(CNN) Disney's stewardship of "Star Wars" went from irrational exuberance to "The sky is falling" panic in the time it took to produce a single trilogy. As that chapter closes and new doors swing open in the universe of streaming, it's time for something often lacking in discussions about George Lucas' creation -- namely, a little level-headed sobriety.

What does "level-headed" look like, practically speaking? Additional movies, but fewer of them; producing single ideas, as opposed to leaping straight to the added burden of banking on trilogies; and yes, a lot of streaming -- including experimental swings, potentially serving as an incubator for future spinoffs -- building on the success of "The Mandalorian," the buzzed-about Disney+ series.

To understand where "Star Wars" finds itself as a franchise, a bit of history is in order.

Disney's $4 billion acquisition of Lucasfilm looked like the bargain of the century when "The Force Awakens" conjured a still-record $936 million in domestic box-office receipts, and the studio did what any conglomerate would under the circumstances by trying to capitalize on that in every imaginable way.

Part of that bounty, however, stemmed from pent-up demand, since Lucasfilm hadn't produced a "Star Wars" movie for a decade. There was a good deal of other content -- including some (very good) animated TV shows -- but nothing quite like hearing John Williams' signature score as that script crawled up the screen.

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