The Russians (well, some) dig Stalin because he was a Big Man who Made/Kept Russia Strong (or something - nevermind now that the man was Georgian... we're dealing with Stupid Nationalist Sentiment here; coherence is not required). For the exact same reasons they dig other murdering bastards like Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great, although if you ask me those two actually have more merit for it than Uncle Joe (not that they were any nicer, just that they were more personally competent).

What I really don't get is why Nicholas II is also "pop" (or was some years ago anyway), as that milquetoast idiot's sole claim to being more than a footnote is losing his life and empire to the Revolution...

Damn serf mentality. The place's still paying the price for not canning that antediluvian system before mid-1800s if you ask me.