I don't think Star Wars was ever considered by anyone, George Lucas included, to be real science fiction. It's chief influences (westerns, space operas, Akira Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress) aren't sf. It is an adventure story, it's roots in Joseph Campbell's ideas about mythology, and should be judged as such. It shouldn't be criticized for not being something it's not supposed to be.
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I don't think Star Wars was ever considered by anyone, George Lucas included, to be real science fiction. It's chief influences (westerns, space operas, Akira Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress) aren't sf. It is an adventure story, it's roots in Joseph Campbell's ideas about mythology, and should be judged as such. It shouldn't be criticized for not being something it's not supposed to be.