SW Original and SE shot by shot comparison

[LOTRFan]

Me too. Beautiful moment and closure to all 6 movies.

But it creates more problems than it solves (or at least to me). I must admit I don't care for the PT much at all; but the non-aging Anakin really bothers me. Take away Vader's eyebrows sure, but he really shouldn't be replaced with Hayden.

Second, while I don't particularly care for the "Ewok song," it certainly makes more sense than the new ending. How exactly did word get out so quickly of the Death Star's demise? Again as in the PT Lucas makes the SW universe feel exceptionally small. I would expect the celebration to be much more localized initially - and if not, weren't there any loyalists to the Empire. Ol' flashy hands :emperor goes down, and suddenly the entire universe rejoices, I don't know it just feels to "simple" to me.

 

[tomandshell]

That's one of the weird things about that change. A lot of people really love it, and a lot of people really hate it. There don't seem to be too many in the "I don't care one way or the other" middle ground.

I hated it when I heard about it, but when I finally sat down and watched it I found it to be an emotionally satisfying way to end the saga. I changed my mind about it and now I like seeing younger Anakin at the end of ROTJ. It ties the two trilogies together nicely.

 

[Darth Loki]

I hated it when I heard about it, but when I finally sat down and watched it I found it to be an emotionally satisfying way to end the saga. I changed my mind about it and now I like seeing younger Anakin at the end of ROTJ. It ties the two trilogies together nicely.

I won't say that I love it, but it doesn't bother me as much as it did when I first saw it.

 

[JustinLuck]

But it creates more problems than it solves (or at least to me). I must admit I don't care for the PT much at all; but the non-aging Anakin really bothers me. Take away Vader's eyebrows sure, but he really shouldn't be replaced with Hayden.

Second, while I don't particularly care for the "Ewok song," it certainly makes more sense than the new ending. How exactly did word get out so quickly of the Death Star's demise? Again as in the PT Lucas makes the SW universe feel exceptionally small. I would expect the celebration to be much more localized initially - and if not, weren't there any loyalists to the Empire. Ol' flashy hands :emperor goes down, and suddenly the entire universe rejoices, I don't know it just feels to "simple" to me.

I don't mind seeing Hayden, but yes it DOES bother me that the whole galaxy is celebrating, for the reasons you stated.

 

[Darth Loki]

But it creates more problems than it solves (or at least to me). I must admit I don't care for the PT much at all; but the non-aging Anakin really bothers me. Take away Vader's eyebrows sure, but he really shouldn't be replaced with Hayden.

Second, while I don't particularly care for the "Ewok song," it certainly makes more sense than the new ending. How exactly did word get out so quickly of the Death Star's demise? Again as in the PT Lucas makes the SW universe feel exceptionally small. I would expect the celebration to be much more localized initially - and if not, weren't there any loyalists to the Empire. Ol' flashy hands :emperor goes down, and suddenly the entire universe rejoices, I don't know it just feels to "simple" to me.

They could travel at the speed of light, don't you think they had some sort of galactic internet? I'm sure word spreaded quickly because it was the biggest news in the past 20+ years, since the creation of the Empire. And yes, there were several planets that remained loyal to the Emperor and the Empire. That's what we have the EU books for.

 

[Khev]

Second, while I don't particularly care for the "Ewok song," it certainly makes more sense than the new ending. How exactly did word get out so quickly of the Death Star's demise?

That is a great point. Everyone knows that real life ewoks, Jedi, hyperspace fighter pilots, and rebel diplomats could never spread news of the downfall of the Galactic Emperor to other planets in the span of a few hours. That borders on outright fantasy.

 

[TheObsoleteMan]

I hated it when I heard about it, but when I finally sat down and watched it I found it to be an emotionally satisfying way to end the saga. I changed my mind about it and now I like seeing younger Anakin at the end of ROTJ. It ties the two trilogies together nicely.

I don't like having Hayden as the ghost because it seems, at least to me, to excuse all of the things he did as Vader, as if he weren't really responsible. When you see old Anakin at the end, you see a jedi who has come full circle. The Hayden ending has a "the devil made me do it" feel to me, and that's a huge cop out imo.

 

[The Josh]

I must admit I don't care for the PT much at all; but the non-aging Anakin really bothers me.

Before reading this I'm not trying to pick on Matt or his opinion. I'm just using it as an example. Please note that.

The PT completes the story though maybe not perfectly but it's all good when looked at it as a whole. I mean not liking part of it just doesn't make sense to me because it's all one story. There are plenty of parts in the OT that could be picked on as pretty goofy. Not to mention that someday the kids growing up today may look at the OT and say it's crap. To them I would say the same thing. In the end Lucas had to try and tie everything together and with the exception his choices did that. As I said it's all one story. The dislike of the PT as a whole just makes no sense to me.

Again, I'm not saying Matt is wrong nor am I trying to pick on his opinion.


I've said it once I'll say it again

PT+OT=SW

 

[Customikey]

I don't like having Hayden as the ghost because it seems, at least to me, to excuse all of the things he did as Vader, as if he weren't really responsible. When you see old Anakin at the end, you see a jedi who has come full circle. The Hayden ending has a "the devil made me do it" feel to me, and that's a huge cop out imo.

It's called redemption.

 

[EVILFACE]

It's called redemption.

Hey, it works for christians.

 

[tomandshell]

To me, it works at more of an emotional level than an intellectual or logical one. We got to know Hayden as Anakin and watched as he screwed up his life, and the last we saw of him, he wasn't looking so great. For me, Hayden gives us the most representative image of Anakin from the six films. When I think of Anakin in general, I think of Hayden and not Sebastian Shaw. It's one thing to know that Anakin has been redeemed and see him in ROTJ as an old man played by an actor we are seeing for the first time, but I think it really hits you that Anakin has been restored when you see the old familiar face again, smiling and with all of his body parts back to normal. It lets your last image of Hayden in the trilogy be of him as a Jedi instead of a burnt up torso.

 

[Wor-Gar]

To me, it works at more of an emotional level than an intellectual or logical one. We got to know Hayden as Anakin and watched as he screwed up his life, and the last we saw of him, he wasn't looking so great. For me, Hayden gives us the most representative image of Anakin from the six films. When I think of Anakin in general, I think of Hayden and not Sebastian Shaw. It's one thing to know that Anakin has been redeemed and see him in ROTJ as an old man played by an actor we are seeing for the first time, but I think it really hits you that Anakin has been restored when you see the old familiar face again, smiling and with all of his body parts back to normal. It lets your last image of Hayden in the trilogy be of him as a Jedi instead of a burnt up torso.

Agreed. Redemption. The circle is now complete.

And Anakin has fulfilled his destiny after all.

 

[Spartan Rex]

Well one reason would be that if Yavin was in plain sight during the DS battle it would beg the question as to why the DS is waiting to fire at it.

I always thought an interesting change would have been to have had the green beams of the DS gun ignite and start to come together right as the whole thing exploded.

I wrote YAVIN, not the fourth moon of Yavin which is where the rebel base is.
Some Star Wars fan you are

Hayden gives that stupid look as the force ghost at the end which kinda blows it. You know Bens thinking "WTF!? Im going through eternity as this geezer
and the mass murderer next to me is his young self again?" and Yodas thinking
"Hmph, lame this is. Help Kill my homey Mace you did and exiled to a swamp planet I was." Seriously, look at his expression, he doesnt look happy.
How did Anakin learn to be one with the force if Master Neeson just told Yoda and Ben?

 

[JustinLuck]

Hayden gives that stupid look as the force ghost at the end which kinda blows it.

True. I never liked his 'acting' during that short scene.

 

[gdb]

To me, it works at more of an emotional level than an intellectual or logical one. We got to know Hayden as Anakin and watched as he screwed up his life, and the last we saw of him, he wasn't looking so great. For me, Hayden gives us the most representative image of Anakin from the six films. When I think of Anakin in general, I think of Hayden and not Sebastian Shaw. It's one thing to know that Anakin has been redeemed and see him in ROTJ as an old man played by an actor we are seeing for the first time, but I think it really hits you that Anakin has been restored when you see the old familiar face again, smiling and with all of his body parts back to normal. It lets your last image of Hayden in the trilogy be of him as a Jedi instead of a burnt up torso.

Very well put. My daughter (age 14) saw the films in chronological order as opposed to the order they came out. Anakin is her favorite character and she was so glad to see him in ROTJ, redeemed and smiling at Obi again.

 

[jedibear]

Liked your list RoboDad...just thought I'd comment...

It's funny, because if you sum up the changes that evoke the most hatred in the SEs, it really only amounts to a few minutes total:

Most hated ANH changes

1. Greedo shooting first (I think most can agree this was a silly and unnecessary change)I agree...it was an unnecessary change. The main idea behind the entire saga is redemption. If Anakin could be redeemed by a Skywalker's faith and love after killing children, than Solo sure could be after killing a hitman in a bar...
2. Jabba (Not sure I agree with all of the hate on this one, since I kind of like it, but I can see how it does lessen the "evilness" of his character)At least they replaced that totally whack one from the special edition's first go-around with the one they used in EpOne that looks better. I thought having Boba walk through the scene was a bit much though...his debut in ESB is a better "bookend" and entrance I think...
3. The added characters in Mos Eisley, escpecially the comical jawas I don't mind them...and I really like the way Mos Eisley is opened up and enlarged int the SE...
   Add to that the cleaned-up footage, the nice little moments like seeing the Falcon lift off and the heightened look to the DS battle and the SE actually comes out pretty good. My own little pet peeve with it is a musical one...I really miss the fanfare that accompanied the XWings turning and diving into the DS during the final battle...it's gone! I don't get that change...

Most hated ESB changes

1. Boba Fett's voice (I think this is the top-rated lingering hate for this film)I really like Morrison's voice for Boba...it makes perfect sense and connects the two trilogies in a cool way...
2. Luke's "girly-man" scream (which was fortunately removed from the 2004 DVD release) yeah, I hated that too and was glad it was gone. My only personal issue with ESB:SE is the sound mix...like ROTJ, it just seems like they sweetened it up a little too much...swooshing overdone echoes and a very irritating almost storm-drain sound the pops up now and again that is just distracting...the worst offender is in Jedi...as Old Ben confers with Luke one last time on Dagobah, Alec's voice is almost drowned out by the pumped up ambience...and no, my sound system is fine thank you....

Most hated ROTJ changes

1. Lapti Nek Yeah the whole new musical number thing is kinda overdone. I wish Lucas had gone the other way and made the whole thing creepier instead of cuter...
2. Yub Yub Yeah! I want my Yub Yub! The end montage is fine in the SE, but we could've had both...
3. Jar Jar (or, rather, the Gungans in general) in the celebration montage Not a bother for me...a sidenote: anyone notice that Jar Jar gets a mention in the "Heros of the Rebellion" text? Could we be getting a Gungun SS figure after all, despite Tom G's comments to the contrary? Alright by me...and I guarantee it would be a sell-out. Ok, back to the topic...
4. Hayden's ghost (Some really like this one, but many really, really hate it) I agree with tomandshell and others...it brings appropriate closure and connection to the entire saga to have him there...put me in the "loves it" camp...
5. The Sarlacc beak Ugh! Hate it! Keep waiting for it to break out into "I'm a mean green mutha from outer space!" from Little Shop of Horrors....I always got a kick out of the original sand anus...plenty scary enough!

....

...Of course, I will be buying the unaltered originals, for a number of reasons, but all things considered, the SEs aren't that bad by comparison.

I will be too...for nostalga as much as anything. I think all n' all the SE's are alright...beside, if we wait a few years, I think it's a safe bet he's not through tinkering yet...

 

[sebcanadaceo]

I am 32, I saw all three original movies at the theatre back in 83 when I was 8. I was too young when Ep. IV and V came out but a few months before Ep. VI was released, the local theatre decided to show Ep. IV & V back to back. My parents took me to see them and a few months later, took me to see Ep. VI when it was released... So basically, I saw the "originals" in the theatres way back then like so many others.

Now I know I'm in the minority here but for the most part, I really prefer the 2004 SE with all the changes!

(The following are just my oppinions and preferences)

I really prefer the ghost of "Hayden" at the end of Ep. VI to that of "Shaw"... Even as a kid seeing it for the first time my reaction to that scene was: "That's Vader? That fat old fart is Vader!?!" and it totaly killed the magic of Vader for me... Hell, my grandmother (were she still alive) could take this guy! I don't care if the ghost of Obi-Wan is old and Vader is young, to me it just looks better!

I also prefer the music at the end of Ep. VI now to that "yub yub" piece of crap that I "always" hated, even as a kid.

As for the the "Jedi Rocks" number (Jabba's palace)... I can't say that I'm crazy about it in any way but I still prefer it to the previous number with the really bad and fake looking puppet!

And about the Ep. V change of "Alert my Star Destroyer" over the original "Bring me my Shuttle"... Honestly, I could care less. It's just non-important backgroud stuff, what do I care if Vader asks for his shuttle or to alert his ship? I don't as it changes nothing of importance... If they had changed something major like "Luke, I am your Father" to something like "Luke, I'm your Dad"... Well then I probably would have objected but this? It really doesn't bother me. Now I've known about this change for quite some time and only because so many made a big deal out of it. However, if people had not mentioned it, I never would have remembered that when I first saw the movie at the age of 8 that Vader really said "Bring me my Shuttle"...

I like the Emperor's face shot instead of that old woman/monkey eyes shot and as for "Boba Fett's" new voice... I have no problems with it, actually makes sense to me.

This is pretty much how I feel about all the changes except for two or three that I dissagree with...

The "Han & Greedo" scene... The fact that "Han" no longer shoots first or is the only one that shoots takes away from his character of "shoot first, ask questions later". I never bought the excuse that "Han" shooting first made him a murderer. If I have a weapon and some guy puts a gun to my face and threatens to kill me... I'm not going to wait for him to shoot first, in case he misses... I'm going to shoot first and it will be justifiable self defence!

I also dissagree with the added "Jabba" scene right after as it is simply unessesary (we already know he's looking for "Han") and it actually takes away from "Jabba's" character... He too nice in that scene. Just before Ep. III came out, one of my friends who was going to accompany me to the theatre had never seen any of these movies so I decided to watch them all (begining with Ep. IV) with her before we say Ep. III. She was introduced to "Jabba" with this scene and thought he was a nice guy deep inside. Even after Ep. VI she thought he was just having a bad day and to this date thinks "Jabba" is simply missunderstood... "Jabba" should be scene as the scum that he is as first seen in Ep. VI!

Finally, the "Chewbacca/Tarzan" yell in Ep. VI... That has got to go!

As for the prequels, I like them fine the way they are but it was suggested that they would be changed as well in the 2007 mega box set. There are a few changes that could be beneficial... Like the already mentioned replacement of the puppet "Yoda" in Ep. I with the CG "Yoda". The only thing that scares me is that "Lucas" might get itchy and decide to replace "Yoda" in Ep. V & VI as well and I'm not sure how I would feel about that? I do know that it would be unessesary and it would open up such a huge can worms... I really don't feel like hearing people ***** about this for the next 5 years!

For Ep. II, I would like them to remove the C3-P0 "Oh, this is such a drag" line.

For Ep. III, I think "Anakin" should be given "Sith Eyes" durring the entire "Anakin/Vader - Obi Wan" fight. I can't remember, did he have "Sith Eyes" when he killed the children? Because he should have them there too.

Was there another "Chewbacca/Tarzan" yell in Ep. III? If so, that should get axed too!

:emperor

 

[The Josh]

To me, it works at more of an emotional level than an intellectual or logical one. We got to know Hayden as Anakin and watched as he screwed up his life, and the last we saw of him, he wasn't looking so great. For me, Hayden gives us the most representative image of Anakin from the six films. When I think of Anakin in general, I think of Hayden and not Sebastian Shaw. It's one thing to know that Anakin has been redeemed and see him in ROTJ as an old man played by an actor we are seeing for the first time, but I think it really hits you that Anakin has been restored when you see the old familiar face again, smiling and with all of his body parts back to normal. It lets your last image of Hayden in the trilogy be of him as a Jedi instead of a burnt up torso.

I agree Tom.

 

[Khev]

I wrote YAVIN, not the fourth moon of Yavin which is where the rebel base is.
Some Star Wars fan you are

Which of course begs the question as to why a planet destroying space station needs to orbit a planet to have a clear shot at the Rebel moon. Why not just blow up Yavin itself?

Its funny what we forgive as long as it was the "original version."

 

[RoboDad]

To me, it works at more of an emotional level than an intellectual or logical one. We got to know Hayden as Anakin and watched as he screwed up his life, and the last we saw of him, he wasn't looking so great. For me, Hayden gives us the most representative image of Anakin from the six films. When I think of Anakin in general, I think of Hayden and not Sebastian Shaw. It's one thing to know that Anakin has been redeemed and see him in ROTJ as an old man played by an actor we are seeing for the first time, but I think it really hits you that Anakin has been restored when you see the old familiar face again, smiling and with all of his body parts back to normal. It lets your last image of Hayden in the trilogy be of him as a Jedi instead of a burnt up torso.

I can certainly understand where you're coming from, Tom. But there are two reasons why your emotional response doesn't work for me.

First let's take the "when I think of Anakin, I think of Hayden" reasoning. What you say may be true, but what of Obi-Wan? Which actor springs more to your mind when you think of that character, Ewan McGregor or Sir Alec Guiness? Why shouldn't the young, energetic Obi-Wan be featured in the final scene. After all, that was the part of his life that he loved, not spending twenty-odd years stuck on a desert rock keeping watch over Vader's offspring.

And second, there is the "it lets your last image of Hayden be of him as a Jedi" thought. I really have BIG problem with this one. When ROTJ was first released, it was abundantly clear to me that the ghosts were appearing for Luke's benefit, not ours. We were supposed to, on that emotional level, be able to empathize with Luke, seeing his father and mentors (all of the people who brought him to where he is now, a Jedi Knight), as he knew them. How in the world was he supposed to recognize Hayden as his father, having never seen him before? After the change, the whole point of the scene changes, and it no longer feels like it is for Luke, but now it is for the audience, which takes me right out of the scene, on an emotional level.

I'm not meaning to be disagreeable here, just trying to point out why people who don't like the change feel the way they do.