Any scene with Hera in episode “The Call” from Rebels season 2. I get that she distrusts those creatures, but the cynical and dismissive attitude towards Ezra’s intuition really made me hate her more than Pong Krell in The Clone Wars as long as the episode lasted.
The part in The Last Jedi where Rose rams her vehicle into Finn’s to stop him from sacrificing himself, followed by that little speech about winning by saving what we love. Really painful to watch.
I doubted between that one and Leia Poppins flying from space back into the ship from the same film, but still the Rose scene made me cringe harder.
Just stumbled upon this news article: https://www.mensjournal.com/entertainment/theatrical-1977-star-wars-is-streaming-roku
I don’t own a Roku, but perhaps someone here does. The way I understand it, it is a clandestine application running user-uploaded video, so nothing official from Lucasfilm.
Still, I wonder what source they used. Anyone here who owns a Roku?
What I would give to buy those files from Lucasfilm… I do own the trilogy on Video CD. While it is very low quality and in pan & scan format, I still appreciate owning a legit digital copy of the Special Editions. Of course, since then, we got a few very nice DVB recordings (TB, GKAR, REIVAX) and even a capture direct from DigiBeta (Flunk). I should also not forget The Aluminum Falcon’s 4K scans of the trilogy, which captures the theatrical experience at home, and beautifully at that.
I really can’t complain about all the ways to watch these versions. But the ones that feels the most like an official release to me are the “Five Star Collection” Bootleg DVDs. Very similar to the GOUT in that it is a Laserdisc master smashed on a DVD disc in 4:3 aspect ratio, letterboxed to preserve the film’s aspect ratio (Non-anamorphic). The only real difference is that the GOUT is a direct copy of the Laserdisc master, while these bootlegs have an extra step in between (The Laserdisc itself). I am very glad to own those bootlegs, and they stand proudly in my living room.
I think there is no real chance we will ever get an official release of the 1997 Special Editions again. George probably views them as just as depricated as the original versions. But still, I am very thankful there are so many possibilities to watch them.
Despite the clickbaity “gotcha” tone of the video (oojason has worded that very well) I think the main message of the video is an important one. That judging the look of a film by accuracy is not as simple as “scan 35mm print, done”, and that there will always be a factor of choices that need to be made by the person(s) scanning and releasing it. There’s no need to explain that to anyone working on such projects, but for the casual viewing audience it is good to know.
That’s actually the first time for me to see such a comparison between the broadcast and DVD versions. I guess Star Wars just wouldn’t be Star Wars without any revisionism, even for the cartoons. Thanks for sharing that, Mackey!
As some of you might know, in 2010 a feature-length edit of episodes 12, 13 and 14 of season 3 was made in-house at Lucasfilm. It was shown at a limited number of select screenings in that same year, and finally released to the public in 2011.
Of course, it has been pulled from sale and hasn’t been for a long time now. The time where such cuts were in vogue is long gone, and full seasons have been the norm for a long time.
However, I myself really enjoy those official cuts. I own and enjoy the Clone Wars 2008 film (Which is nothing more than the first four episodes of the series) as well as Darth Maul Returns (which is a theatrical cut of episodes 19, 20, 21 and 22 of season 4) on DVD. Gotta love physical media for preservation purposes.
Now I never had the chance to buy this iTunes release. And although I own all the released home media of this series, I would still very much to add this theatrical cut to my collection.
Does anyone know if this has been preserved somewhere?
As for Phantom Menace, I alternate between the official Video CD release (Sadly I accidently bought the Hong Kong version instead of the Malaysian release, which means I am stuck with hardcoded Chinese subtitles) and the “TB” Digital Broadcast preservation. Video CD is low quality and Pan and Scan, but I appreciate it being an official release. TB is just excellent. It is the real DVD version to me. Pretty much flawless.
I do have that Chzech (?) 35mm print scan, but those are not really my thing. Color correction can always be finnicky, the image might not be completely stable, etc. Many variables where the one scanning it has to make certain choices.
Watching digital versions just gives me peace of mind. Even if the quality is bantha poo, I can rest assured that the bantha poo is not tampered with (In case of the VCD. TB looks really good).
I cannot really speak of Clones and Sith, as the changes are really too small for me to bother with non-DVD versions.
The power of the prequels is, to me, the emotion and the drama. The character interactions, the slow dialogue. But then I am a sucker for soap operas. I can’t help it. To me they give a depth to the saga that it wouldn’t have otherwise.
Are they all good as films though? Hell no. I would say Phantom Menace is the only one that is actually a brilliantly made film. In terms of pacing (the theatrical version in particular), iconic shots and atmosphere. It is my favorite Star Wars film together with Return of the Jedi.
Attack of the Clones is a boring slog to watch IMO. Revenge is the Sith is a wonderful powerful drama unfolding to the viewer, but in terms of film falls short. It sometimes feels more like episodes of a TV series cut together into a film-length experience.
In the end I do enjoy both Menace and Sith, but it is only the first one I consider good.
“Stars Wars”, “Empire” and “Jedi” just can’t be beaten as the names for the films. Rolls of the tongue nicely, short and sweet.
Of course we live in a world where there are prequels and name changes. So I have to admit that those are not the names I always use in practice, especially when talking to my (casually interested) girlfriend about them. When speaking of the first movie, I usually refer to it like “The oldest Star Wars, that one with Luke”. “The First” would probably get her confused with the Phantom Menace, while “Star Wars” would be too general of a name nowadays.
The scene with the two thugs bothering Luke is probably my favorite scene in all of Star Wars.
“He doesn’t like you!”
“I’m sorry!”
“I don’t like you either!”
It’s just so brilliantly dry. Always cracks me up. Also, Obi-Wan showing his badass side for the first time right after. What’s not to like?
Also: Cantina band 2 is better than 1, even though 1 is more famous. Fight me.
oojason said:
The 2013 DVDs were indeed the 2011 Special Edition version (the same as the 2011 blu ray release).
Thank you for informing me! Maybe I will buy them someday, if I can get them on the cheap. Somehow I just really get a kick out of owning (and watching) Star Wars on DVD, as opposed to Blu-Ray or even UHD Blu-Ray. It just feels more like I actually own it (no doubt in part because it is so much easier to archive for yourself). I also just appreciate the “magic” of anamorphic widescreen. So clever.
I’m glad this topic exists, or else I wouldn’t have known that the 2019 remasters would be on DVD. I bought that whole “Skywalker Saga” DVD box set for a very cheap price, and to my delight these are indeed the “Maclunkey versions”. Yeah, there are indeed a lot of stupid changes, but having the films with the 2019 color grading on legit DVD does excite me. Better than any official Star Wars DVD has ever looked in terms of color, GOUT included.
Now I am wondering… Were those 2011 remasters (Those first Blu-Ray releases that added the rock in front of R2D2 and Vader screaming “Nooooooo” etc) ever printed on official DVD too? I read somewhere that in 2013 new DVDs were released, but I can’t confirm if they are just the old early 2000s masters or those newer 2011 versions. Does anyone know this?
Man, how vibrant this LUT makes the GOUT look is magical to me. Really impressive. If DrDre ever finished this, I would surely love to apply that LUT file to my own GOUT copy.
Now these are my Star Wars! Count me in for the remaining amount and let’s make it 100% right now.