The Belgariad-Saga

[jdavis]

Jdavis, you're a genius.

John D Davis Supra-Genius, I like the sound of that.

 

[Mallus]

They're formulaic. The characters are 2-d cardboard cutouts. The regular use of deus-ex-machina (even though it's called, 'the dry voice in his mind' or 'the prophecy') is cheesy beyond anything. But I like them, god help me. If someone can explain this anomaly to me, I'd be much obliged.

It's simple. They're fun. Eddings makes no bones about how derivitive his books are. In fact, they come very close to parody --like whenever Mandorallen explains Arendish concepts of honor. To me they resemble a cross between The Princess Bride and an epic mutlivolume fantasy like LotR, erring ever-so-slightly on the side of seriousness.

What fantasy reader wouldn't delight in his archetypal, yet all-so-quippy heroes? He's almost writing parody, but not quite, getting to mock all of silly conventions of fantasy fiction {don't they all make fun of Mandorallen's stuffy quasi-Elizabethan speech?} while all the while telling a big rip-roaring fantasy adventure.