3. The Characters
Han Solo, Darth Vader and Yoda are all famous characters that sprung from the mind of George Lucas, but thats not my point. Thats too obvious. What was really genius was that he created a back story for every character. For example, in the cantina scene in Episode IV, one of the most memorable aliens was Hammerhead, right? But did you know his name was actually Momaw Nadon, and that he was part of an alien race called Ithorians, who live on a lush planet with sprawling rain forests called Ithor? And Ithorians consider Hammerhead to be a derogatory term? Lucas intense attention to detail for even the most minor character is what created the richness of the Star Wars universe that is in my humble opinion on the level of expansiveness of D.C. or even Marvel.