Acceleration and Deceleration costs $\Delta v$ (Delta is scientific notation for "change of something" and V stands for Velocity) of which a spacecraft has a set budget (how long the engines can burn).
Here's an analogy: imagine that the spacecraft is attached by a thin string to your hand (representing Earth). You start spinning it around faster and faster, denoting going into a higher and higher orbit. If the spacecraft is going fast enough, the string will break from the tension(representing reaching orbital escape velocity). Any planet has a minimum escape velocity and going any faster, costs more $\Delta v$ (which is precious), so current spacecraft with a super constrained $\Delta v$ budget only ever reach the minimal escape velocity.
Once the spacecraft has broken free of the gravity well of it'sits launch planet, it'sits coasting along in an elliptical path around the Sun. Except that it needs to match it'sits velocity (by expending precious $\Delta v$) close enough to that of it'sits target planet to enter orbit around it (in the analogy, hook onto a string attached to that planet, without breaking it). For that, the spacecraft has to be approaching the planet as close to directly from behind as possible, since then the velocity difference is minimized.
Hohmann figured out a set of equations for how to calculate the dead astern approach for a given escape velocity, which is always constant for a planet, no matter the size or capabilities of the spacecraft.