I'm pretty sure Hayden's Anakin doing the death stare at the end of ROTJ was him mistaking the Ewoks for children and wanting to murder them

A billion dollar idea. A version of the trilogy on streaming / blu ray where you can jump between the different versions mid-movie. So If you’re watching EP4 and know the jabba scene is coming up, just jump to the pre-special edition that doesn’t have it.

Having Vader say, "nooooo!" makes what was one of the most emotional scenes in film history into one of the worst.

And SAME about the chills regarding YUB NUB chorus transitioning into the SW theme during the credits... I remember seeing the Special Editions as a kid and being so utterly disappointed with the changes made to RETURN because it felt so flat and lifeless compared to the genuine charm of the original Ewok celebration ending. I understand Lucas's obsessive compulsion to fix things as an artist/filmmaker myself, but honestly sometimes things are good enough as-is. It's often the quirks of an older film that gives it that unique charm and a certain special vibe and when you tamper too much, you can lose some of what made that thing "what it was"...

Your review is spot on. Vader saying "No" just ruined the whole scene. He didn't have to speak. We could see his emotions and his thoughts by his body language. That's what made it so good.

Just makes me appreciate my pristine Harmy Unaltered Theatrical Release Blu-Ray versions of ALL three original films. I also have the grindhouse versions on Blu as well. These were ripped right from a release print, with scratches, pops, cigarette burns for reel changes and all the other glorious imperfections of physical film.

Remember when for Blade Runner's 25th anniversary there was that box set released that had all 5 versions of the film that had been released over the years, even including the original audience preview test screening cut. Plus some documentaries that were actually interesting and rewatchable. Probably the best box set I've yet seen for a movie. That's the sort of set I dream of having for the Star Wars o.t. I know it will never happen but I can still dream! 🤣

Just knowing that Han Solo is taller than Jabba The Hutt looks weird, as I always envisioned him to be in over towering slob being 7 ft tall or more.

In the Cloud CIty scenes, they changed some windows and everything, but in some scenes later you can still see the original windows in the background.

There's a hundred SOUND changes to the Special Editions, particular the first movie, that you barely notice but help the movie. The sound mix was a bit of a rush job and the Special Edition added or changed a ton of sounds that were basically missing.

I remember everyone in the audience gasped when they saw the new jabba palace music scene. It was so bad that people couldn't help but be shocked by it because the character literally breaks the fourth wall.

Another change that wasn’t mentioned was Boba Fetts voice being changed to Morrison’s. The original voice is bone chilling!

End of return was COMPLETELY destroyed in the special edition. There is no indication anywhere that would suggest that the Empire would just crumble everywhere when the Death star II was destroyed. There would have been Imperial troops on all of these worlds and who controlled all of the information? The Empire.

I don't like the new Emperor because of the story changes, And because the makeup doesn't match Return of the Jedi. Things like fixing the landspeeder in Star Wars, or the cardboard cutouts in the throne room are fine. Fixing the disappearing Snow Speeder cockpit in Empire also is fine. I hate removing Boba Fett's original voice In TESB.. I'm fine with adding Coruscant and the Jedi Temple. I get why Lucas made all these changes he was changing the scope of the films to match the prequel. Expanding the universe.

I agree with all your points here. What really bothers me however is that all these changes have drastically reduced the times I've rewatched the trilogy on Blu-ray. These were once some of the most rewatchable films ever made. Now, my enthusiasm is dampened because I have to see Han stepping over Jabba's tail, etc. It annoys me so much that I don't rewatch nearly as often as I normally would. Yes, I have the HD despecialized trilogy on my computer but it's not the same, especially for those of us who love to collect official Blu-ray releases.😢

The creature crossing the shot in Mos Eisley is called the Ronto. The Dewback is the animal that the Stormtroopers ride. I understand the mistake tho. They're both lizard things. Great vid.

I didn't even realise Vader shouted "no" so mustn't have seen the Special Edition of Jedi. What a terrible addition; and yet another example of breaking the storytelling maxim of "show, don't tell". The fact we could infer the turmoil of Vader through a mask, like more recent Mando scenes, is a difficult thing to pull off but great when it works! And I agree wholeheartedly with the comment on Han and Greedo: it thoroughly undermines his character arc from rogue to hero of the rebellion

The Despecialiized Editions are the definitive versions and what I would recommend to people watching for the first time.

The best version of all these movies is alive and well in my heart and mind. It's too bad it's not for sale, but I'll tell you, it's pretty grand.

Luke's reunion with Biggs in the Yavin hanger was the best and only necessary change. It should never have been cut in the first place. I remember being SO CONFUSED as a child, why the film treats the death of this one particular pilot as so much more important, when others have been blowing up left and right. I didn't learn for several years that oh yeah this is Luke's childhood buddy that he mentions early in the movie. Just keeping that one scene would have made a huge difference to me. I also appreciate the opened-up Cloud City, especially the windows in the interior shots. I think that's a huge improvement, the original seems so claustrophobic now. The airiness of the upper city now makes a nicer contrast with the basement levels where Luke fights Vader. There is no reason to ever watch the special edition of RotJ. None.

Good video. You are correct in how jarring it is to have garish visual prequel reminders in the OT. Lucas’ incessant desire to not have the original cuts available was/is utterly bizarre. The only changes I liked from any of the films were the Biggs scene in the original and the Emperor scene in Empire, although the version of that scene in the Adywan revisited cut is the definitive one imo. Original dialogue with VI Emperor.

Vader yelling no at the end of revenge of the sith pisses me off and always have but idk why

Regardless of how we all feel about which changes are good and which aren't, it's awful and a disservice of revisionist history that original, unaltered versions of these films aren't available unless you go digging for fan-made restorations. In today's day and age of 4K restorations by major companies, the OT would be a perfect candidate for such a treatment, if only for the historical significance.

Yub nub makes way more sense in RotJ. The focus was always supposed to be on the heroes in the end-the victory celebration song disconnects the audience completely from what’s happening on screen with the main characters. Yub Nub fits the scene better. That’s how a contained story works, even if it’s part of a saga.

Lucas is leaving a bounty of cash untapped by not releasing the OT in HD. At least we have dedicated fans like those at Project 4k77, to fill that void. And for another take on special editions, the work of Adywan is mighty.

When Vader died he was old. Why would his ghost be 30 years younger. Obi and Yoda there ghosts aren't 30 years younger.

Did you ever see Harmy's despecialized editions? I have the old VHS tapes and his edits are pretty dayum faithful to the original cuts.

I agree Vader yelling "Noooo" totally ruins thd emotional moment of Vader choosing to protect Luke

Excellent take. The Special Editions have always irked me and I'm glad you pointed out some of the reasons why fans like myself dislike them so much.

Removing Yub Nub killed the ending of Return of the Jedi for me. I like showing other planets but not at the expense of the song and the transition into the Star Wars theme. That was gold. Now it feels much cheaper.

If Lucas had the technology he wanted for Star Wars he'd be flipping burgers today! Much like Spielberg with not having the technology to show the actual shark 🦈 it made the movie an absolute masterpiece!! Lucas was saved by the same lack of technology for Star wars and Empire movies!

What always bothered me were those little changes to Empire Strikes Back. It was the movie that needed the least amount of tweaking and yet got more than its share. The two I hated the most: 1) For no reason at all, the line that Luke says to R2D2 when he is spit out of the monster was changed from. "You're lucky you don't taste very good," to "You were lucky to get out of there." A much more banal and generic line. 2) The sequence where Darth Vader leaves Cloud City and goes to his ship after fighting and losing Luke, is much longer and unnecessarily on the nose than it was originally. In the original version, you just have a shot of him walking through the hallway saying, "Bring my shuttle." In the new version, there's a whole series of shots showing him leave, get into his shuttle, fly to the ship, and get out of the shuttle. Like an old Hollywood transition before editing was refined. His line is even changed to, "Inform the ship that I'm on the way blah blah blah."

George has changed these movies many times. Not all of these changes are from the 1997 Special Editions. For example, putting Hayden Christensen into ROTJ didn’t happen until the 2004 DVD releases. That is also the same time Ian McDiarmid was added to ESB. Vader’s “NO” was added in the 2011 edition.

I'm pretty sure Lucas did make a deal where Disney can't release the original versions of the trilogy.....while Lucas is alive.

In the medallion scene, those foreground guys aren’t cardboard cut-outs, they’re matte paintings. Only the centre of the shot is real.

FYI the original versions are available on the 2-disc dvd sets for each film

Great video. Don't forget about the re-dub of Boba's voice in Empire!

5:54 “Can we make that door bigger? But George, that doesn’t- Just make the door bigger!” - RedLetterMedia

I really like Han Solo running into a hangar full of stormtroopers instead of chasing them to a dead end, it really makes his surprised reaction work. So far, though, I prefer fan edits like Adywan and his ongoing Star Wars: Revisited project.

No one ever seems to mention the THX versions that came out maybe a year or so before the special editions which had boosted FX & no extra scenes… I had these on VHS in the 90s & they were in my opinion the optimum versions. Nowadays I just watch the bonus dvd editions of the original theatrical releases, which are good enough for me…. although I’d love the THX dvds of these.

Luke also yells carrie after he sees and hugs leia after blowing up the death star in both episode IV versions lol 😹😹😹

I mostly agree with what you have presented here. So much of it seems so unnecessary. For every positive tweak that was done, there were 3-5 more additions and changes that were crappy, unneeded or just plain bad. And let's not forget: the original Star Wars movie won academy awards for it's special effects, sound design and editing (among others). For those reasons alone they shouldn't have been "tweaked" or modified. When you do that, you destroy a historical record. I saw the original trilogy all in theaters during their original releases, so I am a bit biased. Some of the changes did work (space battles, some of the Cloud City backgrounds, etc), but so many didn't and just make the movie something less than they were originally.

Lucas actually fixed the shot showing Obi-Wan's lightsaber prop for the unreleased 3D edition, which was later repurposed for the Disney+ and 4K releases. Although the wire is still visible when he ignites it.

I could definitely live without the special edition version of Jabba's Palace Also, Lucas putting some kind of agreement in the Disney purchase would make alot of sense on why we haven't gotten the theatrical versions of the OT

The added cgi shockwaves from the destruction of both Deathstar's really irritates me. They're spheres. The shockwaves should expand in every direction outwards from the internal explosions, not on a flat plane as they do in the special editions. Sadly they've made this mistake ubiquitous in cinema and it's just wrong! Also I miss all the shoddiness of the original such as the stormtrooper who bangs his head on the door frame in the Deathstar and Mark Hamill shouting "Carrie" when he gets out of the X-Wing. The mistakes left in the original were perfect drinking game material.

Actually, I like the change on the Han's running from the troopers scene in A New Hope. In the original movie there's only a couple of soldier there, that he could easily shoot and keep running, and was almost the same number of soldiers that were chansing him, so doesn't make sense he just deciding to just give up and return. By adding an entire squad the fact that he decides to run away instead of facing them makes much more sense. And the shot goes so fast that is really hard to notice the copy and paste, specially because stormtroopers are ment to look alike each other.

An "underrated" bad change: Replacing Jason Wintergreen's evil, slimy, badass delivery as Boba Fett in Empire Strikes Back with Temuera Morrisson who sounds like he's just barely awake.

I agree about Han and that he shot first, not Greedo. I also didn't like the new musical number in Jabba's palace. They could have maybe digitally removed the visible puppet strings and reanimated the mouth and left everything else alone. Vader shouting "NOOOO!" at the end of the scene really ruined it. About the cut scene with Han and Jabba, well now that you mentioned it, maybe it should've stayed cut. Especially when it was re-edited so poorly. But I guess Lucas can finally be satisfied to see that scene in the final film now so whatever. Placing Hayden Christensen at the end of Jedi was a sin against humanity.

I don’t believe for a second that the Special Editions are “the way Lucas originally intended the films to be”. If that was true, he wouldn’t keep making change after change, sometimes to the same scene.

Replacing LAPTI NEK is an unforgivable sin. ROTJ was originally my favorite and employs some good VFX fixes but so much stupid bullshit in the Special Editions...

In 1995 Lucas remastered the original trilogy. That’s the only version I need.

The party at the end of RotJ should only be on Endor. The rest of the galaxy doesn't know the Emperor is dead. And they won't know if the the Empire which isn't dead, has their say. The governors are still there, and they have enough troops to keep their subjects in line. And Lucas didn't want the Wampa to be scary when he did the Special Editions. That's why he showed it. And it sucks.

I've heard about how Lucas thought about adding a bit in later versions of ROTJ where we'd see Boba Fett flying out of the pit using his jetpack. Lucas stating that had he known how popular a character Boba Fett would become, he wouldn't have killed him off like he did originally.

There's a pretty good fan edit of RoTJ that gets the best of the additions while keeping what was originally released

What never made sense to me about adding Haydn in as a Jedi ghost, is that Luke never met that version. Yoda appears old and tattered, as he did when he died. So, did Obi-Wan. That's how Luke knew them. If you think about it, why didn't Lucas replace Alec Guinness with Ewan MacGregor? And don't say that Lucas wanted to show Anakin as the good version. Because he died as the good version after he turned from the dark side. The ratty-haired version of Anakin as a ghost was exactly how he looked when he murdered a bunch of children. The real reason for all of the problems is that Lucas is not a good director. He's not a good screenwriter. He's not a good producer. He's not a good editor. He IS a good storyteller and world-builder, and that's all he should have done. Of the 6 Star Wars films that Lucas had a hand in, Empire is usually regarded as the best by fans. It's also the one that he had the least input in. What does that tell you?

There's this very minor scene in Empire Strikes Back that felt very unnecessary to change. It's when Luke falls into the pit after he failed to bring him over, and he's getting ready to leave. In the 1980 version, he says "Bring my shuttle" and the vitriol in his voice said so much. It's a case of less being more. Special edition he says "Alert my star destroyer to prepare for my arrival" in his normal tone. If it was any other scene, this wouldn't really be a problem, but the context prior I feel makes this a worse change, despite being so minor.

Hayden Christianson as Anakin's force ghost wasn't added in 1997. It was added after Revenge of the Sith came out in 2005.

So glad I got an early nineties edition. Only reason I still have a VCR.

0:08 Amazing that lucas knew in 1997 that Haden would be vader in 2002.

When you say the 1997 CGI is dated, it's kinda silly. Some of it looked good, but a lot of those CGI effects looked fake IN 1997. They never looked "real", just like a lot of the cartoony CGI in 2002's Attack of the Clones looks animated. So what is dated if it always looked bad?

I like the way the special editions get rid of the imperfections of the original special effects, and improve on them, like in the case of the Death Star attack in ANH. I don't like most of the added scenes - not only is the CGI awful but the attempts of humour just feel flat and out of place. Star Wars used wit to make the audience laugh, seeing a droid hit another is just not funny. Creatively I don't think Lucas really added anything and ended up taking away from them.

in the ghost jedi scene at the end of return of the jedi, they should have made hayden look older. he looks revenge of the sith age but obiwan is a new hope age

Changing an annoyed Vader saying 'Bring my Shuttle' to a comatose delivery of 'Alert my Star Destroyer to prepare for my arrival' and inexplicably adding in a different angle of Vader disembarking from his shuttle from Return of the Jedi in Empire Strikes Back is an act of vandalism!!!

1:57 It's not a Dewback, it's a Ronto.

Wrote this a while ago, reposting it here… If I was put in charge of Lucasfilm with unlimited creative freedom and a blank cheque, yes, I would release the movies in their original theatrical state, but.... I would also play Devil's Advocate and produce _Star Wars Trilogy: The Ultimate Edition._ I have a laundry list of changes I'd make... - On the special effects side of things, I'd replace the CGI additions with all brand new miniature shots, building new detailed models and filming them. I'd also scan the original raw VistaVision effects elements (in 6K or 8K) for the best looking of the original effects shots (e.g. Phil Tippet's go-motion Walkers). I'd recomposite them (removing the optical loss) and reframe them for IMAX (The native aspect ratio of VistaVision is 1.50:1, provided there isn't too much garbage area on the negatives, they could easily be reframed for 1.43:1 (IMAX 70mm/IMAX with Laser) and/or 1.90:1 (IMAX Digital)). Some of the CGI additions, like Jabba's singers and the windows in Cloud City, I'd completely rerender, in 4K with improved textures. - I'd reinsert Ben's previous Force scream (the 2011 Blu-ray one just sounds silly). - I wouldn't reinsert Jason Wingreen's lines as Boba. I'd bring Temuera back to redub it, this time with him copying the original vocal tone and inflection. - On a more drastic note, I'd remove the Greedo scene entirely. Most people think that because of that scene, the Jabba scene is pointless, but in actuality, the Greedo scene only exists because they couldn't finish that scene. But I also wouldn't add a new digital Jabba, I'd keep the scene raw, I would leave in Declan Mulholland and I'd redub it so that he's Jabba's messenger (I'd name him Dec, in tribute to the actor). I think it's time he's remembered as more than a deleted scene. (e,g. "Look Dec, tell Jabba, next time he wants to talk to me to come see me himself, don't send one of these twerps!") - I wouldn't reinsert Sebastian Shaw to the finale of _Return of the Jedi_ nor would I reuse the edit from 2004. It's nearly twenty years later, and Hayden has matured nicely, I'd refilm it with him as he appears today.

The change of Boba Fett's voice - Bad.

Agreed with all the positives and negatives here. New VFX can work well if it's touching up something subtle, but the Special Editions do flat-out scene replacements, and it does look terrible. Personally, I didn't grow up on the original cuts (I didn't really get into Star Wars until my late teens), but would still prefer to see them than the Special Editions. Or at least with the intrusive CGI shots removed.

I'm always baffled about how they got CGI Jabba so incredibly *wrong*. He's the wrong shape. The wrong proportions. His eyes are the wrong color (how hard could it have been to give him his red eyes??) His skin is the wrong color and has weird black blotches that shouldn't be there. Everybody's like "oh he doesn't look real" and somehow nobody seems to notice he's totally changed from his Jedi appearance.

The biggest problem with the Hayden force ghost is that it doesn't make any sense. Obi-Wan and Yoda's force ghosts appear as the age they were at death. Watching the movie. You just saw Vader demasked at his death. So why would his force ghost appear as a young man?

I absolute positively fully agree with all the points made in this video. I’m 46 years old now so of the generation that grew up with the original films. The 1997 editons…..oh how I tried to appreciate the changes, and as described here, I can dig the good ones. But for God’s sake! The bad and the ugly ones….absolutely woeful. Dreadfully embarrassing. And hideously outdated. I long to watch the original films as they were released at the time…😢

The George Lucre Edition made the DVD versions stutter, as I remembered what I saw at the ex-Cinerama theater in 1977. Or, from another point of view, George Lucas "remade 'Star Wars" for "modern audiences," and gave Disney very bad ideas.

Lucas did do exactly that. In the sale to Disney, one of the stipulations is that the originals would never, ever be re-released. That's why the De-Specialized Editions are vital.

It boggles the mind how Disney hasn’t released a “definitive edition” of the original trilogy on blu ray, with all versions of the films available.

May I recommend Rick Worley’s video on all the special edition changes if you really care about this stuff. It’s the best and most extensive video on the platform about this topic and he offers a great appreciation for George Lucas and Star Wars.

IMO the THX optimized version of the trilogy is the best one. It keeps everything as it is in the original trilogy, but it's audio and video have been cleaned up.

I love that they cleaned up the mat-lines everything else I could live without

My personal opinion is that all the recompositing of shots and most if not all of the cg spaceship shots are acceptable changes, just fine for a special edition rerelease. They’re neither offensive nor distracting (except possibly cloud city).

The reason why the changed force ghost scene at the end of Jedi was bad isn't because the prequels were bad, it's because Luke wouldn't even know who that was. The only time he ever saw his father's face was when Vader took his mask off before he died.

If it ain't broke don't fix it...

Disney doesn’t want us to enjoy the old films why do you think they’re trying to destroy them?

Do we know why Disney haven't released the original Theatrical Cuts? Is it part of their contracts with Lucas that can't? Guess we'll have to hope that's only until he dies.

My first time ever seeing Star wars was the 1997 Special Edition, so it has a special place in my heart, only change from that version I really dispise is the scream added when luke jumps into hole in Cloud City. It makes one of the most emotional scenes in the saga fucking hilarious

I wish you could cherry pick what changes you want. Wpuld be rad to see some of the deleted scenes finished too. I think thats a ronto crossing the camera.

This is not really how Lucas originally envisioned the films. He had the technology to make Greedo shoot first or have Vader say "Nooooooo!" in the 70s and 80s or for Sy Snoodles to not have that thing on her head, etc. I hate Jedi Rocks. It takes focus away from the green slave girl being dragged into the Rancor pit. (And we didn't really need to see her in the pit, either. We already get to see inside of the pit after Luke falls in there, so we don't need to see it before then.)

Of all the things Lucas could have fixed and didn't is the establishing shot of the Falcon in Docking Bay 94 and the notable lack of a sensor dish on the Falcon's upper hull.

Idk why but a change that was unnecessary but really bad has to be the change of Vaders line in ESB. It used to be “bring my shuttle” which was said in a subtle pissed off way but was changed to some long line that was no where near as impactful.

A long time ago in a store far, far away, there were a set of DVD of episodes 1-6 and out of those, 4-6 had two discs, one for the specialized version and the other for the thrleatrical release...so the originals are out there if you're lucky.

Oh how I wish I had held onto my old VHS originals.

1:28 I legitimately cannot tell the original guys were cardboard cutouts… Whoever did those was on their shit that day!

I've always hated how Jabba in A New Hope is the same height as Han Solo but by Return of the Jedi he's much bigger.

Maclunkey

Id love to see a video on just the audio changes, but I imagine the video would be a massive undertaking since ive heard there are many

There is no more special editions. What we have is just the directors preferred version.

Is there no way to watch the original versions?

There is a very well Fan-Made "Despecialized Edition" floating around, which restored the Special Edition back to the theatrical cut. I've seen it and it's very good! It has also a lot of audio from all countries all over the world, aswell as a "just music" audio-stream inclueded.

I was born in 1993 so I still remember when my friend's dad had the original trilogy and would watch them with my friends. When they released the special editions on DVD years later and acquired them, I remember feeling confused as things happened, such as Greedo shooting first and Jabba appearing that I did not remember happening, and took me out of the movie at certain points. I felt like I was being gaslit. For me, the inclusion of Jabba in IV really is one of the worst changes as aside from looking visually awful and being redundant as was said here, it also makes Han's arc make no sense and turns him into an idiot. In the original, Greedo tells us that Jabba is finished with Han and essentially not open to negotiations giving us the impression that Han is in a situation wherein he may not be able to escape. But with Jabba added back in, we see Han negotiate with Jabba to lift the bounty on him in exchange for share of Obi-Wan and Luke's share. So whereas in the original Han may have realized that chances are that Jabba would most likely not forgive him and thus decides to change course and help the rebellion, but in the specials all he literally had to do was after the battle of Yavin go back to Jabba and pay him the money he owed him and then Jabba wouldn't have put the hit out on Han. So, it just makes him look like an absent-minded idiot.

I also don’t like how they went back to change boba fett’s voicelines. I get it for the sake of continuity but is old voice was way cooler and should’ve been left alone

I thought the special editions CGI looked bad in the 1990's. And it put me off CGI because it try's to jump out of screen at you. Great Channel.

One other thing of interest, was when I saw A New Hope Special Edition in the theater, The conversation between Han and Greedo was longer than in the original - I saw the original scene plenty to know this - but when I bought the VHS release of Special Ed, and saw it televised (probably on TNT) the longer exchange was not there. Did anyone else catch this, or am I imagining it?

The 1997 Special Edition Return of the Jedi still had Sebastion Shaw the addition of Hayden Christensen came later in the new changes for home video.