Breaking News: Disney Purchases Lucasfilm, Episode 7 Due in 2015!

Did anybody else think that headline was a joke?  When I heard this bit of news, that was what I thought immediately.  Wait, is it April Fool's Day?  Like when they told us that the Holiday Special was coming to blu ray?  Or that the entire EU was comprised of clones?  Nope, further investigation seems to tell me that this is very, very real:

https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/blog/disney-acquire-lucasfilm

I would love to hear some opinions here.  For me, I'm not sure what to think just yet.  If you told me I wouldn't be practically screaming with joy over talk of a new Star Wars movie, I'd have laughed at you.  Yet what I'm feeling is much more like cautious dread than thrilled excitement.  Maybe it's because almost everything new they've done with Star Wars since I was in preschool turned out to be... less than stellar.  I don't remember when exactly they announced the prequel trilogy, but I do know it was somewhere in my late teens and at the time I had high hopes for some of the coolest new movies ever.  I think we can all relate to the sinking feeling in our stomachs when we actually saw the movies and felt the painful disappointment.  Maybe I'm just afraid to get my hopes up at the risk of feeling that again.  If I expect it to suck, and I go see it (which I will, no matter what it is, because I'm a sucker) and it turns out to be not the worst thing ever, maybe I'll feel better.

If you didn't look at the article, it already promises us Episode 7 for 2015.  There are no details about what time frame it would cover and obviously this leaves a ton of room for a lot of different options.  Would it be the characters we know and love?  Would it abolish the EU as we know it?  Would it skip forward far enough in time that we wouldn't recognize anyone and it wouldn't conflict with so much that has already been written?  Would they actually have the audacity to recast new people in such established roles?  What would be the main conflict?  So many questions!!!  So many possibilities!!!  And why instead of seeing it as so many opportunities for awesomeness am I seeing it as so many opportunities for things to go wrong?

What would I even want to see?  Probably part of my skepticism and lack of enthusiasm stems from the fact that if I thought up my ideal scenario for an Episode 7, it would probably be the least likely option.  That is, of course, a live action film that includes Han, Leia and Luke.  But the actors are old, and we can all probably agree that Harrison would never do it (maybe those reports I heard randomly of him having turned down $40 million for another Star Wars movie actually were true, I absolutely did not believe that) and I just don't see it happening.  I don't even know who they'd be fighting against. 

One possibility to combat the whole age thing, is CGI.  This is actually something I'd thought of before, when only in my wildest dreams did I think that they would ever make an Episode 7.  Actually, if you'd asked me up until like an hour ago when I became aware of this, I'd have probably bet all of my money on this kind of thing never, ever happening.  I've been wrong before.  Anyway, my thought was that the only way I'd accept an Episode 7 at this point would be if they just went ahead and made it entirely CGI, or basically a cartoon.  Like, let's stop pretending we're trying to even make it look like reality and even animate the actors.  Which would mean that they could somewhat realistically animate Han, Leia and Luke and make them younger and let the actors voice the parts.  I mean, how could he not at least voice the character?  It's millions of dollars for very little work!  Anyway, that, I think, might possibly work.  I doubt that's what they'll be doing, but it would be great if they did.

Basically the only thing that makes sense is jumping way, way in the future and showing us characters we've never seen before, though possbily descendants of our beloved heroes.  Maybe they can somehow give us some proof of Han and Leia having been happily married for 75 years before dying in each others arms of extreme old age.  It could happen, right?  There are just so many directions to go with this, I don't even know where to start.  And I hate that my head instantly goes to the thought of them ruining everything rather than actually making an awesome new movie.  Have I really become that cynical?

As for Disney's involvement, I don't know how I feel about that, either.  Listen, I enjoy Disney World.  This makes me nervous, though.  Although someone pointed out to me that Disney bought Marvel and that hasn't proven to be a bad thing.  Disney also bought the Muppets and their new movie was the best one they've put out since Jim Henson died.  And really, how could Disney wreck Star Wars any more than Lucas himself already did? 

AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!  I don't know what to think!!!