Star Wars: The Complete Saga (1977-2005)

[TravisTylerBlack]

Target exclusives for SOLO, Rogue One, and Last Jedi are probably the most attractive packaging those films are likely to receive unless one has a strong preference for steelbooks. The 3D release of Force Awakens is also one of the nicest sets in my collection.

These reissues are geared toward the casual buyer and OCD collectors looking for unity. Watch out though, The Rise of Skywalker initial release likely won't match.

[muffie1985]

I just don't understand why Fox before and now Disney don't see the value and the money to be had by releasing the original unaltered trilogy. I myself and I know other countless Star Wars fans would easily throw $99 per movie in a 4K remastering of the untouched OT. Heck, at this point I'd pay $400 for all 3! Disney needs to for once, start listening to what its consumers want...

[steel_breeze]

How much confidence do I have that the UOT will never see the light of day as an official release? ... Well, let's just say I finally pulled the trigger on 4K77 -- non-DNR, of course... LOVE the grain. It's pretty friggin' spectacular. I've enjoyed the Silver Screen Edition for years, but it always had a de-saturated high-contrast look of a print several steps removed from the OCN. The 4K77 -- derived from a Technicolor master -- is not without issues: absurdly saturated orange skin tones for Obi-Wan and Luke in Mos Eisley as they're meeting with Han, washed out exteriors on Tatooine, blue cast to starships during the end battle... but it's a much richer and "rounder" image than the Silver Screen Edition, and will absolutely be my new go-to.

I'd love to be proven wrong about my UOT pessimism; I'll buy whatever official release they come out with DAY ONE... but I'm in the film biz (like many of you) and have many friends in many post houses, and word on the street is... it ain't gonna happen, folks. But like I said, I'd love to be proven wrong.

And for the record, I didn't pay a dime for this 4K77 version or the Silver Screen Edition, and I'm definitely going to buy WHATEVER new 4K transfers they release, even if it's George's 2011 version, George's 2004 version, George's 1997 version... or Disney's 2020 version... just exactly the way I've bought two VHS editions in the 80's, three LaserDisc versions in the 90's, the DVD set and the individual DVDs with olde timey 4x3 LaserDisc transfers in the 2000's, and the Blu-rays in 2011...... so my current appreciation of 4K77 ain't takin' a dime from Lucasfilm's coffers.

[Arawn]

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

Correct. And like I said, you're unable to refute it.

I'm not trying to refute it, that's why I brought it up. The point is that it contradicts the "Vader did the research" thing.

[Arawn]

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

The information in that link actually contradicts the "it's a light side thing."

What information? Let's hear it. There's a pretty big visual clue in the films that it's a light side thing: we only see Jedi do it, and in particular we only see Anakin do it after returning to the light side.

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

So if the official canon is that dark side users have looked for their own version of life after death, then there's nothing that contradicts the idea that Anakin/Vader could've researched it.

"Looked for their own version" doesn't say they found it, and which official canon source is that supposed to be from anyway? Even if they had their own version, it wouldn't be the same thing as Jedi Force ghosting, it would be a different Force ability by definition. It would be a dark side thing.

[Dotpattern]

Originally Posted by Arawn

I'm not trying to refute it, that's why I brought it up. The point is that it contradicts the "Vader did the research" thing.

It contradicts no such thing. Nowhere does it say that Vader/Anakin could not have, at the very least, researched how Obi-Wan could have possibly disappeared during their duel.

Just because Sith weren't able to achieve becoming Force ghosts, doesn't mean they weren't aware of the ability or didn't look into it to see if it was possible for them to do it.

[Dotpattern]

Originally Posted by Arawn

"Looked for their own version" doesn't say they found it

And I never said that anyone found it. My comment that you took issue with is that Anakin MAY have researched it. So far, you've provided nothing to contradict that. Your personal opinion doesn't count.

[Arawn]

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

It contradicts no such thing.

It absolutely does. Lucas' account of how it happened is a totally different explanation from "Vader researched".

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

And I never said that anyone found it. My comment that you took issue with is that Anakin MAY have researched it.

Anakin researching dark side techniques wouldn't have any relevance to it. And what source was that "official canon" again?

Originally Posted by Dotpattern

Your personal opinion doesn't count.

I'm talking about Lucas' personal opinion.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by muffie1985

I just don't understand why Fox before and now Disney don't see the value and the money to be had by releasing the original unaltered trilogy.

Maybe they're reasonably skeptical of the idea that a UOT release would be some pot of infinite gold.

Originally Posted by muffie1985

I myself and I know other countless Star Wars fans would easily throw $99 per movie in a 4K remastering of the untouched OT. Heck, at this point I'd pay $400 for all 3! Disney needs to for once, start listening to what its consumers want...

If Disney tried to charge anywhere near a hundred bucks a pop the outraged howls from the small subset of its its consumers that even care about a UOT release would be deafening.

I want a UOT release as much as anybody but I doubt there are as many of us as some of us like to think and I seriously doubt more than a relative handful of us would cough up hundreds of dollars for them.

The reactions sure would be fun to watch though

[stvn1974]

Yep, us UOT fans are a dying breed. I bet these new releases sell well because of the fans who keep buying the same crap over and over. Why would Disney even think there is a demand or a need to restored the UOT?

I am willing to bet that if you polled people coming out of the theater after seeing The Rise Of Skywalker and you asked them about the UOT 9 out of 10 wouldn't know what you are even talking about.

[Dotpattern]

Originally Posted by Arawn

It absolutely does. Lucas' account of how it happened is a totally different explanation from "Vader researched".

Lucas' account of HOW Anakin was able to become a Force ghost doesn't negate Vader/Anakin having knowledge of the ability. Nowhere does it say he didn't or couldn't have researched it, or that Vader wasn't aware of the Jedi ability.

Originally Posted by Arawn

Anakin researching dark side techniques wouldn't have any relevance to it.

It does to me. It means that Vader saw Obi-Wan disappear during the duel, became aware of the ability, wanted to know how he was able to it, and began studying it. Makes sense to me, and since you can't provide anything that contradicts that, then that's logically what happened.

Originally Posted by Arawn

And what source was that "official canon" again?

The link I provided. Nowhere does it say Vader/Anakin "did not" research Obi-Wan's ability to disappear during their duel. All it says is that only light side users are able to achieve becoming Force ghosts. It says nothing about whether or not Vader researched the ability or discussed it with Sidious.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by stvn1974

I am willing to bet that if you polled people coming out of the theater after seeing The Rise Of Skywalker and you asked them about the UOT 9 out of 10 wouldn't know what you are even talking about.

Mostly agree. Things like Greedo and 'Noooo' have crept into the popular culture to a point where I think a decent chunk of Star Wars fans are at least aware that the OT has been altered but beyond that?

I agree that a very small subset of theater goers would really know what the hell we're all talking about.

[Bobbyjoe766]

Originally Posted by thereturn

This is standard practice now for Disney. Instead of getting off their arses and getting some new product out to Bluray they release the same old discs over and over again while exploiting the suckers who buy them for new covers and slipcovers.
There must be enough of these mugs out there buying them as they keep doing it and retain new product for their mail order and US only service.

I do hope we get some better management at Disney sometime soon. Since Roy Disney left the picture nobody at the company has been interested in honouring the Disney back catalogue beyond the standard animated classics.
The Mickeys 90th Bluray just about summed things up when previously you would have got a luxurious multi disc boxset with all sorts of documentaries etc but instead we got a dozen or so shorts. And they are also almost the only Disney shorts available on Bluray. A few others are buried in the Snow White special features and the Christmas Donald collection is on Bluray only in other countries.

But I guess with Marvel and Star Wars in their pocket they can afford to make enough by releasing 2 hours of CGI shit once a year.

At the very least make the purchase from Lucas worthwhile by giving fans the one thing they've wanted for so long which are the first 3 films in HD as seen on their original release. Or did George force them to remain unavailable until he's dead as part of the deal?

The collectors (“suckers”, as you put it), make it tougher on the rest of us that are more interested in seeing new, quality disc content being released, instead of lazy (quick business) reissues.

[stvn1974]

"Hey Vader, we are heading out to commit some genocide, you coming?'

Vader: "Sorry guys, I have a research paper due tomorrow so I am going to pull an allnighter"

[TravisTylerBlack]

It’s not that the studio doesn’t see the value/demand for an UOT release- it’s out of respect for Lucas that they’ve refrained up until this point. Even Kathleen Kennedy made some remarks to the affect of “of course not those are George’s films” when asked a few years ago.

It’s going to happen eventually. Maybe even next year. There are many prominent people in Hollywood who want to see it happen and Disney is aware that it would be a huge selling point.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by steel_breeze

How much confidence do I have that the UOT will never see the light of day as an official release? ... Well, let's just say I finally pulled the trigger on 4K77 -- non-DNR, of course... LOVE the grain. It's pretty friggin' spectacular. I've enjoyed the Silver Screen Edition for years, but it always had a de-saturated high-contrast look of a print several steps removed from the OCN. The 4K77 -- derived from a Technicolor master -- is not without issues: absurdly saturated orange skin tones for Obi-Wan and Luke in Mos Eisley as they're meeting with Han, washed out exteriors on Tatooine, blue cast to starships during the end battle... but it's a much richer and "rounder" image than the Silver Screen Edition, and will absolutely be my new go-to.

I'd love to be proven wrong about my UOT pessimism; I'll buy whatever official release they come out with DAY ONE... but I'm in the film biz (like many of you) and have many friends in many post houses, and word on the street is... it ain't gonna happen, folks. But like I said, I'd love to be proven wrong.

And for the record, I didn't pay a dime for this 4K77 version or the Silver Screen Edition, and I'm definitely going to buy WHATEVER new 4K transfers they release, even if it's George's 2011 version, George's 2004 version, George's 1997 version... or Disney's 2020 version... just exactly the way I've bought two VHS editions in the 80's, three LaserDisc versions in the 90's, the DVD set and the individual DVDs with olde timey 4x3 LaserDisc transfers in the 2000's, and the Blu-rays in 2011...... so my current appreciation of 4K77 ain't takin' a dime from Lucasfilm's coffers.

Same here. I mean, I'm not in the biz and I have no contacts but I gots a feeling that as long as Lucas is alive then the original originals are never going to be officially released.

Got 4K77 and 4K83 a while ago, even in their V1.0 versions (can't be arsed to take ages to download them again) they're a joy to watch and I'll probably grab TN1's 'Grindhouse' edition of Empire while we wait for 4K80. I too will be buying the inevitable 4K UHD editions of all the SW movies and have also bought SW a huge number of times over the years (17 purchases of the OT thus far across VHS, LD, DVD and BD) so I've no guilt whatsoever about obtaining these incredible fan restorations.

[happydood]

Originally Posted by stvn1974

Yep, us UOT fans are a dying breed. I bet these new releases sell well because of the fans who keep buying the same crap over and over. Why would Disney even think there is a demand or a need to restored the UOT?

I am willing to bet that if you polled people coming out of the theater after seeing The Rise Of Skywalker and you asked them about the UOT 9 out of 10 wouldn't know what you are even talking about.

Well, time marches on and all that. And we can demand that people be purists all we want, but it's an ultimately pointless exercise. I'm sorry GL doesn't want to release the originals, but at this point it doesn't get anybody anything but angry and I choose to look at the positives of the situation instead of the negatives and still respect what he's given to the world. I could lament that nobody listens to classical music or Tin Pan Alley songwriters anymore and I'm sure I'm speaking Greek to someone born even in 1974. It's all relative.

For the record, I show my 8 and 4 year olds the despecialized editions. I also happily show them the prequels because they have wonderful visuals and music- for all their flaws- in the service of a nice lesson about not being attached to things so they don't grow up to be a-holes. In fact, I find myself wanting to show them the Disney movies a lot less, because the message there is that the visuals and sound are pretty much all there is and if you throw enough money at something the context doesn't really matter...

[Allgood]

You know, I don't mind the special edition cuts. Weird, but for the time, it was pretty cool. But I won't forgive Lucas for f'in up Obi Wan's dragon call in A New Hope and adding NOOOOOOOOO in ROTJ.

I mean, to a kid, they won't know and probably don't care, but growing up with the original/special edition cuts, it pains me. It would be AMAZING if Disney would release all three cuts of each of the OT films and maybe the prequels too (especially puppet Yoda), but I highly doubt it. The new generation won't care as much as the diehards and don't see the sentimental value. Since Disney+ is coming out, I think Disney will stick to one cut and one cut only for digital.

But you never know. But I know Fox was working on a 4K transfer of ANH, so let us hope that's still in the works.

[mtsanis]

Originally Posted by TravisTylerBlack

Target exclusives for SOLO, Rogue One, and Last Jedi are probably the most attractive packaging those films are likely to receive unless one has a strong preference for steelbooks. The 3D release of Force Awakens is also one of the nicest sets in my collection.

These reissues are geared toward the casual buyer and OCD collectors looking for unity. Watch out though, The Rise of Skywalker initial release likely won't match.

yea, these are a stop gap (albeit a nicely packaged one) to cash in on the hype of the new movie during the promotional/theatrical cycle... the real releases will be when the Skywalker Saga is complete and ready for home video release.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Allgood

You know, I don't mind the special edition cuts. Weird, but for the time, it was pretty cool. But I won't forgive Lucas for f'in up Obi Wan's dragon call in A New Hope and adding NOOOOOOOOO in ROTJ.

I mean, to a kid, they won't know and probably don't care, but growing up with the original/special edition cuts, it pains me. It would be AMAZING if Disney would release all three cuts of each of the OT films and maybe the prequels too (especially puppet Yoda), but I highly doubt it. The new generation won't care as much as the diehards and don't see the sentimental value. Since Disney+ is coming out, I think Disney will stick to one cut and one cut only for digital.

But you never know. But I know Fox was working on a 4K transfer of ANH, so let us hope that's still in the works.

Lucasfilm completed 4K restorations of the trilogy years ago, just not the original versions of the trilogy.