What techniques did Bill Watterson use to make Calvin and Hobbes a masterpiece?

It's a shame that the Sunday comic strip is going the way of the dinosaur, even as webcomics like Cyanide and Happiness and The Perry Bible Fellowship become the modern answers to strips like Garfield and The Far Side

Depending on who you ask, though, comic strips have been at death's door since 1996. Why is that date so significant? The 31st of December in 1995 marked the last time that Bill Watterson's groundbreaking comic strip Calvin and Hobbes ran in newspapers. 

If you're not a fan of Calvin and Hobbes, you might wonder why the strip is so revolutionary and revered. In the video linked above from The Comics Cube's YouTube channel, you can see some of the techniques Watterson employed to create gorgeous comics.