By C.T. Philips

Grimdark is in the eye of the beholder.

On a more simpler term, grimdark is a term which was initially bandied about by the gaming community of science-fiction and fantasy as an insult for books which were “trying too hard to be taken seriously.”

The term originally comes from the over-the-top hardcore dystopian science-fiction/fantasy setting Warhammer 40K. However, something (black) magical happened when a lot of fans who enjoyed the titles so referred started to use it as a positive descriptor of the fantasy they like. Grimdark, to the horror of grimdark hipsters everywhere, became mainstream.

Read the full article at the United Federation of Charles.