The Targeting Computer Was Never Going to Work

I wonder if the the theme of over reliance on technology that you talked about is actually there throughout the entire (George Lucas) saga? I mean think about it, in the prequels the Jedi are extremely engrained in this technology heavy world. Droids can’t figure out where a dart came from but some old guy in a restaurant identifies it immediately. The computer doesn’t have the planet Obi Wan is looking for and he literally can’t put 2 and 2 together until a child, who isn’t as ingrained, tells him it’s 4. The technologically produced clone army that just shows up out of nowhere is blindly trusted by all of them. This lack of wisdom (or common sense) born from both dogma but also technology reliance is literally the death of them. There’s what you mentioned here with the tracking computer. And then there’s the ending with primitive teddy bears winning the war. I think this theme extends over all 6 of the original movies though maybe I haven’t fleshed it out too well.

in my onion luke really was the star of the war

Little detail too: When Luke says his scanner shows negative on detecting the fighters Red Leader says "Pick up your visual scanning" basically saying "Dude, just use your eyes".

Fun fact, if you pause as the torpedoes go down the shaft, you see where Red Leader hit. Proton Torpedoes fit side by side in the nose of an X-Wing. So if they just fit side by side down the port, you can tell Red Leader, firing from beyond naked eye visual range....missed by maybe 10 feet. Poor guy got it within spitting distance. Never realized just how close he got.

I never before appreciated how well red leader portrayed as a guy who's whole life lead up to this moment...he did everything right, and fought with all that he had, only to fail at the end.

"Is this dude really going for Style Points?" Luke, use the Force to flex on them normies

I think the reason Luke was “bobbing and weaving” all over the place in the trench run was because his stabilizer had been blown loose. He asked R2 to lock it down but it might be why Vader couldn’t get a lock on him.

I was a bit disappointed that you didn't mention the part where right after Luke says his scope's negative, Red Leader tells him to pick up his visual scanning, as in 'Hey man, use your eyes instead of trusting only your instruments' which is another great point leading up to Luke trusting in the force

Total props to this guy the way he fused a commercial into the story. Totally cracked me up! Way to go!

Even as a kid I'd always kind of understood that the reason Luke doesn't use the targeting computer is because only the Force would have worked (as implied by Red Leader missing when using his) but I never really put much thought into it past that, nor did I notice the little moments throughout the scene of Luke slowly trusting his instincts more as the battle goes on.

When Vader jumps into combat, it’s because he realizes that the main battle is just a diversion and that the bombers are making their way to the trench. He specifically says that. It usually goes unnoticed, but Vader is the first one who realizes not everything is as it appears.

I always figured that the Y-wings (had they survived) would have been able to make the shot, being dedicated bombers that would have the necessary targeting equipment for such a feat, whereas the X-wings were dogfighters designed to fight other ships, not engage ground targets. There's also the theory that Vader was using the Force to mess with the Rebels' equipment, which was why they had such a hard time spotting the TIEs.

Just goes to show that Marcia Lucas was ahead of her time. The film editors match shots with action in precusion to elevate the tension. She did that masterfully. I've seen the trench run like a thousand and I'm on the edge of my seat every time. Very few modern films have that kind of talented editors. They spend too much time and money on visual effects which kind of misses the point. Never learn. Visual effects are a support mechanism not the main point of reference. A films structure and story are derived from its editor.

That was the most enjoyable Raid ad I’ve seen.

Fun Fact: During the battle of the first Death Star, there were supposed to be the Blue X-wing squadron instead of Gold, however, the blue color on the X-wings would cause problems when rendering in the CGI because Blue screen was used back then instead of Green screen, hence why we have Gold squadron, red squadron, and green squadron. And then later in 2016 in the Rogue one, they showed that the Blue squadron was destroyed in Scariff.

“Is this guy going for style points?” had me cackling

I've always thought that Red leader missing implied it could not be done. It was suggested heavily before the mission started. The mission was kind of a last stand, and everyone in the know knew it would not work. However, great video on pointing out how masterfully everything was edited together. Makes me want to rewatch this scene asap.

One of the things I liked was when the TIEs come out and Luke has one chasing him, "I can't shake him!", he specifically calls out for help from his friend Biggs. The one he talked to before they took off, and the one who was his friend back on Tatooine. He calls for help from Biggs, "Blast it Biggs, where are you?" but then Wedge swoops in and saves him. This is another lesson for Luke: he and the little group he calls his buddies can't do this alone. He has to work as a team, not as a buddy.

You actually made an "in-video" ad that was entertaining enough to watch without skipping...I hope your sponsors appreciate this.

I have always been convinced that Red Leader's miss was caused by the sudden movement of his flight stick down and to the right at the same time he fires - probably in an attempt to pull out of the trench. Proton torpedoes, when fired off-axis, move in sweeping arcs to track their targets and when fired at close range may not have had the lead-time they needed to find exact purchase on a target so small. Luke had to straighten out to get a clear on-axis shot at the port, and the same was true with Red Leader. I always assumed that was why we got the tight shot of Red Leader's flight stick. Dude was a veteran, but he was clearly under a lot of pressure.