Game of Thrones is a gateway into the fantasy genre for many new fans. This is a compliment to George R. R. Martin's work and an insult to most other fantasy fiction. The series is more grounded, gritty, and adult-oriented than any of The Lord of the Rings' successors. Subsequently, it eschews most of the high fantasy elements of other entries. Game of Thrones borrows the Basilisk from ancient myth and shifts it into something more realistic.