Amidst the Wreckage, A Newer Hope

Since yesterday evening, many of us have been glued to coverage of this monstrous storm, not believing the images we are seeing. Devastating images of something New York City has never experienced. My cousin and his lady arrived in our Hell's Kitchen bubble, looking to charge their iStuff as they do not have power in their Lower-Manhattan apartment.

We know what's out there, but we certainly cannot comprehend it as of yet.

And through it all, by the end of today, all I want to know is what Mark Hamill's involvement in Episode VII will be.

Star Wars, like baseball, once again provides us an escape from the realities of the world. Just as in 1977, when this city was trying to dig itself out of a major fiscal emergency, George Lucas has provided New York and the world a reason to dream of a Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away.

The Walt Disney Company (a company I have an affinity for, not only because of the worlds Walt Disney imagined but because they employed my grandfather at Buena Vista Distribution Co. back in the day, which has been passed down to me in shares of the DIS) has amazin'ly acquired 100% of Lucasfilm LTD, and immediately announced Star Wars: Episode VII.

The timing of this announcement comes after I recently watched The People vs. George Lucas on my Doc binge, which is a great exploration of the Love-Hate relationship Star Wars fans have with "The Creator," and helped spawn my own idea for a documentary. I suggest you watch it, and think of the elation they must have all felt when finding out there will be more movies, and that George Lucas has surrendered control of it to a brand such as Disney.

I'm not really a "convention-type" Star Wars fan, if you will. I love the world George Lucas created and, at its best, is fantastic storytelling. The acquisition gives every Star Wars fan reason to believe this epic can once again be filmmaking at its best. Disney, at their best, are exceptional filmmakers and Marketeers, and have been making excellent creative and monetary decisions since the former CEO, Michael Eisner, got ousted in the middle of the last decade.

All I really want to know is: Where is Mark Hamill and how quickly can we sign him up for the new Trilogy?

Reading up on the history of the idea of a Sequel Trilogy after the news broke, it sounds like George Lucas really went back and forth on this idea. He more than finally relented; he must have had an epiphany based on what he said in January, and what he has said today:

"It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers. I've always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime."

He did own 100% of Lucasfilm. Now, 100% of Lucasfilm will be owned by Disney. I wonder how much of their revenue will be Star Wars when the absorption is complete...

In regards to the new films, George Lucas will stay on as a "Creative Consultant."

We all know what that means.

A Newer Hope than ever before.

BRING. BACK. HAMILL.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for Rising Apple twitter updates, click here.