Fated-Dualist

Bobson Dugnutt said:

This is something that I’ve had on my mind for a while so I thought I’d type it up. I think the Star Wars fanedits and preservations needs a bit of a clean up and reorganisation.

There’s a lot of threads in both categories, well over 1,000, as there are a lot of users, but it means everything is mixed in together. Ideas for edits, edits in the works, completed edits, inactive and unfinished edits and requests are all put together, meaning it can be a pain to navigate at times.

A lot of threads end up becoming simply request chains with everyone asking for the same thing over and over for years while the edit is in development and after its completion. It clogs things up and stops discussion. I’d propose that we make a separate section simply for requests and trying to minimise that kind of post as many people sign up just to request popular works such as Adywan, Harmy and Hal9000, even though there are detailed guides by now on how to get your hands on them. People often double up and makes posts in threads and threads of their own to ask for them with the ever popular Markdown default text as they don’t bother with a body text. Also I think it should be more common to ask through PMs as those posts really clog things up. This is the one thing that drives me up the wall more than anything as I open a thread looking for some legitmate discussion, and find a chain of requests.

I’d like to split the ideas/in the works edits from the completed edits, but I don’t know how viable that is. Beacuse I can rarely tell if an edit is done or not based on the title and first post. It often takes some digging for me to see if the edit is official done and released, or still needs some work done. There is often just a jumble of new TROS or TLJ edits and it’s hard to see what their status is if any as many edits have one post and then are subsequently abandoned/ I know there are index threads, but everything is still mixed in together. The new IDEAS tagging is pretty good as now I can telling something is just a conception and I feel this is a good step in the right direction.

I do caution against too many subcategories though, since there is no real search, people won’t know where things belong, so either we will get lots of duplicate posts, or else topics will just go dead as less eyes get into the various sub-forums.

Sorry for the garble, but I felt it should be said over here instead of FE where I had originally put it.

Yeah… when the mods see you posted it on FE in the ‘OT Renegades Voyeur thread’ - where the old clique congregate to take pot shots at this site - before posting it on here… this reads like a wind up, or an attempt at one.

The moderators at FE deserve credit for removing some of the more barbed and incendiary potshots at this site too - in an attempt to keep the peace.
 

ooj has already been through the ‘Toys and Memorabilia’ forum and sorted that out - including a new Index for it. As he has done for the ‘SW Preservation’, ‘SW Fan Edits’ and ‘Fan Edits’ sections. He is due to start work on Preservations soon too (it looks like he already has).

Threads have already been relabelled as ‘Ideas’, ‘Info’, ‘Info Wanted’, ‘Help Wanted’, (unfinished projects) - with more added to ‘discussion /idea thread’ index or sections, ‘Help: looking for…’, or a mix of each depending on the thread content. Finished project threads have been left alone - so it is easier to distinguish what is a project - and what isn’t.

That’s around just shy of 7,000 threads he has been through (or will when he finishes).

The Index threads seem to have been updated and added to - and even unfinished projects with useful information have been added to the ‘discssion / idea’ sections. ooj says they may be of interest and help others loooking into projects for the future, and record the efforts on here - even if they weren’t finished or released.

The ‘markdown’ posts which were all over the place on here have been removed (for the most part) - as have many double and triple posts.

Multiple request threads for ‘where are the Despecialized Edits?’ have been merged into a mega thread, along with ‘how-to and help’ questions - and are no longer prevalent through the forums here.

Reading through that FE thread - people seem to have forgot the ‘Star Wars’ section was also split up so it made things easier to find (and ooj says for some people to ignore what they didn’t like). 5000 threads in one forum? Now split into more relevant sections - so it seems the mods didn’t ‘lose their mojo’ after splitting Off Topic?

I don’t know about you but the mods seem more on the ball too - replying to PMs, requests, dealing with trolls, socks, people behaving like dicks. It is certainly a more civil place - without the old clique piling into threads and projects to judge & derail them now at FE.
 

Bobson, if you’re being genuine and not taking the piss, then I am truly sorry and deeply apologise. Though you may want to have a look around again at the things you have issues with. Posting that on FE, and then this on here… reads like you are taking the piss out of the mods on here. The timing of this, especially as ooj was apparantly the mod a few people now at FE had issues with (and still takes jibes & digs at) - and just so happens to be in the process of finishing up a re-organisation of the Fan Project forums… sucks. That’s not even taking into account you saying ‘this is something that I’ve had on my mind for a while now’…

Maybe asking fan editors or preservationists to keep their fan project threads (and titles) updated is a better or simpler idea? Or for them to let the site moderators know when a project is no longer happening, or that circumstances have changed?

The OT seems to be more laid back than FE in its organisation - yet both are great places and have different outlooks and setups - which is good that we are lucky enough to choose from and enjoy both (and include the FanRes and TSWT in that too) - all diverse and different. We should appreciate that - not knock each other for it.
 

Me? I don’t know how or why they do it - let alone put up with the shit thrown their way - the mods on here, FE, or anywhere, that is. I’m not even sure why I bothered typing this up - it’ll likely lead to arguments, division and old wounds - sorry mods! (please delete this post if you wish)

How_do_I download_them? said:

Yeah thanks for telling me to be patient after i’ve spent over 3 hours trying to figure this bullshit out.

You can take your patience and shove it up your ass…

It is in nearly every link that oojason has posted!

Did you want a big red button that says ‘download here’?

Because the reasons why that can’t happen on here is also listed in the links given to you… the same links which you didn’t have the patience to read in the first place - that you thought gave you “0 help” 😃
 

If only there was some sort of ‘The Ultimate Introductory Guide to Harmy’s Star Wars Trilogy Despecialized Editions’ linked somewhere with all the necessary information…

Or there was a thread containing 3/4 other different ways to obtain the Despecialized Edits mentioned…
 

Hang on, there are! And have already been listed above by someone who took the time to help you out and direct you to some useful threads, and you kicked off at him! Then came back later to give out some more!

Edit - I see the mods deleted your ‘fuck off and die’ follow up post made with a new account.
 

Gonk-DB94 said:

I know this has been discussed elsewhere, though I feel it is worth highlighting in this thread too (and for the 2011 and 2019 ‘what have they still not fixed?’ threads):
 

‘Never forget that the Death Star has been in clear site of Yavin IV from the beginning of the battle since 1997 and this is how the Special Edition should have ended. https://www.wired.com/story/put-original-star-wars-on-disney-plus/’ - https://twitter.com/StarWarsVisComp/status/1279501550575136771
 

It is how George always wanted it - or something like that? 😉

And he is sorry that you fell in love with the unfinished version which was in the unfinished film for 20 years, but that is how he wants it since 1997, and how it should have always been. [cough]

Even for other Star Wars films he did not make or direct, and has made alterations to since…

Is right, lad 😃

’Disney+ adds lost Luke Skywalker scene to Star Wars: A New Hope’ (only to the extras, but still):

https://www.nme.com/news/film/disney-adds-lost-luke-skywalker-scene-to-star-wars-a-new-hope-2698578 (with video)

'A deleted scene from Star Wars: A New Hope has been retrieved and added to the extras on Disney+.

Mark Hamill has explained why the deleted scene was crucial to the character of Luke Skywalker, in conversation with Joe and Anthony Russo for their Russo Bros. Pizza Film School series.’
 

I hope Mark Hamill explains why the scenes cut from the unaltered theatrical version of the OT to make way for Special Edition changes are important too - and gets them cleaned up and added as well 😉

StarkillerAG said:

ray_afraid said:

You probably just shouldn’t watch em at all.
Easy fix.

Or maybe you could actually be helpful instead of using this thread as an excuse to hate on the prequels.
Even easier fix.

Back on topic though, I think Disney+ is the best way to watch the prequels. The colors are much better than on the DVDs, and it’s in much higher quality than DVD could possibly manage.

Was Ray not just joking around? A bit of dry humour.

Disney+ versions for me, OP. Though as stated above have a look schorman’s project and a few of the other Prequel projects on here too 😃

A little below your post in here, has the information you’d likely need:-

Some info & help for TN1’s 4K77, 4K80 & 4K83 projects of the Original Trilogy…

Basically, go to the forums on thestarwarstrilogy.com, read the rules and requirements, register, be patient, have a look around, and you’ll find the information you need to acquire these 4K77/80/83 projects 👍

oojason said:

canofhumdingers said:

Hey I just noticed someone snuck a Rancor photo in here!

Hah! I win £5 😉 - you hear that Fated, mate? I told you someone would notice before the month was out 😃
 

Damn it! 😃

I should have reached out to canofhumdingers and offered him a slice of the action in exchange for his silence 😉

crissrudd4554 said:

Nien Nunb said:

Fated-Dualist said:

'Mr. Lucas said that to release the original versions of these films on Blu-ray was “kind of an oxymoron because the quality of the original is not very good.”

“You have to go through and do a whole restoration on it, and you have to do that digitally,” he added. “It’s a very, very expensive process to do it. So when we did the transfer to digital, we only transferred really the upgraded version.”
 

I still find it hard to imagine George saying all this with a straight face. Even he has be aware of how stupid this sounds. Despite no longer being in charge of Lucasfilm, I’m sure by now he also has to be at least somewhat aware of recent fan preservation efforts and the significant advancements that have been made since those statements, which have completely disproven his argument.

Keep in mind we are talking about the guy who in 2012 was insistent that Greedo “always” shot first with the confusion being the original had the sequence in closeups. Sure George.

George also forgot about the original scripts and novelisation being quite clear that only one person at the table got off a shot from their blaster… and it sure wasn’t poor Greedo 😃

^ I know it is not stricly ‘Original Trilogy’ - but the book was going to be the basis of a ‘cheap to film sequel’ for if Star Wars '77 flopped, so I included it in here.

Wow! Nice work on the spreadsheet guide, Rodney-2187.

Some impressive effort has gone into this, you’ve obviously been hard it at 👍
 

‘Star Wars: Squadrons New Details on the Playable Maps’:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEmyL9bl44c - at the Star Wars Explained youtube channel. (5 minutes.)
 

I really enjoy this guy’s breakdown videos - insightful and factual - without the drama, hype, clickbait, and rage etc that many other youtubers out there have or use.
 

Hopefully we’ll see some more ships over time for the game (maybe as unlockables?) - I’d love to see the B-Wing and possibly some older ships from the Clone Wars era somewhere down the line for it.

‘A last (definitive) Original Star Wars update for a while’:-

http://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/022417-0100 - a 2017 article
 

A snippet a screenshot of the article…
 

 
^ the four links featured in the article above are to…

‘yesterday’s post’ : http://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/022317-1600

‘read on here’ : http://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/022417-0100 - it just links back to the full article

Harmy’s Star Wars Despecialized Editions ‘here’ 1 : https://www.facebook.com/despecialized

Harmy’s Star Wars Despecialized Editions ‘here’ 2 : https://originaltrilogy.com/discussion/Star-Wars-Preservation/id/17
 

People are bashing George on here?

JadedSkywalker said:

The last i heard it was an oxymoron to release the Original. That was Lucas final word on the subject in 2011 or was it 2010. It was around the time of the blu ray release. The other thing he said was there were pipelines for these things or some other BS.

The ‘oxymoron’ thing you refer to is George saying this?:-

'Mr. Lucas said that to release the original versions of these films on Blu-ray was “kind of an oxymoron because the quality of the original is not very good.”

“You have to go through and do a whole restoration on it, and you have to do that digitally,” he added. “It’s a very, very expensive process to do it. So when we did the transfer to digital, we only transferred really the upgraded version.”

^ source: ‘Star Wars’ Films Coming to Blu-ray Next Year’ - 2010 article based on a telephone interview with George Lucas for the NY Times.
 

That seems to be another disingenuous statement from George given what we know now - and what has also been achieved by fans in their preservation projects.

Along with the possibility of backwards engineering the ‘new’ 1997 SE based master (used as the base for the 2019 SE version) to include the unaltered theatrical version footage - as just one possible ‘quick and easy’ solution - IF indeed there were no good quality OOT copies or backups made.
 

'Disney to Release 4K Version of ‘Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back’ to Boost U.K. Cinemas:-

https://variety.com/2020/film/global/disney-to-release-4k-version-of-star-wars-the-empire-strikes-back-to-boost-u-k-cinemas-exclusive-1234637839
 

"The Force is with U.K. cinemas this July as they plan to reopen doors with a remastered 4K edition of “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” Variety can reveal.

It’s understood the planned screenings mark the first time a “Star Wars” film from the original trilogy will be screened to cinema audiences in 4K. European cinema giant Vue will show the film in the U.K."

and

"Variety understands “The Empire Strikes Back” is, in fact, among a number of titles Disney is offering U.K. exhibitors, who are eyeing a July 4 reopening date.

The country’s cinemas are among the last businesses to open as part of the government’s economic recovery plan. When they do restart, it will have been more than three months since they were first shuttered across the week of March 16."
 

more text in the linked article - seems to infer it will be the 2019 SE version being shown.

I imagine this is part of the Empire’s 40th Anniversary? (IF true) / with an attempt to get people going back to the cinemas due to the recent closure due to the coronavirus?

Though a little strange they are only putting up The Empire Strikes Back for release on the big screen?

(IF the article is correct)
 

‘The Disney/Fox Merger is Done; Is a Re-Release of the STAR WARS Original Trilogy Theatrical Cut Next?’:-

https://www.thathashtagshow.com/2019/03/25/re-release-star-wars-original-trilogy-theatrical-cut - 2019 article.
 

a snippet… the full thing (it is not very long):-
 

"Last week Disney completed its multi-billion dollar merger with Fox. From an entertainment perspective, one of the main focuses has been on the effect the merger will have on the X-Men and Marvel franchises. For many of us, however, there is a much bigger, burning question. Now that Disney owns 20th Century Fox, will we finally get a re-release of the Star Wars original trilogy theatrical cut?

For years fans have been begging for the studio to re-release the original trilogy theatrical cut. Hopes ran high that it would happen when George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney a little over six years ago. Unfortunately, at the time 20th Century Fox retained the rights to Star Wars (A New Hope, that is), and that was that. Plus, Kathleen Kennedy has never made re-issuing the original trilogy theatrical cut a priority. But things have changed. With the merger now complete, and given the state of the Star Wars fandom, now is the perfect time to make the move.
 

It’s Time to Re-Release the Original Trilogy Theatrical Cut
 

We’re living in an age where the Star Wars fandom is practically split down the middle. That is thanks in most part to Rian Johnson and his controversial take on Star Wars with The Last Jedi. While expectations are high that Star Wars: Episode IX may narrow that gap, it’s no given. If there is one thing that can bring balance to the For…er, fandom, it’s the original trilogy theatrical cut.

Ask even a casual Star Wars fan “who shot first?” and the universal answer is Han Solo. Likewise, mention the nonsensical musical number in the Return of the Jedi Special Edition and see what kind of reaction you get. Don’t get us started on adding Hayden Christensen’s Anakin Skywalker as a Force ghost. George Lucas forgot an important, old adage when it came to Star Wars: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Releasing the original trilogy theatrical cut to Blu ray now could heal a lot of old wounds when it comes to the Star Wars fandom.

Fast forward to 2020. Can you just imaging an ultimate Skywalker Saga box set that contains the original trilogy theatrical cut? Based on the sales of that alone Disney wouldn’t have to make another Star Wars film ever again. (Note to Disney: even if you release the unaltered OT, please don’t stop making Star Wars movies.)

Star Wars: Episode IX hits theaters December 20. Here’s hoping the original, unedited trilogy returns with it."
 

^ Nice one, Vin - I wasn’t sure if you wanted to include the Disney acquisition in here 😃

‘Disney Has Acquired Fox; What Does that Mean for Star Wars?’:-

Rev up the iconic fanfare, because Disney has officially completed their acquisition of 21st Century Fox. While the main perks of the deal benefit the Marvel Cinematic Universe way more than Star Wars, there are some Star Wars-related tidbits that are tied to the deal itself that are worth discussing here – and one thing that definitely won’t happen.

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2019/03/disney-acquired-fox-star-wars-meaning.html - 2019 article
 

a snippet…
 

"Let’s start by clearing up a big misconception right off the bat: no, we are not getting the original theatrical trilogy. For those of you unaware, there has been a long-running fan conspiracy that Lucasfilm are set to release remastered, unaltered versions of the first three Star Wars movies (A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi) before George Lucas went back to edit them any day now for the over two decades. In spite of that hope becoming more and more of a pipe dream since Lucas released the initial versions of the Star Wars Special Editions and their plethora of changes (some controversial, some deemed unnecessary, and a few actually praised), the belief that Lucasfilm are waiting for the right time to release the unaltered versions of the movies has persisted, and has gained new life with Disney’s purchase of Lucasfilm and Fox alike.

The thing is, ownership of Lucasfilm and Fox are not what what’s keeping the old versions of the movies from seeing the light of day in an official capacity; George Lucas himself is. And he’s repeatedly stated that he wants those changes to stay put. When he threw fans a bone in the early 2000s with DVD versions of the original versions, it turned out to be not what fans were hoping for when it was really just the LaserDisc version of the movies ported over to DVD, without any actual remastering of the visual or audio quality put into place. That alone should indicate what his position on his old versions of the movies are – in spite of the preference of the fans, he feels that the revision of Return of the Jedi that has Darth Vader shout “No!” and a celebration of the Emperor’s death across the galaxy far, far away instead of just on Endor is the definitive version of the film. Unless he suddenly changes his mind (and, sure, he’s flip-flopped plenty of times before, but this is one subject he’s remained steadfast on for over twenty years), we’re not going to get official remastered versions of the original cuts of those films anytime soon, if ever."
 

Evidence has surfaced suggesting that Lucasfilm have internally decided to remaster the original, unaltered prints – from of footage that made it to the theater to footage included as deleted scenes on the DVD and Blu-Ray versions and some footage that has still not seen the light of day – but it appears to be for their use only. It appears that this played a role in how they were able to integrate unused footage of Red and Gold Leaders into the final battle sequence of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, or how they were able to include a slightly different take of Princess Leia’s plea for help in The Last Jedi to suit the shot that Rian Johnson filmed with Mark Hamill and Jimmy Vee. But don’t expect the unedited clips that were actually featured in the original trilogy movies to see the light of day.

The plus side is that, if you know where to look, Lucasfilm has seemingly agreed to turn a blind eye toward fans creating their own remasters of the original movies as long as they’re not sold for profit. Technically, distributing that kind of stuff is not legal, but it appears that Lucasfilm are not going to feed you to their Rancors if you burn these versions onto the Blu-ray discs that you’ve purchased. Just to be clear, we’re not encouraging that you do kind of thing and we respect Lucas’s own wishes… But if you want to see high-quality versions of the original Star Wars trilogy as it appeared to audiences in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with some visual effects mistakes from the old versions fixed without anything else being changed, then they are out there."
 

‘Star Wars: Squadrons supports HOTAS and joysticks on PC’:-

https://www.vg247.com/2020/06/17/star-wars-squadrons-hotas-pc-support

&

‘Star Wars: Squadrons Supports Flight Sim Controllers On PC’:-

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/star-wars-squadrons-supports-flight-sim-controller/1100-6478607

&

‘Star Wars: Squadrons Is A Dogfighting Campaign And Multiplayer With No Microtransactions’:-

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/star-wars-squadrons-is-a-dogfighting-campaign-and-/1100-6478468/
 

I’m starting to like this game (more and more) 😃

Man, they are sweet cover Rikter, great work. And I love that there are covers for ‘Droids’ and ‘Ewoks’ too 😃

(it is like everyone forgot about they existed!)

EvantheKidDS said:

Omni said:

So you literally stole Adywan’s thread? OK. I’ll unsubscribe. And I don’t think I was hostile. If so, I’m sorry. I was just firm. You don’t have to be so defensive.

I never intended to steal Ady’s thread. There was no updates from him because, he paused Revisited until a better time. I didn’t want to be hostile and defensive as-well, someone else had said the same thing earlier when, I was posting updates of an attempted up-scale. I apologize.

That is still not much of a reason to start a side project within someone else’s thread - then continue posting about it (well past the idea stage) - and then tell people who are here for the original project to unsubscribe.

Perhaps it may be an idea to start your own thread for your project?

Your project is indeed an interesting idea, and I wish you well with it, but there is a reason most projects have their own threads… and it’d be confusing for many reading about 2 projects in 1 thread.

Plus, it is not exactly good manners or ‘protocol’ either, and you may annoy some people out of any interest they may have in your project too.

‘Star Wars Prequels - How The Original Trilogy Described Them’:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2uVd8uNvUU - at Hardstone Media youtube channel. (7 minutes)
 

The blurb:-

‘This summary of rewriting the Star Wars Prequels now brings together what we’ve learned about the Stage, Story and Characters from the Original Trilogy, and put it together for an overview story of the prequels.’

Also from the same Hardstone Media youtube channel…
 

‘These videos will review how to rewrite the star wars prequel trilogy by looking at how the original trilogy described the events that occurred before it. We won’t be looking at the problems or how to fix the star wars prequel trilogy, delivered by George Lucas, rather we’ll look through what needs to be included what facts, events, characters and themes need to be included’:-

‘Rewriting the Star Wars Prequels - Part 1 of 4’ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lij1nmBd6Y - 8 mins.

‘Rewriting the Star Wars Prequels - Part 2 of 4’ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkwg2TCPnXs - 8 mins.

‘Rewriting the Star Wars Prequels - Part 3 of 4’ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8lNydMRuy0 - 11 mins.

‘Rewriting the Star Wars Prequels - Part 4 of 4’ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYA51U1SR5w - 11 mins.
 

^ some good dry humour in these videos 😃

Edit…

They’ve also formulated some intriguing ideas for an Episode I re-write (more inkeeping with the Original Trilogy), which can be found…

‘STAR WARS Episode I Part I - Fate of the Republic’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qI67I2w3g8 - 12 mins.

‘STAR WARS Episode I Part II - Fate of the Republic’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P49vwPT7WFY - 11 mins.
 

‘Star Wars, Blu-Ray and a Boycott’:-

Why did so many fans boycott the Blu-Ray release of the Star Wars saga?

https://www.ourgazebo.net/star-wars-blu-ray-and-a-boycott.html - a 2011 article
 

a snippet…
 

"As most everyone knows, the Blu-Ray version of the Star Wars Saga will be released in 6 days. Many people have recently canceled their pre-orders now that the disc contents are known. The news is abuzz about the widespread outcry, especially against one particular change: Darth Vader now saying “No!” twice as he throws the emperor to his death in the climactic scene of Return of the Jedi. While that is proving to be the final straw for many people in their decision not to purchase this set (as one blogger eloquently explains in this post ) it is certainly not the only issue with this release. There are many other technical and aesthetic issues . This has led to a movement to boycott this release.

The Amazon product page is the site of a heated debate . It is being deluged with angry 1-star reviews by people boycotting the release, accompanied by retorts from some people posting 5-star reviews in support of the Blu-Ray release and expressing disdain toward those who are complaining about it. These people for the most part feel that the complaints are nitpicky and not worthy of serious consideration. However, I believe they are worthy of serious consideration.
 

There are two main problems people have with this Blu-Ray release:

First, people are being asked to pay $90 for a product that has myriad technical flaws, things that should have been corrected regardless of what movie it is. These are a distraction and shoddy workmanship.

Second, changes are continually being made to the substance of the movies without offering the originals. Many movies get doctored by their directors. But when this is done, it should be and usually is done concurrently with a careful restoration and release of the original version in the best possible quality. But in this case it’s not. And that is what the boycott, and this article, is mostly about.

The owner of SaveStarWars.com makes an excellent point about this: "…none of this would be an issue if the originals—and the previous special editions, for those now crossing over—were available in high definition. We could just shake our heads at Lucas when we thought he made a stupid decision, say “well, I wouldn’t have done that,” and then watched the version we liked, whether it was the original theatrical version, or the 1997 version, or the ones from 2004 and 2011. It wouldn’t matter if we liked a change or not, or which version was “right”, we could just agree to disagree and be happy with the version that Lucas gave us that spoke to us the most. The way every other film with multiple versions—Blade Runner, Alien, Lord of the Rings, Close Encounters, etc—has been treated. Lucas is so narcissistic about suppressing the older and original versions of the films, as though they no longer exist, that he has brought the heat on himself. And, unfortunately, he has opened up a lot of rifts in the fan community that really should not exist in the first place. We all love Star Wars, but it has so many versions, sequels and permutations that it is inevitable that we all never agree on one single, absolute Gospel canon the way Lucas wants: there’s too much radical variation.

The only way things will be good is if we can each have the one we fell in love with, because we all fell in love with different variations at different years for different reasons. When you create something as big as Star Wars, you sort of have an ethical mandate to do this, to protect a cultural artifact and make sure it is seen and treated with respect. As Lucas himself said : “American works of art belong to the public; they are part of our cultural history.” I hope one day Lucas can drink his own medicine so we can all just get along."
 

and…

“Some people have the impression that the desire to preserve original films is unreasonable and/or just a weak peep from a small minority of over-the-hill geeks, but it’s the stance taken by the AFI, the National Film Registry (which Lucas had a big hand in creating), the Film Foundation (Lucas is on the Board of Directors) and the Library of Congress. It is a widely recognized principle and one that Lucas is a huge supporter of, even, so he says, with regard to Star Wars. “Lucas, a proponent of film preservation, has said recently that he would like to restore the originals but can’t pay for it, even though he is a billionaire. Yet when an outside organization from the federal government bodies of film preservation [National Film Registry] offer to foot the bill in the meantime, what does Lucas do? Try to get them to take the Special Edition,” which the NFR refused to do. ( Full story here .) The Guardian wrote about this principle here with regard to the Star Wars Blu-Ray release. So it’s not just a closet idea… and clearly money is not the true reason Lucas doesn’t want the originals released.
​
The fact that Lucas continually makes changes to the Star Wars movies while not preserving the originals for viewing, frankly is reprehensible both as an artist and as a businessman, regardless of whether one feels the movie was actually ‘improved upon.’ What would the reaction be if the Tower of Pisa were straightened, or Mona Lisa’s face touched up to smile a little more, or Mickey was given brown fur, or countless other famous and beloved historical icons were tampered with beyond mere maintenance, either by their creators or by others? Star Wars was nominated for 11 Academy Awards in 1977 and won 7 of them, and the Star Wars saga is beloved the world over. As the most successful film series in all of film history, Star Wars is a historical treasure and global icon that should be treated with the same respect that it and those who love it deserve.”

The above article is well worth a read in its full form, with url links for useful infomration throughout the piece. It was recently posted in this engaging thread:-

Is it Lucas, or Fox, who has prevented the restored OOT release?
 

Now the UK Government wants to reduce the 2 meter social distance rule - so more can people likely fit into schools, offices, shops, pubs, restaurants, hotels and the like.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53038255

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2020/jun/14/uk-coronavirus-news-updates-covid-19-rishi-sunak-economy?page=with:block-5ee5ecc88f08cea6cb54b1b6#block-5ee5ecc88f08cea6cb54b1b6

They really want to get that economy up and running again (Tory MPs with vested interests, and donors in the hospitality industry want it so they can make more profit) - even if it results in the virus spreading or more deaths.

Yet the Govt only recently came out and said all people using public transport must wear masks to help prevent the spread. Huh…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53003046

It seems we are now in the ‘guinea pig’ phase of things.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-52522460