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For Those who bought the Sept. 12th Release, Thoughts so far?

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It has been almost three weeks since the O-OT finally made its way to DVD, albeit not exactly what we wanted in terms of quality, but those who bought it, what do you think so far?

-Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?

-Is the quality actually better than you expected?

-Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?

-Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?

-Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT, or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW.

-Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?

-If a remastered O-OT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?
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For me, I never had good working bootlegs cause they always froze up, and I never had a laserdisk player, so I was buying this set from day one no matter what the quality was, in a sense I HAD to have these movies cause I watch them more then any movies in my collection. Let me set the record straight, in 30 years, I have never gotten sick of the OT movies once, so that says something about their replay value.

I have a 52" HD Widescreen TV, so this non anamorphic has a big effect on me. The first few days I would just skim through scenes and at first, I really was kinda down, cause it looked pretty bad. So the first weekend, I didn't watch any of them movies and just tinkered with my color on my TV, just for watching DVD's, and I found one option: Vibrant. All of the sudden the DVD's looked pretty damn good, as the colors were really nice and really stuck out again, the fleshtones were alot more detailed, and the picture look pretty damn good for non-anamorphic, not great, but good enough.

So the last three weekends I have watched SW, Empire, and Jedi, and I have to say I am content with this set. The only scene that really look too grainy are parts of Hoth when they just show the snow, and parts of Tatooine when they just show the sand, but other than that, and I am being a 100% honest, I have really enjoyed these movies, and dont' regret buying them one bit now.

As for the future, if Lucas does remaster the O-OT, I would still buy it, but I am not gung ho crazy like I was since 2004 when I was trying to find decent bootlegs. At this point, I am a 4-6 man, and I think that is the reason Lucas didnt' want to release these versions, there is nothing in there that ties to the PT, so I really dont' think about all the PT bullshit like I do when I see Hayden in ROTJ SE, and all the stupid CG crap that sticks out of a 30 year old movie.

I know they aren't perfect, but I actually don't have hatred for Lucas anymore, I just don't think about him and all his crap anymore, as I have checked out as a SW fan, and in a sense the way he has treated me, I haven't really enjoyed anything with SW since 1983. So I have said many of times, George may have won the battle by putting out the O-OT in non-anamorphic this time, but he has lost the war, cause if you read my sig, that is the only money I will be shelling out for SW anymore, and that is cause Lucas created this whole split in the fanbase.
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I love the releases. I have a standard, 4x3 TV so non-anamorphic wasn't really a problem. It was a HUGE step up from my bootlegs. The black bars on my bootlegs were a very light black or dark grey and horribly fuzzy, and very distracting. On the 9/12 releases, they are as black as night and let me watch the films without being distracted by them in the least. The picture is also better, with colors and details coming out more vibrantly. I love the disc and cover art (except for the fact that it says episode 4 and A New Hope all over it...grumble) and I think the menus are too cool. I have absolutely no regrets about buying these. I was very skeptical about getting them, to the point where I had almost decided to forget about it, but then I saw the reviews here on OT.com, and when I read Mielr's reviews, I was sold. Thanks again Mielr!

I got the Best Buy tin on Thursday the 14th, and was enthralled by the release and lost in it before I'd even watched the movies. The tin was so beautiful, with poster art all over it and just the overall feel to it. Then I opened the tin, and I saw the cover and disc art close up for the first time, and saw that I finally had a real release of the OOT, and I was happier than I'd been in a long time. I instanly put the "bonus discs" in the disc one slot and the 2004 in the back, and shortly thereafter sat down to watch Star Wars, and was completely lost in the experiance, unlike I was with my bootlegs. I forgot I was watching a film and was transported to a glazy far, far away for the first time in a long time. Two weeks before this, I'd tried watching my bootleg, but with angry thoughts towards Lucas, the fuzzy picture, and other things I turned it off. But now, I have a release where I can just get lost in the experiance, and I don't need anything else. The next day, I watched both Empire and Jedi, and they were great too.

I have the only release I will ever need, unless they get released on hi-def (though I won't be getting an HDTV for quite a while I'm betting.) Could the films have been treated better? Yes. But do I really care? No. I've got all I need, and I thanked George because although he did begrudgingly and out of malice, he made this kid happy, like he made lots of kids happy in 1977, and I hope he realizes that.
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I've had a weird reaction. I love how different the 3 are from each other. So much that I think the 2007 set should just be a simple 6 disc thing: the theatrical versions of all SIX movies, as they were in the theaters, flaws and all. No commentaries, just 6 good transfers. The movies have been talked to death, there'll be an HD set eventually, let's just let it stand as it really was for a while!
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-Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?

No. I actually expected it to bother me more.

-Is the quality actually better than you expected?

Yes. Many scenes look quite good, and much better than they ever did on any copies of Laserdisc that I have owned.

-Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?

Sort of. I'm trying to, but the aliasing problems are VERY apparent on my 70 inch screen.

-Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?

I still love Star Wars. But I'm not so thrilled with Lucas.

-Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT, or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW.

It has absolutely NOT made me want to watch the PT. In fact I haven't looked at the PT at all since I got these. In watching the O-OT I continue to see all the great possibilities of what the PT could have been, but wasn't.

-Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?

No.

-If a remastered O-OT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?

No. I'm not content with it now. The O-OT deserves to be released in a version as true to the original theatrical experience(s) as possible. This release does not completely accomplish that. However, I am THRILLED that the 1977 version of the opening of STAR WARS has finally been included.

What really needs to come in the next few years is a high quality HD release of the OT, including ALL the original soundtrack versions (70mm Six Track, 35mm Dolby Stereo, and 35mm Monaural as appropriate). If it's really done right, I will be content with that.
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Well, I'm satisfied. With these and the bootlegs I got right before this, Star Wars became fun again. Like CO said, I got so lost in the movies that none of the prequel stuff even entered my mind like it sometimes does when I watch the '04 versions. Yes, I wish they'd been treated better, but this is good enough for me entirely. I said this was going to be my last purchase of the trilogy, and I'm sticking to that. These will be the versions I will show to my kids some day. I really don't give a care with whatever else Lucas wants to do to destroy his legacy and make him look like even more of a dumbass. I have my movies, and that's all I need out of Star Wars.

There is no lingerie in space…

C3PX said: Gaffer is like that hot girl in high school that you think you have a chance with even though she is way out of your league because she is sweet and not a stuck up bitch who pretends you don’t exist… then one day you spot her making out with some skinny twerp, only on second glance you realize it is the goth girl who always sits in the back of class; at that moment it dawns on you why she is never seen hanging off the arm of any of the jocks… and you realize, damn, she really is unobtainable after all. Not that that is going to stop you from dreaming… Only in this case, Gaffer is actually a guy.

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I've now watched Star Wars more times (4) in the last 3 weeks than I had in the last 10 years. It's completely rekindled my love of the film. Honestly - I'd forgotten how much I love the movie. For more years than I can remember, it existed only in my memory and imagination - and in the soundtrack, which I listen to quite a bit. I've never seen anything SE-related because it's not the film\story\characters that I grew up with. So, for a really long time I just remembered every line, every scene, and every emotion while listening to the music. Now, I can experience them again, and I have been. It's been a great 3 weeks. None of the characters are related to each other and the universe is enormous.

Star Wars is back.
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I bought ANH, whilst grumbling about the hassle it'll be to convert them to anamorphic. It looked pretty good, so I bought ESB too. ESB looks downright terrible by any standards. Haven't seen ROTJ yet, but hopefully it'll look better.

My stance on revising fan edits.

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I love them, and I hadn't realized just how much better the films were without the changes. I could live with them before, but now nearly all of them, save the SE Battle of Yavin and the Cloud City stuff, I can no longer stand. FX cleanup notwithstanding.

Now, who wants to start campaigning for a remastered/anamorphic OOT with FX cleanup?

I can live with 80% of the SE additions. I even like the PT (overall). But not releasing the OOT in respectable condition? That's unacceptable.

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Hell, I don't even want FX cleanup. The only thing keeping this release from being perfect is the non-anamorphic transfer, the DVNR problems, and the lack of the very original sound mixes. I'd prefer nothing to be changed.

There is no lingerie in space…

C3PX said: Gaffer is like that hot girl in high school that you think you have a chance with even though she is way out of your league because she is sweet and not a stuck up bitch who pretends you don’t exist… then one day you spot her making out with some skinny twerp, only on second glance you realize it is the goth girl who always sits in the back of class; at that moment it dawns on you why she is never seen hanging off the arm of any of the jocks… and you realize, damn, she really is unobtainable after all. Not that that is going to stop you from dreaming… Only in this case, Gaffer is actually a guy.

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"-Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?"
No, but I have a 4:3 TV.

"-Is the quality actually better than you expected?"
Yes!

"-Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?"
Yes.

"-Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?"
I'm disgusted with Lucas - I'm not counting on there ever being an anamorphic release of the OOT in the future.

"-Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT..."
What's the "PT"?

"...or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW."
Always have been, always will be.

"-Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?"
Yes!

"-If a remastered O-OT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?"
Yes.

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I'm sure hoping for a version that at least equates to the 35mm presentation of Star Wars in 1977, and really hoping for one that visually equates to the opening day 70mm presentation and includes all three original soundtrack versions. ESB and ROTJ should receive the same treatment.

I can't help but suspect that those who are COMPLETELY satisfied with this DVD version, and claim they will never buy another, never stood in line to see Star Wars in the theater in 1977.
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no. the theory of it bothers me , but its forgotten when I'm watching the movie with my kid.

yes.

yes, very much so.

the opposite actually. the throwing-my-arms-up-in-disgust happened a long time ago. this has been the first decent thing he's thrown my way in almost ten years

no. SW saga is 3 movies made long, long ago. I have 2 of the PT movies on dvd, but I think of them as brain teasers that I watch and try to work out wtf is going on, and consider how someone with all the resources at their disposal can make something so fucked up.

no.

toughest question of the lot. yes and no. I will probably always wish that the SE's were just something for the cinemas in 97, and they would be released side-by-side with the O-OT, instead of single file over the top of them. Or that if they 'fixed' them, they would have spent the time and money to 'do it right', so I wouldn't feel the need to get a copy of the film without the hacks. But, alas, they didnt. I am glad that for a brief time, I can get the old films on dvd cheaply. As for remastered goes, I think that many of us have a different opinion on just what should and shouldnt be done to the films to get them to the standard 'we' want. With all the possibilities for them to screw them up again, I'm not sure just what they would pass over to us as their finished, remastered product. As for contentment, well..I am a Star Wars fan. Doesn't that say it all?

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Originally posted by: Hal 9000
I bought ANH, whilst grumbling about the hassle it'll be to convert them to anamorphic. It looked pretty good, so I bought ESB too. ESB looks downright terrible by any standards. Haven't seen ROTJ yet, but hopefully it'll look better.


Yes in ROTJ, I'm sure you'll love the darkness of BLUE space and BLUE stars as much as I did......LOL

I love everybody. Lets all smoke some reefer and chill. Hug and kisses for everybody.

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Originally posted by: Guy Caballero
I've had a weird reaction. I love how different the 3 are from each other. So much that I think the 2007 set should just be a simple 6 disc thing: the theatrical versions of all SIX movies, as they were in the theaters, flaws and all. No commentaries, just 6 good transfers. The movies have been talked to death, there'll be an HD set eventually, let's just let it stand as it really was for a while!

I wish.

I'm disgusted with Lucas - I'm not counting on there ever being an anamorphic release of the OOT in the future.


We said that before, and we got the discs. And they are selling well. It's a step. Let us not give up hope.

Now, who wants to start campaigning for a remastered/anamorphic OOT with FX cleanup?


We need a new petition. The battle is not over.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

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I bought them. I'm digging them. Do I wish the product was better? Hell, yes. But at least I can chuck my worn-out VHS.

I'm upconverting them, even though I don't have the equipment to justify it. Because I can.

I am enjoying these more than any ROIO I've seen thus far.

I can't wait until my kid is old enough to watch this with me. It will start with the OOT and maybe go into the prequels and SEs (daddy's re-edits) from there. But this is where it starts.
I am fluent in over six million forms of procrastination.
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I haven't purchased this release, but one of my best friends did. He brought them over because he was curious, after all the debate between us, to see how they looked. Granted, I don't have a tv. I have a projector with a 100" screen. For anyone with a setup like this, I say steer far clear. If you have a 4:3 set, you can probably live with it and not be too bothered. But on any HT setup of decent quality, what I saw falls far short. The audio I don't care much about. Even though I have a damn fine audio system, surround mixes are truly done to death and usually in poor taste...ala the SEs. So, the old mix was actually refreshing to my ears. I prefer it to the SE mix, hands down.

The release falls short as a collector piece and most definitely as a preservation piece. It looks exactly as LFL has treated it all these years...as an afterthought. It was what I expected.
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-Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?

This is a mute point, I have other non-anamorphic DVD's, and I don't have a 16x9 TV.

-Is the quality actually better than you expected?

Not really, it's pretty much as I expected. Some scenes look a little better then I would have originally expected, and then the aliasing problems in a couple of scenes seem to even that out.

-Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?

The quality is more then acceptable to enjoy the movies, and the sound mix (even if it is the '93 mix some people don't like) sounds wonderful.

-Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?

No.

-Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT, or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW.

I do enjoy the PT as well, but for very different reasons to how I enjoy the OT.

-Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?

Sadly no one else I personally know has bought the set.

-If a remastered O-OT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?

No. In another 10 years I expect a remastered OUT to be released, until then this one will do.
Some were not blessed with brains.
<blockquote>Originally posted by: BadAssKeith

You are passing up on a great opportunity to makes lots of money,
make Lucas lose a lot of his money
and make him look bad to the entire world
and you could be well known and liked

None of us here like Lucas or Lucasfilm.
I have death wishes on Lucas and Macullum.
we could all probably get 10s of thousands of dollars!
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Originally posted by: Skyranger
I can't help but suspect that those who are COMPLETELY satisfied with this DVD version, and claim they will never buy another, never stood in line to see Star Wars in the theater in 1977.

You are incorrect where I'm concerned. I'm completely satisfied with this DVD version and I stood in line a couple of times a week back in the summer of 1977.

When I watch Star Wars, I'm watching, feeling, and being transported into that same adventure - that same story. The same one I stood in line for every week in 1977. Star Wars is emotional for me - not technical. It transcends the medium or the equipment showing it to me. It's bigger than that - much bigger. I don't see the TV screen or the DVD player, or the rest of the room for that matter.

I don't sit down and watch a DVD transfer process.

There are two ways I could handle this release - I could waste time bitching and moaning about what could have been \ should have been - or - I could let my imagination take me on that same far away adventure I went on when I was a kid in 1977.

I chose the latter.



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Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?
I don't own a widescreen set, but when I heard the DVDs would be non-anamorphic, I was pretty pissed. It's not that I simply wanted a DVD enhancement that I wouldn't be able to use, I wanted the best product for the money that I paid. I view any DVD purchase as an investment for the future. If I were to ever upgrad to a widescreen set, I would hope that all my DVDs would hold up.

So, right now, it's more of a psychological thing. The nonanamorphic thing shouldn't really bother me, but it's a sign of the disrespect for these versions of the films, and I also think if I shelled out $60 for the films again ($20 more than I paid for the 2004 release), it should've been for a more worthwhile release.

Is the quality actually better than you expected?
It looks better than any VHS copy or bootleg I've seen, so I think it does look better than I had expected.

Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?
Yes, but to an extent. Watching the 2006 DVDs was probably the most fun I've had watching these Star Wars movies in a long time. I still noticed the aliasing and combing problems, but I was still able to enjoy the films.

Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?
My opinion of Lucasfilm goes on as it always has. I think Lucas is stubborn in his refusal to put out good quality versions of these films, but I've never really bitched about the issue. It was always more like a big sigh everytime I thought about it.

Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT, or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW.
After I watched ROTJ, I did pop in ROTS for whatever reason. I've always liked the prequels though I do recognize their flaws, so my opinion of them is unchanged. I recognized the flaws of ROTS, but I was still able to enjoy it.

Actually, the most interesting reaction I've had with these DVDs is that I've noticed how much SW is its own standalone film. Regardless of what vision Lucas had in store for the sequels, the original Star Wars was always just Star Wars. Sure, it was left open for sequels, but the "Episode IV" title was never there originally, and it's a perfectly fine standalone film. I prefer ESB, but it's allowed me to see the gradual evolution in the trilogy more in terms of how it was made. I've also started to feel a little more ill-will towards ROTJ, seeing how good ESB was. I still think it's an enjoyable movie and it has some great moments, but so much of it feels like we've been there before.

So I don't really suscribe to either the two schools of thought which say there's only either the original trilogy or there's the prequel trilogy + original trilogy. I can see more configurations now.

1. Star Wars, the original film.
2. Star Wars and its great sequel, The Empire Strikes Back.
3. The Star Wars Trilogy: SW, ESB, and ROTJ.
4. The Prequel Trilogy + The Original Trilogy

Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?
Nope.

If a remastered O-OT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?
I'd probably drop the cash for a remastered set, though with a big dramatic sigh as I do it.

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Ditto for me. Shiftyeyes said it best.

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Originally posted by: ShiftyEyes
So I don't really suscribe to either the two schools of thought which say there's only either the original trilogy or there's the prequel trilogy + original trilogy. I can see more configurations now. <snip!>
2. Star Wars and its great sequel, The Empire Strikes Back.

Regardless of how one feels about ROTJ, I don't think this is a valid "configuration". ESB does not have a proper ending (by design). It's the only one of the three that has a cliff-hanger ending like the old serials that GL cites as inspiration. No doubt, Star Wars is a true standalone (because GL had no idea if he'd get a chance to continue the story), but Empire must be followed up by another film.

There is another configuration you didn't mention:
The Prequel Trilogy (all by itself)
Those films are so different from the One True SW Trilogy that as far as I'm concerned they can stand by themselves.

Pink Floyd -- First in Space

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Other people have commented on the fact that Star Wars is great as its own standalone film. This is so true. When I sat down to watch it, without the episode 4 crawl, I saw for the first time that it was a great film on its own, and if you thought of it outside of the trilogy, it feels like a very different movie. It's good vs. evil, the lines clearly drawn, and the action never lets up. I couldn't say which of the 2 (SW or ESB) I like more, because I love them both to death, but ESB can't be viewed as a standalone film. It has to be viewed as a sequel, no matter how good a sequel it is. ROTJ is also excellent, but not on par with the first two, but my love for watching the films as a trilogy really makes that a moot point.


Now, I already wrote a long post on this, but I'll answer the given questions this time.

-Is the non-anamorphic quality bothering more than you thought?

Not at all. I have a 4x3 TV, but it bothered me when choosing weather or not to buy. I know I'll get a 16:9 TV someday, and I want these to be good on that too. But my main reason for wanting anamorphic is that it simply looks better overall. But this release looks fine, and non anamorphic doesn't bother me one little bit.

Is the quality actually better than you expected?

Absolutely. Maybe I'm going to far, but I think the picture looks great (in most parts) and is more than acceptable. Much more. The movies look much better than my low quality bootlegs, and the sound is great. It sound like it should. Not 5.1 2006 standard, but in the theater, 1977, somewhat old sounding sound. And John Williams score, which is more than half of what makes these films masterpieces, sounds great in any venue, and blares through once again as one of the, if not the, strongest piece of the film.

-Are you just putting aside any quality issues and just enjoying the movies again pre-97?

Yes. I had been getting fed up with Star Wars, so much so that I didn't even want to watch them any more. But then I dimmed the lights, started the film, and was lost in the experiance. I was transported to a galaxy far far away, and I know that with these DVD's I can visit that galaxy any time I want. In that nice tin sitting on my shelf is everything Star Wars to me, (2004 editions aren't in it) and it represents a vision of perfection of Star Wars, and I can get lost in them once more. No more worries. Just the films, without distractions.

-Have you put your hands up, and just become disgusted with Lucas and SW in general now?

Not at all. Now, I don't care what the hell Lucas does, or why he does it, or anything like that. I have my movies, the way I want them, and that's all I need . I'm not disgusted with them, because now they've given me what I want and they can go on with thier warped ways. I never really was disgusted with Lucas. I respect him a lot for making 3 great films back in the 70's and 80's, (or being involved in them) and I really just pity the man now. He tried his vision of the PT and the saga, and it was pretty much rejected, so he just keeps trying to make it work, and he always will be. I truly pity him.

-Has it made you want to watch the PT movies and become a saga fan PT + O-OT, or are now a true O-OT fan and the story ends with ROTJ, and begins with SW.

I am now an absolute true OOT fan, and that's all Star Wars is to me. Three films. Three brilliant scores that I can listen to frequently, and some fun LEGO video games. The PT "is dead to me."

-Have you pushed others to buy it who were on the fence?

I honestly don't know. I hope so though.

If a remastered OOT never comes out again, will you be content with this set?

Yes. Absolutely. As long as we're talking short term. If I'm 70 and this is still the best out there, then no. Because in 65 years, we should have super-uber high def, higher than HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, and Star Wars should be there. But I'm set for the rest of the lifespan of DVD. And I know these will be the discs I show to my children. High-def may have taken over by then, but I can skip the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray release.


Watch DarthEvil's Who Framed Darth Vader? video on YouTube!

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I bought the ANH DVD first to evaluate it before I bought the other 2.

My only problem, on my 16x9 LCD, was some jagged edges on things...like there was no antialias. I noticed it a bit, particularly in the beginning of the movie. Other than that, I was prefectly happy with the movie. Anamorphic or not, I don't mind.
So, I went to the store and bought ESB and ROTJ. I haven't watched ROTJ yet, but I plan on doing it soon. I need to find something to do with the extra disks though.