Hello everyone,
I'm new here. For a quite some time, I have been just reading people's comments while also looking forward to any Revisited updates. Well, I finally decided that it's time to become a member so that way I can actually post my own thoughts/opinions/ideas here towards these edited films too.
First of all, I would like to thank you, Adywan, so much for all of the dedicated and painstaking work that you (plus anyone else involved) have accomplished so far and are continuing to do. I cannot express enough here how much I am a fan of your work in actually improving these already great films. I've been intrigued ever since watching ANH:R long ago and now even more with your upcoming release of ESB:R, my favorite SW episode of one of my favorite sagas of all time. To all of the many people I know who enjoy SW, I have been recommending that they look into "Adywan's ESB:Revisited". I tell them that you are doing the exact work that Lucas and his team should have done - "what the Special Editions should have been". Even though I own various copies of SW ('95 VHS, '97 SE VHS, dvds, Blurays), for many obvious reasons, the revisited versions are what I will be watching and sharing from now on.
Now, on to the debate at hand: The opening shot of the Imperial fleet...
When looking at those Puggos and 97 SE images, yes, it is clear that the bridge was tinted blue in those versions. However, if you study those more closely, the background SDs also appear to have a similar bluish tint (at least to me, anyone else think so too?). Either way, it's possible that the original shots showed just another goof/inconsistency... one of many in ESB that have you scratching your head and wondering "why or how did they mess that up?" Just like with the blue Tie Fighters, the Tie Fighter's blue lasers during the "asteroid canyon" chase that eventually was fixed by GL, the AT-AT's red window, the Millenium Falcon's engine that was as either just white or blue, etc. etc. the list goes on. Basically, even though the "Imperial reveal" shot showed a bluish bridge originally, (on first viewing) the thought had never crossed my mind that it was intended to be anything else but a regular SD (I'm sure I wasn't the only one). The reason is because we hadn't seen the Executor prior to this shot and we do remember all the various inconsistencies that has plagued SW since the very beginning (which I am extremely grateful you are addressing as many as you can). So if colors weren't always reliable, then we must rely more heavily on how the sequence is laid out - hence why many believed the "shadow" to be the first reveal of the Executor and the bridge beforehand was just another SD, since it looked exactly like a SD bridge (which makes sense when you consider the entire sequence, regardless of later learning that the Executor has a similar but blue bridge); this is also why I think nobody guessed what was wrong in the Revisited sequence, because to us, it all flowed together in a logical order and the colors were corrected.
On the other hand, Ady, it is very likely you are right where originally they intended that shot to be the Executor's bridge (your latest images support this)... however, would this be the ideal and best approach for revealing the Executor, in terms of narrative and the flow of this sequence? I suppose it could still technically work, but I would say it wouldn't have the same impact on people as revealing the Executor's shadow first. For that reason, I would say no, and here's why...
Borrowing the "shark fin" reference, let's take a look at the movie Jaws: In the opening sequence, not once do we see a shark's fin. Why? It was a well-done establishing shot that only shows the audience what we need to know without showing exactly what it was, and because of that (and along with the Jaws theme), it succeeds very well in building up the tension. This establishing shot in Jaws can be comparable to that shadow engulfing the regular Star Destroyer. When we know something is there and yet we don't see it, our mind is really at work wondering... and this is ideal in this particular situation; otherwise the audience is sitting there pondering, "Why was that SD's bridge blue while all others are gray? Is it a mess-up?", and already the establishing shot is ruined. In the Jaws movie, we eventually do get to see the shark's fin and to me, this is comparable to seeing the underbelly of the Executor. Then finally, eventually you'll finally get to see the entire shark and this is comparable to the side-shot view of the Executor.
In terms of the narrative and flow of events, this was masterfully done in Jaws. If the reveal were mixed up in any other order, the tension would not have been as profound and it would also feel poorly edited. Now in the Imperial fleet shot, I think the same would happen if we first showed a glimpse of the Executor's (blue) bridge first, then its shadow, then its body again. Therefore, it works better to have the Executor's shadow be first, then the rest of it. People before me explained this point very well.
In conclusion, Adywan, whether or not the blue tint on the bridge was a goof since the beginning, or if they originally intended that to be the Executor's bridge, I believe this sequence would be best if that bridge belonged to a regular SD, then in the next shot we see its entire massive body, only to be engulfed by a shadow of something larger (arguably the better and proper first glimpse of the Executor). While I don't want you to make a decision just based on popular opinion, I also don't want you to pick something just because that's how it may have been intended originally ("original" doesn't necessarily mean it's good if it doesn't narrate or drive the story the best way). I just hope after you read the points I (and others) made, you'll at least consider them, and then decide for sure which you honestly feel will tell and display this segment best. The one you decide, that is the one it was meant to be all along, and I know that regardless of this particular decision, we will all be forever happy and grateful for your edit when it's all complete :)
- Mac
