I would say Star Wars is really a classic rather than a pop-phenomenon. Sure it has a lot of baggage trailing behind it, and the vast majority of that baggage is crap. But honestly, who actually says Star Wars is their favorite movie? Who even watches Star Wars anymore? Everybody watches ESB, ROTJ, TPM, AOTC, and ROTS, they only watch Star Wars for good measure, but most would admit to it being slow and boring. But then there are those of us who watch Star Wars in the same way we watch Casablanca. If Star Wars was still only Star Wars, I don't think too many kids today would even care about it except for loyal sci-fi and film fans. I think Anchorhead has it right. Take away all the baggage and ignore it and you have a fantastic story. Keep all that baggage and you have a a pile of tripe you almost have to feel ashamed for even trying to like. Star Wars is a classic. I would even say that the original triology is a classic. The PT is simply a rash on the teet of the cash cow. Something that unfortunately hits every great work of fiction if it is too popular for its own good. Planet of the Apes, Star Wars, and the Lord of the Rings are three of my favorite stories in their original forms (film, film, and book respectively) that have way too much baggage attached to them that drag their quality through the mud. All three could be considered pop-phenomenea, but are also all undoubtably classics. In the end, the originals are still available and the baggage can be ignored. I think it is less rather than more that makes/will make these tales classics.