The best way to fix the Special Editions

My prediction is that the panel will never reach a consensus. And even if they did they'd still get a lot of hate from a lot of fans. No matter what, people areln't going to agree on things like this.

I'm fine with the Special Editions, but I think the best solution for everyone would be to clean up, remaster and release the originals. Or, maybe not the originals, but the VHS editions (after all, do you not want Episode IV to be called that? on blu-ray.

 

are we not supposed to talk about Harmy's despecialized editions on this site? is that verboten?

 

Top fan sites work together to cut together the films with the LFL crews doing the actual edits utilizing consensus notes but obviously no one will be happy .

 

No?

 

hahaha ~ it just seems like a group of someones already went to the trouble of doing this work (not by committee, but based on the original theatrical releases), so i'm confused by the OP.

 

I've heard of the despecialized editions but I've not seen them. Are they the straight theatrical releases? If they are, then that's not what the OP is talking about. He's talking about having some definitive fan version of what SE changes to keep, and which to discard.

 

ooooo i get it. i was making a stupid assumption that all the changes were equally reviled.

yes, Harmy's are the straight original theatrical releases reconstructed. they are awesome.

 

Harmy despecialized editions are great.

Personally I don't mind the actual "Special Editions" for the most part -- what I can't stand is the endless tinkering they did on DVD/Blu-Ray releases.

 

I showed my fifth graders the Harmy editions when we were studying the OT in preparation for TFA (discussing the Hero's Journey)

 

I say that depends. First of all, we should all have finally access to the original, theatrical versions, flaws included. That is the original "context" audiences were experiencing the film, that's the basic version and - sounds like a joke - even George Lucas should be supporting that, especially considering that the "original context" was something he was vocally harping on when it come to the colorization of his beloved The Three Stooges (!)

The next stage could be fixing all the little flaws Lucas conveniently overlooked when he made the Special Editions, which should actually be very difficult to find fault with for 98% of the fanbase:

• correct mirror-inverted scenes (e.g. Red Leader's look returning from his port side engine but saying "I just lost my starboard engine", heroes arrival inside the Great Temple etc.)
• correct obvious editing flaws (e.g. stormtroopers from high above shooting at Luke and Leia in the Death Star, first X-Wing trench run where Red Ten and Red Twelve were swapped etc.)
• correct and/or fix missing elements (e.g. Falcon needs to get her parabolic dish in Docking Bay 94, have the live action scene from RAF Cardington airship base match Ellenshaw's Yavin IV Great Temple matte painting and shadow casting, see corrected version below)

After that it will be increasingly difficult to find consensus.

For example, both in the Hangar 327 control room monitor and on the information retrieval monitor at the Yavin IV base we see the Death Star schematic with what appears to be the superweapon's dish on the equator.

Question: Is that wrong or are we looking at the propulsion section of the battlestation which is on the opposite side we never saw? As a matter of fact they even made a Death Star model with that circular section on the equator!

I'd like to keep it exactly as it is, because IMHO it hints the propulsion section, but many fans would just say "Hey, that's the superweapon dish that should be above the equator".

 

I'd be more in favor of an open vote with registration to StarWars.com or whatever required. No reason to exclude any fans from voting, but at least provide some way to manage the votes and try to prevent multiple voters.

In any case, I DO support the thought of having a vote to determine the things considered most detrimental and in need of removing, while retaining the changes considered to be good.

 

Do away with the Special Editions and just remaster the original release on Blu Ray.

 

Leave the Special Editions alone.

 

Yeah I've seen them and I've honestly not seen too much of s difference and chosen to never notice but I'm a prequel kid x

 

First off we all need to know one thing about George Lucas for best understanding the concept of SW Special Editions, Mr Lucas has an "Obsessive Compulsive Disorder" off some kind and i could go on and on about all the characteristics he show over that particular disorder but for the movies concerns we should only consider:

Endless Repetition and Search for Perfection - I know this disease inside out and i can assure that Mr. Lucas will keep doing and redoing, and redoing, and redoing his work over and over, endlessly, every couple of years in search for the perfect version of his work. This represents that for Mr. Lucas he would remake a special version almost every year non spot always searching to improve and correct everything he done so far. For him it's not a business perspective but a compulsive and obsessive behavior he can't dodge.

Actually there are plenty of aspects of "OCD" through out the whole movies, namelly:

Excessive Morality - OCD patients only see the world in white and black in terms of moral, either you are right or you are wrong, with no midway senses, they are inflexible and overconscientious in the matters of moral and values. This perturbation builds up the Jedi/Sith world, and all the theories and studies regarding moral in the Star Wars Universe are heavily tainted by the Obsessive Compulsive trait.

Dificulty to interact with other persons - OCD patients are stubborn and reluctant to delegate work wich makes working with them very difficult, now understand that their standards are so high and they became evil dictators over coworkers. Isn't all of that that happened during the Prequels shooting according to the actors stories?

 

I have seen all editions of the films, first in the movies, then on VHS, then DVD, then Blu-ray.

I accept and respect the final Blu-ray set as the "final" edition of these films, and I respect others who prefer the original theatrical releases.

Literally the only thing that struck me as odd and something I wish had not been changed was Obi-Wan Kenobi's Krayt Dragon call / scream when he came to rescue Luke from the Sand People / Tusken Raiders in Episode IV: A New Hope.

Ben Kenobi's original call was sonically iconic, I felt, something you tend to have permanently in mind after having seen A New Hope so many times, so distinct that it's right up there with the utterly distinct and now traditional "Wilhelm scream."

I suppose the idea was to make the call something more in line with what people might accept as something Obi-Wan could have possibly vocalized, but still.

Blinking Ewoks look great, and the Wilhelms are still there -- even in The Force Awakens.

Some things simply must be preserved.

JediMasterRobert

 

I think the best answer is to have both versions: The current Special Editions as well as the originals/theatrical/VHS. That way people can buy what they want. They can say that the SEs are the "true" versions all day long...that doesn't make it true. Just sell a nice blu-ray of the Original Trilogy nicely restored...that's all anyone really wants I think.