'Star Wars' Blu Ray Has Convinced Me to Pity George Lucas, Not Hate

Like so many fans of "Star Wars" I have had what can only be described as a dysfunctional relationship with its creator, George Lucas. I'm of the generation that got to watch at least one of the original trilogy in the movie theaters, which left a lasting, permanent impression on me. For years and years, I felt as if Lucas was a God among men. He had, after all, created the single best story I'd ever gotten to see on film. He could do no wrong, and all I wanted was for him to make more "Star Wars" films.

Then he made "The Phantom Menace" and everything I thought about him flew out the window. Oh, I'd go to the releases of the other two prequels, hoping desperately that somehow Lucas could magically fix the cardboard acting of Hayden Christensen or the complete lack of chemistry between Christensen and Natalie Portman, or just totally remove the actor completely and replace him with a sock puppet with much better range than Christensen. Alas, each prequel was just as disappointing, culminating in "Revenge of the Sith" being just absolutely terrible.

In the ensuing years I hated him more and more for continually going back into the Original Trilogy and making changes. Han doesn't shoot first anymore (as of the Blu Ray release he's now firing his blaster at the exact same time as Greedo). An older Anakin spirit was replaced by Christensen at the end of "Return of the Jedi," and sadly the Ewok's catchy song was removed completely for some non-descript John Williams leftovers.

Suddenly, watching the Blu Ray edition of the first movie, and no I don't mean the first prequel, it dawned on me. I shouldn't hate Lucas anymore. I should pity him, feel sorry for him. Why, you ask? He's just about ruined the very movie franchise that made you fall in love with movies in the first place! He's sullied the waters of "Star Wars" for every subsequent generation! He's clearly an evil dictator, Hell-Bent on destroying the one truly great piece of art he's ever created.

For all those reasons, I pity him. I feel sorry for him that he can't separate himself from this work of his. I see in him an artist who just can't stop tinkering with something that maybe wasn't perfect, but was still absolutely brilliant. God only knows what he's going to do to the films when he starts releasing them in 3-D next year. Maybe Jar-Jar Binks will be inserted into the climactic scene in "Empire Strikes Back" where Darth Vader tells Luke who he really is. Maybe he'll digitally insert Chewbacca into "Attack of the Clones" just as Anakin and Padme get married.

It really won't matter anymore at that point. I have my memories of how the films were first presented, and thanks to a set of DVDs I bought a couple years ago, I even have the original untouched films to watch. George Lucas is just an archetype of a man who can't make himself happy, so he makes everyone who loves him crazy by never being able to hang the painting and let it sit. Then again, maybe Picaso would go back and make his subjects look a little more human if he had the chance?