History Main / GatewaySeries

* ''{{Thief}}'', a stealth simulator, was marketed as a big new twist on the overinflated FirstPersonShooter genre. It got quite a few action gamers interested in stealth games.

** Similarly, ''DeadOrAlive'' does this for 3D fighting games due to its simplistic controls and [[JigglePhysics large appeal]].

** To a lesser extent, ''Series/StargateUniverse'' has attracted people previously uninterested in the {{Stargate}} mythos to the franchise. Tycho of ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/2010/9/29/ wrote something to the effect of]] "I really didn't know much about Stargate other than that there are gates and they somehow involved stars but I like this show and am now interested."

* The myriad of PhilipKDick adaptations (''Scanner Darkly'',''Total Recall'',''Paycheck'', ''Blade Runner'', ''Minority Report'') and also the WilliamGibson adaptation/basis of movies like ''Johnny Mnemonic'' or ''Strange Days'' as an introduction into sci-fi beyond laser beams and space ships.
* While it was much less popular than ''StarWars'', and had much less of an effect overall, ''ChildrenOfMen'' apparently served as a gateway to science fiction. For some reason, it wasn't subjected to the SciFiGhetto itself, and its lack of self-conscious "coolness" allowed it to stand as an example of science fiction in general rather than an example of cool action-style sci-fi like ''Film/TheMatrix'' or ''TheTerminator''.

* InteractiveFiction started the AdventureGame genre, but many felt it to be too inaccessible. The move to graphic adventures was fairly rapid, but despite some awesome games like ''VideoGame/KingsQuest'' and ''VideoGame/ManiacMansion'' they remained a niche genre for several years. Then LucasArts (at the time still a strict part of Lucasfilm) went and made a game called ''VideoGame/{{Loom}}'', one of the most accessible adventure games ever created. This created a veritable explosion in the PC adventure game market, which ended almost a decade later. And for those who were not yet fully convinced, Lucas Arts followed the left punch with the right soon thereafter, giving us the most famous PC Adventure Game ever created, ''TheSecretOfMonkeyIsland''.

* Many people get interested in Japanese culture in general via Anime.

* ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'', ''MrBean'', ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'' and ''Series/FawltyTowers'' to British comedy in general.

* MilesDavis for {{jazz}} in general, but also, due to his many [[GenreShift Genre Shifts]] and his enormous fame, for a number of jazz subgenres, including cool jazz, hard bop, post-bop, and fusion.

* ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' must have gotten plenty of people into {{B movie}}s.

* ''Series/{{QI}}'' frequently serves as an introcductrion the concept of the British PanelShow for non-Brits, being one of the most popular and acclaimed.

** This is because ''Deka'' was the first ''SuperSentai'' series to be subbed in its entirety.
** And if it wasn't ''Deka'' it was ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger,'' since it came along right around the time most fans though that ''Power Rangers'' was going to be cancelled for good, and started looking elsewhere. ''KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'' did this as well, especially because of the sheer awesomeness.
** Also, ''Series/HikoninSentaiAkibaranger'' is this for those growing up on just Anime and/or PowerRangers.
* Your average western [[{{tokusatsu}} toku]] fan's story goes a little something like this: "Gee, I sure did like MightyMorphinPowerRangers when I was little! So wait, it's actually an adaptation of [[KyoryuSentaiZyuranger a Japanese show]]? I think I'll check it out- wow, this sure is a good show!" And it goes on from there.
* A popular gateway series to ''Kamen Rider'' is ''{{Kamen Rider Den-O}}''. Only ''KamenRiderDecade'' and ''KamenRiderDouble'' are like ''Den-O'' so it's not especially representative of ''Kamen Rider''.

** Nintendo has the reputation of being the video game company that makes games to introduce people to videogames who never played them before, something that the company opens states being their goal. Of couse, some people don't [[AccentuateTheNegative say it like that]].

* Long-time series such as ''VideoGame/{{Castlevania}}'' -- espeically ''Symphony of the Night'' tend to be gateways for modern players into the world of retro gaming, especially those curious about references to characters from previous games.

** Meanwhile, ''KamenRiderV3'' can easily qualify as one to the various Showa-era series, due to being the only entry to get a legitimate R1 release.

* ''Series/{{Skins}}'' was also a gateway series to British Shows like ''{{Misfits}}'' and ''TheInbetweeners''.

* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' is the GatewaySeries for the audience in TheNewTens, [[http://wiki.puella-magi.net/Spa_Weekly!_2011-07-19 as its sheer popularity means its fans are often noted intellectuals]]. The problem is it's definitely [[DeconReconSwitch not a good representation]] [[MagicalGirl for its genre]]. But then, ''{{Evangelion}}'' wasn't a typical HumongousMecha show...

* Some of the more mainstream [[NuMetal nu-metal]] bands like LinkinPark, {{Slipknot}} and Music/KoRn, while not particularly heavy, have served as good Gateways to much heavier and varied subgenres of the heavy metal musical umbrella.

* ''TokusouSentaiDekaranger'' is a gateway series for those who entered Sentai fandom earlier than [[JukenSentaiGekiranger Gekiranger]].

** And if it wasn't ''Deka'' it was ''SamuraiSentaiShinkenger,'' since it came along right around the time most fans though that ''Power Rangers'' was going to be cancelled for good, and started looking elsewhere. ''KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'' did this as well, especially because of the sheer awesomeness.

A GatewaySeries is a series that introduces a significant niche of viewers to a genre that is new to them, and that is a positive enough introduction for them to hunt down other examples of the genre.

** ''Anime/TheBigO'' is heavily influenced by American fiction, having been called {{Batman}} with robots, so it's easy for Americans to follow. For a time Creator/AdultSwim showed it on weeknights just after Family Guy and Futurama, and it got a large enough following in the U.S. that they were able to finance a second season, showing new episodes at the front of their Sunday night lineup.