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Commander Courage

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Join date
16-Aug-2004
Last activity
1-Oct-2015
Posts
724

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Post
#61009
Topic
a Star Trek thread...
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/61009/action/topic#61009
Time
Quote
Originally posted by: oojason
For any fans of Trek I'd recommend trying to get hold of the DS9 Companion book - an ep guide and views of the cast, writers and producers - all brutally honest in thier assessment of what worked and what didn't and how the series evolved. Also of interest is the original ending of the series which was changed due to Berman objecting to it.

I've kept a look out at Half-Price Books for it, but to no avail. Looks like I'll just have to break down and pay retail.

Quote
Originally posted by: oojason
I wonder how it would have faired if it was being made today - subjects such as faith, beliefs, religious extremism, terrorism, biochemical weapons, cloning, gene alterations and war etc would surely have been watered down in the current world climate - esp given the way the majority of VOY and ENT episodes have so far been very bland of making a social comment of any sort - let alone entertaining us fans.

Well the way I understand it, Berman and Braga pretty much let Ira Steven Behr and crew do whatever they wanted with the show (within reason, of course) while they focused their attention on Voyager. This in turn, resulted in a far superior product. However, if DS9 was in Enterprise's shoes, as the only Trek show currently on the air, I agree that it wouldn't be half the show it is, working too hard on appealing to the pop-culture of the day than telling good, meaningful stories.
Post
#61006
Topic
MagnoliaFan Edition Episode III-VI Titles
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/61006/action/topic#61006
Time
As I eagerly anticipate the arrival of my copies...

The only title I really despise is "Attack of the Clones." If I had my way, Episode II would have been "Dark Force Rising," referring to the Seprartist Movement, the Clone Army, and of course, the Sith. AotC is just a HORRIBLE title that in no way conveys ANYTHING about the movie.

"A New Hope" leaves something to be desired, but understandbaly so as Lucas just kind of tacked on a random title to "Star Wars." Does anyone know where ANH originally came from? And don't tell me he had it planned all along. As for "The Hidden Fortress," for your purposes, MagnoliaFan, it fits perfectly.

But I think if you're to continue your re-editing endevours, you should re-name ALL the films just to give them your own staple, you know?
Post
#60882
Topic
MagnoliaFan Edits: Ep I "Balance Of The Force", and Ep II "The Clone War" (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60882/action/topic#60882
Time
Very interesting work on the Radio Dramas, Bizzle.

That got me thinking, would it be possible to alter them in such a way as to include James Earl Jones as Vader? Is there THAT much extra dialogue from him that can't be lifted from the films? Other than the stuff with Leia at the beginning of the ANH drama, I don't think so, and that stuff should be edited out anyway. While we're at it, what about inserting Mark Hamill as Luke in the RotJ drama? And as much as I'd like to put Billy Dee in there too, his extra lines w/Han are just too good to edit.

As for Han and Leia, I think they're excellent, and even surpass Ford and Fisher at times.
Post
#60391
Topic
MY Ultimate/Final/Archival Editions
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60391/action/topic#60391
Time
Thanks for the in-depth response MagnoliaFan. This helps me see your point of view a lot better than, "NO!"

As for rennervision, I was going for actual changes that could be made to the OT in a future release. However, I'm totally with your suggestions, as RotJ is unquestionably the weakest of the first three films. I would, to name a few:
-Handle the completion of Luke's training better. He should have gone back to Dagobah at the end of ESB, so open JEDI with Luke's final trials from Yoda, who has grown old and weak, and have Luke leave with his death. The only problem with all this would be Luke getting the true story on Vader from Ben and Yoda. Surely the topic would have been brought up in the years between the films, so where does that leave the big explanation scenes? Something to think about...
-Make it clear in RotS that the Empire was builing two Death Stars at once. This would make everything much more plausable to me then rolling out yet another superweapon with the same basic weaknesses just a few years later.
-Furthermore, I'd have the DS2 being constructed over Kayshhk (or however you spell it), using Wookies as slave labor, thereby replacing Endor and the Ewoks.
-Tranplant the excellent Luke/Vader/Palpatine scenes to Coruscant, possibly to the volcanic Sith Catacombs.
-Have the Rebels attempts to destroy the DS2 fail. However, Luke, at his peak of clarity after defeating Vader and denying Palpatine, reaching out with the Force and destroying it himself. (I must admit I didn't come up with that myself, I think I read it on T'Bone's site somewhere in an feature on improving RotJ.)

Post
#60307
Topic
MagnoliaFan Edits: Ep I "Balance Of The Force", and Ep II "The Clone War" (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60307/action/topic#60307
Time
I'm as frustrated with the prequels as the next guy, and have heard nothing but great reviews of the "MagnoliaFan Edits." I know I'm a pretty new face around here, but is there any way I could obtain them? I'm not really sure about the logistics of everything either, so if someone (MagnoliaFan?) could PM me about it I would be VERY interesed.

Thanks in advance.
Post
#60310
Topic
a Star Trek thread...
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60310/action/topic#60310
Time
I am HUGE Star Trek fan. ST played a big factor in my parents hooking up, as they were both fans back in the day; how nerdy is that? I grew up with TNG, and have so many of those Playmates toys its not even funny. I've read countless reference books and novels, and even had a uniform when I was a kid. I was a total Trek geek. Anyway, as I grew older and established a social life for myself, I've found many open Star Wars fans, but very very few Trek people, so naturally I grew away from my Trek roots and started becoming the uber-Star Wars nerd who posts before you today. DS9 re-runs got me re-interested in Trek a couple years back, as it is an EXCELLENT show (btw, add "Children of Time" to Jay's list; it's DS9's "City on the Edge of Forever"), however I draw the line there. VOY and ENT had great potential, but were incredibly dissapointing. As for the movies, 2, 3, and 4 make a wonderful trilogy, 6 is great too, 5 is really underrated, the Director's Cut of TMP helps a lot, and FC is in a class of its own in the TNG era, as unfortunately their other 3 films failed to deliver. And I'm in total agreement with you all about taking a hiatus. Voyager shouldn't have debuted until Deep Space Nine concluded, and they should have taken it from there. Now, we'll just have to wait and see if Trek has anything left in the tank after 10 films and over 500 episodes.
Post
#60308
Topic
Star Wars Fan Films
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60308/action/topic#60308
Time
The humorous fan-films are usually pretty good, it's the serious ones that tend to fall flat.

I do recommend "Knightquest" though, which takes place a few days before ANH, and chronicles Vader's hunt for one the last Jedi Masters and his two apprentices. The story, acting, and effects are all pretty good, and the guy who voices Vader does an EXCELLENT job.
Post
#60138
Topic
<strong>Star Wars Radio Dramas</strong> - a general discussion thread
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60138/action/topic#60138
Time
Quote
Originally posted by: Klingon_Jedi

Han: Hey Lando! You kept your promise, right? Not a scratch?

Lando: Well, what's left of her isn't scratched. All the scratched parts got knocked off along the way.

Han(exasperated): Knocked off?!

Yeah, that was some great dialogue; I was glad they adressed Lando's damage to the Falcon. The "Shadows of the Empire" references were a nice touch too. Come to think of it, howabout a a radio drama of THAT?
Post
#60134
Topic
Episodes 7,8,9?
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/60134/action/topic#60134
Time
Gary Kurtz did a really in-depth interview about all this once, explaining why didn't stay on for RotJ, how the prequels and sequels were originally supposed to work, etc. He said that all the material covered in 7-9 was all condensed into RotJ, as Lucas wanted to wrap things up then and there. Originally, Han was going to die, Leia become Queen to the people of Alderaan (?), and Luke's sister was to be hidden in another galaxy. There was no 2nd Death Star, no Ewoks, and the big showdown with the Emperor wasn't until Episode 9. All things considered, I think George did the right thing by ending things the way he did with JEDI. Of course, a few things could have been handled better, such as Wookies instead of Ewoks, the Emperor/Vader/Luke confronation taking place on Coruscant instead of the Death Star, and the 'completion' of Luke's training, but nevertheless it was the right path to take. However, it still left open the possibility of sequels; that is, before the PT came out. Before that, Star Wars was just the chronicles of a galaxy far, far away, but with GL's revisionist history and the introduction of the Prophecy of the Chosen One, it became the story of Anakin Skywalker. Like it or not, that story is completed in RotJ, and any further films are unecessary.

I do have a pretty radical proposal for a new trilogy, though. What would you guys say to three new films that served as the PROLOGUE, INTERLUDE, and EPILOGUE? The Prologue would serve as an origin of the Jedi and Sith, featuring the Sith Wars. The Interlude would cover the time in-between RotS and ANH, with Vader hunting down the Jedi, Obi-Wan's solitude, etc. And finally, the Epilogue would bring us back to our old friends from the OT as they re-build the Republic and the Jedi Order. I know it'll never happen, but it covers everything we want to see without being overkill, and gives us three more movies. Whether they could be GOOD or not, that's up for debate.
Post
#59972
Topic
MY Ultimate/Final/Archival Editions
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/59972/action/topic#59972
Time
Quote
Originally posted by: Figrin_Dan
How much time did you spend writing this list!

Man you must have some time on your hands!

Well like I said before, the summer after AotC I sat down with pen and paper in hand and documented all he changes I'd like to see to an inevitable updated OT. I still want the old films readily available for , but again, if Lucas is going to alter the films, this is the way I'd like to see it done. I see these as a companionsto the original films, not replacements.

Quote
Originally posted by: Figrin_Dan
I would also like to say, Commander Courage, by name and definitely by nature!

I'll take that as a compliment, I guess...
Post
#59967
Topic
<strong>Star Wars Radio Dramas</strong> - a general discussion thread
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/59967/action/topic#59967
Time
I LOVE the radio dramas. My dad rented them for a road trip one time and made copies, so I have all 3 of them in my posession. My two biggest qualms would be no James Earl Jones and Mark Hamill's absence from RotJ. Come to think of it, the guy who replaced Billy Dee as Lando in RotJ was pretty bad too. I wonder what Jones was doing at the time that made him unavailable, as he pretty much IS Vader, it's a real shame he was unable to be in the series. Brock Peters does a servicable job in his place, but NOBODY beats JEJ. As for the rest of the cast, I loved the guy who did Solo and Leia was great too (and props to Anthony Daniel for voicing 3P0 in all 3).

I'd always wished for Prequel radio dramas, but you guys make good points about Jar-Jar and such. I'll pass for now, but I'm sure there's someone out there who could make a good adaption.
Post
#59962
Topic
Wolfman Back In?
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/59962/action/topic#59962
Time
The Wolfman, while unquestionably out of place, always gave me the creeps when I was a little kid. Those glowing red eyes...

But if they were going to repalce him, replace him with something good, not an elephant-man or a lizard-man (which subbed for him in his other shot). For those of you who have "The Art of Star Wars," remember in the Cantina sketches that jellyfish/ribbonesque alien? That sort of thing would have been a perfect subsitute, not another goofy mask.
Post
#59958
Topic
MY Ultimate/Final/Archival Editions
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/59958/action/topic#59958
Time
I don't want GL to screw with the originals either, but the fact of the matter is he's going to make more changes, and I wanted to make a comprehensive list of what could/should/might happen. I don't want another half-ass job that leaves matt-lines, shorted-out sabers, and bad CGI; if Lucas is going to overhaul the OT, then by all means, go all the way. Just make sure we still have the originals to enjoy and compare to.

In the future, I plan to show my kids the ORIGINAL OT first, followed by the PT, and then finish up with the SEs (in whatever version they may be in at that point). So, despite GL's best efforts to negate the 9-film rumors, I for one will be getting a trilogy or trilogies after all.
Post
#59916
Topic
MY Ultimate/Final/Archival Editions
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/59916/action/topic#59916
Time
By now, we are all well aware of the changes Lucas has implimented to the OT for their release on DVD. There've been rumors of this for years of course, but now the Ultimate/Final/Archival editions (call them what you will, but they CERTAINLY aren't the originals) are finally here. A little after AotC came out, I sat down and watched the OT for the sole purpose of compiling THIS list, MY list of what I'd like to see in the updated versions of the OT. It's VERY in-depth, but I've noticed that's the way you like things around here, which is fine by me. I've been lurking around for a while, btw, and this is my first post. So hi everybody, I'm Commander Courage, and here is my list:

(For the record, I love the original versions of the films, however, I have no problem with updating them as long as the theatrical versions remain intact and available, and I suspect that this is the general concensus here as well.)

A NEW HOPE
-Insert a faint Imperial March into the 'music-free slot' when Vader looks around the Blockade Runner.
-Clean-up or re-dub both Vader's breathing and dialogue to match the other movies. This really, really bugs me, and is sure to bug me even more when RotS comes out and Vader sounds as clear as ever.
-Digitally add the tombstones (from AotC) into the Lars Homestead.
-The activation & color of Luke's lightsaber in Ben's House need to be fixed.
-Insert The Imperial March into first shot of Death Star.
-Insert The Imperial March into shot of Death Star after the burning homestead scene, and have it continue on into the interrogation scene.
-Insert a Dug (Sebulba?) into the Cantina; either in the lizardman/wolfman slot or the elephantman/wolfman slot.
-Change arm in Cantina so it has no blood. And make it a hoof to match what we see in the longshots.
-Show Ben's saber tuning on & off; no more of these off-screen sound effects!
-HAN SHOOTS FIRST!
-Insert The Imperial March into the shot of the Death Star after the Cantina.
-Change Jabba's voice & appearence to match TPM & RotJ.
-Insert The Imperial March into the shot of the Death Star over Alderaan.
-Following that shot, insert a scene with Bail Organa talking to another Rebel Leader via hologram (Ackbar?), possibly about Leia's dissapearance and the Death Star. Then cut to Tarkin lookiing at Alderaan on the viewscreen.
-Insert a shot of the Death Star blocking out the sun on Alderaan, with Bail Organa and other looking up in horror. Then cut to the activation of the superweapon.
-Fix the activation, deactivation, and color of Luke's saber on the Falcon. It's freakin' WHITE!
-Change the seeker ball to CG (like in AotC).
-In the scene where the dude comes in and says the Rebels are on Dantooine, change the timing of Vader's line to match his gesture.
-MAYBE insert a scene where Vader reports to the Emperor after detecting Obi-Wan. It makes perfect sense that he would contact Palpatine after storming off ("I sense something, a presence I've not felt since..."). Then have Palpatine tell Vader to be wary and inform Tarkin (He is here...).
-Insert a faint Imperial March when Vader is walking through the Death Star halls.
-Make the Diaogna look more realistic.
-Re-dub all the Stormtrooper lines with Temura Morrrison. This goes for the whole trilogy, including Boba.
-Improve the Vader/Kenobi duel. Some dramatic music (possibly the same from their SW3 duel?) would be nice. Also, fix saber effects (both optical and audio) so they match the other films. The saber effetcs are really bad, and the sounds of this duel are WAY different from the others.
-Change the gunport sequence; possibly more TIEs or have the Falcon be moving (I always thought this sequence was boring).
-Show the Falcon going to hyperspace before Vader says, "They've just made the jump into hyperspace."
-Change Death Star plans in Rebel Breifing to match the ones in AotC.
-Update the graphics on the Death Star.
-Change a couple of the explosions on the Death Star; some of them still look not-so-good. (Other than that I think the space battle looks great. It's amazing how good CGI can be when time and effort is put into it.)
-Insert a scene where Vader goes to Coruscant to report to Palpatine, like Dooku does in AotC. This would take place between Luke's landing the awards ceremony. On a landing pad at the Imperial Palace, the Sith Lords would discuss the death of Obi-Wan, the destruction of the Death Star, and the rise of a new enemy, Luke Skywalker. The ESB conversation would have be altered to go along with this one.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
-Fix the Taun-Taun effects. Some are good, but others need improvement.
-After Luke cuts the Wampa's arm off, there's a lightsaber deactivation noise, but Luke's saber stays on; have it turn off.
-Add a few more AT-STs to the Battle of Hoth (to sort of establish them for RotJ).
-MAYBE add more Snowtrooper/Rebel soldier fighting into the Battle of Hoth.
-Add a few more background monsters to Dagobah; "Massive lifeforms readings...".
-Change Luke's line back to "You're lucky you don't taste very good."
-In the scene where you see Vader's head, make it so he's watching a hologram of Padme. Audio would be the best way to do this, since you can't really see into Vader's chamber. I'm hoping she sends him a goodbye letter of sorts in RotS, and this could be used here and in RotJ.
-Change the Emperor to Ian McDiarmid. Change the music to Sith Chants/Emperor's Theme. Change the dialogue if to fit with a new ANH scene.
-Again. re-dub all the Stormtrooper and Boba Fett lines with Temura Morrison.
-Update ALL the windows on Cloud City. The SE is inconsistent; in one shot a window is updated, but in another, it's not.
-Add more training on Dagobah, IF IT WILL FIT. Jumping, lightsaber skills, etc.
-Take out the Emperor's scream as Luke falls. Very funny Ben Burt, now let's change it back please.
-Have the Falcon fight some TIEs as it escapes Cloud City ("What about those fighters?").
-Change Vader's line back to "Bring my shuttle", and take out all the new SE stuff. It's totally useless and interrupts the flow Luke's rescue.
-Flip the reverse frames when Vader & Piett talk about capturing the Falcon back to normal. I have no idea why they did this, but the Imperial uniforms make it obvious.

RETURN OF THE JEDI
-Add some PT aliens to Jabba's Palace.
-Do something about the dance number in Jabba's Palace. The CG really sticks out, so either re-do it or change it back to the original.
-Change some of Boush's lines so "Yoto" doesn't mean everything.
-Take out the *BURP* of the big frog. It can still eat the lizard though.
-The compositing of the Rancor is HORRIBLE! The creature itself looks okay, but when it interacts with Luke, it needs a big upgrade. Don't totally replace it with CG though, just fix the compositing.
-MAYBE extend the Boba/Luke confrontation (with a couple of stunt doubles).
-Add some limbs flying around or something as Luke uses his lightsaber on the Sail Barge; Make it look like he's using a LIGHTSABER, not a stick.
-Insert SOME shot of Han flying the Falcon; during the conversation as they leave Tatooine would do. It's a great injustice we never got to see him flying his baby in the conclusion of the trilogy.
-The Emperor's theme is good, but alter it to incorporate vocals (like in the PT, which sounds even cooler).
-Extend the Luke/Ben conversation, with cut dialogue and all (the parts that fit in with RotS).
-Fix some of the Speeder Bike effects. Most are good, but some still need improvement.
-Insert a scene where Vader is watching the same Padme hologram from MY ESB either right before or right after he tells the Emperor about Luke being on Endor.
-Have 3p0 explain WHY the Ewoks join the Alliance; they're being used for slave labor and loosing their home, e