I like the idea of the Jabba scene in A New Hope. I don’t think it detracts too much from the rest of the film, and it adds a little backstory to Han and Chewie. However, I’m glad it wasn’t included in the 1977 release. With the limited technology of the time, Jabba could have turned out looking a whole lot worse than what we saw in 1997 (shudder), and a silly-looking Jabba could have made the movie look like a stupid, low-budget, science fiction exploitation movie.
I think the idea is fine, but I also think it detracts from his appearance in ROTJ and adds absolutely nothing to the narrative of ANH. We don’t need the Jabba scene to know Han is in hot water, and it just makes Jabba look like “that fat slug that got stepped on” when you see him again in ROTJ.
Obviously we don’t see Jabba as the aforementioned, but to someone watching it in chronological order for the first time it’d cheapen his character and reveal. His small cameo in TPM isn’t necessary, but at least he doesn’t let someone he put a bounty on stomp on his tail.
It’s alright as a bonus deleted scene or something, but not an actual addition to the finished product.
But, y’know, that’s just my opinion.