Summary
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Fantasy series face the challenge of replicating the success of Game of Thrones and should focus on being unique rather than imitating it.
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The high production costs of fantasy shows can be a hindrance and make it difficult to achieve the desired adaptation from the source material.
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Deviating too much from the source material can anger fans and lead to incoherent storylines, highlighting the importance of fidelity in adaptation.
fantasy is currently one of the most marketable television genres in Hollywood, despite being very difficult to pull off. game of Thrones was a cultural phenomenon in the 2010s and sparked interest from almost every streaming service to try their hand at their own fantasy series. Many subsequent shows like The Witcher or The Rings of Power were controversial, and it’s fair to say that none could match the cultural appeal they had game of Thrones had before season 8.
Many fantasy book series have a large audience who care about seeing their favorite worlds faithfully implemented on television. There are a number of ongoing series like The Wheel of Time And House of the Dragon, while other fantasy books surprisingly haven’t become shows yet. For these series to be successful and worth their huge budgets, they must overcome certain challenges.
10 studios want the next Game of Thrones
A big problem that fantasy series face is the studio’s desire to repeat the success of game of Thrones. In Hollywood, it’s common for the wrong lessons to be learned from the success and demise of a property game of Thrones left a vacuum that studios rushed to fill without understanding what their properties were. The Witcher shouldn’t strive to be next Game of Thrones. It should just be tried The Witcher. An adaptation that deviates from its source material to imitate another story is a recipe for tonal inconsistency and a messy narrative.
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9 Fantasy shows are expensive
Fantasy shows are incredibly expensive. The Rings of Power The worst enemy was the budget, as the first season cost $450 million, making success a steep hill. House of the Dragon The budget for the first season was $200 million, but these properties have already proven successful in Hollywood. For the adaptation of a fantasy book series, the price may be too high for the direct adaptation a showrunner or fans would hope for. Efficient use of budget is also a factor, as simply throwing money at a film or show hasn’t proven to be a winning formula lately.
8 Deviations from the source material represent a major risk
For some reason, fantasy book adaptations have had trouble lately because they stray too far from their source material. The source material is proven to work, and major deviations can lead to angry fans and incoherent storylines. The books are written with great attention to detail. Small changes can benefit a series, but too many changes can have a domino effect that destroys the essence of the series’ world. Rings of power made changes to the Tolkien canon, which many fans found upsetting.
7Fantasy action is difficult to pull off on a TV budget
When it comes to action, the show’s budget can be a limiting factor to the imagination. game of Thrones wasn’t a series that relied too heavily on action. There aren’t many magical aspects, especially in the beginning, and mystical creatures like direwolves and dragons are small and rare. If you like a book series The Stormlight Archives If the budget were to be adjusted, it could hinder many of the huge battles and epic fight sequences. Fantasy battles involving high magic have been disappointing in television adaptations so far.
6 Production design is overshadowed by CGI
A key element that made both of them Lord of the rings films and game of Thrones That’s how immersive the production design was. Aside from obvious cases like dragons and ferocious beasts, neither project relies too heavily on CGI. Both Middle-earth and Westeros are crafted to be entirely believable through keen attention to meaningful detail. Everything from the lighting to weather-resistant wood to the characters’ grime is constructed with the world’s believability in mind. Shows that require less time to prepare and shoot often rely on fixing things in post-production, resulting in worlds that feel fake.
5 Hollywood doesn’t understand the fantasy genre yet
The Wheel of Time And The Witcher are seen as attempts by the studios to fill that game of Thrones void because Hollywood doesn’t understand what they are. The Wheel of Time was considered one of the most prolific fantasy series ever written game of Thrones became a phenomenon. There is no reason for it The Wheel of Time Compete with someone game of Thronesand trying to fill the cultural void of something that is not. Every fantasy series is different and only by understanding the strengths of the book series can you truly portray it on screen.
4 Not everything can be neatly adapted to the screen
When adapting a novel, changes may be necessary. Although budgeting is a big reason for this, there are other factors. The episodic formula is special and requires a different pace than a novel. This may result in changes to a narrative due to the time constraints or dynamics of the episode. Not to mention, internal monologues and character observations are more difficult to portray than in novels.
3 Fantasy worlds are complicated
In fantasy stories, it is important that the viewer understands the world. Fantasy worlds are complex, from political systems to magical systems to religions, and understanding that information is often an integral part of the story. Conveying this information on television can be complicated because you don’t want to bog down the show with endless exposition and info-dumping. Trying to add too much complexity to a show at the beginning can really slow down the pacing. There’s a lot of world building and mythology The Wheel of Time for the show to explore over time.
2 Epic fantasy often requires historical context in the world
Aside from simply depicting the current world, fantasy stories often rely on previous historical context to ground their stories. game of Thrones had Robert’s Rebellion and Lord of the rings had the events of The Hobbit and the War of the Last Alliance to explain. These backstories are essential to the current timeline and require careful exposition to delve into, but they don’t show everything between Robert’s Rebellion and game of Thrones, as it would affect the flow and authenticity. Providing this context can be another obstacle and come at the expense of early character development.
1 Fantasy characters need to be relatable to modern audiences
The essential element of great fantasy is its characters. Be they great heroes, wise mentors or evil villains, a fantasy The success of the series depends on having characters that the audience can identify with. Not every character needs to be incredibly complex, but they should have exciting conflicts and developments that compel the audience to join them on their adventure. Jon Snow’s mission to defend the Wall against White Walkers isn’t exactly a relatable experience, but his search for a sense of belonging and his innocent approach to romance make him an endearing character to watch.
Source : screenrant.com