So here are some of them:
I don’t think we can knock something for using tropes (at least not the non-racist/shaming/idiotic ones) - almost every single storytelling device is a trope. The ‘tropes’ - or more accurately the ‘archetypes’ - included in Star Wars have existed in human culture since the dawn of storytelling, something Joseph Campbell pointed out to us in the 40s and others have built on since. What SW did was to codify, simplify and popularize a hero journey by combining it with hitherto unseen technology, multiple story genres and setting it in a science fiction world.
And please notice I specifically used the term ‘helped’ - SW helped, Blade Runner helped, 2001 and Star Trek and every movie ever made out of a Jules Verne book all helped create and push along the science fiction boom of the 70s and 80s. It almost single-handedly created the ‘summer blockbuster’, which might not be the most aesthetic Hollywood product but is certainly the most profitable, most technologically-innovative. It spawned a cultural lexicon, a missile defense system, a religion and real life technology (remember the holographic news reports from the last election?), not to mention fans in the billions all over the world who must be identifying with something in the source.
Knock the writing all you want - Lucas is no Willy Shakes, though I think Kasdan was an improvement for V and VI - but I still think credit should be given.
(Star Wars - I haz feelings)
