I would argue that Star Wars is a vastly bigger franchise than Lord of the Rings (even if LotR has been around longer) or Star Trek (even if that is superior to both *kidding*). There isn't just a reddit about Star Wars, there are reddits about various Star Wars computer and board games, there is a reddit about prequel memes, there is a reddit that was started by people that were so disappointed by the sequels and the main Star Wars reddit that they created a sub for more critical (if not outright bashing) threads. A lot of people are interested. And a lot of people have been somewhat disappointed of the most recent offerings.

And there comes along a series that most people that watched it enjoyed, despite being clearly different from most Star Wars offering. A series that gets even disgruntled people back and enthusiastic again.

Is it really that surprising that it's such a frequent topic?