Isn't it kind of defeating the purpose of Vader's secret revealed in Episode V, the very one in which Lucas forbade anyone to know before the shooting of that scene in which he fights Luke on the bridge in Bespin now that we have Anakin shown leading up to becoming Vader and Luke and Leia being born, it won't come as a shock anymore if Lucas intends people to watch it I-VI. Back in 1980 seeing Vader utter that famous line to Luke actually meant something! But not anymore to the youngsters of this time.

Er, don't you think the secret's kind of out by now? Even long before the PT? Why am I debating this?

not only has the secret been out for 25 years, but little kids are about as interested in watching the Original Trilogy as you were interested in watching old Flash Gordan serials at that age. their appeal and relevance to a young generation has come and gone.

***this is a generalization to which i'm sure there are many noteworthy exceptions. please don't bore us with them.***

Dude, Lucas never meant for it to be a secret. That was just a bunch of fanboy talk.

Actually, I heard that stormtroopers shot everyone who came out of the theater after seeing ESB.

Lucas is aware that he's telling one story through for two different groups of people. One - people like us - who saw 4-6 first. For us, Vader's secret was powerful and surprising.

For others, who see films in chronological order...true...Vader's line has a different impact. More along the lines of "how will Luke react", "will Luke believe him", "how will Vader tell him..." "will Vader tell him.." "does Vader believe the Emperor"...

It's the difference between surprise vs suspense.

Kube is right on, for those who already know Vader is Luke's father, it acts as dramatic irony, we as the audience know something that Luke doesn't. It also works in the wonderfully disgusting moment where Leia plants one on him.

Speaking as somebody who saw ESB in theaters during it's original release, before the movie came out there were novels and comic books out with the full story. It wasn't much of a secret to anybody.

As has already been said, this is not exactly a secret anymore. The vast majority of the people in the industrialized world know that Vader/Anakin is Luke's father. Even people who haven't seen the films probably knows this.

As for people or children who haven't watched the films yet, and may want to at some point, there's a very simple remedy. Show them the original trilogy first. Surprise is intact.

"I am your father" is probably one of the most well known movie quotes of all time. I don't think its much of a secret anymore.

Don't matter if it's not a secret anymore, would you care if you were told the meaning of Rosebud before watching Citizen Kane? Like Peter Bogdanovich said "There's no such thing as old movies, just wonderful pictures we haven't seen."

It's a lot more shocking to know who Vader is and the shadowy talks between Vader and "The Emperor" before there was something to them and their strong connection to this rebel "Luke" rather than you knowing all along and just seeing how Luke will react.

But the comparison doesn't hold water, because I've already seen the original trilogy. I already know that Vader is Luke's father. So do most people. So how is the secret ruined for us, when it's no longer a secret.

Now, as I stated earlier, if someone wants to watch the films, watch them in the order the films were released, and they'll experience the surprise just as we did. Not sure I see what the big deal is.

The comparison doesn't hold water to people that have seen them ofcourse, but that's not what i'm talking about, the whole point if for people that have yet to see the movies. You'd be surprised how many new people are born in the world and those that still haven't seen it, some even from DVD talk.

But now that they're labeled officially I-VI and Lucas has said to watch them in that order? How many people would choose numbers over chronologically produced? I hope they choose chronologically produced.

when i saw the flicks for the first time on vhs in 96 or 97, i didn't know the "secret" then again this was pre internet ect and that i was only 11 or 12 at the time.

i also went into citizen kane not knowing the ending, this in 2002 with the internet and even the forums.

See that's what i mean, no matter how much later you see an older movie, you should still be able to see it as it was originally as people saw it then for the first time in the theater. Excuses such as "everyone's in the know-how anyway" are dilapidated, because everyone is NOT in the know-how. These are as said good movies people haven't seen yet.

You're assuming people in the future will watch these movies in order. I doubt that will ever be the case.

Yeah, its even in a freakin' Burger King commercial.

4,5,1,2,3,6

George Lucas raped my childhood secret

True that it is no longer a SECRET for "us". But it is still a secret for the one true person that matters. LUKE SKYWALKER (and of course Leia) I will admit that becasue of the new trilogy and depending on how people new to the series watch these film in what order it will be a different experience for them. However I would point out that I think it will still be a rewarding viewing experience for them if say they view 1-6 in that order and seeing the ramifications of everything from a different POV. Now they instead will be watching this and seeing how people around Luke/Leia have "protected" them from the truth and because of this the ironies of all that we see between them in 4-6.

Honestly, just to throw in my two cents here, not about that one line, but about the OT entirely.

The OT has a COMPLETELY different feel here now PERIOD. Aalderan being destroyed has a different feel now that we know that Bail and the family lived there. We don't know Bail too well yet, but we are supposed to in EP III. Yoda has a different feel to him, as the last of the hundreds of Jedi that we never really knew existed. OB has a different feel as he is a little less of a "chance" meeting with Luke, but more of a, they were waiting for the right time to bring Luke to the spotlight. We all thought Luke was the real hero of the series, but Kanobi really is at this point. It seems he arrainged the all the events of the OT to happen. His sacrifice takes more form. He is old, he is no longer able to have an "active roll" in the resistance, he allows himself to be killed by Vader so he can train Luke to be the Jedi to take the power back.

Leia was on her way to bring Ben to Alderaan, and her ship got captured. R2, KNOWS who Luke is, and bates him with half the message. R2 was on his way TO Kanobi when the sand people attack. Yoda is just WAITING to fill his piece of the puzzle in EP IV. Its like they all knew they couldn't beat Palpy and Vader, so they waited for Luke to grow up.

To me, it looks more like a very well constructed ploy by Yoda and Kanobi then the "blind chance" it all was the first time we all saw the OT.

SO yeah, it takes some suspence away, but watching them as a whole (like someone suggested in that other 124 page thread) makes the entire 6 movies flow very well and althought it does change the movies WE grew up with, it doens't make them bad, it actually gives all of us a different movie experience.

And to address something that everyone talks about all the time, I really liked EP I and II also. They HAD to be made. Yeah the acting kinda sucks, bu we NEEDED to know the entire story of Vader. He was a kid, an insucure kid. Then he was an obsessed lover. Turned power hungry young man. What is the most interesting things about the life of Hitler? This f-ing maniac was breastfed as a child, just like you and me. And as he grew up, he changed. Yeah, I agree, Jar-Jar is anoying, but this back story HAD to be told. Naturally this 3rd installment is going to be the one we have all been waiting for, we have been waiting for the end of this story of HOW Vader came to be for sometime.

I had the meaning of Rosebud ruined for me in the late 1960s by a Peanuts comic strip when I was like 8 or 9. At that point, the film was already 25+ years old.

Didn't see the film for a decades after that, but it didn't really alter my appreciation of Citizen Kane.

Charles Schultz raped my childhood. Damn you Lucy!!!!!!!

It's not meant to be a secret any longer. Sure watching in the original order it comes off as a big reveal to us watching as well as to Luke. Watching in the new order you'll just be wondering when Vader or Kenobi decides to reveal the secret. Even if you decide to watch it 1-6 that line still has a lot of impact as far as the story goes but now it has more build up.

I guess those people who haven't seen the OT better not watch Clerks either. Dante spoils it there too!

You obviously don't have children or have not spent much time with them. Kid's love Star Wars, it's that simple.