ROTJ ending music - "Yub Nub" or "Victory Celebration"?

I've always preferred "Yub Nub" because it immediately transports me back to Endor and I can visualize the smiling faces of our heroes finally being happy together after all those years of fighting. I love how the closing chorus slowly changes from Ewokese to English (""Allay loo ta nuv" becomes "Celebrate the Love!"), but it seems a lot of fans prefer the new track (Victory Celebration) from the 1997 SE.

I've never thought "Victory Celebration" (VC) was bad per se, but it doesn't evoke Star Wars to me - no Force theme or Main Title sprinkled anywhere within. Even if one were to argue that it's a sort of companion piece to "Augie's Great Municipal Band" from TPM, at least that track has the benefit of being a sped-up variation of the Emperor's theme. Honestly, if I had never seen the ROTJ:SE and you told me VC was from the ending of "Chronicles of Narnia", I would've believed you.

Obviously, I'm aware that VC fits better with scenes of celebrations from Coruscant, Naboo, etc., but I've always felt they could've added a new music cue specific to those scenes and then have Yub Nub resume its musical place when cutting back to Endor for the ending. Of course, this is just my opinion and I'm curious how everyone else feels. For comparisons sake, I've included links to all three versions below:

*Yub Nub (1983 - 1993 OST version)
Yub Nub (1983 film version)
Victory Celebration (1997 SE)

*From 1983 to 1993, this version of "Yub Nub" was the only one available on OSTs. The 1983 film version wasn't released to the public until the 1993 4-disc anthology collection set.

 

Yub Nub just has that special something extra that the Victory Celebration doesn't have.

 

The victory celebration is more upbeat. Makes it seem like they won the war.

 

More upbeat?
To each their own but it feels more melancholy, introspective than Yub Nub.
YN I can feel the up-beatness.
The War still continues as well.
Unless you don't count the EU or the ST and NEU.

 

Definitely Yub Nub!! It reminds me of how the ewoks fought and also suffered losses. I feel like it is a dedication to the ewoks.

 

I enjoy the OOT as much as the next guy, but I found Yub Nub annoying. Glad we got "Victory Celebration".

 

I think "Victory Celebration" is probably the one SE change that I really like. To me, it captures the feeling that this epic saga is coming to an end. The music is sort of telling us that although there were some difficult times along the way, we still made it. It's not as blatantly cheery as "Yub Nub", and I like that. It's mostly happy but there's a slight bittersweet feeling that's evoked which I think is warranted because of both the saga ending and because Vader died right after becoming good again.

 

I picked the film version of Yub Nub. I hadn't listened to the OST version of the song before, and... wow, that was awful. I don't hate Victory Celebration, but I'm not overly fond of it, either. It basically sounds like a more melodramatic, less upbeat version of Yub Nub to me, and Force Smuggler is right; it's missing that "special something extra."

 

I wonder how much of our preferences are based on which version of the scene we saw/heard first. That would have been an interesting addition to the poll.

 

Victory for sure.

 

I've gone on record many times that taking Yub Nub out of Jedi was one of the biggest (tied with replacing Shaw) mistakes of the SE. It's the perfect ending to the Saga. It's atmospheric. You have the Gospel flavored singing which signals the return of the Light side of the Force into balance. It's also perfectly upbeat for the conclusion, unlike the weepy pan-flute. How can you have Lando clapping enthusiastically and Ewoks dancing ebulliently to Zamfir???

I really don't know which version to pick, since the film has both playing simultaneously I think. You can hear the Choir singing, but the Ewoks singing can still be heard as well. I recommend making only one Yub Nub option. Lest, the split will only cause VC to win anyway.

 

I never liked Yub Nub. Victory Celebration has always felt like it was the perfect tune to end the trilogy with.

 

I used to love Yub Nub and it has a lot of sentimental value to me because that's the ending I loved when I was 12. But I can't deny Victory Celebration (which I love as well) works much better as the ending of the Saga.

 

This is probably because I grew up with the SE, but I prefer the victory celebration. Similar to the ending of ROTS it makes me feel like its a end of a era.

 

Yub Nub, while a cute song (I guess that'd be the word to describe it) is a bit anticlimactic compared to Victory Celebration. Yub Nub makes it sound like the Empire's defeat only affected a small tribe while Victory Celebration makes it feel like it affected the whole galaxy.

 

The Victory celebration song & additional scenes on the other planets (first seen in '97, and expanded for some of the later versions of ROTJ) really opens up the ending of the film & is much more epic in scope than what we originally saw in the '83 ROTJ version. Plus, the music is very powerful & orchestra-ic (not sure if that's a word).

 

Victory Celebration is way more proper for an epic ending as ROTJ's finale.

 

Same here. Williams did a great job.

 

YN sounds silly to me, and it calls back to the silly parts of RotJ, which I don't care to focus on. I'd rather hear VC, which is a much better coda to the throne room scenes.

 

I voted Victory Celebration. I think it captures the bitter-sweetness of the moment better than Yub Nub did.

 

i've literally never had a big preference on it

 

The question yubs me the wrong way.

 

Huh, never knew about the Yub Nub versions. I guess you learn something new every day. I'd say Victory Celebration is great.