This 2005 three-disc edition of George Lucas's Star Wars Trilogy is basically the same set as the 2004 edition minus the bonus fourth disc. That means you get the three original films--A New Hope (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983)--in their brilliant-looking and -sounding DVD glory. That means you also get both the changes that were made for the 1997 special-edition versions as well as the revisions that were made for the films' DVD debut, including Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker) being added to a scene in Jedi, Ian McDiarmid (the Emperor) replacing Clive Revill with slightly revised lines in Empire, and Temuera Morrison rerecording Boba Fett's minimal dialogue, plus some other small details.

Everyone take a breath

The old original movies are coming out Sept 12th 2006 with no modifications, so now everyone can be happy.

Wish I had bought the version with extra features.

I love the films, but now that I have them, they are bringing back so much nostalgia for me that I wish I had spent the extra $20 to get the special version of the same three movies that also comes with lots of special features. I would love to have seen "the making of.." and other extras for each of these movies.

If you can't afford the more expensive version, this still is terrific!

New Trilogy vs. Old

The consensus about Revenge of the Sith, and the second trilogy in general is that the new trilogy is not as good as the old trilogy. Everyone always drags Jar Jar in as states evidence No. 1 that Lucas should not be tinkering with perfection.

Now, I didn't like him either, but only because he is as culturally offensive as the worship of the golden idol (C3P0) by the Ewoks in Jedi. Which brings me to my point: There are many more similarities between The 2 trilogies as people would like to admit.

I'm going to go out on a sacrilegious limb here and say that the original trilogy, while a fun ride, was no classic of American cinema either.

Those who take exception with Jar Jar muddying up the sacred realm should consider that, while we all have a soft spot in are hearts for the walking carpet, Chewie (the name alone) is a silly character. Critics also fault Lucas' second trilogy technically. The writing, they say, has gone downhill. But SW's dialogue was famously derided by its cast members; And Lucas' direction ("faster and more intense") has pretty much stayed consistently wooden.

Now, don't get me wrong. I believe that the original trilogy holds a very special place in our culture, and our hearts. I just believe that we shouldn't elevate it to Burning Bush status. Forgetting our own rosy-colored memories of the way we felt the first time we visited the galaxy far far away, we are left with a pretty consistently fun set of trilogies. The first is no better than the second.