From what I have heard, in 2007 when the Star Wars Ultimate Edition arrives. We'll be getting these fixes :
The Phantom Menace :
CGI Yoda.
A New Hope :
CGI clouds over the tatooine binary sunsets.
CGI fixed Jabba the Hutt.
CGI fixed lightsabers colors.
A totally re-done Obi-Wan vs Vader duel, the old live action and CGI.
Empire Strikes Back :
New CGI ATAT's in a re-done battle on Hoth.
Emperor's hologram is now Palpatine.
CGI Yoda.
Return of the Jedi :
Original Ewok's song ending.
But in October 2004 we should be seeing the release of Star Wars Special Edition on DVD, in a boxset similar to the Indiana Jones trilogy. (3 films & bonus disk)
Yeah I can't prove any of the spoilers that I posted, but it's worth keeping just in case for the future.
I doubt that there will be any new changes for the DVD release of the Special Editions in 2004, but I'm sure that Lucas will fix alot of the crap in the original trilogy that he can for the 6 film DVD boxset.
There were parts of the special Edition that I didnt like.
For example like you mentioned Noola, the han/greedo scene. What was
the point in making Greedo shoot first. In the original version, you tell yourself that Han had everything under control but with the special Editon, you think what a lucky $**£%&!
The saarlac pit looks cuddly instead of grose like in the original.
Oh, and in ESB, when vader returns to his super star destroyer after having told Luke the truth, he comes down the ramp and the scene looks like an exact replica of the begining Of ROTJ. They actualy used the exact same scene and made minor adjustments to it! You can see Moff Jerjerrod on the Executor.
And finaly I prefered the original version of the ewok song at the end of ROTJ.
But some scenes that were added were very good.
you'd cuddle the SE Sarlacc? wow. you in prison? 😉
I totally agree about the Vader seen in ESB. They took out my favorite line where he's all "Bring my shuttle" it was perfect in its short bluntness in showing that he was more than a little disappointed in how the whole Luke situation went. There are a lot of little lines that were changed since they were using takes with better picture quality in some cases. Like when Artoo is spit out on Dagobah, Luke said "you're lucky you don't taste very good" and the SE version he says "you were lucky to get out of there". Not a major infraction, but I thought the old line was funny. As for Han, Lucas said he didn't want him to seem like a cold blooded killer. Sure Lucas, a smuggler who tends to work for the most ruthless crime boss in the galaxy is gonna be a Carebear! That was pretty much the one change that I just can not get used to at all. the others kinda suck, but that ones hard to over look.
the only change that I really love is the look and expanded shots of Bespin. that's the only kind of stuff that should have been added. Ralph McQuarrie did so many concept paintings and are now wasted save for being neat behind the scenes info in books. He did full paintings of Coruscant (which they used in II), Alderaan, and the FRONT entrance to Jabba's Palace which was really beautiful. The only changes should be asthetic so they LOOK like the new movies but still have they're OT feel.