When I was a kid, Coca-Cola did something unexpected.

They were worried about competition from their big rival Pepsi, so they did some tests.

After looking at the results, they took the recipe of roughly 100 years and tossed it

out the window.

They got out with the old in with the new, as they say, right?

In fact, they literally called it new Coke, and it was a complete failure.

Within three months, they brought back the old recipe under the reassuring label of Coca-Cola

Classic, hoping to calm all that fear and panic that threatened to ruin them.

Yes, they kept trying to sell the new version for another five years, but they eventually

called it quits.

Because most of the time, you can't beat an old classic.

For example, is the clash of the Titans film from a decade ago packed with visual spectacle

and great action?

Absolutely, but it doesn't hold a candle to the 1981 original, despite all that glitz

and glamour.

The same could be said for cars, or music, or just about anything else.

Pick a field, or genre, or medium, and there's a list of classics.

They stand as examples that define their category, or hold on as perennial favorites.

Even within the world of folklore, it's more of the same.

And in the world of folklore, few types of stories are considered classic than one genre

in particular.

Is it ancient?

...