Quote:
Originally Posted by The Mouth of Sauron
Is a Song of Ice and Fire better than Lord of the Rings?
NO !!!!!!
An over-complicated, contrived rip-off is NOT better that the LOTR masterpiece.
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GRRM and Tolkien can't really be compared. It's like comparing Harry Potter to Twilight. Sure they're both teen fantasy, but beyond that, nothing.
I understand why he's been called "American Tolkien", but I think the title is an insult to both men.
Tolkien, because every time someone with moderate success in the fantasy genre comes along they're going to be called the new Tolkien. The man deserves his praise and publishing houses should stop trying to show us the "new Tolkien" (I know why this happens, but I don't have to agree)
Martin, because he created a world entirely independent of Middle-Earth. No elves, no dwarves (Tyrion Lannister excluded), no half-lings. Men in a man's world recreating history in a fantasy realm. I may not like Martin's characters or his writing, but I am very drawn to the idea of rewriting significant historical events in a world like Westeros. And Martin at least deserves some credit for not bringing in archtypes or themes like Tolkien's, when I've seen countless other authors do just that.