I put it in the same group as Harry Potter. "Someone else better idea with enough stupid to give it mass appeal". (Anyone who ever read Neil Gaiman's The books of magic knows what I mean.)
Poll: Eragon: Quality Children's Literature or Shitty Ripoff?
- Thread starter mrhappyface
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Yes and no -- you're talking about two different things, here.Time Warp said:
Yeah, shitty fantasy authors rip off better writers, and that sucks, but that doesn't mean fantasy as a genre is inherently uncreative -- Tolkien, George R. R. Martin, and China Mieville are all creative fantasy authors, all who came up with their own detailed worlds, and who are all very, very different.
As for your second point, that's Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces, but that's referring to a deeper framework than dwarves and elves and applies to more than just fantasy.
It's not particularly well written, suffers far to badly from designated hero. Great read if you go with the alternate character interpretation that the "hero" is a bipolar sociopath
Never read it, but the movie was fucking atrocious. The whole time, I was trying to mentally replace all dialogue with scenes from A New Hope or Flash Gordon.
Although I did feel a tingly sensation in my nether parts every time Jeremy Irons opened his mouth.
Be prepared.
Although I did feel a tingly sensation in my nether parts every time Jeremy Irons opened his mouth.
Be prepared.
Film? You think the film was the original Dante's Inferno?Hubilub said:
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... Haaaaaaaa...
Oh, that's good. Haha.
Also, Dante's Inferno is extremely un-original when compared to any game out there, and that's what matters when dealing in GAMES.
OP: It's not as bad as all the damning, and has a rich backstory to pluck from, but that's only because it's a ripoff. Where's the option of "Actually quite good ripoff"?
The Dragon Riders books were better though.
I haven't read Eragon, but...
For Le Guin's sake, her other books had better be better than Wizard of Earthsea. It was more telling than showing, the events fly by way too fast for anything to develop from them, and the second half of the book insulted my intelligence - it consists almost entirely of Ged running around moaning about how he'll never conquer the shadow without knowing its name, yet I knew what its name was since the meeting with the dragon, as should any reader with an IQ higher than their shoe size because it's oh-so obvious and cliched, yet Ged didn't figure it out until the third to last page.Time Warp said:
Well, I read the books, all three of them (even the second one, wherein the Dutch version, they get an unhealthy obsession with the word 'crimson'), but it's a pretty obvious ripoff.
Still quite entertaining though. Almost anything produced these days is a ripoff of something, so excluding certain books/games/movies/thingamajigs just on that premise... well, you're gonna end up with a pretty empty shelf.
Still quite entertaining though. Almost anything produced these days is a ripoff of something, so excluding certain books/games/movies/thingamajigs just on that premise... well, you're gonna end up with a pretty empty shelf.
Generic high fantasy has been used so mnay times now its impossible not to rip somthing off. I enjoyed the books, though the constant description of that sexy elf wench does get annoying. Yes we know Eragon wants her and she could give a blinding toss, stop telling us that. Though it is nice that Paloini has so far resisted the temptation to write a steamy sex scene in.
And hey, at least there aren't any orcs or goblins.
And hey, at least there aren't any orcs or goblins.
Well, the only thing I know about Eragon is the game demo. Which I actually finished. And that bodes well. So, quality children's literature.
I personally enjoyed the series but I guess I have nothing to compare it too as the series was my first venture into the fantasy genre of literature, usually I stick around in science fiction. The movie on the other hand was another shining example of book to movie fail though.
Movie was awful; now the books were good. The claims it rips off stuff is a bit unfounded.
He finds a person he met was once a relative... Oh no! It Starwars. Okay if it was straight "I AM YOUR FATHER!" then sure; but it's his brother; who I hasten to add is on (very) complicated good terms with him. Thus original enough.
Lord of the rings; sure he is clearly inspired by the books and/or films but it is an influence not a rip-off.
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[sub]Love is like a book; a real cover to cover review (I'm allowed one dirty one okay? I do not believe this one; I just wanted the funnies)
~Me[/sub]
He finds a person he met was once a relative... Oh no! It Starwars. Okay if it was straight "I AM YOUR FATHER!" then sure; but it's his brother; who I hasten to add is on (very) complicated good terms with him. Thus original enough.
Lord of the rings; sure he is clearly inspired by the books and/or films but it is an influence not a rip-off.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[sub]Love is like a book; a real cover to cover review (I'm allowed one dirty one okay? I do not believe this one; I just wanted the funnies)
~Me[/sub]
By the time I was a quarter-way through the book, I suddenly realised that I could predict what was going to happen next; then it struck me that essentially, the entire plot was a near-direct rip-off of the Star Wars trilogy (4-6).
EDIT: Found it. Read on..
[spoiler = spoilered for size]A boy of foggy origins lives with his uncle in a remote, backwater region of a vast empire headed by an evil Emperor and his right-hand man, who was once prominent in an ancient order of guardians with mystical powers. An object of vital importance to the rebellion against the Empire is transported from a princess under attack to the remote region of the Empire, where an old man lives who once belonged to the ancient order of guardians, and was part of the rebellion. The farmboy comes across the object through sheer luck. The boy seeks out the old man to learn about the ancient order, but eventually has to return to his uncle's farm. The boy finds that it has been destroyed by fire by the Empire's agents, and his uncle killed. The boy sets off with the old hermit, who gives him a weapon unique to the ancient order of guardians, a weapon that is also, coincidentally, the boy's father's.
As they travel, they train. The old hermit has the boy focus more on swordsmanship, but also teaches him a little bit about the ways of the mystical order of guardians and reason. The boy meets up with a rogue who is full of surprises for all his proclaimed selfishness. The boy also begins having visions of a beautiful woman imprisoned and in need of help - the same princess who sent him the object of importance.
The boy decides that he needs to rescue her, even though he doesn't know her; further, he thinks of her only as beautiful. The old hermit dies as a sacrifice so that the boy can escape from danger; the damsel is rescued, and they must set off to the rebellion. The Empire tracks them, and shortly after reaching the rebellion, they are attacked. A massive battle happens, one whose outcome will either save the rebellion or destroy them completely.
The boy proves his worth with heroics during the battle, but his crowning achievement is his destruction of one of the Empire's most prized weapons, a shade. The boy is aided in this by one of his friends, who arrives at precisely the right moment. The boy is lauded a hero.
The boy has a hallucination of a powerful master who can teach him more of the ancient order. The boy travels to the powerful master to learn the ways of the ancient order's mystical power. While there, he grows very powerful. While he is away, the Rebellion regroups in a new area. Just when the boy is on a roll with his training, and has grown very powerful, he has a vision of his friends in great danger. He decides he must go to help them. His master warns him not to go. The boy promises that he will return. He leaves.
He finds his friends just in time and is able to distract the enemy so that his friends will remain safe. He engages in one-on-one combat with a foe who is revealed to be family - he finds out that his father was the right-hand man of the Emperor-his father was the one who betrayed the ancient order and helped kill them. The boy is shocked and ultimately defeated, but not killed. He loses his weapon and finds out that someone dear to him has been taken by a minor villain, and promises to find this person.
[/spoiler]
The movie was ghastly too, with them shortening something around 5-6 chapters worth of travel through the desert/mountains into a 4-second montage.
EDIT: Found it. Read on..
[spoiler = spoilered for size]A boy of foggy origins lives with his uncle in a remote, backwater region of a vast empire headed by an evil Emperor and his right-hand man, who was once prominent in an ancient order of guardians with mystical powers. An object of vital importance to the rebellion against the Empire is transported from a princess under attack to the remote region of the Empire, where an old man lives who once belonged to the ancient order of guardians, and was part of the rebellion. The farmboy comes across the object through sheer luck. The boy seeks out the old man to learn about the ancient order, but eventually has to return to his uncle's farm. The boy finds that it has been destroyed by fire by the Empire's agents, and his uncle killed. The boy sets off with the old hermit, who gives him a weapon unique to the ancient order of guardians, a weapon that is also, coincidentally, the boy's father's.
As they travel, they train. The old hermit has the boy focus more on swordsmanship, but also teaches him a little bit about the ways of the mystical order of guardians and reason. The boy meets up with a rogue who is full of surprises for all his proclaimed selfishness. The boy also begins having visions of a beautiful woman imprisoned and in need of help - the same princess who sent him the object of importance.
The boy decides that he needs to rescue her, even though he doesn't know her; further, he thinks of her only as beautiful. The old hermit dies as a sacrifice so that the boy can escape from danger; the damsel is rescued, and they must set off to the rebellion. The Empire tracks them, and shortly after reaching the rebellion, they are attacked. A massive battle happens, one whose outcome will either save the rebellion or destroy them completely.
The boy proves his worth with heroics during the battle, but his crowning achievement is his destruction of one of the Empire's most prized weapons, a shade. The boy is aided in this by one of his friends, who arrives at precisely the right moment. The boy is lauded a hero.
The boy has a hallucination of a powerful master who can teach him more of the ancient order. The boy travels to the powerful master to learn the ways of the ancient order's mystical power. While there, he grows very powerful. While he is away, the Rebellion regroups in a new area. Just when the boy is on a roll with his training, and has grown very powerful, he has a vision of his friends in great danger. He decides he must go to help them. His master warns him not to go. The boy promises that he will return. He leaves.
He finds his friends just in time and is able to distract the enemy so that his friends will remain safe. He engages in one-on-one combat with a foe who is revealed to be family - he finds out that his father was the right-hand man of the Emperor-his father was the one who betrayed the ancient order and helped kill them. The boy is shocked and ultimately defeated, but not killed. He loses his weapon and finds out that someone dear to him has been taken by a minor villain, and promises to find this person.
The movie was ghastly too, with them shortening something around 5-6 chapters worth of travel through the desert/mountains into a 4-second montage.