Other than the PT, perhaps no issue within the SW fan community is as polarizing as the Special Editions. Seen by many as Lucas' first step in "ruining his franchise", both the SE and Lucas himself have been raked over the coals ever since their debut in 1997. Now, the purpose of this blog is not to debate the merits of the O-OT and the SE. Those arguments have been made many times over, and as long as both exist will continue to be made. My question is in regards to these criticisms vs. the recent re-mastering of the original Star Trek series. Like the SE of the original SW films, Paramount has given ST a "digital makeover", with a crisp, cleaner picture as well as new CGI special effects. These episodes started airing back in September. Unlike the fan reaction to the SE, these new changes have been pretty well-received within their respective community. My question is this: Why aren't the Paramount executives who made this decision being called The Devil much like Lucas has been? Some have said "Well, they didn't make changes to the story like Lucas." IMO, that is debatable. If you feel as if Lucas made major changes to the story and characters with the SE, that's fine and I respect your opinion. It's just that not all fans feel this way. There are many who see the changes as just cosmetic, and don't believe they fundamentally altered what made Star Wars, well, Star Wars at all. I'm also not talking about the belief that the SE are fine as long as the O-OT is available in an acceptable format. My main focus is the most common criticism I see against the SE; which is that he was flat wrong in making any kind of changes to the movies in the first place. I'm referring to this notion of George Lucas' artistic integrity being put under question, as he was "disrespecting the films that made him a sucess to begin with". "SW was a product of it's time, and it should reflect that. It didn't need glitzy CGI effects to win over millions around the world." Well, how is this ST re-mastering any different? Is ST not a product of it's own era as well? How are changes in one respect acceptable, and not the other? Especially if you consider that it was a company making this decision, not Gene Roddenbery himself. So it's perfectly O.K. for a company to make such changes to classic sci-fi, yet when the creator himself wants to do the same thing he's suddenly a hack? Now of course I realize that not all ST fans like the changes. My point is there's not nearly as much venom directed towards ST Remastered as there is towards the SE. What are your thoughts?