By Justin Polak
Co-founder, Ambassador to the Mushroom Kingdom

George Lucas just can’t help himself. With the upcoming release of Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-Ray September 16, more tweaking seems to be headed our way. Most infamously, Vader will apparently have another, “NOOOOOOOO” moment, during the climactic scene where he decides that he’s had enough of the Emperor’s shenanigans and chucks him down a shaft leading to the Death Star’s reactor core. Unsurprisingly, many fans are already crying foul and wondering if Lucas is even aware how many fans — even hardcore ones — found Vader’s big “NOOOOO” scene in Revenge of the Sith unintentionally hilarious.

You don’t even need to be a Star Wars geek to know that other changes throughout the years have had fans screaming louder than a Jed- hungry Rancor. Personally, it’s been awhile since I have watched a Star Wars movie, and I figure now is a good time to reflect on key changes of the original trilogy and see what worked and what didn’t. Obviously, I am not going to write about every single change or minor fixes like a digital alteration with lighting and other tricks. Also, I will award each change with the following ranks going from best to worst.

*Improved Change
*Acceptable Change
*Semi-acceptable Change
*Mediocre Change
*Unnecessary Change
*DO NOT WANT

1. Redone Death Star and Planet Explosions: I know that some people had a problem with the praxis effect created with the newer explosions of both Death Stars and the planet Alderaan, but I felt that they put a great emphasis of what kind of force would cause such large objects to blow. For those of you who were too lazy to click the link I provided just now, I am referring to the ring that shoots outward as the explosion occurs. The original Death Star’s praxis effect is tilted sideways because it’s gangsta or something. I also liked how the explosions themselves were tweaked. I know supporting any amount of CGI in a Star Wars film is an unpopular opinion, but even while watching the original footage as a kid, I felt like I was watching a slowed down miniature explosion instead of a massive boom.

RANKING: Acceptable Change

2. Hayden Christensen at the End of Return of the Jedi: I might as well get this one out of the way. A lot of fans simply rage at the fact that Hayden Christensen replaced Sebastian Shaw in the iconic scene where Anakin, Obi-wan and Yoda appear to Luke at the end of Jedi. I completely hate it because it makes no sense. If I recall correctly, Lucas’ reasoning for inserting Christensen was because when Anakin turned to the dark side, he was still a young man. So when he appears as a Force ghost, he looks as he did before his change to the bad team. So, uh, what about the fact that Anakin had become a good guy again when he threw the Emperor to his doom? He died a Jedi, after all. Anakin appearing as an older Force ghost makes more sense! Plus, Hayden doesn’t look remotely happy at all. He is seriously leering at Luke, almost as if he were about to mug the Jedi’s credits in a dark alley somewhere.

RANKING: DO NOT WANT

3. Greedo Shoots First: Do I even need to explain this one? Instead of Han blowing Greedo away like the scum that he is, the alien manages get a shot off from point blank range as Solo awkwardly dodges the blast. Although the scene looks better in the 2004 DVD release, this is one of those changes that just doesn’t work on any level. I think Lucas was aiming to make Han looks less like a stone cold killer, but the problem was he never came across that way to begin with. Solo was merely defending himself. Greedo was practically saying that he was going to kill him right then and there. Hell, if Han did have the money he owed Jabba and was dumb enough to hand it over, Greedo surely would have blasted his brains all over the bar wall! Seriously Lucas, nobody thought Han’s actions were cruel. Mos Eisley was established as an area with rampant crime. I think people are smart enough to know that sometimes you have to do what it takes to survive such environments.

RANKING: Unnecessary Change

4. Mos Eisley is a Busier Spaceport: Speaking of the wretched hive of scum and villainy, the 1997 Special Edition gave us several extended shots when Luke and company arrive at the spaceport. On one hand, I like the overhead shots of the area and the illusion of it having many travelers. After all, Mos Eisley was implied to be a very busy spaceport, so it does make sense that it is more populated. However, what ruins it is stupid scenes like a flying droid taunting another droid and getting comically hit. This should have served as a warning for the kind of corny humor that was present in the prequel trilogy. Also, there were points where too many things were onscreen, including a giant beast that blocks the entire frame at one point! If the redone sequence would have been more subtle, it could have been so much greater.

RANKING: Mediocre Change

5. Luke Screams as He Falls off the Platform in Cloud City: This particular change is actually one of the more unique ones, since it was eventually reversed. The scene is very famous: Vader hacked Luke’s hand off, revealed his fatherhood and backed him onto a platform above a very long drop. Rather than accepting Vader’s offer to join him, Luke instead risks death by intentionally off the platform. Luckily, he turns out alright, but one key difference didn’t sit right with some fans. In the 1997 Special Edition, Luke screamed as he fell. On top of that, all they did was slightly alter the same scream heard from the Emperor as he fell at the end of Return of the Jedi. Thankfully, Lucas realized that Luke screaming made no sense since he fell on purpose to avoid Vader, and his silent fall was back in the 2004 DVD.

RANKING: DO NOT WANT (screaming fall)/Improved Change (restoring the silent fall)

6. Sarlacc Pit: In the 1997 Special Edition, the Sarlacc Pit gained a CG beak and a few tentacles. Of course, this was the place where Jabba thought he’d execute our heroes by shoving them into the pit, but the tables were soon turned, as we all know. Ever since this change was added in ’97, I honestly have been torn. The beaked Sarlacc doesn’t offend me, but at the same time I think it still looks a tad off. The idea of a giant spiky hole in the desert makes sense in its own way, but the original pit looks a tad too much like a prop. I could go either way on this one.

RANKING: Semi-acceptable Change

7. Cloud City in General: Much like the redone introduction of Mos Eisley, Cloud City was given a more elaborate facelift. In this case, I am completely satisfied with this change. The new scenery makes sense, the lighting is perfect and they wisely opened up many areas within the city. Go ahead and call me a blasphemer, I don’t mind. The old version of Cloud City looked sleek and futuristic, but all the white corridors felt very claustrophobic. If anything, some shots simply looked like they were walking around in a spaceship, rather than a floating city within the clouds. Overall, the changes come off as more subtle, especially when you compare it to similar reworked scenes in the original trilogy.

RANKING: Improved Change

8. Vader’s More Detailed Trip to His Star Destroyer: Near the end of The Empire Strikes Back, Leia, Chewbacca and Lando rescue Luke from the bottom of Cloud City. Unfortunately, their hyperdrive is still deactivated, and Vader rushes off the floating city to his Star Destroyer. In the original version, a shot of Vader saying “Bring my shuttle” is quickly shown as we watch our heroes evade the pursuit of TIE fighters. We then see Vader and his crew boarding the ship. In the 1997 Special Edition, unused footage from Return of the Jedi was used to detail Vader’s arrival on his flagship. While this change isn’t terrible, I feel like it totally broke the pacing of the whole chase scene. One moment we are listening to exciting music as the Millennium Falcon is darting around space and the next we’re watching Vader casually strolling off his shuttle with a subdued version of the famous “Imperial March”. At the end of the day, it’s way too jarring.

RANKING: Mediocre Change

9. Biggs Darklighter Has More Screen Time: I always found it odd that Biggs, Luke’s friend from Tatooine, just kind of appeared out of nowhere in the first Death Star battle. Luke mentioned him earlier in the film, so it’s not like his presence was random, but I felt like he needed a better introduction. While there were several scenes on Tatooine that featured Biggs, the only deleted scene involving him that appeared in the 1997 Special Edition was him reuniting with Luke. I thought this scene was great because it didn’t last too long or break up the pace of the movie. Everyone was chilling in the hanger preparing for battle, and Biggs simply wanted to congratulate Luke on finally making it to the big leagues. The scene also helps support Luke’s farm boy origins and rounds out his character. Also, you feel a bit worse for Luke when Biggs is cruelly blown up in the Death Star trench.

RANKING: Improved Change

1o. The Overhauled Musical Number in Jabba’s Palace: Remember how I said the taunting droid should have served as a warning about how the prequels would go? Well, this change should have been a GIANT RED FLAG! The new song is absolutely terrible compared to the more jazzy hit in the old version. I know it was intentional, but the new musical number seemed way too staged. The original song felt like the palace randomly decided to party whenever they wanted, and for what it was, you could have a good time messing around. Meanwhile in the Special Edition, you have boring, cheesy CGI characters in your face with obvious new footage inserted in with the old. Nothing about this change works at all.

RANKING: DO NOT WANT

Although there are more changes I liked and disliked, those 10 were the most notable to me. Lucas may never be done tinkering around with his movies for all I know, but I can’t deny that it’s always interesting to see what’s added or removed, even if it’s a disaster. Maybe if we sit through enough changes, we’ll get a Blu-Ray version of the original trilogy in its original state! Hey, I can dream, can’t I?

Front page image from imgur.com.
Death Star explosion image from jasonhope.me. Ghosts image from screenjunkies.com. Greedo image from members.shaw.ca. Mos Eisley image from massassi.hobby-site.com. Luke Skywalker Bespin image from flixster.com. Cloud City image, shuttle departure image and Luke/Biggs image from from dvdactive.net. Jabba dancers image from fortunecity.net.