One of the charges that is frequently leveled at George Lucas by his detractors is that he cares only about expanding his already considerable (i.e., unbelievably immense) fortune. I’ve never believed that one, myself. Whatever his faults, however inscrutable his motivations, greed simply cannot be among them. If it were, he’d be a lot smarter about what he’s trying to sell to his fans.<\/p>\n
No, this isn’t another rant about Uncle George’s stubborn refusal to put out a decent DVD release of the pre-Special Edition Star Wars<\/i>, although that is a good example of what I’m talking about, because you know he’d sell those by the truckload if he’d just relax a little.<\/p>\n
I’m actually talking about the upcoming DVD release of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles<\/i>… or, as the series has been retitled, The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones<\/i>. (I told you<\/a> he’d change the name, didn’t I?)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles<\/i> (as I will persist in calling this series; hey, George isn’t the only guy who can be stubborn when he sets his mind to it!) wasn’t a flop, exactly — it lasted three seasons, as I recall — but it certainly isn’t one of the brighter stars in the Lucasfilm galaxy. A lot of people of my acquaintance simply didn’t know what to make of Harrison Ford’s swashbuckling signature character reimagined as a thoughtful teenager, or, in some episodes, a nine-year-old boy. (George would ignore this lesson, of course, when he made fearsome Darth Vader into sweet li’l Ani in The Phantom Menace<\/i>, another widely unpopular creative decision.) Personally, I think the most notable thing about Young Indy<\/i> was that it served as a test bed for the digital technology that has since revolutionized film production. Still, the series has its fans, myself among them, and I’ve always hoped that it would one day end up on those shiny silver discs we all love so well.<\/p>\n You would think that a 15-year-old TV series that was a modest success at best, and whose appeal is no doubt limited to a cult following, would be released in a very straightforward (and cautious) way. Bare bones, the original episodes only, and above all, a reasonable price point. I think Voyagers!<\/i><\/a> is probably a good comparison here; it’s a series that obviously has enough of a following to warrant DVDs, but nothing fancy. That’s what a man who cares only about profit would release, something he wouldn’t have to make much of an upfront investment in, but which would return a small, guaranteed profit. Frankly, that’s all this<\/i> fan really wants in the way of a Young Indy<\/i> set.<\/p>\n