New Darth Vader Costume Revealed in upcoming DVDs

Jethro73 writes "Whether you love or hate the Special Edition only release, you should be excited to see the new Darth Vader costume on the upcoming Trilogy DVD set. Here are some more details on the upcoming DVD set."

Comments

Decisions, decisions...

[grub]

Ah crap, now I'm stumped.

Do I make a clone of Jay Maynard's cool TRON costume or of Darth's outfit? Our annual Sci Fi convention is next month and I don't want to wear my Vulcan Ears for the 24th time.

Re:Decisions, decisions...

[airrage]

Is it just me, or does that guy with the TRON outfit look like the dude in Office Space always talking about his Swingline stapler? I'm serious, I think they're the same dood.

Seriously. Discuss.

Re:Decisions, decisions...

[hoggoth]

> Jay Maynard's cool TRON costume

I think the real TRON would definitely wear a cup and a girdle as part of this costume.

I really didn't need to see Milton's nads.

Re:Decisions, decisions...

[Saeed al-Sahaf]

Seriously. Discuss.

This was played out to it's sad sad end yesterday.

Re:Decisions, decisions...

[3.5 stripes]

Is it me, or does the new darth costume look like a guy with a white beard and glasses?

Re:Decisions, decisions...

[Jahf]

After ep1 and ep2 I think that picture is probably EXACTLY what I think of when I imagine a Sith Lord.

Um, this is a story?

[rbanzai]

So eventually we will see what this story is talking about? Why don't we post the story when that actually happens?

Re:Um, this is a story?

[mahdi13]

Don't worry, it's only 4 months away before we can get a peak at the Darth Vader costume on the DVD release of A New Hope!

Re:Um, this is a story?

[stephanruby]

After an extensive search on Google, I found what the article was talking about.

halloween

[jacquesm]

Pity, that's the wrong time of the year to come out with this, it would have been a smash hit !

image

[Ty_Webb]

From the yahoo article: "The first three "Star Wars" films debut for the first time in digital format on Sept. 21."

So any bets on when an image file is leaked?

Re:image

[gregduffy]

Any bets on whether that image will involve George Lucas and a whip?

Re:image

[Unknown Kadath]

Seriously. Even if LucasArts does manage to keep it under wraps until the release, if it's not available by about 2:00 am on Sept. 21, I'm going to be very disappointed in all those slavering fanboys out there.

-Carolyn

wait wait wait

[The Other White Boy]

..new Vader suit?

*pre-emptive frowny face*

Re:wait wait wait

[welloy]

exactly! how can this be a good thing? I've been hoping the ending of eIII would be anakin emergining from something like the meditation chamber on the star destroyer in empire fully cloaked in the Vader suit (the old vader suit), with swirling gas, a la the 'arena' lightsaber duel on bespin, parting for him to emerge, with no sound but his heavy breathing.

a new suit would really interrupt the mood.

Re:wait wait wait

[G-funk]

He announced that yonks ago... Like it was needed... New vader suit == twice as many vader toys to sell.

Re:wait wait wait

[SquadBoy]

Ok here is the backstory on the starships etc. It is covered in a few of the books that I read years ago before the movies beat any semblence of caring out of my system. The Empire is a dictatorship. By the time of Star Wars they have been in decline for many years due to the effects of being a dictatorship. Kind of like how it is still 1820 in North Korea.

Re:wait wait wait

[SquadBoy]

It was kind of clever. Not the first SF universe where things have gone backwards. Battletech comes to mind. I forget which book it was first in but yea Lucas stole it.

The sig. I was busy last time you asked.

http://www.cyphernet.org/cypherpunks/crossbows_t o_ cryptography.html

http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~ijackson/quot es .html

Ob. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog quote.

[weeboo0104]

Said in regards to a guy in a Darth Vader Costume. "And which button do you press when you want your parents to come pick you up?"

Re:Ob. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog quote.

[eclectro]

Another Triumph the Insult Comic Dog quote to a "Nerd of the Rings";

"Seriously, have you ever talked to a woman without having to give your credit card number."

Just like another recent movie...

[PTBNL]

Darth Vader makes his costume out of pajamas in order to win an amateur wrestling contest to win money to buy a car to impress a girl.

So there you go. Black pajamas with a motorcycle helmet.

Re:Just like another recent movie...

[Tumbleweed]

Yeah, and the name he _was_ going to use was 'Dark Helmet,' but the announcer guy changed it at the last second because he thought it sounded silly or something.

Just one question?

[ageoffri]

Does Han Solo shoot first? If not then I will NOT even think about buying the DVD's. I can't stand revisionism especially when it is to make something more PC!

Re:Just one question?

[The Ultimate Fartkno]

> Does Han Solo shoot first?

Shoot what? You mean he doesn't point a walkie talkie at Greedo and run away?

I've been duped!

Re:Just one question?

[BgJonson79]

Sorta OT:

What exactly is all this talk about Han shooting first? I read about it here all the time but I've never been able to figure out what people are talking about.

Re:Just one question?

[grahams]

In the original film "Star Wars" (nowadays referred to as "Star Wars: A New Hope: Episode 4: The Magical Beginning of an Epic Space Quest thru Time"), there was a sequence in which Han Solo and a character named Greedo are having a discussion, in the Mos Eisley Cantina, regarding Solo's debt to Jabba the Hutt. At the end of this conversation shots are fired.

In the original version of the film, Han Solo shoots Greedo, but in the 1997 "Special Edition" re-release Lucas changed it so that Greedo shot first and Solo is simply defending himself.

Re:Just one question?

[Palshife]

He's outlining the classic struggle that will divide families and destroy lives. Those that like the original Star Wars movies abhor the Special Edition releases because changes were made that completely changed the landscape of the movie.

The specific instance he's referring to is the scene in the Mos Eisley Cantina where Han is confronted by Greedo, the bounty hunter. During their conversation, Han draws his blaster under the table points it at Greedo. When he feels like he's got no other choice he fires, killing Greedo in cold blood.

In the special edition, Greedo fires the first shot, forcing Han to "retaliate" by killing Greedo in self-defense.

Down with SE.

Re:Just one question?

[pkey]

In the original version of the Cantina scene, Han shoots Greedo under the table before Greedo shoots at him. In the ruined version of the Cantina scene, Greedo, an experienced bounty hunter shoots first and misses from all of 3 feet away. This was apparently done to make the scene more PC and not have a "hero" doing something underhanded, never mind the fact that the "hero" is supposed to be a smuggler and a scoundrel.

Re:Just one question?

[WCityMike]

"Does Han Solo shoot first? If not then I will NOT even think about buying the DVD's."

So you'll only think about buying the DVDs if he DOES shoot first? I'm not a moderator, but your comment makes no sense!

Most Star Wars fans know what I'm about to say -- it's not a particularly esoteric piece of knowledge: in the original trilogy, Han Solo shot first. Lucas altered this in the Special Edition so that Greedo shot first, because he felt that the original version made Han too "cold-blooded." Obligatory Google searches here and here.

Many Star Wars fans, including the poster to whom you responded, dislike Lucas' altering of Solo's actions, because they feel it came from a place of political correctness, wanting to make Solo less of an anti-hero and more of a hero.

Re:Just one question?

[mgs1000]

In the DVD version, Han will just declare bankruptcy, and Greedo takes him to court.

Re:Just one question?

[Jahf]

From the point of plot, I say yes.

Ok so let us magnify the scale here just a bit and see if the point becomes evident:

If Hamlet had killed Rosencrantz and Guildenstern after they had made an attack on him, rather than killing them because he knew that someone (Claudius) had told them to kill him then Hamlet would have been the righteous hero who prevailed in an upfront manner and there would have been no questions about it.

Instead he killed them through trickery and without -direct- evidence of their plans. Doing so made him the dark hero who was able to strike first when in jeopardy and left questions going long afterwards about whether he was "right" or whether he was presumptuous.

If you've seen the play (or Star Wars) more than once, then your questions are answered at the end. But for the first time viewer it lets you question for awhile the real motives behind the protagonist (and let's face it, Solo was at LEAST as much of a protagonist as Skywalker if you use the definition of change as the bases for a protagonist). It gives a much darker sheen to the movie.

It is specifically that darkness in the first three movies that have been obliterated so far in ep1 and ep2. There is no questioning of loyalties ... we KNOW who the bad guys are and who the good guys have been up through ep2. There is no "grey side" so far unless you count adolescent puberty ... which seems funny but is really sad because it shows that Lucas has, if not sold out, at least decided that his audience can't handle moral questions. Or theological ones ... midichlorians [sp?]? Bah. I am perfectly capable of deciding that Solo (or Hamlet) are in the end "good guys" without forcing them into the mold of the prototypical hero.

Do I equate Lucas and Shakespeare? No. But Star Wars has probably had a much more profound affect on most people today than Hamlet and if you disregard the endings of the 2 characters (actually you shouldn't, since all of Lucas' characters seem to get just deserts at the end except for Anakin's mother and a few extras ... he can't handle true tragedy) the situations are -very- similar.

Re:Just one question?

[doublem]

I am NOT a fan of the way that Lucas has changed the character of Han Solo.

For me, part of the original Star Wars saga involved the changes that Han Solo went through thorough the course of the movies.

He WAS a heartless mercenary with loyalty to his ship and His Wookie and that was about it.

The moment when he shows up at the end of "An New Hope" and blasts the Tie Fighters is supposed to show how he has changed, how his motivations and alliances have become altered by his experiences with the rebels.

It makes perfect sense for the Han Solo we meet at the beginning of "A New Hope" to shoot first. He isn't a hero yet, and it's foolish for Lucas to claim that "A hero doesn't do that sort of thing."

Lucas is trying to whitewash the very stories he created, and in so doing he ignores the very precepts of the Journey of the Here that he pompously claims were the foundation of the characters.

Solo begins as a mercenary, and that's all that he is.

By the end he's one of the heros, but he doesn't start as one.

Do some research Lucas. Not even the Buddha started off that way, and a lot of heroes have tragic histories where they weren't exactly heros. Hell, the most interesting heros are the ones that were at one point villains.

I liked Han because he changes. He grows as a sentient being.

Re:Just one question?

[jcoleman]

Having read about this topic (and replied to it in disgust) about a thousand times, I can honestly say this is the most thoughtful response to the change in the film I've ever seen.

Here's another thought...Han is *still* a smuggler. He *still* charges an outlandish fee to Luke and Han for ferrying them to Alderaan ("we could almost buy our own ship for that!"). Taken out of context, the Greedo scene makes Han a little "nicer." Unfortunately that's not who Han is at the beginning of the film.

Two more things to consider: Han's shot comes too quickly after Greedo's to have been reflex. he must have shot at the same time as Greedo or a fraction of a second later. Also, there is no way that Greedo, a bounty hunter and professional killer, would have missed at such close range. These facts lead me to believe that this scene, now more of a western-style gunfight, is to underscore the fact that Han very nearly could have died but a higher power (the Force, duh) kept him alive. The scene still shows that the galaxy is a dangerous place, particularly when the criminal underworld is involved. It also still shows that Han is willing to do what is necessary to stay alive (Greedo would certainly have taken a second shot, given the opporunity).

I would argue that the new effect does not change Han's character significantly, and actually adds a little more to the story.

Time to quit procrastinating and write my finance paper...

Coleman

Neato!

[Safety Cap]

We can buy the Box Set of the originals (4-6), then in a few years we can buy 1-3, and THEN we can buy them all again (master set 1-6, plus bonus-never-before-seen-scenes!).

Also on the new Star Wars Oh-So-Special Edition...

[artemis67]

Alderaan shoots first.

The Movie Is Still Gonna Suck

[MS_leases_my_soul]

There is just no way Lucas can direct this movie and not have it suck. All the fancy new costumes and special effects is not going to change that (and arguably will make it worse).

Whatever. We all know we are still going to bittorrent it and yet still go to see the big fight on the big screen.

Spoiler Alert!

[Hanzie]

Don't bother reading the articles.

Just in case Yahoo news gets slashdotted, I've typed a plaintext mirror:

Newsflash! In movie 3 of the Starwars Hexology, Darth Vader will be seen wearing something different! Fashion Moguls can get an avanced look at cutting edge fashion for "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..." by buying the DVD set.

George Lucas says:

"Our fans have been eagerly awaiting every morsel of `Episode III' as we divulge it. We're giving it to them piece by piece."

Talk about stringing it out for money. Lucas is the master.

Another highlight:

Also, experience how Hayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor have prepared for the epic lightsaber battle that has been anticipated for more than two decades: the climactic showdown between Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

SPOILER ALERT:
Of course, since Vader and Obi-Wan duke it out again in IV, the 'climactic showdown' will probably not end in the death of either character in III, unless Lucas has begun hiring script-writers from Star Trek TNG.

They're going to make...

[uberdave]

They're going to make Darth Vader look like George Lucas??

Re:Trolling.....down the sewers of the strand with

[Psiren]

Then turn off Star Wars stories in your /. preferences. Geez, the amount of whining that goes on here about Star Wars is amazing.

Re:Trolling.....down the sewers of the strand with

[theM_xl]

Whatever happened to Star Trek?

*remembers Voyager, Insurrection and Nemesis*

Do you really want me to answer that?

Re:News for nerds

[uberdave]

Unfortunately, those two conditions are ORed together, not ANDed.

I want to see the costume

[Stavr0]

Right. Now.

I got good karma, so I'm gonna make this an annoying rant. What's the point of submitting a story for every damn little detail about ep III? What's next? A series of insightful articles on Sen. Padme hairdos? PUH-LEEZE.

Ok mods. Do your worst.

Re:I want to see the costume

[goldspider]

"A series of insightful articles on Sen. Padme hairdos?"

Close! Replace "Sen. Padme" with "Natalie Portman", and "hairdos" with "hot grits" and I think you'll have us a story!

wait...

[Spatula Sam]

So this is the new vader costume? I'm skeptical.

Re:wait...

[Deaden]

I'd say that captures the evil of the dark side very well.

costumes

[theMerovingian]

Reminds me of the big controversy over nipples on the bat suit.

Birth of the lightsabre

[darthcamaro]

Holy crap - screw Darth Vader - some of the bonus features are worth a kidney!!! LIke this for example.. "The Birth of the Lightsaber: Its unforgettable hum and scintillating glow are instantly recognizable around the world. Now, viewers will discover the origins of this elegant weapon from a more civilized age in this documentary devoted to the lightsaber." I'm gonna make my own Lightsaber and Darth Vader's gonna teach me how!!!!

Funny

[cubicledrone]

I just happened to be watching Attack of the Clones recently, and I noticed something. With the exception of Count Dooku and Mace Windu, most of the other actors look quite bored most of the time, and I can't figure out why.

One thing about the original is that people actually looked as if they were part of the movie. The only scene in Episode II where Obi-Wan is really emotional is when they are pursuing Dooku at the end of the movie.

It just appeared to be a series of storyboards and ideas instead of a cohesive story. The Clone War was cool, but somehow I wonder if it's really worth it to spend umpty millions to put 87 different kinds of laser blasting vehicles on the screen and vast horizons of rendered landscapes when the cantina scene in the original was more interesting.

There are no "Who's gonna fly it?" lines in the new trilogy.

Re:Funny

[RickHunter]

What's really amazing is that the Clone Wars animated shorts are better than the last two movies. There's no particular reason - they just feel more like the Star Wars we're used to. And there's definitely "Who's gonna fly it?" lines. Hell, ANAKIN gets a couple. (Like the sequence where he's zipping back and forth dogfighting with that Sith chick over Obi-Wan's head while Obi-wan lectures at him)

Promise me this

[Dragon218]

before I click on the article link...

There's no 'dangly parts' in spandex on that page... right?

Making my own DVD

[trapine]

I for one plan on ripping the tilogy and making my own DVD without the special edition crap. I would keep watching my VHS tapes, but they are wearing out!

Re:Also on the new Star Wars Oh-So-Special Edition

[DjMd]

Alderaan shoots first.
Don't be ridiculous.
But the empire does have evidence (well hints, ok just hunches) that Alderaan maybe have (thought about vaguely) Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Oh and the Death Star? Thats totally not a WMD...

don't tell me

[fleener]

If Lucas shows us a Vader suit in Episode 3 that we haven't seen before, then we must assume the lame Episode 4 suit was an upgrade. This "new" suit had better be a clunky piece o' crap, for the sake of continuity.

Re:don't tell me

[Xaymot]

No, according to the series so far, the new Vader costume should look sleeker. Throughout the series design aesthetics have devolved from episode 1 - 3 until they are stripped of style and consist only of practicality and function (Episodes 4 -6).

That's why everything looks sleeker in the first episodes 1 and 2. So it would make sense that Vader's costume would be more streamlined and less practical... i.e. no switches and knobs on his chest.

Streamlined and sleeker does not equate to futuristic just fancy. And the empire ain't no fancy prissy gash fest.

Re:don't tell me

[el-spectre]

Maybe not, though. (dear god I'm discussing SW fashion. sigh).

Theoretically the empire is going downhill over time, so it makes sense that the equipment circa episode 4 is pretty beat up. Nonetheless, vader is the 2nd in charge of the whole deal, so one would assume that he's going to be taken care of. In the real world, many dictators have gold plated houses while their citizens starve. could be the same here.

Re:don't tell me

[GPB]

If Lucas shows us a Vader suit in Episode 3 that we haven't seen before, then we must assume the lame Episode 4 suit was an upgrade. This "new" suit had better be a clunky piece o' crap, for the sake of continuity.

Just like they made the ship in Star Trek: Enterprise look less sophisticated than the ship in the original series...oh wait.

-B

Here's the news

[cubicledrone]

Episode III will be a musical

There will be a stirring piano solo accompanying a soundless lightsaber battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan, followed by a spectacular soaring performance of the theme from Star Wars with the entire cast of the film singing the new never-before-heard lyrics as a galactic chorale.

Darth Vader will then sing a solo baritone as the credits roll.

Re:Fashion in Sci Fi

[Mateito]

> I was ok with the fashion of the princess in the first one and
> some claimed it was the only redeeming feature,

The only redeeming feature in the second one is that Natalie Portman didn't wear a bra most of the time.

Let's just blow Empire Strikes Back, mmmkay?

[the_skywise]

If Lucas reveals that Anakin is Darth Vader in Episode 3, then there is *NO* suprise that Vader is Luke's father in Empire Strikes Back.

"Luke... *I* am your father"
"Yeah Dad, I saw that back in Episode 3"

I can only hope that Lucas has Anakin fall into the lava pit in one scene and then this new figure, Darth Vader mysteriously appears at the end of Episode 3. But no, Lucas has already said "We're going to get to see Anakin put the helmet on."

Which means the CORRECT viewing order for future generations of Star Wars fans MUST be... 4, 5, 6, and then 1,2 and 3. NOT in chronological order.

Or in the words of Comic-book guy... "Worst continuity, Ever!"

Re:Let's just blow Empire Strikes Back, mmmkay?

[fopa]

This effect is called 'in media res' which I think is latin for "in the middle." It's how a lot of stories and trilogies are done.

The way it works is that you start in the middle of a story when the confrontation is already underway, and you get some idea of what's going on at the moment. Then they go back to the beginning, usually through a flashback or by having 1 character explain the history of the conflict to another. Then you get the last part and see how the conflict is resolved.

The Odessey is a famous example of this effect. The book begins with Odysseus in a series of conflicts on his way home from Troy. Then he tells the story of how he was called the war and they defeated the Trojans, but he was blown off course on the way home. Then things flash back to his homeward journey, he returns and kills all the guys who've been courting his wife while he was away.

So, assuming Star Wars was intended to be done in media res, the correct order is middle, beginning, end. The series should be viewed 4, 5, 6, then 1, 2, 3, and if they come 7, 8, 9. Lucas just didn't do a good job of showing this.

Re:Let's just blow Empire Strikes Back, mmmkay?

[ArsSineArtificio]

Which means the CORRECT viewing order for future generations of Star Wars fans MUST be... 4, 5, 6, and then 1,2 and 3. NOT in chronological order.

Actually, the correct viewing order for future generations of Star Wars fans must be: 4, 5, 6.

Lucasfilms purchases OSDN

[Kakurenbo Shogun]

Lucasfilms and OSDN have just iced a deal that will give Lucasfilms majority ownership of all OSDN properties and full editorial control over Slashdot.

How else can you explain Slashdot participating in hyping a new Darth Vader costume by linking to a news story that doesn't have a picture of it? Come on guys! Don't waste my time posting the story till they're showing us a photo!

Re:Compare and contrast

[gowen]

Making a new Star Wars film is a lot like making love to a beautiful woman. You've got to start positively, with a chase, and some mild fisticuffs, a little diplomacy... ... then as your climax nears, you can just let little drips of information come out, about what is going to come...

It could be cool

[TrentL]

If it's based on a Ralph McQuarrie design, I have faith. A lot of his unused concept art kicks ass.

Re:It could be cool

[slycer9]

The fact that you specified that it's his 'unused' concept art that kicks ass worries me a bit.

'Oh, what you see in the movies from this guy kinda sucks...but you should SEE what they reject!'

Does anybody even care anymore?

[Munk]

I hate to say it, but I am a Star Wars Fanboy that just doesn't care anymore. I loved the original three films (4-6), used to play the Star Wars RPG, have read all the novels, etc (yes, my wife tells me to get a life). But I don't even care if Episode 3 ever comes out. After the huge disappointment from eps 1 and 2, we know 3 will suck because Lucas is still involved with it. Does anybody else feel the way I do?

Does Han still shoot first?

[Khan]

I know it sounds silly, but it's the only thing that will keep me from buying this. Why, you ask? Think about the trilogy and specifically the characters that start off as scum and end up heroes.

Han...smuggler, liar, overall questionable. Guido comes to "take him out" and what does he do? Shoots first. Kill or be killed. Runs away from the fight but then comes back after he realizes it's the right thing to do.

Lando...scum like Han. Betrays his friend to the Empire. Comes to the rescue at the end and helps rescue Han in "Jedi".

Vader...nothing needs to be said here about his character. Turns on the Emperor after he realizes that his life has all been wrong.

What do all these characters have in common? Redemption. They all start off "bad" and end up "good". And that is why I feel that changing that scene ruins Han's character development.

Could be cool. Maybe

[WebGangsta]

The article I read this morning refered to the "first time Darth Vader walked onto the set", and the filmed reactions of everyone involved seeing the character/costume for the first time. The article said it was a 'once in a lifetime' moment that could never be recreated.

The preview offers a first glimpse of the new Vader costume, too. "What we want to do is give people a sense of what it was like when Darth Vader steps back on the set again," says Lucasfilm's Jim Ward. "It's one of those moments that happens only once in the lifetime of a saga."

So if it's behind-the-scenes stuff, that could be kinda neat. Just saying.

Excited to see?

[AyeRoxor!]

you should be excited to see the new Darth Vader costume on the upcoming Trilogy DVD set.

Yeah, I really fucking would. But your link just goes to some pictureless article. Nice.

More important stuff

[UnknowingFool]

I know this may not be the most popular sentiment, but who really cares about how Vader will look like? What is important to me is whether we will actually see Natalie Portman naked and covered in grits.

Costume Designers Got It Right This Time

[superultra]

You can definitely see the progression of evil there in Anakin: the silver metallic optical lens, the ominous anti-Kenobi look, the Sith-like pinstriped dark silk material and proto-Imperial Regiment tie that could only have come at the cost of thousands of Jedi....kudos to the costume designers, they've really managed to capture the essence of evil in this new suit.

Ooohhh, you have to wait to see the new Darth Vader suit? Then what is that Yahoo picture in the story? Oh. It's George Lucas.

Civil Procedure, Star Wars Style

[ArsSineArtificio]

In the DVD version, Han will just declare bankruptcy, and Greedo takes him to court.

GREEDO: I need somebody to give this subpoena to Solo's Wookee co-pilot.
BARTENDER: Hey! We don't serve their kind here!

No deleted scenes?

[blincoln]

Is it just me, or was there a disturbing lack of deleted scenes being mentioned in that article?

When I buy the trilogy on DVD, I want the section from ANH with Biggs on Tatooine. I want the bits of the expanded snow monster things in the base on Hoth, and the shots of Lando on the outside of the Millennium Falcon rescuing Luke in ESB. I want the escape to the Falcon from Jabba's palace and the scenes on the *other* command ship at the battle of Endor in ROTJ.

Don't tell me you don't have them, Lucas, because I've seen them for sale on bootleg VHS tapes. If you can restore the Jabba scene in ANH, you can do those too.

Sneak Preview...

[DaedalusLogic]

It's menacing, and it will please your girlfriend. Drum roll please...

No.

[Inoshiro]

The shock goes from the audience not knowing (which wasn't really a shocker since the early 1980s anyways, since everyone knows), to Luke having to come to terms with the fact that his father is the man responsible for destroying Alderaan in episode 4, and also responsible for a great many other evils.

This coming to terms with how twisted Vader is and how close they are together is a major turning point for Skywalker's character.

But I'm sure you just want to nitpick and whine more.

Fan Re-Do?

[taradfong]

Since the prequels disappointed everyone, and since at this point people can roll-their-own movie on their PCs, why don't we start a 'GNU-SW' and re-do the prequels ourselves? Some changes I'd like to see...

1) More space battles. To me, this, not the creatures, is what makes Star Wars, well Star Wars. In Episode 1, there is more or less one and it was terrible. Yes, I know space battles today are 'easy' and the CG guys want to show off, but I want to be entertained, not impressed.

2) Spacecraft Continuity. Yeah, I know you're trying to show off how computers can make ships with complex geometry. But I like the good old Ralph McQuarrie ships. To me the grimy 'raw' look of the Rebels and the austere design of the Imperials was magic.

3) Less creatures. I mean, having aliens as background is cool, and introducing one or two key ones (e.g. Yoda & Jabba) worked, but to introduce a dozen or so and try to give them personalities just is too much to digest in one movie. Come to think of it, Jabba and Yoda worked better than any CGI creature I've seen to date...

4) Ralph McQuarrie. As much as anything, his artistic genius made Star Wars, well, Star Wars.

5) Story. You know, actually I don't have that big of a problem with the Episode I & II stories if you can strip away the execution. Seemed to me that there was a good foundation that was ruined by execution and stupid details.

Of course, whether a rag-tag Rebel-like team of internet hackers can do better remains to be seen...

scary

[fred fleenblat]

I clicked on the link to see the new Darth Vader costume and I was surprised to see that it looks a lot like George Lucas.

Queer Eye for the Sith Guy

[psychogentoo]

Relax guy, I'm sure Lucas will give Vader a "Queer Eye for the Sith Guy" make over.