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Episode VI: Return of the Jedi — The 'Ziggy' Edit (Released)

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 (Edited)

Note (February 2019): I have rewritten this description from scratch. It was originally posted in May 2015, but after a long absence, I felt it was necessary to reintroduce this project and its purpose.

WELCOME

Hi everyone,

Almost four years ago, I created a fanedit of Return of the Jedi. I talked about it some here on OriginalTrilogy.com in this very thread, and then I got busy and never had time to revisit it. But recently, I cracked open the ol’ chest of external hard drives and pulled it out: “The Ziggy Edit.”

Return of the Jedi has always been my favorite Star Wars film — note, I said favorite, not “best.” However, I can acknowledge where the movie has issues, particularly with regards to pacing and a few plot points that, in my opinion, should never have been brought up (“A certain point of view…”). As a result, ROTJ has been something I’ve wanted to see a good fanedit of for a long time.

The closest I’ve found to what I liked was “The Spence Edit.” It’s an older fanedit, but it’s pretty well done and really helps move ROTJ along. There are a few key aspects of this project that help in that regard, particularly the move of a few key scenes — the biggest of which is shifting the Degobah sequence to occur at the beginning of the film. Basing my work on The Spence Edit, I then made a large number of other quality-of-life changes that help ROTJ make a little more sense, and a little more fun. Additionally, I borrowed some ideas from Yads’ “Dan Edit” as well as Q2’s, which is also quite good, but not as extensive in its change list.

One thing I want to say before I go into the details: this is what I call a “conceptual” fanedit. The difference with such a project is that, I admit, not all of the changes made here are flawless. Some may even result in more questions than answers. Additionally, as a concept, the editing work is not superb: I don’t do rotoscoping, I don’t have any fancy editing skills — I just know a few things about cutting up a movie and that’s about it. As a result, if you are looking for a fanedit of “presentation” quality (as I call it), that is, one that has edits that are near-invisible to the viewer, I regret to inform you that you won’t find it here. Yes, I have tried to do so, but it’s easier said than done and I simply don’t have the expertise that some professional faneditors have around here. However, I have made strides to make this film flow exceptionally and without being too obvious about the changes I’ve made.

It is my hope that my fanedit (“The Ziggy Edit”) helps to serve as a base for other fanedits of Return of the Jedi. While much of my work here is conceptual, I would love to see some of it one day become “presentation” quality by someone that has more talent than I do.

With that said, thank you to everyone here. I very much enjoy this community and being able to contribute to fanedits is a hobby I never thought I’d enjoy as much as I do today.
 

CHANGE LIST

Prepare yourself. This is a list of nearly everything I’ve altered in my fanedit of Return of the Jedi. Most are in chronological order.

  1. Removed 20th Century Fox logo and fanfare, and replaced with new Lucasfilm opening. Sorry, purists: this is the Disney age. I certainly like the nostalgia of the unaltered films, but it’s not for my fanedit.

  2. New title crawl. Borrowing extensively from the Spence Edit here. I really liked the idea of Luke already being on Degobah at the beginning of the film to complete his training, so I’ve updated that information in the crawl. I’ve also indicated that Lando, Chewie, and Leia have travelled to Tatooine to rescue Han. Finally mention in there that a new Death Star is under construction. Here is the crawl in its entirety:

After having suffered great losses
to the evil lord Darth Vader, a
conflicted Luke Skywalker has
returned to Dagobah to complete
his training as a Jedi Knight.

During this time, Luke’s friends
have traveled to Tatooine in an
attempt to rescue Han Solo from
the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt.

Little do they know the Galactic
Empire has begun rebuilding its
ultimate weapon, the DEATH
STAR. If completed, it would mark
the end for the small band of
Rebels and their struggle to
restore freedom to the galaxy . . . .

  1. Added the “Death Star Motif” from A New Hope. I’ve always thought the classic Death Star Motif should be used in conjunction with the Death Star. Like this thing is so freaking powerful it deserves its own theme. And holy cow — it’s back. The thing we just destroyed is back, so it deserves a frighteningly spectacular re-introduction. On top of that, I always thought the intro music to ROTJ was a little too mellow, a little too slow. Putting this theme right at the beginning gives this film some real extra punch, right off the bat.

  2. Luke’s return to Degobah moved to the 2nd scene in the film. One of my gripes with ROTJ is how long it takes to reconnect with Luke. Following the initial scene with Vader and Jerjerrod (“The Emperor is coming here?” / “That is correct commander…”), now instead of a wipe to C-3PO and R2-D2 — it wipes to a shot of Degobah, and we pick up with Luke and Yoda in his hut.

  3. Added Yoda’s deleted line, "Obi-Wan would have told you long ago, had I let him.” This is pretty wild. I first learned about this line with the release of the long-lost Laserdisc footage] that was recovered awhile back! It answers the question as to why Obi-Wan seemingly lied to Luke in A New Hope. My only concern is that the audio quality is… different. I need some help trying to make it “blend” with the rest of Yoda’s lines. Maybe some equalizing or audio filters or something.

  4. Removed Obi-Wan’s line, "…from a certain point of view.” Man, I hate that line. I hate that whole conversation. It’s just a poorly thought out excuse to cover up why Obi-Wan lied to Luke, so now it’s gone. I keep the rest of the scene though, including “Anakin was a good friend,” etc.

  5. Removed the line, "Leia… Leia’s my sister!” Didn’t like this either. I wanted the revelation of Leia as Luke’s sister to be a little more of a mystery (especially now that I’ve moved this scene so early into the film). Now the scene ends with Obi-Wan saying, “That is the reason why your sister remains safety anonymous.”

  6. Added brief scene of Luke leaving Degobah and flying to Tatooine. I pulled a few of the shots of Luke’s X-Wing flying off of the planet from The Empire Strikes Back, flipped them so they look new, and have him take off. During the scene, I included a line from the end of the ESB "Radio Dramatization.” This is a really great resource for Star Wars fan edits— half of the original cast does the voice work, including Mark Hamill! Anyway, Luke calls from his X-Wing, “Skywalker to Millennium Falcon…” Lando responds over the comlink saying, “We’ll see you on Tatooine, Luke — with Han.” I need to work on the lip-syncing here, because anytime Luke talks while in his X-Wing, we see his face. So my lip-syncing needs some work, because it’s a little off. I still think the line is a good addition though, and helps guide the transition from Luke leaving Degobah and flying to Tatooine.

  7. Moved the scene of the Emperor arriving on the Death Star. I put it at this point in the movie to separate the time it would take for Luke to arrive on Tatooine. It also helps to keep things flowing along in an otherwise slow intro.

  8. Added the deleted scene of Luke building his new lightsaber. Originally, I included Vader talking to Luke through the Force, but it didn’t flow as well as I would have liked. With that said, I really which it was higher quality, because it doesn’t look that great with all the film grain and scratches. I wish I knew how to restore film, because it could definitely use it.

  9. Restored the original Jabba’s Palace door. The new front door in the Blu-ray version just looked ridiculously huge, so I restored the shot of the original.

  10. Several brief cuts between C-3PO and Jabba and his minions. Removed a few unnecessary lines to keep up the pace. Removed a line or two between the droid and Bib Fortuna. There’s a lot that happens in the Jabba sequence, so I don’t want it to at any point become “boring.”

  11. Adjusted the droid “torture” scene. To be honest, I never had a problem with this scene but apparently some people did. I took out the screaming droids, but I kept the scene in place to progress the story as to the reason why C-3PO becomes a translator, etc. I remove the “No, no, no, nooo!” from whatever droid it is getting their feet sizzled. Now it just looks like it’s maintenance or whatever. Disintegrated protocol droid is still there, however.

  12. Removed “Jedi Rocks” and replaced with Lapti New from the original theatrical release. I don’t think anyone will complain about this change. I hate "Jedi Rocks” as much as the next guy. However, I actually considered leaving the brief cut of the harmonica-playing, turtle-like thing from the Special Edition because I like that blues-y song. But I didn’t.

  13. Had Leia agree to 25,000 credits right off the bat for Chewbacca. I just wanted to get this scene over with and get to un-freezing Han. I can sort of understand why it’s there, but it’s really not important on the whole. And in my opinion, it probably actually helps the story, by blowing Leia’s cover. Only an amateur would agree to 25,000 credits up-front, which is the reason why she was caught upon un-freezing Han.

  14. Replaced few Huttese subtitles. Not a whole lot, but little things to escalate the tension between Jabba, Leia, Luke, etc. Most of the subtitles are the same. My favorite change here is from Jabba’s original line to Leia, “Soon you will learn to appreciate me,” which I replaced with, “Your life ended when I put that chain around your neck.” It adds some foreshadowing and irony.

  15. Removed the reunion scene between Han and Chewie. I had a tough time making the decision on this one. While it’s valuable in that it shows these two characters reconnecting for the first time since The Empire Strikes Back, it really slows things down. So it’s gone, and I don’t think anyone would really notice (or care).

  16. Added the “Force choke” sound effect when Luke attacks Jabba’s guards. Something simple, but it just makes Luke seem more threatening, more willing to turn to the Dark Side, etc.

  17. Removed a few of Salacious Crumb’s laughs. He drives me insane.

  18. Took out the Bantha herd as Jabb’s Sail Barge sets off. The five second scene where a bunch of Banthas are walking through the desert. Didn’t really sit well with me. It was a five second shot that didn’t really need to happen.

  19. Removed the “beak” from the sarlacc. I just used Harmy’s “Despecialized Editions” for this, placing the original sarlacc shots in its place. It just looks better, in my opinion, but I could be swayed either way.

  20. Added line to Han Solo; calls Jabba a "son of a bitch.” Haha, this change will probably either be loved or hated, I’m not sure. I’ve always thought that Han sounded childish calling Jabba a “slimy piece of worm-ridden filth.” So I took it out and replaced it with something more adult. I mean, we’re talking about a guy that is supposed to be suave and daring. He killed Greedo in plain daylight. And what, when Greedo’s boss himself is about to kill Han, he’s just going to go out calling Jabba “slimy?” No! This is Han Solo. The only ‘curse words’ in all of Star Wars (that I remember) were in A New Hope, so I’ve added one here and made Han step up his game. I got the audio from this comedy bit on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

  21. Other small sarlacc changes. Altered a few subtitles, removed it burping when Boba Fett falls in, etc.

  22. Removed Luke’s lines to R2-D2 about “going to the Degobah system.” Obviously, since now the Degobah sequence is at the beginning of the film, this isn’t necessary. Instead, Luke just flies his X-Wing behind Han & Leia in the Falcon to meet up with the Rebel fleet.

  23. Re-cut Han & Lando’s farewell. I wanted to remove the awful matte painting of the Falcon behind them.

  24. Improved Luke/Vader sensing each other in Shuttle Tydirium scene. Just took out a line from Han (“Don’t get jittery Luke…”) and added a shot of Vader looking out the window (shot is flipped from The Empire Strikes Back).

  25. Removed Han’s gun getting jammed when he sneaks up behind scout trooper. This way, it appears they get caught because Chewie growled. I think this is funnier because Han just got done boasting about himself (“Hey, it’s me!”).

  26. Removed the silly whirring sound when Luke cuts off front of speeder bike. Not a whole lot to say here, other than it seemed childish.

  27. Cut out the Leia meeting Wicket scene. Let’s try to cut out the importance of the Ewoks as much as possible here, okay? In this edit, Luke and Han happen to find Leia at the Ewok camp. It’s more of a surprise, and that’s the end of it.

  28. Removed anything that make the Ewoks appear "cute.” I wish I could do more here, but I can only work within my means. Literally any shot that someone could say, “Aww, they’re so cute,” has been cut out. I know that George Lucas was trying to implement them as a major role in the ROTJ story; I am trying to lessen their impact. All of the crazy contraptions and methods they use to attack the Imperial armies on Endor have been stripped out.

  29. Fixed Leia’s line about her mother; removed “I know” when learns Luke is her brother. When asked by Luke about her mother, Leia describes, “Just images really, feelings.” She no longer goes into detail about Padmé, seeing as she didn’t actually know her for more than 30 seconds. Also took out her line, “I know. Somehow, I’ve always known,” when Luke reveals he’s her brother. I like that she just has this short of shock on her face. A lot more realistic, in my opinion.

  30. Cut out Han’s jealous of Luke. I did this in two scenes: (1) Just after Luke & Leia share the story of their parentage and Han walks in (”Could you tell Luke, is that who you could tell?!”) and (2), at the end of the film when Han says “When Luke gets back, I won’t get in the way.” Just so lame and unnecessary and makes Han seem like an idiot.

  31. Added a few small sound effects, musical cues throughout. Nothing too major. Added a music cue of the “Force theme” when Vader prepares Luke for the Emperor. It makes it more obvious that Vader is affected by Luke’s words to "Come with me [back to the Light].” Also made the Death Star firing sound a little more powerful. Used alternate take of Darth Vader funeral pyre score (more info in #40 below).

  32. Reinserted the “Jerjerrod’s Conflict” deleted scene. I had to cut the scene into three parts to have it flow properly:

    1. The Emperor calls Moff Jerjerrod from the Throne Room and tells him that if the shield generator is destroyed to destroy Endor.
    2. A fellow officer tells him the shield generator has been destroyed.
    3. Finally making the decision to blow up the moon.

    It’s neat to see the thought process behind Jerjerrod making the decision to destroy his own troops, but I can understand why they took it out to begin with. I have always really liked this scene and would love to keep it. That said, again I wish I knew how to restore footage, because there are SO MANY SCRATCHES AND HAIRS on the film that make it look out of place when compared to the pristine Blu-ray footage just a scene beforehand. Note: the audio in the deleted scene just had some guy off-camera reading the Emperor’s lines; I was about to scrap it because of that, but I found that there is actually a recording of Ian McDiarmid saying the lines! I found a higher quality version in the “The Making of Return of the Jedi” digital book, so I just purchased a copy for myself and incorporated that into the edit.

  33. Trimmed the shield generator explosion. An explosion that big would have killed everyone within five miles. I trimmed the ending so that it doesn’t look as ridiculously huge.

  34. When the Death Star fires, I made it sound cooler. Yeah, that’s about it. I slowed it down a little so that the laser beams begin to line up before the primary ignition is fired. I think it makes it sound more threatening and creates more of a build-up and shock that, “Holy cow, it’s operational!”

  35. Instead of the new addition of Vader yelling, “No!” I added the ghostly sounds of people from Anakin’s past, saying his name when he debates on whether to save Luke. I know this is going to be controversial, but I’ve loved seeing some of the short fan videos people have posted on YouTube that really tug at your heartstrings when they combine footage from all the films and show Anakin’s suffering. I didn’t want to actually show them, so instead I just had them say his name. Maybe I’ll keep this, maybe I won’t. I haven’t decided on if it’s done well enough here. [UPDATE: I have have opted to remove this, as I felt it took away from the scene. Now, Vader picks up and throws Palpatine in silence, with Luke’s screams and Williams’ score raging on.]

  36. Added Anakin’s body disappearing upon his death. This is something I think should have been done a long time ago. There has been some debate as to whether this is still canon, but it absolutely was (and may still be) that Anakin did, in fact, become one with the Force following his death — and that, in the funeral pyre scene, it is only Vader’s armor that Luke burns. I’ve rigged it up so that, following Anakin’s last words, his body (just his head is visible) fades away, leaving only the armor. Luke looks down and weeps.

  37. The Death Star prepares to fire on Endor per Jerjerrod, but falls short. As Wedge & Lando begin to attack the power generator, the Death Star prepares to fire at Endor on Jerjerrod’s orders, but fails upon its destruction.

  38. Replaced the Darth Vader funeral pyre music. Yes, yes — I love that music, as does everyone. But you know what I love even more? The alternate take of that music. Just listen to how awesome this is — it is the classic “Force” theme, played more grand and beautiful than ever played in the entire saga. I just had to get it in there.

  39. Replaced “celebration” music with the ending of the “Luke and Leia" theme. I actually really like the new celebration music included with the Special Edition, but based on how I wanted to change the final shot of the film, it didn’t really work. So instead I stripped out the celebration music, and replaced it with more John Williams. I used the “Luke and Leia” theme here, which is a generally happy song, with a few melancholy tones. I replaced all the sound effects (fireworks, cheering, etc.) to try and keep most of it in place. I’ve left the actual Rebel reunion scene in silence however, which I think is actually a little more powerful. I also added Sebastian Shaw at the end, although I’m not anti-Hayden Christensen and wouldn’t mind him being there either.

  40. Changed final shot of film to a view of the stars. This turned out pretty neat but is definitely not as seamless as I’d like it to look. So, going back to the original film, I didn’t really like the “family photo” feel for the final shot of ROTJ, so I replaced it. Instead, I took the pan up from the Vader funeral pyre scene, and Photoshopped it to remove the fireworks and blend the sky with the stars found in the end credits. This way, the film (and saga) concludes with just a view of everyone dancing, followed by having the camera slowly pan up and into the trees… above the trees, the view looks up at the stars, for which the credits then roll over those same stars. The music that accompanies it serves as a beautiful close to the series.
     

THINGS THAT NEED WORK BUT I DON’T KNOW HOW TO DO THEM

As I mentioned above, this is a “conceptual” fanedit. It means that, if you can look past its technical flaws (namely the fact that I don’t know how to do much in the special effects department), then it’s a fun watch. However, I would love to improve the quality or even hand the project off to someone to do the same.

So what things do I recognize still need work?

  1. When the gang leaves Tatooine, Luke’s X-Wing flies left while the Falcon flies right. They need to both go in the same direction. Maybe even both jump to lightspeed. Because in the original film, Luke goes to Degobah, they go in different directions; however, that has changed in my fanedit.

  2. Clean up the deleted scenes: remove scratches and hairs. I have no idea where to begin with this one, as I have no knowledge on how to do this. The biggest one to fix would be the Jerjerrod’s Conflict scene, which also needs some rotoscoping work to have a view of Jerjerrod looking out the window (my rendition is pretty poor).

  3. The pan up into the stars at the end of the film doesn’t look all that great. I think it’s a cool idea, personally. But it’s far from seamless. Again, I’m just doing this for fun — but if this fanedit was to ever become “presentation”-worthy, this would need to be cleaned up and made prettier.

  4. I would like to incorporate the 4K83 project into this fanedit. This is particularly due to the fact at, as Adywan has pointed out, a chunk of the Endor section of ROTJ was scanned in out-of-focus. I would someday like to replace this footage.

  5. Speaking of Adywan, I’d like to see what else he does with ROTJ. Obviously, Adywan has powers and access to tools that few of us have. As a result, he is able to do some things with his fanedits that are incredible. Depending on what he does with his version of ROTJ (when it is released), I may want to incorporate a few of his ideas. I will say, however, unlike Adywan, I will not be putting Yub-Nub back in to ROTJ — sorry, not sorry.
     

OTHER IDEAS?

I’m totally open to other ideas on how to further improve upon this fanedit. Again, I’m not a master at editing, but I’ll certainly try to see what I can incorporate or change as needed and requested. If you have any ideas, I would love to hear them.

One idea I’d like to see is having one of the Rebel fighters not pull up in time and hit the Death Star’s shield, like in Independence Day (best link I could find, sorry). Maybe someday.
 

THANK YOU

Again, thanks to everyone for your help and your patience as I’ve worked on this. Like I said, I took a break from fanediting for a few years, but I’ve recently been interested in getting back in the game. My work on “The Ziggy Edit” of Return of the Jedi is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time and I’m so glad I get to share my progress on it with each of you.
 

WANT TO WATCH?

Send me a PM!

All I have right now are copies in 720p and 1080p, stereo audio. I’m trying to figure out how to get surround working in my editor, but it’s a work-in-progress (as is this project)! So bear with me as I work to improve the quality, In the meantime, I hope you enjoy what I’ve put together and hopefully it will serve to create great ROTJ fanedits going forward.

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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Lol, I've not heard of O2.  At least, not as a faneditor.

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Happy with the list. I want to see this. Now!

Preferred Saga:
1/2: Hal9000
3: L8wrtr
4/5: Adywan
6-9: Hal9000

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I like a lot of these ideas, especially Anakin disappearing.

I find the rancor scene so iconic that I'm disappointed it's gone.  It's not flawless, but I think the effects were pretty up with the times back in '83 for that scene, and a number of the issues have been fixed in the SEs.  I don't see why it should be removed.  It may not be essential to the story, but then, most movies have action bits that aren't essential, yet remain iconic.  I'd hate to see that go.

Any chance you might post a clip or two?  Like I said, Anakin vanishing has me especially interested.

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I can't wait to check this one out, it looks like it might dethrone the Dan Edit for me.  Please consider releasing a version WITH the Rancor and WITHOUT the 'Nooooo' in it. 

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darth_ender said:

I like a lot of these ideas, especially Anakin disappearing.

I find the rancor scene so iconic that I'm disappointed it's gone.  It's not flawless, but I think the effects were pretty up with the times back in '83 for that scene, and a number of the issues have been fixed in the SEs.  I don't see why it should be removed.  It may not be essential to the story, but then, most movies have action bits that aren't essential, yet remain iconic.  I'd hate to see that go.

Any chance you might post a clip or two?  Like I said, Anakin vanishing has me especially interested.

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, having Anakin disappear was actually pretty easy to implmement — just Photoshopped out his head (leaving the rest of Vader's suit), and applying a cross dissolve. It looks pretty cool.

Your interest rest in the rancor scene now has me torn. I'll give it another shot and see how I like it. If there's enough interest in keeping it, maybe I'll just do both. I'll have a copy uploaded later this week of the project in its current state, but I'll be uploading a final copy once the project is closer to completion (following everyone's input).

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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 (Edited)

ziggyonice said:

but still would like feedback on the list of changes.

 Edit: nevermind

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stretch009 said:

I can't wait to check this one out, it looks like it might dethrone the Dan Edit for me.  Please consider releasing a version WITH the Rancor and WITHOUT the 'Nooooo' in it. 

Thanks for the suggestions. I will certainly consider both. I'm surprised the rancor scene resonates with people so much (certainly more than it did with me). So I'll certainly be giving this some more thought.

Regarding Vader's added "Noooo" at the end of ROTJ, I knew this would be a topic of conversation. I know many people don't like it, and I think I sit in the minority when I say that I do. That said, maybe I'll just release a second version and keep my original changes for myself. Still, I love the feedback and I'll see what I can do as the project comes closer to completion.

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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anakin disappearing...i've never thought about that. very cool! looking fwd to seeing this!

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Sounds like a good edit. Asking for feedback so I will add that I would rather the Rancor remains and the "Noooo" does not.

Seeing as you are including deleted scenes then I would reinstate the Endor Bunker shootout, on the grounds that it's a cool action scene, it features a brand new set environment, and it shows a tougher side to Han (which as you noted is lacking rather throughout ROTJ). There have already been restoration jobs done on this sequence (adding laser fx, music and re-editing), which you can see here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gT-ZsR2P8dU

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Alright ladies and gents,

I have completed the edit in its current state. This means that all of your suggestions and the like haven't made it in yet. There are certainly things that can be changed, and for sure some things that need to be improved upon, but I wanted to show it first based on what my mindset was going into the project.

PM me for further details. Hopefully we'll be seeing some reviews / feedback in this thread to improve upon it going forward!

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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 (Edited)

Ok - half hour in and so far I like the way its set up. 

Only thing I'd change is slow down the video/audio when Yoda says "Obi-Wan wouldve told you long ago had I let him." so that it matches the scene, and deepen his voice a bit.

Then when Obi-Wan appears, cut the line "Why didn't you tell me" because we now know why.

After Luke arrives on Tatooine but before the cave scene, show the emperor arriving on DS2. Then show the cave scene WITHOUT the Vader voice over.

Preferred Saga:
1/2: Hal9000
3: L8wrtr
4/5: Adywan
6-9: Hal9000

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nightstalkerpoet said:

Ok - half hour in and so far I like the way its set up. 

Only thing I'd change is slow down the video/audio when Yoda says "Obi-Wan wouldve told you long ago had I let him." so that it matches the scene, and deepen his voice a bit.

Then when Obi-Wan appears, cut the line "Why didn't you tell me" because we now know why.

After Luke arrives on Tatooine but before the cave scene, show the emperor arriving on DS2. Then show the cave scene WITHOUT the Vader voice over.

Alright, so I'm working on it right now.

Slowed down the newly added Yoda line, and it sounds SO much better. Good call on that. I also went ahead and cut out the "Why didn't you tell me," seeing as the newly added Yoda line explains it right there.

For the moving of the Emperor's arrival... I've just now made the switch and I think I like it, but my only concern is that now that changes the flow later in the film:

  1. Luke leaves Degobah
  2. Emperor arrives on Death Star
  3. Luke cave scene, through escape from Tatooine
  4. Rebel feet assembly

My concern is that between scenes #3 and #4 — after the Millennium Falcon and Luke's X-Wing leave Tatooine, Han has this little comlink conversation with Luke. ("Luke, thanks for coming after me. I owe you one.") With the changing of the scenes, the next scene is the Rebel fleet assembly... and so I'm not sure if that's a big deal or not, but it doesn't give the impression that any time has lapsed between Luke/Han's convo and Han cracking jokes to Lando about being General.

Maybe I can just throw a transition in there and people will get the point. But that's my only concern about it other than that.

Do you think it flows okay with the Luke building his lightsaber scene? I went ahead and removed Vader's telepathic convo with Luke based on the re-shuffling of the Emperor's Arrival scene to be earlier, as you recommended.

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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Perhaps the next scene "Move the fleet to the far side of endor" could now be moved to the place where the Emperor arrival scene originally was?

Preferred Saga:
1/2: Hal9000
3: L8wrtr
4/5: Adywan
6-9: Hal9000

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nightstalkerpoet said:

Perhaps the next scene "Move the fleet to the far side of endor" could now be moved to the place where the Emperor arrival scene originally was?

I'll play with it some more tonight and see how it flows. Just out of curiosity, what benefit do you feel moving the scene has? I think it helps pick up the speed a bit. I'm wondering if you were thinking the same thing, or if there were other motivations for the change?

“The Ziggy Edit” — A Conceptual Fanedit of Return of the Jedi

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Episode-VI-Return-of-the-Jedi-The-Ziggy-Edit/id/17844

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With the addition of the Jerjerrod scenes i just figured you have more flexibility

Preferred Saga:
1/2: Hal9000
3: L8wrtr
4/5: Adywan
6-9: Hal9000

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 Oh also on the leaving dagobah. Cut the second time Luke says Lando. It sounds unnatural based on how people normally talk

Preferred Saga:
1/2: Hal9000
3: L8wrtr
4/5: Adywan
6-9: Hal9000

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Can anyone send me a link to this edit? Seems like there are some great ideas here.

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ash-wan said:

Can anyone send me a link to this edit? Seems like there are some great ideas here.

 i'd love a link as well.. PM sent. sounds really cool

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Could I also have a link to this edit?

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still waiting on that download link... pretty please. :)

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Hello, just started getting in to Fan Edits and I must say this sounds great.

Since you were asking for feedback my take is NO to both the Rancor scene and the "NOOOOOOOOOO" by Vader.

I'l send a PM asking for the link.

May the force be with you my friend.