Yes, I hope to never see Jedi Rocks again.
What version of the original trilogy to buy
The Jedi Rocks musical number at the beginning of the special edition ROTJ is so horrible and out of place that it is nearly as offensive as Greedo shooting first.
Edited by Uber12For the most part, the special editions are good when they are only enhancing the background, whenever he started messing with the foreground action it almost always didn't come off well.
I'm part way through rewatching all the star wars movies in preparation for episode 7.
I watched the ewok movies, then holiday special then phantom menace.
I thought watching them in that order will make even the prequels look good.
When I get to the OT I'll be watching the latest blu ray version, it's not the best but I think it'll set my expectations about right for episode 7.
Here's the version I was referring to. It was Digitally Mastered for better sound & picture and released in 1995, so it's the best quality version of the OT you can get (The Laserdisc version was released in '93, a few years before LFL remastered it). The only down side is the half hour of Leonard Maltin interviewing Lucas before the movie starts that you have to fast forward through. This is the only way you should watch the OT. 
Letter Box
Reformatted for TV
http://www.amazon.com/Original-Version-Star-Trilogy-Set-1995/dp/B00BBND56G
Edited by Radarman5Although some changes I feel are questionable, I still greatly prefer the most up to date versions of the films in the blu ray box set. Plus you can't beat the picture and audio quality on them. And for better or worse, they ARE the definitive versions of the films now.
Although some changes I feel are questionable, I still greatly prefer the most up to date versions of the films in the blu ray box set. Plus you can't beat the picture and audio quality on them. And for better or worse, they ARE the definitive versions of the films now.
In no way is that lipstick-snouted tutu-wearing alien in the special edition of RotJ definitive for anybody about anything ever.
Although some changes I feel are questionable, I still greatly prefer the most up to date versions of the films in the blu ray box set. Plus you can't beat the picture and audio quality on them. And for better or worse, they ARE the definitive versions of the films now.
I can barely watch those movies. There's just to much wrong with them to even list.
Not that thrice damned blue ray version that's for sure.
Picture quality of the '93 Laserdisc box set is decent. I'd rather watch a good movie at merely decent video quality than a dumpster baby movie with amazing video quality. Laserdisc is still a step above VHS.
Also, remember that Lucas ruined THX 1138 on DVD and Blu Ray, gave it a special edition with terribad CGI that looks completely out of place in a movie filmed in the late 60's. Laserdisc is the best way to watch that movie too.
Edited by ParaGoomba Slayer
The Despecialised Editions are the best versions out there. Essentially these are a combination of Bluray, German HDTV broadcast and other sources, edited to exclude the CGI additions but with original version colours and sound effects (because folks often forget that the films have been colour graded and the soundtrack altered).
Apart from the Han Shoots First thing and Vader's dialogue I'm not sure what the problem is. They made Yavin and Hoth look so much better.
I'm sure you can find a pretty exhaustive list via google, but some of the sound changes are terrible, most notably in ROTJ where you have an alarm blaring in the distance throughout the entirety of the throne room scenes and Vader thinking "No" before turning. Leia's blaster in ANH sounds like a magnum and in ESB you have Boba's voice replaced.
Visually, colours are all over the place with costumes colours and skin tones thrown off as a result of the grading. Lightsabre cores noticeably cross over in the throne room duel (shot with Emperor grinning), with Vader's looking pinkish in many shots in ROTJ and Luke's sabre still flipping green on the Millennium Falcon in ANH. Hoth looks way too blue in some shots and Dagobah has been given a green wash such that Yoda looks sickly green.
The new Emperor sequence in ESB has some unnecessary dialogue changes (making things more obvious) and Jabba in docking bay 94 is redundant and repeats much of the information established in the Greedo sequence (the CGI also has to be updated with every release). The sarlaac beak looks awful no matter how many times they update the textures, the musical number in Jabba's palace is too in your face to fit the rest of the picture, the palace door doesn't need to be even bigger and Hayden turning up as the Anakin spirit makes no sense from a storytelling perspective.
I can't think of anything that actually improves upon the story, other than perhaps the Biggs scene on Yavin.
If you can wait go for this if not well just try and get through the blu rays or DVDs
If it's your first time, you can't go wrong with any of them.
Laserdisc. The last version published before Lucas altered the deal.
There is still a chance that Fox, who own the distribution rights in perpetuity, will be smart and sell the original cut on blu-ray just prior to the release of VII.
I am actually so lucky as to own the original Definitive Collection on LaserDisc in NTSC format and also a LaserDisk set in PAL. If only I had a LaserDisk player 
The definitive collection is super, because you can actually single step frames in the format it is pressed in.
Sorry, the definitive editions of these films are the ones I paid money to see on the big screen in 1977, 1980 and 1983*. You know, the ones that built the reputation of the trilogy and were good enough for everyone for 20 years?
*Okay, that my dad paid money for me to see.
Edited by DailyRichIt'll be nice to have the original versions again I have the special editions on DVD but I'd much prefer Han shooting first.
That special feeling when you are the single one person in the world that prefers and recommends all six Blu Ray films.
I'm not saying there aren't improvements in the SE -- the ending of Jedi is greatly improved, the new Cloud City in Empire looks great, to name a couple -- and I'm not saying the SEs shouldn't be available. It's just that the versions that made film history, the ones that made all that box office and cemented the trilogy's reputation, should be available as well. They're the reasons Lucas even had the resources to make his changes in the first place.
Just buy a laserdisc player. Hell, $50 ones on eBay are still good. These things when they were new were rather expensive, the '93 LD box set was $250 apparently MSRP lol.
The quality is still more than watchable.
Here's the version I was referring to. It was Digitally Mastered for better sound & picture and released in 1995, so it's the best quality version of the OT you can get (The Laserdisc version was released in '93, a few years before LFL remastered it). The only down side is the half hour of Leonard Maltin interviewing Lucas before the movie starts that you have to fast forward through. This is the only way you should watch the OT.
Letter Box
Reformatted for TV
http://www.amazon.com/Original-Version-Star-Trilogy-Set-1995/dp/B00BBND56G
These are actually the best--both of my parents have these sets, but they unfortunately got the 4:3 versions
We just need a nice Bluray of this cut.
That special feeling when you are the single one person in the world that prefers and recommends all six Blu Ray films.
Doesn't compare the the buzz you get for reporting posts designed purely to inflame a perfectly civil thread.
If anyone gets the copy mentioned in this article please let us know which versions are included. http://www.ew.com/article/2015/04/06/star-wars-saga-become-available-digital-downloads
Edited by GeneticDriftIf anyone gets the copy mentioned in this article please let us know which versions are included. http://www.ew.com/article/2015/04/06/star-wars-saga-become-available-digital-downloads
It's been reported in a few places that they are the 'Special-ist Edition' (IE., basically the Blu-Ray version) releases. Although bringing new extra features, and some variation in what you get across platforms (for example, buying it via the Xbox store apparently gives you an animated R2-D2 you can add to your Xbox Live avatar? No idea what Google and Apple have in mind for their versions of the release.)
It's impossible to get the non-special edition versions at a normal retail store, Lucas had them all pulled from the shelves. You'll have to go to a 3rd party seller like Ebay or (*shudder) Craigslist to find a version of the film that doesn't have crappy CGI singing. And you'll probably have to pay a pretty penny for it too, and have a working VHS player, and possibly get ripped off.
Thanks George. Hopefully Disney and Fox get together and released the unaltered versions on DVD soon.
Although some changes I feel are questionable, I still greatly prefer the most up to date versions of the films in the blu ray box set. Plus you can't beat the picture and audio quality on them. And for better or worse, they ARE the definitive versions of the films now.
To quote Mr T "I pity the fool!"