Shadowheart

And he doesn't use a red saber, I presume?

Anyway, I expected the EU would've explained everything, but I'm not interested in the "in-universe" explanation (which sounds more probable than usual in this case) so much as what the people making the movie were thinking at the time.

The movie does kind of suggest it was all Luke's plan, going by Han's reaction to Chewie, who seems confident Luke has everything covered. I guess the whole Boushh reveal meant there was no earlier opportunity to bring it up. (Notice how Luke's plans  tend to revolve around putting Chewie in shackles?) I suppose it's not much of a stretch to assume they deliberately kept 3PO out of the loop. I don't think he would've been much good as an undercover agent if they'd told him what the plan was.

Still doesn't seem Luke actually had a specific plan though. It seems he just gambled Jabba wouldn't kill the others before he got there, and that an opportunity for breaking out of there would present itself. I guess in a way that shows that the heroes were by then confident in their own heroics, which suits the feel Lucas wanted.

*de-lurk*

Well, at the end of ESB it's Lando and Chewie who go after Han and I assume that line was meant to pick up the story from there.

Also I'm not sure how much contact they all had with one another. It almost seems like Luke was operating on his own for some reason. Maybe the droids just hadn't heard from Lando and Chewie since before they split up. Certainly Luke doesn't seem to have gotten much information from Lando or he'd have been prepared for the pit trap.

But the strangest thing to me is that Vader seemed to have no plan at all involving Han's rescue. He knew they'd try to rescue their friend, it's how he almost captured Luke in Cloud City. You'd think he would've tried the same trick again. The heroes don't seem worried that any Imperials might be waiting for them either.

I guess some sandtroopers might've shown up after the sail barge exploded, mistaking it for a sandpeople attack until they realised only Rebel heroes are that destructive.