back to article Star Wars: The Complete Saga Blu-ray disc set

Cards on the table: I’m not a Star Wars obsessive. I have precious little interest in the prequel trilogy. Indeed, I prefer the high velocity chutzpah of the Clone Wars animated series. And I don’t own any Hayden Christensen action figures either, although there may be a Slave Leia in my sock drawer. Star Wars: The Complete …

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  1. Thomas 4
    FAIL

    Is this a good review?

    Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

    Unofrtunately, while the reviewer is not a Star Wars obsessive, a lot of the people that are going to be interested in the boxset *are* and what the review misses is that a lot of key scenes have been altered.

    The one that has turned into an internet meme is the fact that now Vader pointlessly shouts "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo" before tossing Emperor Palaptine down the well, the unnecessary scene in A New Hope featuring an appalling CGI Jabba confronting Han in Mos Eisley, the removal of the "yub-nub" song from Return of the Jedi, placing Hayden Christainsen in the line up at the end of Return of the Jedi, the whole "Han shot first" thing.....the list goes on.

    "I have altered the Original Trilogy. Pray I don't alter it any further." - George Lucas.

    1. Windrose
      WTF?

      Yeah, it's good.

      Can the BS. We *know* the stories. The review of a Blu-ray copy of Star Wars should, and do, focus on the image quality and sound.

      The rest is subjective crap. Take it to some obsessed fanboi site with people who actually BELIEVE themselves when they claim they saw who shot first and how it coloured their perception of Han.

      P'nally I'm going to *enjoy* my boxed set this weekend. Noone requires YOU to do so. Go frame-step the DVDs and post a long blog entry about how TERRIBLY abused your favourite movies have been. Sheesh.

      1. Jedit Silver badge
        Thumb Down

        You clearly haven't seen Vader's "No"

        If you had, you would realise that it wrecks the scene. As originally presented, Vader's emotional dilemma is made obvious through Dave Prowse's body language. Vocalising it strips away any requirement for subtlety of characterisation. Nothing plotwise has changed, but in terms of quality of presentation it's the sonic equivalent of taking a flying scene from Superman and putting the wires back in.

        (BTW, you don't have to be an "obsessed fanboi" to believe that Han originally shot first, because it's blatantly fucking obvious that he did.)

        1. Huntsman
          Gimp

          Prowse?

          Wasn't it Bob Anderson playing Vader when he chucked Palpatine down the shaft...

      2. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
        Alien

        22 downvotes!

        Let a lesson to you this be!

      3. Stef 4
        FAIL

        @ Windrose

        "people who actually BELIEVE themselves when they claim they saw who shot first"

        Are you on crack? Do you have any idea what you are talking about?

        Original: Han shoots Greedo under the table. There is no "shoots first" because there is no second shot. Han just guns him down, using his left had as a distraction while he unholsters with his right.

        Current version: A wide shot of a badly animated Han Solo action figure sitting opposite a badly animated Greedo action figure. Greed then shoots at Han from 2 feet away, and for some reason, despite the gun pointing directly at Han's head, the gun shoots almost sideways hitting the corner of the room, allowing a jerky Han to shoot Greedo. It looks like Greedo is now actually aiming at Han's left hand distraction.

        Pathetic. It looks like a Robot Chicken Star Wars special (which are great by the way).

        I look forward to a 'remastered' Citizen Kane as the snow globe falls to the floor, then shoots off at 90 degrees to take out a Taliban terrorist who is trying to crash a hijacked Rosebud into the Statue of Liberty. That might be the kind of thing you like Windrose, but please don't inflict it on the rest of us.

        I'll be buying the BluRays as I want the films in excellent quality. I'll just have to live with 1967 era Doctor Who special effects of Greedo shooting, and Han standing on Jabba's tail.

      4. Glyn 2

        hmm

        "Can the BS. We *know* the stories. The review of a Blu-ray copy of Star Wars should, and do, focus on the image quality and sound."

        So when you read a review of a new film you ignore the stuff about character, plot, effects, etc.etc.etc. and instead want to know if the reviewer had a comfy seat in the cinema, didn't have someone with large hair in front of them and could hear over the sound of people eating crisps????

        The point of a film review should be the film. Every DVD/bluray magazine review cares more about the sound and picture quality and extras which you'll watch once, rather than the actual film itself...the object of the exercise.

        "The rest is subjective crap"

        That's what a review is, well done

        Also, you know the story but in the future there will be people born who won't know the story and they'll watch the didgeredoo playing obi-wan kenobi and wonder why it was ever popular.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Gimp

      Badly rendered though Jabba may be...

      ... in Mos Eisley but that scene was originally in the script. (albeit an actual person playing Jabba).

      1. Sooty
        Gimp

        @m0rt

        Yes the scene was in the script originally, but when it was taken out Jabba's dialogue was given to Greedo.

        In the 'new' version Greedo tells Han a load of stuff from Jabba, then when he goes outside straight afterwards, Jabba repeats it all again himself.

        1. Not That Andrew
          Mushroom

          @Sooty

          Just because it was in the original script doesn't mean it's any good. As the last 3 movies shot clearly show George Lucas desperately needs someone to say "that's crap", "It will be better if you do it this way" and "ARE YOU INSANE!".

      2. This post has been deleted by its author

    3. Shonko Kid
      FAIL

      Han shot first

      Is this the version where there's an extra scene at the beginning of ANH, where we see Greedo planting bombs, murdering school kids, abusing every known narcotic, and pimping out a whole bunch of those green dancing girls. All shortly before his ill-fated meeting with all-round-good-guy Han. Who was therefore totally justified in practically shooting him on sight, and as Han sits back with a wry smile on his face, we see that it was in fact Bin Laden in disguise!!!11!!

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Never underestimate George Lucas

    "Buy it safe in the knowledge that you’ll never have to fork out for these movies ever again "

    I read somewhere there is a 3D (not *actual* 3D of course, post production 3D) version in the works...

  3. ksks
    Thumb Down

    Buy another copy, only an idiot will.

    Watching the changes lucus makes to each version on each re-re-re-re-release hurts.

    Why cant you leave them alone.

    You watch they will remake the original ones soon, and cast Macaulay Culkin as Luke Skywalker or something. And Jar Jar bloody binks will be central to the story or some such lame crap.

  4. Lamont Cranston

    "actually see the model being brought to its knees by a judicious prod of a stick"

    Take that, suspension of disbelief!

    I suppose I should be pleased that they've not redone all the effects as CGI.

    1. Jim 59

      Crusry special effects

      I find it easier to believe in the old Airfix effects than the modern CGI rendered.

  5. bolccg
    FAIL

    "heck, he’s had enough time to make his mind up "

    You'd think so, wouldn't you? But apparently not.

    Perhaps make it look a bit better to suit modern tech George, but stop messing around with the rest of it.

  6. El Zed

    Buy it, you will?

    No, no I frigging wont...Your Jedi mind tricks will not work on me, Lucas...

  7. Christian Berger

    No, it's not

    It's missing the second movie, the "Star Wars Holiday Special".

  8. jolly
    Facepalm

    "Buy it safe in the knowledge that you’ll never have to fork out for these movies ever again – or at least until the original version of A New Hope gets the green light…"

    Or until we're all watching tellies capable of 2160p or 4320p - then they can sell us the same old stuff all over again <yawn/>

    1. Glyn 2

      It won't be the same old stuff, he'll have "re-imagined" it again by then

  9. stu 4
    Stop

    won't have to purchase again ?

    er... star wars 3d has been green lighted.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Yes, but no one's going to buy it.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Joke

    You forgot to mention what matters most here...

    Who shot first on BluRay, Solo or Greedo ? :-)

    1. Windrose

      Optional

      ... no-one actually CARE.

      If having Han calmly blast a bounty-hunter, then stand up and toss payment on the bar with a casual apology for the mess isn't enough to label him, erhm, "TOTALLY BADASS" ... no hope left for those folks.

      The rest of us view a movie, a story, in terms of the totality, not one specific frame out of 170,000 odd ones.

      No icon, 'cause there's not a single one for "Beam me out of this place, NOW!".

      1. defiler

        Greedo shooting first

        Han's a bad-ass smuggler. Greedo is a bounty-hunter, where bad-assery is more or less a prerequisite. At that range, if either of them pulls the trigger, the other guy is going down.

        It's a tense negotiation, with Han being held at gunpoint. Finally, with the gun pointing straight at Han, Greedo fires and takes half the plaster off the wall. What the fuck? Did he bend his blaster or something? He's supposed to be a bad-ass, but he can't shoot an adult human at a range of about 4 feet! That's so ham-fisted, he could make a knuckle sandwich sound quite appealing.

        That's the bit that makes no sense. If there was a scuffle, lurching to feet, table thrown over, and *then* Greedo missed, it would be understandable. But to change history to make a shady character look like a nice guy is just stupid. You might as well have had Joseph Stalin in the editing suite...

        Han's a bastard. He shot first to make sure he didn't shoot last. He's a smuggler, not a nice guy. That's who he's supposed to be. Put it back.

        1. JEDIDIAH
          Linux

          Lucas is badly out of touch.

          There is nothing inherently bad or evil about "firing first" when someone is pointing a gun at you.

          Let me repeat that:

          Someone is pointing a gun at you.

          You know what that is in real life? That's assult with a deadly weapon. You're well justified in firing first if you can in most jurisdictions. It's just nothing to get excited about. The change comes off like a senile liberal not fully understanding the context of the scene (his own scene).

        2. Archimedes_Circle
          Holmes

          Whenever I watched it, it looked like he moved out of the way. How he moved out from a laser's path I was never sure about. I just assumed han solo was a ninja as well.

          1. Jedit Silver badge
            Boffin

            Blaster bolts don't move at light speed

            If they did, they'd be visible as a beam rather than a bolt.

            I believe there's some handwaving explanation about them actually being vaguely plasma based, or something similar.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Paris Hilton

        Nope. Some people do "CARES"

        I'm not a SW fanboy, but I do know that certain things alter the substance of the film. In the original version, Han shoots first after the guy threatens him, which is kinda cool but actually reasonable.

        I mean wouldn't you?

        Their conversation goes something like:

        Greedo: Jabba will take your ship as payment

        Han: Over my dead body

        Greedo (pointing the gun at him): That's the idea. I've been waiting for this a long time...

        Waiting for the guy to shoot him after the above exchange makes Han a pathetic pu$$y.

        I think that's Lame and detracts from the film in a pretty real way.

        Paris because people like her also don't care...

      3. schnide
        Thumb Up

        Here's a thought.

        If it doesn't matter who shot first, there was no need for Lucas to change it. TA-DA!

  11. ted209
    Stop

    Not the original trilogy...

    Doesn't it at least deserve a mention that these are not the original theatrical versions?

  12. jake Silver badge

    No, not the complete set ...

    Still three more stories to go.

    Supposedly.

    But whatever. Waste your money as you see fit. No skin off my teeth.

    1. Martin
      Headmaster

      Pedant alert...

      No skin off my nose - doesn't bother me

      Missed by the skin of my teeth - damn close.

      1. Darryl

        That's the way the cookie bounces

    2. Andy Fletcher

      Still three more stories to go...

      Good bloody point - where are they? Hollywood are happy enough to do Shrek 15, so why not some new Star Wars.

      On topic - I'm not buying Star Wars again, again. I'm pretty sure I've coughed up 4 times already.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So I'm guessing that this only includes the versions of the original 3 films that Lucas pissed around with....

    At which point, no thanks.

  14. Neil Porter
    Joke

    These aren't the blu-rays you're looking for...

    Am I the first to comment that? I suspect not.

    Of course, they *are* the blu-rays I'm looking for, yay!

  15. Pavlov's obedient mutt
    Devil

    buy it, I wont

    having bought the VHS, the DVD, the DVD Directors cut - I think I've paid my dues.

    enough is enough

  16. Dirk Vandenheuvel
    Thumb Down

    Buy it I certainly won't.

    I like my Star Wars untouched please.

  17. Arctic fox
    Thumb Down

    I will certainly buy the original three on blu-ray, they are old favourites and.....

    ..................I love them. However, I will not part with a penny piece for the "prequels" - in fact you could not pay me to take them away.

  18. jai

    bought it, i have

    just trying to convince the girlfriend that what she really wants to do on saturday is to sit down and watch all six movies in a row, back to back, with the only breaks allowed for going to the toilet and making cups of tea, and even then, only while the end credits of each film rolls by.

    am not having much luck with that so far, but there's still 2 days for me to convince her "these are the films you're looking for"...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Why are you taking a break...

      ... while SHE makes you cups of tea?

    2. Martin
      Stop

      ...or alternatively....

      ...she has two days to realize that she has better things to do with her life than live it with someone whose idea of something good to do on a Saturday is watch all six Star Wars movies back to back?

      1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
        Pint

        "she has two days to realize that she has better things to do"

        Keep the hope up you must!

        1. hplasm
          Happy

          A test,

          this is, for her.

  19. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    At least it's only Star Wars he's messing with

    Just think what a mess we'd get if George had had a hand in any other iconic movies.

    Casablanca - now in colour, with 3D effects and Rik has a cute animated sidekick!

    The Citizen Kane trilogy - Telling how Kane's long-lost son took over his newspaper Empire and struck back. (With a hilarious animated sidekick)

    The Third Man - was Jar-Jar!

    etc...

    1. Martin
      Thumb Up

      Twelve Angry Men...

      "You don't want to find the defendant guilty...."

      "We don't want to find the defendant guilty."

  20. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I saw the original trilogy when I was 5

    I saw the original trilogy when I was 5. I thought it was brilliant.

    If I saw the new trilogies and the updated original trilogies when I was 5 I would also think they are brilliant.

    I don't know 1 person over the age of 60 who could give a monkeys about how much much George Lucas has changed the film they took their kids to see 36 years ago.

    These are children's films. Kids don't care who shot first, kids don't care that 30 years ago Darth Vader was silent at the end of RotJ, kids don't care that 35 years ago Obi Kenobi made a different noise to scare off sand people. They enjoy the ride.

    Kids think Pod Racers, Darth Maul and Lightsabre battles are cool, Jar Jar, Roger Roger Droids and C3P0 are funny.

    Did you know Ian McDermott wasn't the actor who played the Emperor in the theatrical release of Empire Strikes Back? Never heard 1 complaint about him being retro-fitted into subsequent releases of Empire.

    1. Rattus Rattus

      You mean

      Ian McDiarmid, not McDermott. And nobody cares because you don't exactly get any kind of decent view of the Emperor in TES, and McDiarmid *was* the actor who played the Emperor, quite well too, in ROTJ.

  21. Deebster
    Unhappy

    "I could care less"

    Pet peeve noted

    1. Sooty

      Which is an American usage of the phrase, so was this review of the American version, or the UK version? They are in different Blu-ray regions and that usually means different extras and/or transfers*.

      *not sure if PAL/NTSC matters anymore with Blu-ray... probably not.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Americanisms

        Do any Brits say they are 'stoked'?

        If they do, I might have died a little inside.

        1. JEDIDIAH
          Linux

          The apple doesn't fall far from the tree

          > Do any Brits say they are 'stoked'?

          >

          > If they do, I might have died a little inside.

          The Brits have football hooligans. Lots of potential there.

          1. BenR

            As a Brit...

            ... yes, correct, we do have occasional soccer (football!) hooligan issues.

            You American wallahs are clearly better than us.

            Not like you colonial fellas every have riots after the Superbowl (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_XXXVII#Post-game_riots) or the laughably-named 'World' Series (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Riots-break-out-in-San-Francisco-after-Giants-wi?urn=mlb-281806) is it...?

            1. jake Silver badge

              @BenR

              That word "wallah", I don't think it means what you think it means, you racist prat.

              That said, sports hooliganism is pointless ... Without "the other guys", there would be no sport, so clearly "the other guys" are a necessary portion of the entertainment.

              Rioting here in the US after a "big win" is almost never something that the actual fan-base participates in. In the San Francisco case, I can speak as someone who was actually there at Third and King ... Firstly, there was no actual "riot", rather there were a few drunk/stoned idiots causing trouble. As there are in any largish city, world-wide, on any given night. Most of the crowd helped the cops quell the idiots. In the Oakland case, that's pretty much daily life in the East Bay ... If it ain't gang trouble, it's the greens & tree-huggers.

              On the gripping hand, you Brits and Euros have more sports hooliganism, team for team, than us USaians. I think it's a tribal/parochial thing ... Not enough human movement between small plots of land makes "the other guys" something to be feared.

              1. Anonymous Coward
                Anonymous Coward

                Actually, I don't think you do.

                It means 'worker', or alternatively, a promise made in the name of Allah.

                Offensively used in the past it may have been, but in this, as with everything, context is king.

  22. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Yeah, no.

    'Admittedly, there are a few laughs to be had but ultimately it’s a space-filler and you can’t help but think something more worthwhile could have been included.'

    The extras disk or episodes I-III?

    I still have a VHS copy of episode IV recorded from the telly. It has half an episode of 'blockbusters' at the start and adverts for that carpet you could throw ketchup on and just scrape it off with a butter knife.

    1. teacake

      @AC 15/9/11 09:24GMT

      "I still have a VHS copy of episode IV recorded from the telly. It has half an episode of 'blockbusters' at the start and adverts for that carpet you could throw ketchup on and just scrape it off with a butter knife."

      Would that be Flotex 21?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        @teacake

        That's the one.

        http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/mivana/mediaplayer.php?media=flotex21_1981&type=mp4

    2. Studley

      Re: Blockbusters

      Pretty sure the Millennium Falcon can complete the Gold Run in less than 12 parsecs.

      1. BorkedAgain
        Coffee/keyboard

        @Studley

        You ver' funny man... :)

  23. irish donkey
    Thumb Down

    Has 'Return of the Jedi' made a profit?

    According to David Prowess, No.

    He hasn't been paid a penny from the profits of 'Return of the Jedi'.

    So much for rewarding the poor creators. I wonder how much the actors of this little lot will be paid.

    More shameless profiteering for Lucas

    Wanna read the story head over to TechDirt

    1. Thomas 4
      Flame

      Yeah, I heard about this from another forum. It's fucking disgraceful that one of the most iconic characters of film history hasn't been rewarded for his efforts.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        I sent the the story to El Reg

        But they didn't run it.

        shame

        Things have changed round here and not for the better.

    2. Citizen Kaned

      i might be wrong...

      he asked for a lump sum payment, where others asked for profit share.

      it might have been over a new hope though, but im sure i heard something about how he thought it would be a flop so asked for a one-off payment.

      i cant go back to old companies and demand more payment, why should be? any tall person could have played that role. it was james earl jones that made it with the voice anyway

    3. 27escape
      Thumb Down

      Standard practice

      You would be surprised at the number of films that do not turn a profit, this is to make sure the investors get their cash and the film stars (who have already been paid, and I think get repeatedly paid when the film is aired on TV) do not get their percentage points.

    4. Field Marshal Von Krakenfart
      Coat

      <wave hand> These are not the profits you are looking for </wave hand>

      This is not the coat I'm looking for

  24. DB2k
    Stop

    Technical review

    And if you want a review of the changes to the movies, then look to DVDActive:

    http://www.dvdactive.com/editorial/articles/star-wars-the-changes-part-one.html

    Chris is putting together some proper reviews of each Bluray too. Bit more in depth than the one here.. for those that actually want a review

    http://www.dvdactive.com/reviews/dvd/star-wars-episode-i-the-phantom-menace3.html

    1. Some Beggar
      WTF?

      If you want a review of the changes to the movies

      then you should probably sit down and have a hard think about how you are spending the very brief time you have on the planet.

  25. HP Cynic

    Putting my money where my mouth is I only bought The Original Trilogy set. The prequels suck hard and I've seen practically all the extras before.

    The only reason I bought this release at all, in spite of the horrendous new changes (all of which detract from the film rather than improve it), is because I've never actually bought Star Wars: there was always another edition on the horizon and the quality was never good enough.

    And yeah I know there 3D versions are coming next, no doubt with more changes, but 3D is still rubbish so I won't be bothering with those.

    Anyway, despite the transfers being the 2004 rush-jobs rather than proper remasters, the 1080p Blu-Rays were finally good enough for me to fork out - £28 for all 3 films.

    There are only 3 Star Wars films.

    And to the guy ranting about us ranting about "Who shot first" - it's pretty simple: in the original and best version of Star Wars Han shot ONLY. It was funny, this did a lot to establish Han as a scoundrel and fit perfectly with the scene. Freeze framing not required.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      "And to the guy ranting about us ranting about "Who shot first" - it's pretty simple: in the original and best version of Star Wars Han shot ONLY. It was funny, this did a lot to establish Han as a scoundrel and fit perfectly with the scene. Freeze framing not required."

      No one with any perspective in life cares

      1. Figgus
        Facepalm

        Yeah,

        What kind of LOSER has preferences on things he watches for entertainment? Oh, wait...

        It's a MOVIE. I'd say if someone is going to waste some precious free time watching it, they want it to NOT SUCK. Golly gosh gee...

        People with perspective in life tend to avoid wasting time on movies that aren't what they want to see, and that pretty much includes all of Twat Lucas' "improvements".

  26. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    never mind the quality I am mental

    I remember some starwars victim say he STILL hated the phantom menace after the third time he saw it at the theater.

    They like to bitch but will buy anything and everything to do with star wars ,and keep the carrier bag it was carried home in. LOL

  27. James Hughes 1

    I want the whole lot on DVD

    But seems to be considerably more to buy that on BlueRay. Hmm. Looks like Ebay for me....

  28. Arnie
    Stop

    Won't be seeing my cash

    Until he releases the OT remastered @ 8k.

    If you wanna see a good HD "Special edition" then I suggest you check adywans edition or if you'd prefer something a bit closer to the original then Id go for Harmy's de-specialised Edition. However if your hardcore I'd go with Puggo's Grande. Which is a painstaking telecine transfer from two16mm prints. Complete with mouse poo fused to the celluloid and its awesome mono aural soundtrack.

  29. jason 7
    Meh

    Nope

    Dont have a Blu-ray player so bit silly if I bought them.

    To be honest, This whole saga has been messed around so much I've just lost interest in it.

    I'm 40 now and I really cant be bothered. I implore others of my age group to just let it go and do something more important with their lives.

    It's just not worth it guys. Move on.

    1. The Fuzzy Wotnot
      Thumb Up

      Brother!

      Glad I'm not the only one! Yes I saw the original at the cinema ( no it's not a "movie theatre"! ) when I was a nipper, yes I have them on DVD and I must confess I have only watched them maybe twice with my kids.

      When you get kids you get your second wind and suddenly get the urge to start doing more stuff with the family, primarily outdoors! Heading towards the big 4-0 I have picked up a rather unpleasant fad of joining the various heritage charities and visiting old monuments at weekends, next step woolly cardies and then the grave opens up before me like a big hole in the ground!

      All things being equal, and given the choice, I think I would rather spend the weekend watching re-runs of Blackadder than Star Wars, but only if the weather is terrible outside!

      1. BorkedAgain
        Thumb Up

        +1

        That is all.

  30. Lloyd
    Thumb Down

    Bah

    Let's see, I've got the original VHS, the "Special Edition" VHS, the DVD's of 4-6 and the "original" DVD's of 4-6. Frankly I don't need another one especially as every other review I've seen says that the Blu ray copies of 4-6 add nothing to the quality, although 1-3 (which I don't own nor do I intend to) add quite a lot.

  31. cloudgazer

    this explains everything

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BMgegut3UM

  32. 7-zark-7
    Paris Hilton

    Call me a cynic....

    Give it a couple of years and good ol' George will re-release "classic" versions of this hi-def box set with all the subtle plot changes removed. BINGO! A couple more million in the bank as fans clamor to get their hands on versions they know and love.

    Paris: Wiping away a tear of frustration as she struggles to keep up with the films storyline.

  33. Vladimir Plouzhnikov

    "There are only 3 Star Wars films."

    It's a matter of faith and as any matter of faith no amount of rational arguments can persuade the orthodox adepts to look at the subject matter of their faith from a different angle. A surprising number of people would rather die and even get their loved ones killed than allow their rigid view of the world altered in any way...

  34. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I'll buy this when it's really cheap

    I haven't bought any Star Wars films on VHS, DVD or blu-ray so it'll be worth it for me despite the messed around with plots.

    I remember queuing around the block at the Glasgow Odeon when I was ten to see the original movie. Those were the days. Freezing cold, in a thin jacket with sore feet. Yup.

  35. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    It DOES matter who shot first ...

    To all of you stating that the changes to the Han/Greedo scene are irrelevant then try this:

    One of the major story arcs in Episodes 4 to 6 (original 3) is that Han Solo is a troublesome, immoral, piratical, cowardly man only out for profit. It's the resolution of this by Han becoming trustworthy and seeing that fighting for the rebels and his friends is worth more than his previous life that is the point of his character. That arc only works if Solo BEGINS as a cowardly fool and ends as a hero. By removing the 'shoots first' scene Lucas has removed the very action that later Han resolves. It's basic poor story telling and therefore odious.

  36. cyborg
    FAIL

    Until I can get the original trilogy as it was...

    I just don't care.

  37. Boris Blank
    FAIL

    Never mind character arcs

    The redo of the Greedo scene just looks fake and horrible, that's my main issue with it. Han gets cut 'n' pasted over to one side, then a quick cut later and he's back in his original pose. Even if I'd never seen the film before, it would still look "wrong".

    Lucas should take a leaf out of Ridley Scott's book by providing the originals alongside any changed versions, then everybody would be happy.

    1. Peladon

      No, actually.................................

      .... Lucas should recut every film with a film-noire voiceover from, um, er,,,, Han! Yes, a 130 year old Han! Then we can watch thousands of millions argue whether it was a good idea or not, and have _twice_ as many sets again, one set with voiceovers and one without! Then... then we can... er, Lucas can... er... then we can have the set where Jar-Jar comes out of the shower and tells his wife Leia it was all a dream, an' then... er... Hang on, it'll come to me in a minute, then we can....

  38. Gavalar

    So, I have read all the posts and no one really mentions what the bluray's are actually like ! ... I don't really care if Greedo shot first etc... what is the bluray quality like... sharp, colourful, does it highlight things it should'nt (reflections in c3po etc)... I'm amazed at how seriously people take these films, I love them, but at the end of the day, they are just films !

    1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
      Megaphone

      Han shot Solo!

      If they were "just films" no-one would buy them, just download them.

      This is SERIOUS BUSINESS.

    2. bitmap animal
      Happy

      at Gavalar 16:16

      I think you have highlighted something often overlooked. The most important part of a film is whether it's enjoyable or not. The quality of the picture is much less relevant. It obviously needs to be viewable quality.

      Yes, it’s nice to watch something on a higher quality screen with more detail and more colour depth but it’s still the film that matters and that is what is being discussed here.

      Fancy that!

  39. Head
    Thumb Down

    Hmmm

    Will i buy this?

    As Vader now says, NNNOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    The originals are the best.

  40. Rattus Rattus

    Yeah, not buying it

    I'm pretty much over Star Wars altogether now, largely due to George spending so much time and money telling the fans what they should like and that they're wrong for what they do prefer. I'd rather spend my time on entertainment made by people who actually maintain a good relationship with their fans and where they don't talk down to their audience. You know, like MLP:FiM.

  41. DJ 2
    Thumb Down

    Won't have to purchase again?

    Some of my First bought DVD's have already died, CD's have a built in 10 year limit, I'm guessing at the number of recent failures that I've been experiencing DVD's have the same life time ( Alien box set, only 2 disks work ). We will have to wait to see how long Blu Ray last.

    1. Jedit Silver badge
      FAIL

      "CD's have a built in 10 year limit"

      Stop talking rubbish. I have CDs on my rack that I've owned for twice that long, and they still work fine. I bought my first DVD in 1999; that disc still works, and the only disc I've ever had stop working did so because of physical damage.

      Moral: never believe anything you hear from someone who uses grocer's apostrophes.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        did you mean..

        Grocers' apostrophes?

        :-)

        1. Jedit Silver badge
          Joke

          No, only one grocer was using them

          And if more than one grocer is using them, it's "grocer's apo'strophe's".

  42. Darren Barratt

    In a bargain bin far far away

    I shall wait for the sales. They always over stock these things.

  43. Alien8n
    Alien

    Do a Blade Runner

    That will sort out all the versiontards. Next box set do a special edition containing every conceivable version including the original theatrical versions, original SE versions, updated SE versions, 3D versions and maybe even a complete update version fixing the inconsistencies with some of the SE versions. Want to watch Han shoot first? There's a version for that...

  44. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "although there may be a Slave Leia in my sock drawer"

    wonder why it's in the sock drawer...

  45. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Two search terms for TRUE fans

    Andywan

    Wookiegroomer

    Search in conjunction with star wars.

    enjoy.

  46. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    THE best reviewer...ever

    of the star wars movies..

    http://redlettermedia.com/plinkett/star-wars/star-wars-episode-1-the-phantom-menace/

    1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
      Thumb Up

      Epic Review is Epic

      There were even scenes discussed in Phantom Menace I can't remember. Must have dozed off.

      Still, some disturbing "Here Comes Johnny" stuff in there.

  47. OrsonX
    FAIL

    NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

    ^this

  48. Marvin O'Gravel Balloon Face

    Upgrade my VHS box-set? Phew, that's a toughie.

  49. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    to buy or not to buy...

    I decided to buy the first three episodes because they aren't really good, but I like the eye-candy. I wasn't disappointed. I've been seriously debating buying the original (thrashed) trilogy for the detail, but I really don't like the added in features (as we call them when something bad is shipped out). My cousin seems to think Lucas has a right to his 'vision'. He would, if he were the same guy who made the movie back in the 70's and it was a year or two after it was made. Then maybe he could claim a 'Director's Cut' version, updating it to an 'Extended Director's Cut'. It's like watching that Voyager episode where the bad guys keep tweaking time in order to bring the leader's dead wife back: one tweak too many. There's also so much eye-candy you can add to a desert city before it looks ridiculous. Not every inch of screen needs mindless animation. It may have worked (almost) in 'Cool World', but that doesn't mean it should be repeated. The only reason I haven't bought the original set on blu-ray is because I'm afraid Vader will end up with a pink 'Hello Kitty' sticker on the back of his helmut, a 'Coexist' sticker on the back of his T.I.E. and a 'in remembrance of Padme' window vinyl.

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