Will Disney Finally Save 'Star Wars'?

Everyone reading this should hopefully know of the great "Star Wars" films -- if not, you'd better get on that pronto. Over the years, "Star Wars" fans have noticed that George Lucas keeps making "Star Wars" larger, and I don't mean in terms of the books -- those are great. What I mean is that he is aiming it more towards children. A perfect example is the Star Wars episode II animated film and television series. This, to me, seemed fine. He didn't change anything drastically with the show; he just put Star Wars out to kids. Then I noticed that the further I looked back, such as to the first three episodes, he made those specifically to keep Star Wars alive. Telling the story of Darth Vader merely made him less terrifying and more pitiful. The true purpose of episodes I, II, and III was to make more merchandise off of the new characters and props.

For the past few years, the die-hard fans of Star Wars have been begging George Lucas to stop making more shows and films. Most fans now say that George Lucas killed his own greatest creation. I would try to defend the legend, but unfortunately I no longer can. The newest television show takes all the characters the fans love and makes them entirely different from who they actually are. It takes certain characters and has them meet people who existed centuries before them. I am, of course, talking about "Star Wars Detours."

"Star Wars Detours" is a animated television show (what else could it possibly be?) voiced, directed, and animated by the same men who made Robot Chicken. The trailer is here -- please watch with care.

This sounds promising as a comedic show, but I am in disbelief at how flat-out terrible it is, and I'm not the only one with this opinion -- YouTuber JeremyJahns did a less-than-glowing review of "Star Wars Detours" (CAUTION, some obscenities). Maybe I am just too single-minded in how I look at this, but "Star Wars" was one of the first movies I remember seeing. I loved to play with those fun plastic light sabers with my brother. The X-Wing star fighters were one of my favorite toys. I personally cannot stand to see "Star Wars" so brutally disgraced. Then an interesting headline appeared in the news: Walt Disney bought LucasArts.

I had two immediate reactions at the exact same time. One was, "Oh my god, this is going to be a train wreck." Another was, "THIS IS AMAZING!!! Disney will SAVE Star Wars!!" Both of these reactions are equally appropriate because it could go either way. Disney may try to create a series with their trademark characters, like Mickey Mouse, Buzz Lightyear or Woody. In all fairness, they also may try to create an animated series that expands on the "Star Wars" universe or even gives background on some beloved but obscure characters like Yoda.

Even before I could finish writing this post, I found out that immediately after buying LucasArts, they announced "Star Wars Episode VII." Once again, I had the same two reactions. There is no trailer, only the year it will be released (2015) and it'll still probably get pushed back.

I have no idea whether or not Disney will lift up "Star Wars" to its former glory, or if it will accidentally drop it on its head again. I love "Star Wars," and I can only hope that Disney is its saving grace. Hopefully, "Star Wars" will be remembered for its accomplishments, not its faults. "Star Wars" deserves to be saved, and it is now up to Disney to make the right choices.