George R. R. Martin v. Robert Jordan

There is seriously no contest, Jordan books, even the early ones are slow, over elaborate, bores. I can't believe I wasted my time reading as many as I did, I seemed to feel I was missing something and thought if I read more I may finally find passion for these tomes of doom. Yet they just got worse, characters were frustrating and predictable arrrghhhh!! The repetition of character trait's and stupid unecessary detail just compound my utter dislike for the series.

George R. R. Martin, I came to later (thanks to advice from the Martin fanatics on Chronic, who are so into it, I had to see what I'd been missing) I devoured everything, what an amazing series. Shame I'm now frustrated at the length of time he's taking to bring the next portion out. I'm beginning to wonder, has he lost his way, or dare I say interest in his books now he's done so well and possible big/small screen outings maybe occurring!!

BUT PLEASE GET THE GRRM BOOKS AND IGNORE THE BOOKSHELF FULL OF PRETTY NUMERICALLY ORDERED DRONEY, DRIVEL OF JORDAN'S (RIP)
 
The Curious Orange said:
How new to fantasy are you? Have you read a lot of fantasy already?
Click to expand...

I have read a lot of fantasy stuff, not that much of the big and popular stuff but I am familiar with fantasy. (if the quote screws up, it is because I am really new here and have never quoted anything before)
 
No contest here: ASoIaF is so far superior as to be a closed to debate subject. But as most have noted, it's far from complete. I've read the first three and will now wait until they're all done before going back and re-reading them all straight through. Hopefully, I'll live that long (but if I don't, I'll do it in my next lifetime)!!
 
Last edited:
citri, Werthead's post is very informative and on the money.

I used to think that the three to five year gap in between Martin's books was a bad thing. Since I've found this site, I've been able to discuss, guess, postulate theories, and generally have a lot of fun hashing and rehashing ASOIAF. The lengthy time between books gives us plenty of time to engross ourselves deeper into the story. I'm already sad thinking that there will be an end to this series. Will I be able to find another epic series that is this well thought out and this solidly written? Will I be able to find another group of people willing to discuss it ad nauseum?

I'm going to give you a brief synopsis of a book... see if you recognize it.

A young man in a remote village flees, along with his three best friends, from dark creatures seeking to kill him. A wizard tells the young man that he needs to get to a safer place. The four companions barely outrun the fiends to a ferry, where they make good their escape. At a town the young man foolishly exposes himself to agents of the Dark Lord. A ranger, who secretly happens to be the lost heir of an ancient kingdom, helps the four friends escape. The ranger and the wizard lead the growing fellowship to an abandoned lost city in an attempt to throw off pursuit. In the ruins, the dumbest of the four friends accidentally awakens a demon who chases the fellowship out of the ruins.

What book have I described so far? If you said The Fellowship of the Ring, you'd be right. If you said The Eye of the World (the first book in The Wheel of Time series), then you'd also be correct. In my opinion, if you've alread read Tolkien, then save your time and money.

My two favorite complete epic works of fiction are Shogun by James Clavell and Illium and Olympos by Dan Simmons. Clavell writes historical fiction and Simmons writes sci-fi, mythology, horror, and fantasy all together.
 
Well, GRRM killed all other fantasy books for me (like Rome killed all other series and Video killed the radio star... :D)
 
If you have any interest at all in dresses and taking baths then I highly recommend The Wheel of Time. By the time you finish reading WoT you'll be a minor expert in both subjects. Because nothing says detail like 3 pages at a time dedicated to describing the dress of every female character in the current scene. Or 3 chapters devoted to one character preparing for and then taking a bath.

You'll also learn that females have exactly *one* emotional response to any stressful situation... ANGER. You'll find that the best way for females to display their ANGER is to smooth the skirt of their dress. This technique is effective in almost any situation. It would be a crime to have a messy dress after so many words have been devoted to describing every its every thread.
 
It was probably a bad idea to post this question in the George Martin section. I personally prefer WoT, although I still think ASoIaF is fantastic. It would be interesting to see what responses you would get in the Robert Jordan section asking the same question.
 
Khale said:
It was probably a bad idea to post this question in the George Martin section. I personally prefer WoT, although I still think ASoIaF is fantastic. It would be interesting to see what responses you would get in the Robert Jordan section asking the same question.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's actually a really good idea, so far all I have gotten for WoT is negative, I think I'll try it on the Robert Jordan section. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
viZion said:
If you have any interest at all in dresses and taking baths then I highly recommend The Wheel of Time. By the time you finish reading WoT you'll be a minor expert in both subjects. Because nothing says detail like 3 pages at a time dedicated to describing the dress of every female character in the current scene. Or 3 chapters devoted to one character preparing for and then taking a bath.

You'll also learn that females have exactly *one* emotional response to any stressful situation... ANGER. You'll find that the best way for females to display their ANGER is to smooth the skirt of their dress. This technique is effective in almost any situation. It would be a crime to have a messy dress after so many words have been devoted to describing every its every thread.
Click to expand...

And tugging their braids, they seem to do that a lot. And folding their arms beneath their breasts (where else are they going to fold them?)
The worst problem with the lengthy description of every stitch on the dresses is that they are copied verbatim from book to book. RJ didn't so much write these books as cut-and-paste bits out of the last few tomes to create a new one.
 
The Curious Orange said:
And folding their arms beneath their breasts (where else are they going to fold them?).
Click to expand...

above them (if it's an old maids with erm a lifetime of baby feeding)

or over them if they are less endowed? . . .

:p

RJ sucks, GRRM is awesome (but is taking to long with the next volume)
 
Oh darn, now I have to respond to a direct why question.

Just a subject that has been flogged to death and that whenever it comes up, someone say something silly and we all jump on them. While your sentiment about it may be one that is shared by many people, most of us here have resigned ourselves to just wait patiently because nothing we can do or say can change the reality that ADWD will be published only when GRRM has finished.

Anyway, that's all I'll say on the subject in the hope of NOT reigniting another debate about it.
 
Oh I get it, in this thread it's allowed to mock WOT only, sorry :)
Come on TK! You sound so bitter, almost like Dolorous Edd :p
 
I'm sorry but does anyone else see the absolute humor in the wheel of time's anagram? lol

wrong vowel.....

and boaz's earlier post is dead on
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread starter Similar threads Forum Replies Date
M. Robert Gibson George R.R. Martin feels “things have gotten worse” with TV and film adaptations George R R Martin 47
M. Robert Gibson Logan Lucky - George R R Martin George R R Martin 1
Brian G Turner The Influence of Viking Myth on A Song of Ice and Fire by George R R Martin George R R Martin 7
Werthead The Lands of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin & Jonathan Roberts Reviews & Interviews 0
Lacedaemonian Graphic novels by George RR Martin, Robert Jordan and Raymond E Feist. Graphic Novels & Comics 12

Similar threads


Back
Top