Star Wars: The Complete Saga (1977-2005)

[chip75]

Lol Dynamo of Eternia we answered at the same time. JINX!

[Sweetmeats]

Also, if you show it 4,5,1,2,3,6...you don't have your kids asking why Luke is excited to kiss his sister.

[Geologist]

Originally Posted by Sweetmeats

Also, if you show it 4,5,1,2,3,6...you don't have your kids asking why Luke is excited to kiss his sister.

[OG Pooh]

Giving it some more thought, f I were showing the saga to someone who had never seen it...

I would base the order upon which I thought was more important to preserve... The fact that Darth Vader is Luke & Leia's Father or what heppens to/with everyone from the PT?

Sure, the revelation that Vader is Luke's Father is a big plot twist. But now that the entire saga is available to be watched all at once, saving that one revelation may ruin a lot more than it preserves. Besides, for the first time viewer, knowing that Vader is Luke's Father, but knowing that Luke doesn't know may be almost as good (Dude, don't fight him, he's your Father... Don't kiss her, she's your Sister)? The act of preserving that secret can, on the other hand, ruin the entire PT. A first time viewer would now know exactly who survives. It takes all the drama out of every conflict. Take the duel between Yoda & Palpatine... Had someone seen the OT first, he/she would know they both survive. Kind of ruins it. But showing them in chronological order would keep the suspense through every film. It would also preserve the fact that Anakin even bocomes Darth Vader. And as I said, knowing that Luke & Leia don't know that Vader is their Father could be almost as good as not knowing one's self.

As someone who knews the story, I like the 4, 5, flashback to 1, 2, 3, then finish with 6 order. But for a first time viewer circa 2011, I would probably go chronologically as preserving the Vader is Luke's Father twist would hurt more than help.

[WorkShed]

Except A New Hope does a wonderful job of explaining things like The Force that the prequels do not cover in such an introductory manner.

[toddly6666]

1. 4,5,6
2. First Star Wars clone cartoon series, Clone wars movie, Second Clone wars cartoon series
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8. The Star Wars Christmas Special
9.
10. 1, 2, 3

[OG Pooh]

Originally Posted by WorkShed

Except A New Hope does a wonderful job of explaining things like The Force that the prequels do not cover in such an introductory manner.

Yes, ANH sets up the lore of the Force better. But overall, OT then PT ruins more than it does good. Knowing how something ends before it starts leaves zero drama for the second half (which is actually the first half). It's like seeing a movie with someone who has already seen it and has a big mouth. How good would The Sixth Sense have been if some loud-mouth revealed that

[Show spoiler]Bruce Willis is dead the whole time

as you walked into the theater?.. Even I had to use a spoiler. Yes, Vader being Luke's Father was a revelation, but it wasn't the main focus of the story. It was a few seconds of twist vs. riuning the drama (and other revelations) of half the entire saga.

[motorheadache95]

Originally Posted by chip75

The problem with The X-Files is that it's source video may not be of high enough quality to warrant an upgrade. There's a discussion on one of the amazon.co.uk forums were we debate this. Plus in the UK you can get the DVD set for 50-60 pounds. The BD set would cost hundreds if released. If a series was shot on film or HD there is a good chance that it will be remastered for BD otherwise it may not be worth the upgrade, either it would be to expensive to us the consumer or the studios doing the transfer.

Off topic, back to Star Wars....

I think I posted this earlier, but it likely got lost in this massive thread

X-Files was shot on film but edited on standard-def video, even the later seasons that were framed in widescreen (this is because Fox went with an "enhanced definition" 480p channel before going HD).

So the studio would have to find and retrieve all the original raw film footage, re-edit every episode from scratch, and possibly redo some post-production special effects. So I wouldn't hold my breath for this to happen.

[AintNoSin]

Originally Posted by OG Pooh

Yes, ANH sets up the lore of the Force better. But overall, OT then PT ruins more than it does good. Knowing how something ends before it starts leaves zero drama for the second half (which is actually the first half).

Maybe, but the PT was made with the assumption that most people knew Anakin's fate, so part of the drama came from knowing that these characters were destined for a bad end and wondering how it would happen and how they would get to the place we already knew they had to be for ANH to happen.

[STARKILLER--1138]

Originally Posted by s2mikey

Not really the way they were intended. The way they are released is still technically the right way to watch them. There a few key reasons(as others have pointed out as well) why this is true and ONLY pertains to someone whos never seen them before:

- Knowing Darth vader is Lukes Dad and Leia & Luke being related ahead of time sort of kills some of the intrigue of A New Hope and much of Empire Strikes back. It also takes away from th Han/Luke/Leia love struggle. Think about it. You know Luke and Leis wont be an item so Han gets her. I like the back and forth and wondering which guy she'll be with.

- Its easier to go from the OT to the PT rather than start with the high-tech worlds of the PT and then you go into A New Hope. The "feeling" isnt right, IMO.

- The films were released in the order I believe the creator(Goergie) wants us to view them.
Of course there really is no right or wrong way - do whatever works. I'll stick with the OT followed by the PT.

"You got to remember this is one movie, and it's meant to be seen 1-6." George Lucas -EPIII -The Chosen One Documentary 1:36 in.

[OG Pooh]

Originally Posted by AintNoSin

Maybe, but the PT was made with the assumption that most people knew Anakin's fate, so part of the drama came from knowing that these characters were destined for a bad end and wondering how it would happen and how they would get to the place we already knew they had to be for ANH to happen.

One could also argue that knowing Vader is Luke & Leia's Father sets up the same type of drama as knowing the bad endings of characters. Sure, it would be a different type of moment (WTF vs I KNEW IT AND YOU DIDN'T), but ruining that one WTF moment would preserve all the drama of everything else. Again, this is from the perspective of someone who has not seen the films. Sure the I am your Father moment is very cool, but it doesn't take precedent over the other 99% of the saga.

[Geologist]

Originally Posted by OG Pooh

One could also argue that knowing Vader is Luke & Leia's Father sets up the same type of drama as knowing the bad endings of characters. Sure, it would be a different type of moment (WTF vs I KNEW IT AND YOU DIDN'T), but ruining that one WTF moment would preserve all the drama of everything else. Again, this is from the perspective of someone who has not seen the films. Sure the I am your Father moment is very cool, but it doesn't take precedent over the other 99% of the saga.

Good point - I was thinking along the same lines. I guess what is hard for us older folks is that Star Wars (OT) was always a story about Luke's journey of discovery - meeting Obi Wan, yoda, his sister, and his father - and in the in coming to terms with his family legacy. Throw in the PT, and the whole story is more the story of Anakin/Vader - a story of the fall and through his son, redemption. In the end, when showing it to family who have never seen it, I may just stick to the straight 1-6 (it has, for many, become pop cultural knowledge that Vader is Luke's father anyway even if they haven't seen the films). Since I have only seen the PT once a piece, I may be personally interested in the 4,5,1,2,3,6 route and see how that goes.

[s2mikey]

Originally Posted by STARKILLER--1138

"You got to remember this is one movie, and it's meant to be seen 1-6." George Lucas -EPIII -The Chosen One Documentary 1:36 in.

Honestly, I didnt watch that documentary. Interesting - since then everyone knows the Luke/Vader/Leia "twists" well ahead of time along with lots of other stuff. The characters dont know, but we all do. Surprising.

If this is true though - why didnt he make the PT first? Kind of confusing.

[AintNoSin]

Originally Posted by OG Pooh

Again, this is from the perspective of someone who has not seen the films. Sure the I am your Father moment is very cool, but it doesn't take precedent over the other 99% of the saga.

But if you watch the PT from the prospective of someone who has seen the OT, you catch a bunch of nods from the filmmakers to those who are familiar with what happens later. I don't think there are enough "wow" revelations in the PT to change my feeling that the films make the most sense in the order they were made, regardless of the episode numbers.

I also agree that the ideal viewing order may be 4,5,1,2,3,6.

4 & 5 setup Luke Skywalker & Darth Vader and establish their relationship, then we flash back to the downfall of Anakin Skywalker in the PT before telling the story of his redemption in 6.

[OG Pooh]

Originally Posted by AintNoSin

But if you watch the PT from the prospective of someone who has seen the OT, you catch a bunch of nods from the filmmakers to those who are familiar with what happens later. I don't think there are enough "wow" revelations in the PT to change my feeling that the films make the most sense in the order they were made, regardless of the episode numbers.

I also agree that the ideal viewing order may be 4,5,1,2,3,6.

4 & 5 setup Luke Skywalker & Darth Vader and establish their relationship, then we flash back to the downfall of Anakin Skywalker in the PT before telling the story of his redemption in 6.

But are those nods, inside jokes and all the like, worth ruining the drama of every battle for? Are they worth ruining the fact (to a noob) that Anakin even becomes Darth Vader? Are they worth ruining the revelation that Senator Palpatine becomes the twisted, disfigured Emperor? Are they worth runing knowing exactly who lives & who dies? To a noob, knowing that Vader is Luke & Leia's Father could be just as interesting as not knowing. Knowing everybody's fate ruins everything.

Definitely, as a fan I like the 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, 6 order. Like I said before, the only problem I personally have with that is it ends (filmwise) on a low note (overall, Jedi is my second least favorite of the series). Too bad GL won't turn 1, 2, & 3 into flashbacks and renumber the whole series. 4 becomes 1, 5 becomes 2, 1 becomes 3, etc.

[STARKILLER--1138]

Originally Posted by s2mikey

Honestly, I didnt watch that documentary. Interesting - since then everyone knows the Luke/Vader/Leia "twists" well ahead of time along with lots of other stuff. The characters dont know, but we all do. Surprising.

If this is true though - why didnt he make the PT first? Kind of confusing.

I suggest going through the docs. It's all there.

[Geologist]

Originally Posted by s2mikey

If this is true though - why didnt he make the PT first? Kind of confusing.

Because audiences would have taken one look at Jar Jar Binks circa 1977 and the rest of the films would have never been made...

[DarkDune]

I hear George is "fixing" all this confusion for the Blu-ray release of the six films.



Edit: For the record, I will NEVER forget the day I saw ESB and was SHOCKED as much as Luke to find out who Darth Vader said he was...and the three years it took to find out if it was true or not!

Nothing in the PT had that effect on me...not even finding out what Jar Jar (their first ALL DIGITAL actor) was like

LOL

[OG Pooh]

Originally Posted by Geologist

Because audiences would have taken one look at Jar Jar Binks circa 1977 and the rest of the films would have never been made...

[STARKILLER--1138]

Originally Posted by Geologist

Because audiences would have taken one look at Jar Jar Binks circa 1977 and the rest of the films would have never been made...

...again, I suggest watching the docs and passing on the uw-tripe.