Actually, I prefer it without the planet surface shots, too. The momentum is much better without it.

The problem is a dramatic one, however. Alderaan blowing up in Star Wars barely registers to me, it never did, and main reason for that is that we never see anything of it, or anyone on it who is being destroyed. Sure, blowing up a planet is dramatically impressive, but it's impersonal, and so, for me, emotionally lacking. Exactly the same mistake is made in Star Trek Generations, where the entire fight with Soran is to stop him killing 230 million people on a planet we never even see except in stellar cartography! If we can at least get a glimpse of what is being destroyed it feels more valid. But again, I do agree that it works better faster. I feel the original explosion is far to brief, but mine with the few seconds on the surface is too long, so I'll probably cut it.