WARNING: The following post has real spoilers for the 9 Star Wars Skywalker Saga films.
DISCLAIMER: This is just an opinion post, so no one is being FORCED to agree with it at all, only if you want to.
Speaking of force, I must admit, just where would Earth be without THIS franchise nowadays?
As ya probably know, it’s also got plenty of very iconic, unforgettable characters, whether they’re Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, R2-D2, C-3PO, BB8, Chewbacca, Yoda, or Grogu (The Child/Baby Yoda if you prefer), along with its villains, including Emperor Palpatine, the Stormtroopers, Boba Fett, Jabba the Hutt, Bib Fortuna, Darth Maul, and, oh yeah, the legendary Darth Vader! Did ya also know that the original 1977 movie quickly grew so iconic, it was even one of those first 25 films chosen to be preserved in the National Film Registry in 1989?
Um-hmm, once during the late 1970s, my Mom (then a teenager) attended this Peter Frampton concert at Madison Square Garden; at its end, they said there was a special guest, & who came out on that stage? None other than R2.
Anyway, if you’re an expert on Star Wars movies, then you should know not 1, not 2, but 3 trilogies have been made to this day as well:
All 9 of those films are connected to one another as an overall plot, which each of them set in a different year (except for The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, both being set in the same one). Star Wars’s second trilogy is additionally set before the first, while trilogy number 3 takes place after the previous two. Thus, the second & third ones are known as SW’s Prequel and Sequel Trilogies, respectively, while its first is known as the Original Trilogy. Altogether, the three of them make up the “Skywalker Saga” since they all follow a storyline revolving around Star Wars’s Skywalker family characters.
However, you might also have heard that Star Wars’s later 2 trilogies are considered not actually as good its Original Trilogy. While they at least aren’t as bad as the infamous 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special or 2008 Star Wars: The Clone Wars CGI movie, if it had been up to ME, both those two later trilogies would’ve been been absolutely better. Furthermore, I know the original one has still got some specific issues with it itself, so yeah, I’d have had that OT better in some ways, too. Of course, this post will talk about mainly just that. As you might’ve guessed, I’ll be talking about each Skywalker Saga film from oldest to newest.
On top of all that, there’s this one part of The Phantom Menace, consisting of a fictional, unique sport known as podracing…
While considered enjoyable, it’s also been known for feeling out of place for a SW film plot. Why I am saying this now, and not a bit later in my post? Well, after I’m done talking about how I would’ve had those nine movies different, some more of the post will be about podracing entirely being its own spin-off too, just to give you a head’s up.
Yeah, while I undoubtedly would’ve had other Star Wars stuff different (including, you know it, that Star Wars Holiday Special & Star Wars: The Clone Wars CGI film), truth is, there are SO many SW things which I would’ve had differently overall, if I explained them all in this same post here, I’m afraid it would’ve simply made it too long! Therefore, I decided: why not just talk about the Star Wars productions which we ALL know of, then for podracing afterwards? Hope that’s OK with ya.
Alright, now we’ll begin with the Star Wars movie that started it all (plus Original Trilogy film number 1) – Episode IV: A New Hope!
Yeah people, I know, this film here has been considered one of the best, most influential movies ever made. Believe me, I truly do understand that as well, and I’m no perfectionist either. Yet, even Episode IV has faced some certain criticisms. In fact, since 1997, newer prints of A New Hope have had some changes to the film, which sadly have also made it not quite as well-received as before. Furthermore, A New Hope was considered to have several specific issues with it even before then. Thus, here is how that first ever Star Wars feature film would’ve been better if I were to have had it…
First, here’s one such problematic post-1997 addition for that movie: what I just showed you above in the still image. When ANH was originally released as simply Star Wars in May 1977, while Jabba was mentioned, he never was seen throughout it once. On top of that, even Boba Fett makes a cameo appearance in this scene too. So I get what one would perhaps very well think when first hearing of this exact added-in scene: “Yeah, it’s nice we get to see them in the movie now, but this should’ve been a part of it when that film first came out.”
However, both critics and fans have actually been less than happy with this sequence. For one thing, Jabba’s threatening role is considered dumbed down here; he appears to interact with Solo in an ironically friendly-like manner. Not only that, but Solo awkwardly just steps on the tail of such a powerful, antagonistic gangster here as he’s walking behind/around the Hutt. Solo’s conversation with Greedo (a Rodian minion of Jabba’s, who Solo himself has just killed before this scene) is technically rehashed here, too. Plus, having Jabba even appear as his full, in-person self does ruin the exciting suspense of him not being entirely revealed until Return of the Jedi for the original SW trilogy. Furthermore, this CGI-animated Jabba here feels painfully out of place with the 1970s-filmed setting. (Although had the Docking Bay 94 scene always been there in Episode IV right from its 1977 release, with Jabba as a full-body character here, THAT one criticism wouldn’t ever have existed, would it?) Something else? Solo says here, “Jabba…you’re a wonderful human being,” when Jabba’s clearly NO human. Though, this actually comes from the fact that Jabba was, indeed, originally a human character, before becoming the slug-like alien we all know him as. Solo’s line IS sarcastic, but there are still people who say it’s problematic.
As for Boba, him just standing there in the background during this scene adds nothing to its narrative stakes, while also makes him look like a generic low-level bodyguard, rather than the menacing Original Trilogy threat we know him as. How it’s executed additionally wrecks his own mysterious reveal in The Empire Strikes Back. Boba then even awkwardly stares right at the screen in a breaking the fourth wall manner. Having actually been shot on a bluescreen in 1994, that bounty hunter’s lighting ain’t evenly matched with the sequence. Lastly, people have considered Boba’s armor being an inaccurate matchup: his TESB helmet paired with the armor plate colors from Return of the Jedi.
Well, I’ll admit, while I definitely do agree with it being better that Jabba’s full, physical appearance never gets fully revealed in A New Hope OR The Empire Strikes Back (allowing that crucial suspense for ROTJ to have remained), as there are those who still like seeing him & Boba one way or another, I actually would’ve always had this scene with them being shown, only for Jabba’s case, not entirely in person (since believe it or not, I’ve read Boba appearing in person here, if executed properly, really COULD have avoided ruining his mysterious state (something like that remaining up to the next movie doesn’t mean he simply cannot be shown until then)), along with this scene different in several other ways also.
Therefore, here is how I myself would’ve arranged this scene, with it always being part of A New Hope right from its original 1977 premiere: Solo is walking to his Millennium Falcom ship, only to be stopped by Boba (with his helmet & other armor actually matching) and a Trandoshan henchman, Bossk; Bossk does the talking here, but in Dosh (which is the fictional language of Trandoshans), without it rehashing any other ANW chats, while Boba remains silent for this scene, but no background character. Afterwards, a flickering, blue, slightly fuzzy image of Jabba out of the small, hand-held holo-projector which Boba’s holding appears (with a smaller, puppet prop used for that Hutt in this case). The talk Solo & Jabba then have goes like this (of course, Jabba’s dialogue being translated here from HIS fictional language, Huttese)…
Hologram Jabba: “Han. You ran a long way just to hide in a junk pile.”
Solo: “Jabba. Look, I had just been on my way to see you. I’ve got a charter that’s going to cover my debt, play a little extra for your time.”
Hologram Jabba: (Laughs for a short bit.) “I’ve heard that song before, Solo. But you fried poor Greedo. He was a dumb tracker, but MY dumb tracker.”
Solo: “That was self-defense, Jabba! He had a blaster in my face. You know me, I’m a lover, not a fighter. If you want your spice money, you need me flying, not dead in a cantina.”
Hologram Jabba: “Greedo was cheap. You are expensive. I will give you one more chance, because you are the best smuggler I have. But if you fail me again, Fett here won’t be holding a projector. He’ll be holding your hand.” Fifteen percent extra for the trouble.”
Solo: “Ten, Jabba. Let’s keep it business.”
Hologram Jabba: “Twelve. Or the bounty goes active right now.”
Solo: “Twelve. You’ve got a deal.”
Once that’s through with and Jabba’s hologram disappears, Boba gives a slight nod to Solo, before the Millennium Falcon captain then leaves Boba and Bossk. Yeah, this way, ANW’s Docking Bay 94 scene would have been undoubtedly better. It avoids being too similar to Solo’s chat with Greedo, keeping Jabba’s full, physical appearance still ever a mystery, fits his antagonistic role much more without him sounding too kind-ish and thus perfectly goes with the 1970s-filmed setting also (same with Boba’s lighting). With Boba additionally remaining silent here but having that hologram, it makes him represent a stronger, cold, dangerous menace even more, not to mention him being a bounty hunter of few words like he is in the actual Original Trilogy, and without him being considered reduced to a generic Jabba thug, his skills being revealed just yet, Boba’s helmet & armor looking too unevenly matched, or there being any awkward moments, either. In addition, Boba silently having tracked Solo here directly sets up why Vader singles him out in the next film.
(Forget Yoda or Emperor Palpatine being in Episode IV at all, though. While the hologram Jabba with an in-person, but properly executed Boba Fett would actually do for specific reasons (like very well defining Tatooine’s criminal underbelly), Palpatine or Yoda never appearing in that film, even as holograms only, just works out for the better, I’m afraid. One good reason for this is considering Vader’s high enforcer role and Grand Moff Tarkin’s main antagonist one; Palpatine making an appearance here would’ve clearly weakened both. Yoda debuting in A New Hope, rather than The Empire Strikes Back, would also have answered the notable question if there were any Jedi still around besides Luke and Obi-Wan too early for the OT. ANH’s focus on the Rebellion vs. Galactic Empire with a more grounded scale would’ve been disrupted as well, & so forth.)
As for those other criticized post-1997 Episode IV changes, whether they are where Greedo shoots at Solo first instead of Han just firing at Green without warning (which people argue damages Solo’s character arc of a selfish criminal who learns to become heroic) or the terrifying yell Obi-Wan makes to scare Sandpeople away replaced with something that is widely considered to sound silly), they just would never have been made to start with, if it had been up to me. Again, of course I would’ve including that Docking Bay 94 scene, only much better laid out, so you could both Jabba and Boba Fett here without it being too problematic, but with these other movie edits, it’s different. Since they don’t really involve more iconic characters in them (otherwise I’d have them different for people to see those characters without those parts still being a problem), I feel those original, non-edited scenes which were part of the 1977 release print would have been better off staying like that, one way or another.
OK, & now for those specific criticisms which were already there before 1997.
Return of the Jedi has, sadly, been considered the weakest out of all three Original Trilogy films.
BONUS:
One way or another, I’ve still posted links to videos with these top iconic Star Wars scenes (mainly from the Original Trilogy) for anyone who’s are interested in seeing any of them…
First, the “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope” line being spoken in A New Hope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGwszApFEcY
Second, it is that part with Tatooine’s 2-sun sunset in A New Hope, too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41ak2jr55fE
This third one would be A New Hope’s Cantina sequence, also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OU_XqqiEMwI
Furthermore, here’s the Death Star Trench Run part of A New Hope as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCU2P2AvflQ
Next here just so happens to be SW’s most iconic scene of all – the “I Am Your Father” sequence in The Empire Strikes Back! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF15bOeWNlM
Fifth, Return of the Jedi’s scene where Vader redeems himself to save Luke’s life, epically throwing Palpatine down into a reactor shaft in the process (the original 1983 version without there being a “No…NOOOOOO!” here): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnswb1xA4ig
Plus, I have posted links to videos of The Phantom Menace’s pod racing scene, for those who’d like to see it anyway. Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3rhPRPhSzc Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3rhPRPhSzc
Next, that Duel of the Fates part of The Phantom Menace, too (where Qui-Gon & Obi-Wan both take on Darth Maul): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUNXQJnsyGY
We’ve additionally got the Order 66 scene from Revenge of the Sith: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3nuk8UI76M
Lastly, here is where Obi-Wan & Darth Vader (shortly before Vader got his trademark black armor after being burned) duel on Mustafar, again from Revenge of the Sith: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3OtoO5zjjU
In addition to those scene clip links, I just thought I’d also put links to these 2 highly iconic musical numbers (that I’ll bet plenty of us would recognize anywhere), for anyone who feels like hearing them.
First, of course, is the main title theme song of Star Wars overall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D0ZQPqeJkk
This other one? Darth Vader’s own theme tune…THE IMPERIAL MARCH! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bzWSJG93P8
P.S. Do eternally Rest in Peace:
David Prowse (1 July 1935 – 28 November 2020), the masked Darth Vader’s portrayer in Star Wars’s Original Trilogy.
Sebastian Shaw (29 May 1905 – 23 December 1994), who portrayed the reformed Anakin in Return of the Jedi, and his force sprit ghost at the end in the original version.
Carrie Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016). She will always be known as Leia’s actress for the movies, including posthumously in the later two Sequel Trilogy films.
Alec Guinness (2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000), who played Obi-Wan, as well as his force spirit, in the OT.
Peter Mayhew (19 May 1944 – 30 April 2019), actor of Chewbacca in the films, up until The Force Awakens.
Jeremy Bulloch (16 February 1945 – 17 December 2020), who portrayed Boba Fett in SW’s Original Trilogy also, before briefly returning to the franchise in Revenge of the Sith, playing a minor character, Captain Colton.
Jason Wingreen (October 9, 1920 – December 25, 2015), Boba’s voice in The Empire Strikes Back & Return of the Jedi, too.
Marjorie Eaton (February 5, 1901 – April 21, 1986).
Larry Ward (October 3, 1924 – February 16, 1985).
That additionally goes for any other deceased person who has ever contributed to a Star Wars production.
UPDATE: Just to be clear, this now also includes James Earl Jones (January 17, 1931 – September 9, 2024). We will forever know him as Darth Vader’s voice in Episodes III, IV, V, and VI.
UPDATE 2: Clive Revill (18 April 1930 – 11 March 2025) is now included here, as well.
CATCH MY OTHER POSTS, & MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU, FOREVER AND ALWAYS!