Look at the opening sequence of ANH. The thing is soooo badly desaturated. The ISDs lasers have NO glow anymore, neither do the T4s engines. The matte painging is dull and lifeless. And then, a few shots later, the red levels are boosted off the map. This is a poor, poor preparation of the video material.
And the other thing to keep in mind about kids today versus those of us who saw the OT theatrically, is that the market SINCE SW is completly oversaturated with action/adventure/sci-fi blockbusters, whereas the world of the '70s was a little different. SW was UNIQUE when it arrived, and the timing of those movies has a LOT to do with their success and indelibility.