I don't know if this is in the right section but for Christmas, my dad got me a set of all 6 DVDs. It's from Japan, and it has all 6 of the movies on DVD, but the cover for the Episode 3 is different from the actual DVD, like you buy in the store. My grandparents were joking that it was bootlegged, cause my dad got it off ebay, and I was wondering if anyone else owned it or even heard of it. The cover is basically a space scene between the falcon and some TIE fighters. This could help a lot, cause I'm really not used to owning anything illegaly made.
Is there any special features or anything, How many disc's including the 6 movies themselves? Whats the color of the bottom of the disc's? I would say its someone who made their own new cover and decided to sell it to the public. I would say atleast 90 percent that that box set is not released totally by lucasfilm. They might have bought all the DVD's and wanted to make a box set. If you give me the info I have asked for, I might have some answers for you.
Ive done some researching and found this on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Star-Wars-DVD-Box-Set-6-DVDs-All-6-Episodes_W0QQitemZ6467872526QQcategoryZ617QQrdZ1QQ) cmdZViewItem
I think this is what you have.
The prequal disc's looks to have new covers and the old trilogy has inlarged covers which is like the last new release of the OT on DVD. So it is looking like they could not be legit and would be fan made. Also have you watched all the movies especially the OR ones? Do that have new changes from the original release and the 90's rerelease?
Deffinatley looks like Hong Kong bootlegs *they're all over Ebay and its a known fact that bootlegging is huge in hong kong*
the ROTS disc looks seriously fake it doesnt even have the main characters on it like the rest.
Still looks like a cool set might pick one up myself but i think its safe to say its not official.
I must thank you all for helping me. I was scared for a moment my dad went and did somthing illegal....again. If I had a medal or somthing, you'd totally get it.
Well its illegal but no one really cares just dont go rubbing it in george lucas's face.
Yea so dont expect the 501st troopers lead by george coming to your house anytime soon.
...Rats. There goes my first idea for my birthday party. But, If I ever come in contact with George Lucas, all I would do is babble and drool, and maybe throw in some flirting. ;)
Note to self-Scratch 'Get busted by stormtroopers for street hustling on Dagobah, then breaking into a dance number, and telling everyone they just got punk'd' idea from list of things to do before I die.
Bummer! Yeah, it can be a bit confusing, especially to somebody new to online shopping and looking to save money. There is a guy selling custom boxes for a Star Wars "complete set" which totals about 100$ (just a box, no discs inside). There are of course as you say many bootlegs circulating. It could be that the Episode III disc is a bootleg (unless you can tell it's really a Japanese or Chinese region disc, which you could find out easily enough on your PC) and the others are legit. Yeah, when it comes to Star Wars stuff you've got to know what you're getting yourself into.
The Episode III bootlegs that are out are pretty low quality from what I can tell (compared to the official disc which is quite fantastic), though there was an interest in them among fans due to the extremely hilariously bad english subtitles (google "Backstroke of the West" for details!) on at least one prominent version.
I own all six movies, and I don't particularly care that I don't have a single cardboard box to store them all in (my dvd rack can't hold anything thicker than 4 amray cases per section anyway). Though it would be nice if LucasFilm or 20th Century Fox were to make available for purchase a collector's box to put your already purchased discs in, as New Line (?) did for the LOTR sets (if you bought the Extended Editions seperately instead of all together in the mammoth 12 disc package, you could order the same empty box for cheap through the mail).
You can download gigs and gigs of custom made covers from the internet, some of which are quite high quality, and print your own from a local copy center for fairly cheap (where I live you can get a beautiful color sleeve for 59 cents, and an amray case with a flip piece for the second disc and room for an insert booklet for $1.25). Large cardboard boxes are another story (like the guy selling his for 100 bucks), but at least you can have a nice looking set that all appear to go together (for example gold color coding so that the widescreen Prequel and Classic Trilogies look more like they're all part of the same set). And now with disc label printers you can make custom sets that look pretty darn good, approaching professional quality without totally breaking the bank.
Me personally I'm very happy that there are fans making custom made edits and cuts of films they love. I personally don't think anyone is seriously harmed by such labors of love. Most of us are content to complain about flaws in movies or the mistakes DVD creators make in official releases. It takes real skill and craft to go the extra mile and correct those oversights, even if it's only one fan's vision of what a film ought to be. Nobody has to accept that fan's creation as the "real thing," and sometimes such efforts can even inspire companies to go that extra mile in their own releases. However, when these amateur products are sold for profit that is something that the authors and owners object to (the fan cuts I've seen were never intended to be sold, but it's very easy for somebody else who did no work to pack it up for a fast buck). Buying online or from some foreign market it can be easy to get hoodwinked into thinking you're getting something official when you're not, which is the main reason why media companies object to bootlegging (consumers get confused as to which is the real deal, so bad quality versions get blamed on the main company in the mind of the buyer).
Anyway, enjoy your movies. I'm sure he meant well, but maybe you could somehow politely educate him on ways to help spot the differences. Or maybe not. ;)