First of My Name Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 Here is the second version of the thread where we discuss what we think is better, Lord of the Rings or A Song of Ice and Fire. I myself greatly prefer the latter. This was the previous version, which was over 400 posts: http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/85872-lotr-vs-asoiaf-which-novel-series-do-you-prefer/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolivar Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 First. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First of My Name Posted February 11, 2014 Author Share Posted February 11, 2014 Many congratulations :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolivar Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 Thanks!ASOIAF is clearly the more readable, addicting story but LotR is the greater achievement and IMO the better series. You can't compare what Tolkien pioneered for genre, the industry, and academia to GRRM, not yet anyways. From what I understand Ice and Fire was incredibly groundbreaking but also that Martin built off of what was going on at the time with Tad Williams, Robert Jordan, and Glenn Cook. Tolkien stands alone as far as I know (at least comparatively).I might say George has the firmer grasp on the art of storytelling as an artist but Tolkien's comprehensive understanding of the Myth template is a strong factor in his favor. ASoIaF is so much harder to put down but it's like comparing junk food to a full course meal. That might be a terribly inapplicable metaphor because by no means is ASOIAF junk food but addictiveness alone is not in itself a virtue. I think the passages in LotR are deeper and more subtle. I also feel like Tolkien was better at writing battles. I'll always remember the feelings of what happened at Helm's Deep or Pelennor but I usually forget or misremember details of Martin's battles until I re read them. AGAIN not knocking GRRM because I think he obviously accomplished a lot with battles like Blackwater and he depicts the general confusion that medieval combat seems like it must have been.Lastly, we can't ignore the focus/pacing and it's the coup De grace to ASOIAF apologists. The narrative tightness showcased in A Game of Thrones has been obliterated with little hope of ever returning. Dany's story did not need 10 chapters in A Dance with Dragons. The books now cover seemingly-inconsequential plot threads at such an excruciatingly-slow pace that Martin needed multiple books to deliver what he maintains was a single story, and even then insists that he had to push the climaxes out of the last volume. I really think the enormity of where to take the series after A Storm of Swords broke the series and I'm not convinced he and surely not his editor can put it back together. I desperately want to be proven wrong.LotR is one story, it's finished, the scope waxes and wanes as the pacing shifts gears masterfully over the course of the tale and that's why I'm taking LotR over ASoIaF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I like both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Datepalm Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I like both. Choose one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 DP,I refuse to support the false dichotomy. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolivar Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I like both.TL;DR this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anatúrinbor Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I prefer both to each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth Richard II Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I love you guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leofric Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 Lastly, we can't ignore the focus/pacing and it's the coup De grace to ASOIAF apologists. The narrative tightness showcased in A Game of Thrones has been obliterated with little hope of ever returning. Dany's story did not need 10 chapters in A Dance with Dragons. The books now cover seemingly-inconsequential plot threads at such an excruciatingly-slow pace that Martin needed multiple books to deliver what he maintains was a single story, and even then insists that he had to push the climaxes out of the last volume. I really think the enormity of where to take the series after A Storm of Swords broke the series and I'm not convinced he and surely not his editor can put it back together. I desperately want to be proven wrong. I love both series, but I would rather reread any parts of AFFC and ADWD than reread the details of Sam and Frodo's trek across Mordor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 The correct answer is Malazan, or possibly Batman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Lewis Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 I think LotR is a harder read but a bigger accomplishment as it paved the way for epic fantasies. I do Prefer ASoIaF though because IMO it is more entertaining and compelling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sologdin Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 they both suck. read a real book, whydoncha? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Datepalm Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 "Life is too short, Proust too long." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aceluby Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 I have to give Tokien the edge simply because he has complete stories, geared for different audiences, a HUGE backstory, and developed numerous languages from scratch. As much as I like GRRM, he could never do anything like that. With that being said, I'd rather re-read ASOIAF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Marquis de Leech Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Have said it before, and will say it again: the comparison makes no sense. ASOIAF is a series of novels. As per the novel format, it is character-driven, and as per Martin's experience in script writing, it places heavy emphasis on character arcs and cliff-hangers. It is essentially a medieval-flavoured fantasy soap opera. LOTR is not a novel. As such, it rejects the attributes of a novel, harking back instead to the epics and old romances. Tolkien isn't interested in characterisation (except for some special cases, such as the hobbits), instead preferring to explore mythic themes and wider issues of good, evil, and the rejection of power. It's an apples and oranges comparison, like trying to compare Homer and Shakespeare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First of My Name Posted February 12, 2014 Author Share Posted February 12, 2014 Have said it before, and will say it again: the comparison makes no sense. ASOIAF is a series of novels. As per the novel format, it is character-driven, and as per Martin's experience in script writing, it places heavy emphasis on character arcs and cliff-hangers. It is essentially a medieval-flavoured fantasy soap opera. LOTR is not a novel. As such, it rejects the attributes of a novel, harking back instead to the epics and old romances. Tolkien isn't interested in characterisation (except for some special cases, such as the hobbits), instead preferring to explore mythic themes and wider issues of good, evil, and the rejection of power. It's an apples and oranges comparison, like trying to compare Homer and Shakespeare. Well, I was interested in hearing other opinions because many readers regard LOTR and ASOIAF as the best two fantasy series. Just because apples and oranges aren't the same thing doesn't mean you can't prefer one over the other. I can still ask which one you like better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aceluby Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Well, I was interested in hearing other opinions because many readers regard LOTR and ASOIAF as the best two fantasy series. Just because apples and oranges aren't the same thing doesn't mean you can't prefer one over the other. I can still ask which one you like better. I like apples better personally ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bolivar Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 I like both but I think oranges have been a part of more notable achievements than apples have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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