It would seem that the fantasy genre and a lack of originality should be diametrically opposed, but in my opinion they too often go hand-in-hand. By “the fantasy genre,” I mean that style of storytelling, whether through games or movies or literature, that transports the player/audience/reader into a world that departs dramatically from what we consider to be normal in our day-to-day realities. Thus, my definition of fantasy includes science fiction and surrealism, although these are also both distinct genres of their own. But personally, my main interest lies in “historical” or “classical” fantasy, the kind that takes its cue from human myth and the ancient world, the kind involving adventures and princesses and copious amounts of swords and sorcery.

This is my favorite type of fantasy, and it is also the type most likely to be derivative and uninspired.

You might ask why, if it is so often poorly done, it remains my favorite genre. To be honest, I can’t fully explain it myself. There is simply something about quasi-medieval settings that causes my heart to skip a beat. Something about the short, brutal, struggling lives most people led back then. Something about entire societies of people up to their necks in mud, superstition and cultural imperative, yet slogging onward towards hope and progress. In this way my vision of medieval fantasy more closely matches the interpretation of Terry Gilliam than it does that of J.R.R. Tolkien, which is odd considering that the latter is the template the entire genre is built on.

Unfortunately, Terry Gilliam’s medieval fantasies are among few that I consider to be truly original. Movies and video games, especially, are guilty of simply reiterating the worlds of Lord of the Rings or its offshoot, D&D, over and over again. Don’t get me wrong, I love both those worlds, and gladly acknowledge that LotR practically invented the fantasy genre as we know it. But a continued reliance on classics at the expense of fresh ideas is weakening the genre overall.