overnight. We know that in episode 3, Anakin becomes Vader.
Apparently, about 20 years have passed after episode 3 ended and Vader is under Gran Moff Tarkin's command. Does this seem right...seeing how Vader is a lord of the Sith?

I didn't notice Vader being under Tarkin's command. Vader's job was to recover the Death Star plans---that was either assigned to him by the Emperor or self-chosen, but that was his job, and Tarkin (reasonably) expected him to do it.

The only time I remember Tarkin giving Vader an order was when Vader was using the Force-choke on one of Tarkin's subordinates. That was reasonable; Vader was not (as far as we can tell) part of the Death Star project; that officer was not under his command, but Tarkin's. Vader may be the Emperor's representative and have status equivalent to that of a high-ranking admiral, but the Death Star project was Tarkin's baby and he could be expected to have control unless there were some good reason for Vader to overrule him (and killing a valuable officer not under Vader's command because he was somewhat insolent does not seem like a good reason).

Well, Leia remarks that Tarkin is "holding Vader's leash."

Tarkin also orders Vader to execute the Princess, if memory serves.

And he also seems to threaten Vader when he allows the Falcon to escape.

I'm also pretty sure that Vader is supposed to be subordinate to Tarkin, albeit outside the Empire's military structure.
The impression I get after several viewings is of an agent - presumably sent by the Emperor - in charge of whatever non-military ops became necessary in the course of building/ensuring the Death Star's security. (Since everything's canon in the Star Wars universe, it's worth noting that the novel Shadows of Empire supports the notion of the Emperor sending Vader off on similar - sometimes even more menial - missions as he sees fit.)
Could it be that Vader had displeased Palpatine to the point where the Emperor decided to put him under the Grand Moff as a way of slapping him down a peg?

And (Tarkin) also seems to threaten Vader when he allows the Falcon to escape.

The impression I was under was that Tarkin was afraid of The Emperor getting PO'd if that trick had failed and both of them would likely be up for execution.

Another curious question...

Can the Death Star travel in hyperspace? Because Vader remarks that the Falcon has jumped into hyperspace when they're headed toward Yavin. The Falcon gets to Yavin, the rebels download the Death Star plans from Artoo, they decode them, plan for the attack, they arrange to pay Han his reward, and the Death Star arrives all in the span of a single day (according to Vader's last bit of dialogue to Tarkin)!

Yes, it can.

If it couldn't, it wouldn't be a very efficient weapon of terror. It would take generations to get from planet to planet.

Well, I never got the impression that the planets and systems in the Star Wars universe were as far apart as in our universe.

The Falcon travels from Hoth to Bespin in a fairly short amount of time without the benefit of light speed (and through the obstacle of an asteroid field, too).

Same goes with Qui-Gon and co.'s trip from Naboo to Tatooine in TPM.

I believe that they did make it into hyperspace in TPM, it's just that they didn't have enough fuel to make the longer trip to Coruscant.

I believe that they did make it into hyperspace in TPM, it's just that they didn't have enough fuel to make the longer trip to Coruscant.

Even so... the Millenium Falcon (which at the time of ANH is considered a fast ship) is said to only travel at light speed. No mention is made of it going faster than that. In our universe, it would still take years to get to the nearest star.

Additionally, in ESB, Admiral Piett remarks that if the Falcon had gone to light speed, it would be on "the other side of the galaxy" by then...

So either the Star Wars galaxy is much smaller in scale than our own galaxy, the physical laws of the Star Wars universe very different from our universe (how else can sound travel in space? ), or their definitions of distance and time are very different from our own (even if the terminology is identical).

Darth the answer to your questions is......YES.

I never got the impression that the Death Star travelled in hyperspace. The idea of an object on that scale traelling through hyperspace is awe-inspiring. But we never saw it entering hyperspace, and I think we would have if it did. If it could use hyperspace, then why would there be the whole "[So many minutes] until the Death Star is in range of the planet" schtick? Every exterior shot of the Death Star shows it crawling along.

Darth "Even so... the Millenium Falcon (which at the time of ANH is considered a fast ship) is said to only travel at light speed. No mention is made of it going faster than that. In our universe, it would still take years to get to the nearest star."

Han Solo: "She'll make .5 past lightspeed, kid."

Luigi "I never got the impression that the Death Star travelled in hyperspace. The idea of an object on that scale traelling through hyperspace is awe-inspiring. But we never saw it entering hyperspace, and I think we would have if it did. If it could use hyperspace, then why would there be the whole "[So many minutes] until the Death Star is in range of the planet" schtick? Every exterior shot of the Death Star shows it crawling along"

I always thought of it that sure, they could have used lightspeed to get them within range of the moon, and they just happened to be blocked by the planet, then "impulse" to maneuver to aim. (As to why they didn't just blow up the planet, then the moon, I dunno.)

The idea of an object on that scale traelling through hyperspace is awe-inspiring. - Luigi

To say the least! Plus, imagine the calculations that have to made for an object the size of a moon to travel through star systems!


Han Solo: "She'll make .5 past lightspeed, kid." - Influx

Forgot that line, Influx. Thanks!

Even so, flying at one and a half times the speed of light isn't fast enough in our universe to get anywhere as quickly as the ships in the Star Wars universe do.

Even so... the Millenium Falcon (which at the time of ANH is considered a fast ship) is said to only travel at light speed. No mention is made of it going faster than that.

Nobody said that .5 past light speed means 1 1/5 times the speed of light. It could be some exponental number or some other for of high order mathmatics.

According to the PC Game "Star Wars: Rebellion", the Death Star CAN go into hyperspace.

Most of the Warsies I debate with in the STvsSW forums have lots of evidence that the SW galaxy (seen at the end of ESB) is at least the size of the Milky Way.

In fact, the Star Wars Insider recently printed a map of the SW galaxy and I believe that it is about 100,000 ly across.

As for Piett's line, my guess is that he was exaggerating. If the Falcon had jumped into Hyperspace, none of the Empire's ships could track it or catch it even if they could. I've always had the impression that the SW ships don't have sensors that can follow ships through Hyperspace and can only track them if they attach homing beacons onto the ships as seen in II and IV.

The .5 bit refers to its hyperdrive rating. According to various reference books, the lower the rating, the faster the ship is. Civilian ships have ratings of three or higher, military ships range between one and two. Smugglers and others with need for speed jury-rig scavenged military grade drives to get ratings below one, but these require a fair bit of maintenance.
As for blowing up the planet, consider that Yavin is a gas giant. All those highly explosive gases being set off would have probably taken out the Death Star too.

According to the books, gravity wells causes ships to exit and prevents them from entering hyperspace. Yavin is a gas giant and therefor has a huge gravity well, which probably forced the Death Star to leave hyperspace a fair distance from the moon and use its regular engines to get within firing range of the moon.

Which then begs the question, just what kind of propulsion system the Death Star has. Every ship (except perhaps the TIE fighters) have been shown to have thrusters in the back. Where are the Death Star's thrusters that allow it to travel at such speeds? Or does it utilize a different kind of propulsion system?

Darth, if you look carefully at the back of a TIE fighter, you'll notice a pair of red dots.
No idea how the Death Star moves about, though.

According to the Guide to Ships and Vehicles, the Death Star has ion drives along the equatorial ring.

As for why it didn't fire at the planet... I obviously have no idea how the lasers in Star Wars work, but maybe the superlaser beam would have had a much more disastrous effect with a gas giant than it would have had from a rock planet. It may be the equivalent of tossing a grenade into a room full of every combustable gas known to man, for all we know.

Just now noticed this. When the squad of stormtroopers leaves the control room, the leader tells the stormtrooper who banged his head to stand guard. When he does this, the door comes to just below the guard's eyes, about half way up the helmet's "nose". When C-3P0 leaves, the door has risen to several inches above the trooper's head, allowing C-3PO to leave without having to duck.

Also, during the trash compactor scene, Leia has her hands on the metal bar they are trying to use to stop the walls, then it cuts to a closer shot, and she has her hands on the trash, well away from the bar. Luke is speaking throughout these two shots, so no time could have elapsed.

I just read this at scifi.com:

"More Star Wars Changes Due?
he Digital Bits Web site is reporting a rumor that George Lucas plans more changes to his original Star Wars trilogy of films. Citing anonymous sources, the site reported that the changes will include new special effects, revised and updated shots and scenes and new footage shot with prequel actors Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker) and Ian McDiarmid (the Emperor) that would flesh out moments with their characters in the original films.

For example, an aged and scarred Hayden will now appear as Anakin at the end of Return of the Jedi, when Luke removes Darth Vader's helmet, the site reported. Among the other rumored changes:
•The original Star Wars movie will restore the moment when Han Solo (Harrison Ford) shoots Greedo first.
•Lucas will revamp the lightsaber fight between Obi-Wan (Alec Guinness) and Vader."

I really hope that it's just a rumor. At least the part about the end of Jedi.

It might be cool if Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor appeared at the celebration at the end of Jedi (in their "ghostly" forms) Of course, Luke might not recognize Ben. But they could have Guinness and Sebastian Shaw appear and then change to the other two.

Are these changes that will be made when the original movies are finally put on DVD? I can only assume Lucas will limit himself to the Special Edition. Well, restoring the Han Solo/Greedo scene sounds like a great idea to me. The others don't strike me as necessary or wanted. But, yeah, I'm all for any change Lucas can make to put the original trilogy back the way it was in it's "not-so-special" form.

I think he should keep the new Battle of Yavin FX though; ground-breaking or not, they needed a lot of help. That, and FINALLY fix the lightsabers (especially when Ben's flickers and you can see the pole they really used).

Another Lightsaber to be redone is Darth Vader's just after killing Obi-Wan, which even in the special edition is just a white stick.

Will Lucasfilms even release the original editions to DVD? Every time they're shown on TV these days it's always the Special Edition. I'm lucky I have the originals on tape, it's the only way I can see them. I'd assume that the DVDs will just be the Special Edition, with the old scenes as specials.

Perhaps they will be 2 sided DVDs...one side will have the original version, and side 2 will have the special edition. (Yeah, right)

I don't remember if Lucas has said anything about releasing the original versions as alternative or not. I know that the special editions will be out one way or another, but that's all I remember.

I'm pretty sure he's said he won't release the original versions... as far as he's concerned, they don't exist.

In fact, the original version of the first film has never been available... it's always been the (1981?) re-release version.

Last I heard, he was planning not to release them. Those ads back in '95 weren't lying. That really was the last time you could buy the original trilogy.

Except, as I said in my previous post... that was, technically speaking, never the original Star Wars.

Darth, what are the differences between the 1981 reissue and the 1977 original? Was it just that "Episode IV: A New Hope" addition to the title scroll?

www.imdb.com has a good list of differnces between the 1977, 1981, and 1997 versions of Ep. IV.

TRIVIA: Mark Hamill did the voice of Corry Anders in the 1970's cartoon "Jeannie & Babu". (Along with "Curly" Joe Besser)

stay on target.....stay on target.....

NOTE: I recently saw an episode of "Gunsmoke" on TV LAND with a VERY YOUNG Harrison Ford in it. Interesting enough, he played a smuggler-like character. (Outlaw)

Last Sunday, A&E ran "Empire of Dreams", the documentary on the Star Wars saga that will be included in the DVD release of the original Star Wars Trilogy. It includes clips of actors auditioning for Star Wars (including Harrison Ford reading lines to the other actors). Commercials for the DVD release stated that this was the most comprehensive documentary on Star Wars. Hardly. The section on The Empire Strikes Back was rather brief. In 1980, CBS ran a special on the making of The Empire Strikes Back that was far more in depth. The same with a 1983 special on Return of the Jedi (I hope both specials will be included on the DVD, although the 1978 Star Wars special with Bea Arthur will most definately not be included). The documentary was fun, but most Star Wars fans were probably already aware of all the facts it presented.

Lastnight, VH-1 ran their Star Wars special "When Star Wars Ruled the World". It was more entertaining than Empire of Dreams. Fortunately, most of the interviewees recalled the trilogy with affection. It wasn't like all those VH-1 "I Like the Eighties" shows where the aim was to only make cynical negative remarks about everything (though, the end did include a "Are Star Wars fans geeks?" bit).

My Sunday paper's review for Tuesday's DVD release mentions that some further digital alterations were made to the films, specifically in the Cantina scene with Greedo. Also in Return of the Jedi, Anakin from Attack of the Clones is pasted into the ending. I could have lived without that one.

Supposedly Han and Greedo shoot simulatenously now. At least, that's the rumor I've heard.

(Along with "Curly" Joe Besser)

Nitpick. Joe Besser and Curly Joe (aka Joe DeRita) are two entirely different Stooges. Besser was only ever referred to as Joe, never Curly Joe, during his brief stint as a Stooge. Then he was replaced by the actual Curly Joe.

In Leia's recorded message, she repeatedly refers to Kenobi as "Obi-Wan."

When Luke shows up in her jail cell on the Death Star, he says he's there with "Ben" Kenobi. She leaves with him unquestionably.

Shouldn't there have been some confusion? She knew him as Obi-Wan, not Ben.

If she knows as much as she already does about him (that he was a General, fought with her father in the Clone Wars and lives on Tatooene) perhaps she knows that he has either taken on the name Ben or was born Ben Kenobi and took Obi-Wan as his Jedi name so some such thing.

Well, he did say he had her R2 unit...

Here's a couple that don't appear to have been taken.
Before the rope swing, when Leia has the gun, it makes a different noise on the close-up camera shots to the long shots (the close-ups sound to me like a gun going off )

Also, what's the layout of the gun turrets on the Falcon, they would appear to be above and below the centre of the main body when Luke and Han take to the ladder to access them, but the external views only show the top turret, never the bottom one, we never see any other part of the ship through the turret windows, and they've both got the guns above the view port (almost as though they're the same gun turret ;)), when a better arrangement would be top above, bottom below.

Finally, there's a nice moment with much bigger repercussions later. When Obi-Wan's telling Luke about his father, he pauses for a second. At that time (1st film etc), Alec Guiness was probably pausing to give the impression Obi-Wan was thinking how much to tell Luke, but with all the later revelations (a certain point of view), it becomes more likely that he's supposed to be thinking exactly what to tell Luke.

Well here is a different point of view of how the turrents could both have the windows below the guns but above the gunners. Since the gravity on the falcon is artificial anyhow you could orient the gravity plane in any direction you needed/wanted it. So the top turret has the gravity plane oriented the same as the rest of the ship but the lower turret has the gravity plane flipped so it looks like they are upside down from the rest of the ship.

When they meet Darth Vader tells Obi-wan that at their last meeting he was the learner. Actually at their last meeting he was a full fledged Jedi Knight. Unless you wanna say Obi-wan took it to him old school.... dog. (rolls eyes)

In Leia's message she says, "General Kenobi...years ago you served with MY FATHER in the Clone Wars...."

She goes on about HER FATHER wanting Kenobi to assist in stopping the Empire and tells about the plans in R2's memory bank.

She was referring to Bail Organa. Considering:
1) Even is she knows Anakin is her real father, she assumes he's dead. She certainly does not know he is Vader.
2) Vader would not beg for help from Kenobi.

A nit:
After the Millenium Falcon escapes from the Death Star and Han and Luke destroy four fighters, there are several scenes of conversation inside the ship's cockpit. The window outside shows a starfield, not the swirling blue of hyperspace, even though they are supposed to have made the jump.

I'm disappointed they didn't recolor Luke's saber its proper blue for the DVD release.

And perhaps the biggest nit of them all:
"Only Imperial stormtroopers are so precise." - Ben Kenobi
At least the sand people can snipe a racing pod from several hundred feet...

I'm disappointed they didn't recolor Luke's saber its proper blue for the DVD release.

I'm even more disappointed that some bugs in the HD conversion (or something anyway) turned the bloody thing GREEN in some scenes! Didn't anyone screen this before approving it for release?

Trivia question:

Who is the only person to EVER refer to R2D2 and C3P0 as "robots"?
(was watching this episode today and discovered this morsel and wondered if it had been explored on this thread, if so then a quick answer should be forthcoming)

It has indeed been explored:

John A. Lang:
Here's a nit:

After Luke & Ben find the destroyed "Jawas-Mobile", Luke says, "If they (the Stormtroopers) traced the ROBOTS...."

Excuse me....ROBOTS? They're DROIDS!

Darth Sarcasm
ANH was the first Star Wars movie to be released. So if a character refers to Artoo and Threepio as robots, who are we to decide this is incorrect? There's certainly no indication in any of the films that they aren't robots... they're just usually referred to as droids.

I noticed that "robots" thing a couple of weeks ago when I was watching my THX tape of the non-SE version of Star Wars. I can't believe I didn't notice that before.

Ask a stoopid question:
If Luke did go off to the Academy, then would he have been serving the Empire?
He mentioned his desire to go the Academy, but Uncle Owen needed him for at least one more harvest.
Later, Luke says that he hates the Empire.
So, who operates the Academy?
It is too well known to be run by the Rebellion.
It might be neutral, but I can't imagine the Empire not having a say in it.

According to the (partly canon, unless where they contradict the movies?) novel, Luke wanted to go to the Imperial Academy, because it was the first starting point to getting out and learning piloting. Besides, he didn't know how to contact his nearest Rebel recruitment officer. I think it's mentioned that Biggs, who left one year earlier, was approached by a Rebel at the academy, and that Biggs and Luke wondered how to know if this was an Imperial trap or a real Rebel.

But Luke doesn't hate the Empire with a passion until Beru and Owen are killed by it. Before, he's just a farmboy on a remote world, cut off from neutral news about what the Empire's doing, so while he may think that some things aren't right, he doesn't know the true extent, and therefore, is undecided.

Thanks for the answer.
By the way, Luke did tell Ben that he hated the Empire after hearing the message from Leia via R2, but before he knew his relatives were KIA.

I belive he may have been trying for some kind of Merchant Marine.

In the novel at least, it was the Imperial Space Navy or Aircraft or similar. Not civilian. (And Han Solo went there, too. Probably it's just the darn best flying/piloting academy in the SW universe*, even if it's run by the Empire...)

* At that time. When the rebellion gets stronger in the later novels, the X-wing novels esp. mention the good training for their pilots, too.

As for Luke saying he hates the Empire... IIRC, he says it in the context of "I hate the Empire just as much as everybody else, but I can't leave now.." Ben counters that he sounds just like his uncle, and Luke responds he will take him as far as Mos Eisley, at least. Doesn't sound like somebody dedicated to overthrowing an evil Empire to me...

You can hate a government without being a revolutionary.

"My country right or wrong" as the bumbper sticker used to say.

Also that famous deleted scenes with Biggs and Luke answers some of that. Biggs has been at "The Acadmey" which is for that imperial millitary and he tells Luke that some people have approached him about joining the Rebellion and that he thinks Luke should too.

It just seemed odd once I realized that the Academy was probably run by the Empire, and Luke hated the Empire as much as anyone, and yet he was willing to join the Academy.
If he was wanting to join the Academy to get in with the Rebels, then that brings another question.
Does the Empire punish the family of those who join the Academy and then drop out & disappear to join the Rebels?

Question: I'm assuming most defectors leave a false paper trail and take other precautions before they do so.

If he was wanting to join the Academy to get in with the Rebels, then that brings another question.
Does the Empire punish the family of those who join the Academy and then drop out & disappear to join the Rebels?

Probably.

I think one of the reasons Luke wanted to join the academy was it was a ticket off of the planet and out there. Any option to leave would be better than staying was the impression I got from him. Even if it meant flying for the empire.

That's certainly possible, you never know.

I wasn't sure where to put this, and I didn't see this mentioned on the boards.
I read that Chewbacca the Wookie was named after a dog owned by Lucas' ex-wife.
So, was the dog named Chewbacca or Wookie??
What kind of dog was it?
I wonder if "Chewbacca" comes from "chewing tobacco"?
Who is his ex-wife, what's she doing now, and what does she think of Star Wars?
Thanks.

I don't remember hearing about where the name Chewbacca came from, but he was inspired by Lucas' dog Indiana.

The word "Wookie" came from an voice-over ad-lib during post-production of THX-1138.

I don't know what Ex Mrs. Lucas is doing nowadays, but her name is/was Marcia (she co-edited ANH), and considering that it was at least partly Lucas' commitment to the original trilogy that ended the marriage I would imagine that she feels a little uneasy to say the least.

I heard on the radio tonight that Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca, just became an American citizen.

Congradulations!

Clarification:
The name 'wookie' came from the voice over ad-lib as mentioned by Jedi Outcast.
The look of Chewbacca was inspired by the dog Indiana.
Check out http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076759/trivia

Now that the prequel trilogy has brought the saga full circle, a couple of questions have floated through my mind concerning ANH.

Upon capturing Leia in the Tattooine system, and knowing that the plans for the Death Star were sent to the surface, I wonder why Vader didn't send a squad to check the Lars' farm until after the jawas squealed? I'd imagine that it would be more than coincidence that Leia would end up at Vader's birthplace.

The Sith were using small recon droids 30 years before this movie. 3 of those recon droids were able to search Mos Espa and locate Qui-Gon Jinn in about a day. So why deploy stormtroopers on dewbacks in the desert? Why not send a dozen of those recon droids in every direction from the location of the escape pod until you find the droids carrying the stolen plans?

Why did Obi-Wan hide under the name "Ben Kenobi"? There was always the potential that Vader might return to this world to wrestle with his demons, so why keep the last name? It opens himself, and Luke, to the threat of discovery.

It seems odd that the Empire would have such a strong hold on Tattooine and its neighboring systems (as evidenced by Han admitting that the Millenium Falcon was boarded by Imperial troops during his last smuggling run), when the system was always outside of the Galactic Republic.

If public knowledge of the Force had eroded in the past 20 years to the point where Imperial officers would mock Vader for his reliance on the ancient ways, why would Vader bring it up at the officer's meeting? Was he just satisfying an itch to choke someone out that day?

What is Vader's rank in the Imperial heirarchy, anyway? ROTS makes it clear that Vader is a close friend of Palpatine and reported directly to him, and that he also maintained a rank of commander/leader of the clone troops. In ESB, Vader clearly commands the Imperial efforts to locate the rebel base and inspires dread in all the Imperial officers in his vicinity. So why do the Imperial officers challenge Vader during the officer's meeting on the Death Star? And why does Tarkin order Vader to release the Force-choke hold on the lippy officer? From this exchange, it would appear that Vader operates outside of the Imperial comand structure and is obliged to carry out the orders of the Grand Moff.

It was brought up earlier that Chewbacca might not have backed Han's belief that the Force is a bunch of hocus-pocus, given that he served by Yoda's side during the Clone Wars. Even if the Wookies felt that they were somehow wronged or abandoned by the Jedi, why would Chewbacca think that the Force was a myth, after seeing Yoda dispatch 2 Clone Troops?

Why did Tarkin believe Obi-Wan Kenobi to be dead? He was alive and victorious over Vader at their last meeting. Only 20 years had passed since that last duel. I would think that Obi Wan and Yoda would be the 2 most wanted persons in the Empire at the time of ANH.

Obi-Juan: It seems odd that the Empire would have such a strong hold on Tattooine and its neighboring systems (as evidenced by Han admitting that the Millenium Falcon was boarded by Imperial troops during his last smuggling run), when the system was always outside of the Galactic Republic.
It seems that the Empire expanded and tightened its hold on the galaxy.

Obi-Juan: If public knowledge of the Force had eroded in the past 20 years to the point where Imperial officers would mock Vader for his reliance on the ancient ways, why would Vader bring it up at the officer's meeting? Was he just satisfying an itch to choke someone out that day?
Why would Vader, of all people, shy away from flaunting his power?

Obi-Juan: Even if the Wookies felt that they were somehow wronged or abandoned by the Jedi, why would Chewbacca think that the Force was a myth, after seeing Yoda dispatch 2 Clone Troops?
Why would that action by itself prove the existence of the Force? Yoda could have done that just by possessing great physical abilities and awareness. Though I believe that Chewie probably believes in the Force, it's probably a conversation that they've had before. By this point, Han and Chewie have been together for a while, so it's probably come up and been resolved before that point.

Obi-Juan: Why did Obi-Wan hide under the name "Ben Kenobi"?
Luigi Novi: "Kenobi" might very well be the equivalent of "Smith," "Jones," or "Mohammed" in the Republica/Empire. Was made less sense was leaving Luke Skywalker's last name intact. (Granted, it's possible that Skywalker is a common name too, but to then leave him at the same place where Vader's mother lived??)

Obi-Juan: Why did Tarkin believe Obi-Wan Kenobi to be dead?
Luigi Novi: Good point. Is there a novel or comic that may fill in the gap here, perhaps depicting Kenobi in one final post-RotS adventure in which he was believed killed? (If not, that's grist for one. )

In response to Josh M:

I also question Vader's rank. Leia did say that Tarkin was holding his leash.

I don't have a problem w/ Vader impressing his belief/knowledge on another.
Question is, why did the officer question the Force when he should have seen Vader use it before now.
Also, when the Rebels have their briefing they are told 'May the Force be with you'. Course, the guy that said it was older.

I don't think that the Empire did have a hold on Tattooine. I don't think that Han being boarded is evidence of that. He was probably boarded while making a delivery in another system. I believe people went to Tattooine to avoid Republic or Empire as case may be.

I think the troops didn't use probes during the search because they knew the landing site and had footprints to follow.

Hiding Vader's son on Tattooine with the name Skywalker probably wasn't the best move. Course, Vader didn't know he had a son til Palpatine told him. How, P knew is another question. Vader would want to bury his past; perhaps Ben was banking on that & hid Luke 'under his nose'.

Obi-Juan: Why did Tarkin believe Obi-Wan Kenobi to be dead?
Because it had been 20 years and nobody had heard anything from him. Tarkin even said "surely he must be dead by now...."

I don't think that the Empire did have a hold on Tattooine.

Seems to me that they did have an offical control over it since stormtroopers can just land and start searching for the droids (stopping speeders in town and the like) without any local government stopping them.

Tattooine never struck me as having much of a government. If so it was probably of the Boss Hogg caliber.

And when a bunch of heavily armed, armored soldiers from a powerful empire land on a poorly defended backwater planet who would stand up to them and say, "Hey, there! What right do you have to stopping speeders and interrogating people?"

Regarding Tattooine: We know from Episode I that the Republic didn't exist there & slavery was allowed. Also, the Hutts were in charge.
Since the Hutts are still in charge until E-VI, it seems not much as changed.
This is a planet that noone cares about until there is a reason to care about it.
People/aliens go there to keep under the radar.

Regarding slavery: I wonder if the Republic, especially Padme and/or Jedi, tried to do anything about slavery after E-I. True, Qui-Gon alone did not have a mission to free slaves, but shouldn't he have reported it?

Yeah that would have been nice of Padme to break out the plastic and go back and buy Shmi's freedom after Episode I. You know, the mom of the kid that just saved her arse..... twice. Once by winning the race, then again by destroying the control ship.

I can't find the link right now, but on one of the Trek boards, I think Luigi linked to a page that nitted some of the Star Trek premises, and in the readers comments, there was a link to a page criticising this elemantry plot stupidity in Star Wars: everybody forgets about Shmi until it's time for Anakin to have bad dreams, discover her tortured, and murder everybody around him. (And Padme condoning the murder because... well, just for no reason. Blergh.)

There is an interesting listing of quotes from SW as well as a discussion of some of them at the Jedi Community site (the Study of Jedi Lore/The Jedi Gospel Q):
http://p208.ezboard.com/bthejediorg

http://p208.ezboard.com/fthejediorgfrm87.showMessageRange?topicID=733.topic&start=1&stop=20

Star Wars -- the Original -- will be back!

Home Media article

I can't help but think this will be a "bare-bones" edition, so Lucas can quintuple-dip and have yet another version released next year for the 30th anniversary.

Nevertheless -- I'm really excited about this.

Another article on it here.

Ugh. Has anyone seen those godawful DVD covers for the upcoming release of the original trilogy? Instead of using the original posters, or getting master artist Drew Struzan to come with yet another set of masterpieces as he has done so often for Star Wars and other properties, they're using these awful looking photo montages. Ugh.

Eh, not great but I don't really have a problem with 'em. The style's not that different from past releases. It's not surprising that little work would be put into these releases.

It looks about as appealing as one of those Taco Bell souvenir cups.

But then, he's saving the "good" artwork for the double-dip Original Special Edition that will be coming out next year.

It's what's inside that counts. I want the Original Trilogy, not some pretty boxes to put on my DVD shelves.

I liked the Leia / bikini cover!

Snick: It's what's inside that counts.

(cuts open the DVD covers, folds them inside out, and tapes them shut.)

Okay. What's inside stinks!

If you own the first set of DVDs, you could always buy the OT, take out the movie discs, stick them into the new versions and presto! Original trilogy, new cover art.

My god, you're a GENIUS, Josh!

I do my best.

Vader tells Palpatine about the Death Star. LOL.

Btw, does anyone have any idea what type of animation they used here? It looks like a cross between claymation and CGI. It looks like clay figures, but they move with the fluidity of CGI.

And is that Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane doing Palpatine? It sounds like he's using his Quagmire voice. I halfway expect Palpatine to go, "Giggity, giggity giggity!"

Assuming the Death Star under construction seen in "Revenge of the Sith" is the same one seen completed in "A New Hope"...it took nearly 20 years to get it operational. Does that seem right? If that's so, why does the second Death Star take such a short time to get operational?

BTW...I realy wish SOMEONE would put all those clever Star Trek / Star Wars animations on DVD and sell them! I'd buy them!

Luigi, the clip was from Seth Green's show "Robot Chicken" on Adult Swim which is stop motion. Since (like Corps Bride) it is shot with digital still cameras and put together in the computers they probably use computers to add motion blur (sort of like Phil Tippit's Go Motion except digitally)

Star Wars (the original, no bloody "Episode IV") is out on DVD.

But only as the second of a double-disk double-dip. I.E., you have to buy the Special Edition again to get the original version. The original is not enhanced, remastered, or improved in any way.

Sorry, but as much as I wanted it, I'll only buy it as a single disc. I have enough versions of it already. This would have been met with a lot more positive thought if brought out initially with the first release of the Special Edition.

You mean the first DVD release, right?

You mean they didn't even clean up the deterioration? I have the original "digitally remastered" Star Wars Trilogy & the color & sound is tons better than the original cut.

As far as I've read, yes. I wonder if he's leaving in the wolf man from the Cantina scene. I heard he hated that one. Always kinda liked it myself.

And for his next trick...
I bet that Lucas will release the re-releases on the DVD.
Those were the movies that were released after the original, but before the (first) DVD version.
They had the enhanced scenes, but no Hayden as the ghost in E-VI & no odd dialoge b/w Vader & Emperor in E-V.

Well I'm glad that he didn't clean up the original version. Only so fans won't holler that "there was a scratch at the 23 minute mark that I remember when I saw it as a kid and that turned me into a star wars nut. It's criminal Lucas won't keep that in!".

Heck the next round of Lucas bashing will be "I wish he would release it with all the preview trailers and cinmea ads that were there when I saw it in 1978."

It's Lucas' film, if he wants to improve it then he should. The fact he is being bullied into re-releasing them is a sad indictment on Star Wars fans. I've never had a problem with the special editions (except the replaced music at the end of "Jedi") and think most of the enhancements make the film better and more in tune with the prequels.

Enjoy your scratchy old version of the Star Wars trilogy.

I enjoyed a lot of the spec editions, but the greedo shooting first has to go.

Sounds to me Lucas is saying, "OK...you wanted the unenhanced original versions...well here you go! I tried to clean up the visuals & improve the audio quality to make the movie look and sound better, but no...all you people can do is whine about it. So take your unenhanced versions and watch them for all I care."

(At least that's the impression I get)

Otherwise he wouldn't have released the original unenhanced versions at all....because he said in an interview that he liked the enhanced versions because they did make the movie look and sound better and took away a lot of the "visual mistakes" that were so obvious, they weren't even funny.

(Not his exact words, mind you, but that's the jist of it.)

Personally, the only reason I even cared about the Greedo shooting first thing was because it was totally unbelievable that the guy could miss Han at such close range. (not to mention the jump cut is incredibly obvious)

Only a few parts of The Original Star Wars were improved with the Special Edition -- some of the battle scenes around the Death Star. But not the xaxtdamned Praxis ring when it blows up!!! That totally pisses me off.

I have no quibbles at all with the additions to TESB. In fact, I think The Special Edition is superior.

ROTJ, meh. Don't care either way. The ending is better, tho. And neither musical scene at Jabba's floats my sail barge.

It took 2 special versions to colour in Darth Vader's lightsaber, which appears as a white stick in some scenes.

I agree with Influx, I don't want to plunk down another $70 for copies of the trilogy that I already own, just to get copies of the undoctored material. I own the pre-SE editions on VHS, so I'll either transfer them to DVD or wait for a future release of the original.

IMO, if the director or producer wants to rework the theatrical release, they should sell them separately as a director's cut, which is very common. A good example would be the upcoming director's cut of Superman II, which is reportedly radically different than the theatrical release, and is being marketed separately.

For Lucas to package these films together, so soon after releasing the SE trilogy, is just an example of his company's greed. Sad.

It's not totally about greed. Lucas' intention was to not release the original versions on DVD, ever. That's because the newer versions are the way he would have done them originally had the special FX technology been available(according to him) so to him the original versions were a first cut that didn't need to be released again.

He only did so because many SW fans rose up in protest to say they wanted to buy the original versions on DVD, so he caved and made them available. So he's greedy because he gave some fans what they wanted when he didn't have to?

I realize your point was more about the money, which is correct to the extent that he's not doing it at a discount(I believe) even though the only special features are the original and a commentary(I think). If it's a stripped down version then the price should be too(what is the price, perchance?)

Dotter, I'd agree with that argument if this were 2001. But SW fans have been divided on the Special Editions for 10 years. Had Lucas intended to pacify both sets of fans, he would have sold the original trilogy as 2 separate sets back in 2004. And your point would be stronger if this release was just the undoctored footage, not packaged with the SE discs at twice the price.

Marketing the SE version in 2004 with the declaration that this would be the only way he'd do it, then releasing this set, smacks of greed. Reminds me of the good people at Disney who say that their classic movies are going into the "Disney Vault" forever. Funny how that vault keeps opening.

For what reason don't you believe Lucas when he said he didn't intend to rerelase the original versions? Just greed? He seems pretty willing to do what the fans want to, more so than Star Trek IMO. Is he not allowed to change his mind without being accused of excessive greed?(I'm just interested in your reasoning, not in trying to convince you otherwise.)


I agree the Disney Vault stuff is greed-based bunk.

I remember someone claiming the all the original Star Wars negatives and prints would be thrown in a furnace after the Special Editions came out. I guess this was just a rumour.

Give him a few more years he'll probably release a cleaned up version of the origionals in a few more years.

If it's greedy or not, he didn't profit excessively in my case; I didn't purchase any of the Star Wars DVDs until this new double-set.

Is he not allowed to change his mind without being accused of excessive greed?(I'm just interested in your reasoning, not in trying to convince you otherwise.) dotter31
I have no problem with Lucas changing his mind, and offering the unedited films. As it happens, I enjoy the unedited versions more than the SE versions. It's good for me that I have an opportunity to have the unedited versions on DVD.

The issue that leads me to labeling this as greed is as follows: Why can't I buy the unedited films without the SE copies added to the set? I was browsing Wal-Mart yesterday and noticed that the individual sets of Ep 4, 5, and 6 can be purchased with a special illustrated book for $20 a movie. Could the films be sold for $15 each, with no frills? Why do I need to pay a higher price to have another copy of the SE discs? Is Lucasfilm concerned that they won't make money off this release unless they package it with special extras and drive up the price per unit?

Any way I slice it, for me to have a DVD of each undoctored original trilogy movie will cost me $60, and I'll have spare DVDs of the SE editions, because I wasn't as smart as Snick and wait until this opportunity came along.

Market the unedited material alone= change of heart and giving fans what they want.

Market the unedited material with the SE material, which every SW fan already owns, at 33% added to the cost= Lucasfilm greed.

The Hyperspace by Pablo Hidalgo commentary at starwars.com points out a number of nits (apologies if some have already been mentioned on this board):

At the beginning, when Leia is protesting her arrest to Vader, the stormtrooper to her right (screen left) has electrical tape on his arm, holding the armor together.

After C-3PO convinces Luke and Owen to buy R2-D2, one of the Jawas in the background is clearly an adult-sized human in Jawa robes.

When Artoo first shows the hologram of Leia to Luke, releases from 1997 onward remove the cone of light that should be emanating from Artoo's projector in close-up shots.

After getting out of his oil bath, C-3PO holds a rag that disappears in some shots.

While having dinner with Owen and Beru, Luke's cup of blue milk switches hands from shot to shot.

After Artoo runs off, Luke runs out to look for him and Threepio follows a minute later. If you look closely, though, there's a quick view of Threepio's shadow on the hut, indicating he was already outside when Luke ran out since Anthony Daniels could not walk up stairs in his costume.

When Luke races home to find Owen and Beru dead, the wind is blowing screen right both in the shot of the homestead and in the opposite shot showing Luke's reaction.

Maybe not a nit: There's a recurring extra in the Mos Eisley scenes who walks through camera several times. He's wearing a Gilligan-like fishing hat and a brown vest and can be seen as the speeder is stopped by the stormtroopers, when it moves on, and later when it stops outside of the cantina.

When Greedo confronts Han, his hands change from angle to angle. In one, they have long, suckered fingers and in the other they're shorter without the suckers.

As the Falcon takes off from Tatooine, a close-up of Han shows someone in the hall behind him, apparently leaving the cockpit. At this point, though, all of the passengers are strapped in in the back.

The spokes on the Falcon's cockpit window are different on the exterior than they are on the interior. This is corrected in the later movies.

When the Falcon first jumps to Hyperspace, the gloves Han was wearing are no longer on and Chewbacca is suddenly wearing his bandolier.

The shots of Artoo when he's playing the game with Chewbacca are taken from the Death Star (you can tell by the lights).

After Tarkin learns that Leia lied about the location of the Rebel base, Vader delivers a line. When he stops speaking his hand is still moving, since Prowse's line continued, but was not dubbed.

While Luke and Han are heading to the detention level, an establishing shot showing Obi-Wan begins with a number of stormtroopers marching. The third trooper in line's arm armor is not completely fastened.

Shortly before our heroes jump into the garbage chute, some of Harrison Ford rubs some of his makeup off onto his chest armor under his chin.

When Obi-Wan duels with Vader, the cable powering the lightsaber can be seen in his sleeve.

During the duel, one of the shots of Vader is flipped.

In the scene that was added in the Special Edition between Luke, Biggs, and Red Leader, watch Artoo Detoo in the background as he's raised into Luke's X-Wing. There's an edit as another character walks in front of the camera. This allowed Lucas to cut a line of dialogue in which Red Leader claimed to have flown with Anakin Skywalker in the Clone Wars.

When Red 10 dies (the pilot in the first X-Wing trench run with all the dialogue), a different pilot is shown being blown up. Compare the helmets.

Red Leader's dialogue shortly before he gets killed is a flipped shot.

According to Hidalgo, when asked about the "Hey Carrie!" line at the end of the movie, Mark Hamill claimed that he was actually trying to say "There she is!" when he saw Leia, but that he muddled it.

The Star Wars Conspiracy!

As for why it didn't fire at the planet... I obviously have no idea how the lasers in Star Wars work, but maybe the superlaser beam would have had a much more disastrous effect with a gas giant than it would have had from a rock planet. It may be the equivalent of tossing a grenade into a room full of every combustable gas known to man, for all we know.

The super-laser on the first Deathstar could only fire once every 24 hours - which was fine considering that it was aiming at an huge immobile target that one shot would destroy. Had they taken out the Gas giant they'd have had to wait another day before they could fire again - it would be faster to go around the planet.

Four pilots who died for nothing:

When our heroes escaped from the Death Star in the Millenium Falcon, the Imperial higher-ups on the Death Star didn't sweat it. That's because the Imperials had placed a tracking device on the Falcon prior to the escape, and they had every intention of monitoring the Falcon's later whereabouts in hopes of gaining valuable intelligence on the rebellion, perhaps even the whereabouts of the Rebel base. So why did the Imperials send four tie-fighters to engage the Falcon in combat after its escape? The pilots of the four tie-fighters had to have been under orders to fight for a while, but under no circumstances disable or destroy the Falcon, and under no circumstances retreat after some duration of shooting (because that would have just looked silly). In other words, those pilots were ordered to fight and die. Every one of them. For what? To hide the Empire's ruse? Had the Imperials sent no ships after the Falcon, our heroes would have thought, "Okay, that was way too easy. They send nobody after us? They've got to be tracking us." And then the same stuff happens after that, as what happens after the four tie-fighters were blown up.

Addendum to previous post:

It might be argued that the Imperials had to send some tie-fighters after the Millenium Falcon, allowing for the possibility that if none were sent after the Falcon, our heroes would never have led the Empire to the Rebel base, or some other valuable intelligence, and might have sent the Empire on a dead-end trail. And further, that by sending some fighters after the Falcon, there was the possibility that our heroes would have fallen for the Empire's ruse, and not realized that they were being tracked. However, that doesn't negate the problem, because in the end, the Falcon has to prevail against the fighters in order to lead the Empire anywhere. So how many fighters should have been sent? Too many, and there's no way the Falcon comes out of a battle relatively unscathed without our heroes knowing that something was up. Too few, and it looks like the Empire isn't even really trying to stop our heroes, which gets the same result as too many fighters. I submit that no number of fighters would be just right, because the Death Star had to have dozens, if not hundreds, of tie-fighters and tie-fighter pilots on stand-by for just such an occasion as stopping the Falcon, if that's what the Empire wanted. And under such circumstances, the Empire would err on the side of more fighters than necessary, to make sure the job gets done. But the Empire didn't want that job done, so that's why the Imperials only sent four tie-fighters, which might as well have been no tie-fighters.

Lucas has changed the trilogy AGAIN.

This is especially ironic when you consider that George Lucas spoke out against altering films way back in 1988.

The scene in question takes place in Return of the Jedi, not Star Wars.* Just thought I'd point that out in the name of accuracy.


*(I refuse to subtitle it "A New Hope". It ain't the movie I saw. The one I saw was simply called Star Wars, a name that was quite sufficient.)

Lucas appears to be arguing against others altering an artist's work back in that '88 statement.

OTOH, there are some pretty hilarious in hindsight statements he makes. I wonder what Sebastian Shaw would have thought about Lucas' complaint about replacing actors in movies with "fresher faces" considering what happened in 2005.

Here's a web page that discusses the film's first week in theaters, and why it was first released in so few venues. I saw it on day one in the Menlo Park theater in Edison, N.J., one of maybe five theaters in the NY metro area playing the film. The theater was half-full, maybe less, for an early afternoon showing.

When they are escaping from Tatooine, Han says he "knows a few moves". Yeah, like a slow turn to the left.

listing slightly to the left ;)

If I'd been Tarkin i wouldn't have wasted my precious superlaser on Alderaan. I would have destroyed Mon Mothma's homeworld.

In Star Wars why are Tarkin and Vader waiting for the Death Star to clear the moon before blasting Yavin (Or the other way around). They’ve just blown away Alderaan. Why not destroy the moon/planet and then give themselves a quick clear shot at the rebels?

Even given the hilariously long time it takes for them to fire a shot ‘stand by...stand by” etc (as various vision mixer levers are pulled) they could have crushed the rebellion before the plans had even been downloaded from R2D2.

Yavin is a gas giant, so it's probably a bit harder to blast through than a small rocky moon or planet. That being said, the Death Star has engines, it could have moved aside to get a clear shot in seconds instead of slowly drifting on its orbit.

At one point, Tarkin is told that the attack pattern of the rebels reveals an actual danger. That means they had figured out what the rebels were aiming at. Why not close that vent port then? Don't tell me they hadn't even thought of providing a way of sealing up that stupid thing if it ever became necessary?

That probably explains the terrifying lack of guard rails on extendable bridges over massive chasms too.

That reminds me - in the original Thunderbirds Scott at least had some handrails on the extendable bridge leading to Thunderbird 1 but in the remake that's gone.

It would put an embarrassing glitch in International Rescue's record if they failed to rescue someone because Scott fell to his death while trying to enter his own vehicle...

To be honest--I don't think micro jumps were considered possible at this point in time.

So I'm guessing that the quick way to do this way to orbit the planet rather than jump out of the system and then back in( which seems to be somewhat random anyways).

About shooting at the gas giant Yavin: that thing looks to be bigger than Jupiter, and probably has much the same composition ( mostly hydrogen with some helium) and might sustain a mild fusion reaction( Jupiter gives off more energy than it gets from the sun).

If this is the case, I'm not going to fire a relatively untested superweapon into it from fairly short range--you could get a lot bigger an explosion than you're planning on( it might be able to do serious damage at that range).

About Thunderbirds: if that's your biggest problem with the live-action remake then I envy you.

Denholm Elliot would have made a good Obi-Wan.

My young niece asked if it's the spirit of Obi Wan that physically passes to another realm, and Vader only slices through an empty robe, then why doesn't Sir Alec appear naked as ghost Kenobi?

Peter Cushing played the dotty old professor type a few times in movies.

Star Wars would have been pretty weird if he'd decided to play Tarkin that way.

It's established in TPM that the Hutts run Tatooine. And the Hutts probably co-operate with the Empire in stuff like stormie searches so the Empire doesn't put a stop to that rule.

By the time period of ANH, Yoda and Obi-Wan had got together and decided what a ridiculous notion midichlorians were and had made a pact never to mention them again.

What would Star Wars look like as a tv show with the Space: 1999 theme?
Here you go...
(I've also put this in the 1999 thread.)

https://youtu.be/0ElsCDZlONY

Can someone answer this plot hole Question from A New Hope
https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a32298455/star-wars-plot-hole-mark-hamill-new-hope/ Do we agree with this article ?

Why don't you just summarize and then tell us what you think?

After escaping from the Death Star, why did Solo and co waste time shooting down the pursuing tie fighters? It was established previously that those fighters don't have hyperspace capability, so just make the jump to hyperspace and leave them behind, no need to risk being disabled or destroyed in a fight.

Wasn't it to save Luke's behind?

What do you mean, save his behind?

Oh wait, you thought I meant during the final battle. No, I meant earlier, when the Falcon left the Death Star and four tie fighters are in hot pursuit.

It's possible they couldn't make the jump to light speed in time with the fighters constantly firing on them, maybe forcing them to divert power to shields?

So who shot first , Han or Greedo ?

Han.

Only one person fired a blaster in the cantina.

AWhite , which person ?

Look at what they're talking about, and figure it out yourself.

Obviously it's the only person to walk away from the table.

GL may have briefly changed his mind about that scene for the special edition, but that revisionist history isn't the one most people consider to be the true version. The only reason people still talk about it is because of how poorly the scene was redone, plus shortly after George himself was seen wearing a shirt that said "Han shot first".