So I’ve just gone back and watched the edit from start to finish, and I quite like many of the choices. There are a bit more dialogue deletions than I would like, and some abrupt scene transitions. For example, I think including the droid factory scene (sans R2 and 3PO) would help ease the awkward moment where it looks like Anakin and Padme just waltz into the compound apparently expecting to talk Obi-wan out of prison. In any case, it’s a very fine edit in the spirit of the original.

As to the balcony kiss, I think it may work just fine if set at twilight, lengthened slightly, and placed directly after the meadow romp to imply that they spent a long and pleasant afternoon outside. I wouldn’t mind seeing the dinner scene go, even if we lose the setup to ‘aggressive negotiations’. There’s really no other information conveyed in that scene anyway.