zombie84 said:

So, in a weird way, this wonderful website and all the people that I've met on here--this is the one unintentional gift that Lucas' behaviour brought.

I never thought about it like that. If I could have purchased a proper DVD of the theatrical release, I never would have found this place because I wouldn't have been looking to have my old LD transferred. The NPR version (my go-to) would still be something far in my past that I'd only heard once, when it first aired.

Splinter Of The Mind's Eye would just be a book I remember skimming through when I was in high school. Nor would I have discovered the three Brian Daley novels that take place in the 1977 universe. My Star Wars world would be a single film - no NPR, no four novels. Damn, that's sobering.

Lucas' selfishness and dishonesty - his desire to alter and control my Star Wars universe actually presented me with the opportunity to cleanse and deepen it. By trying so hard to take Star Wars away from me, he made it richer than I could ever have imagined.