The Dark Tower series - the best and worst of Stephen King
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- čas přidán 10. 04. 2024
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The Dark Tower Series is, in my opinion, a masterpiece. I never felt that any of the books were overly long as I was completely immersed in the story, world and characters. I really enjoyed the ending, particularly as it seems that Roland is given something extra, The Horn Of Gilead, as he continues his quest. This suggests that the story might be different next time around. I would love to re-visit the series one day.
For me, it never got better than The Gunslinger. Just a weird western with magical elements.
I think he rushed to finish the series after his accident and he was scared that he wouldn't live to compete it.
That may well be true
This is, in fact, what happened: he felt enormous pressure to finish it but he had previously always talked about how writing a DT tale was a far different experience for him.
He would literally have to wait for his DT muse to randomly show up, he had a very vague idea where some of it might go, but that's it.
After the accident...he felt compelled to just write it.
For me, a long time DT junkie...the last three books just don't have the feel of the first four...that natural feel returned with TWTTKH.
Reading the 24 book extended universe of The Dark Tower over the course of a year was one of those unforgettable reading experiences I'll always think back to, but at times it got so frustrating! Some of the endings made no sense to me and I just had to trust Stephen King's process.
The mad thing was that I knew all the while, thanks to Stephen King's writing style, that he had no idea which direction the story would take. I was effectively trusting a pilot who was blind folded to successfully land the plane.
Ofc
I listened to The Darktower series on audiobook and loved it. I thought the narrators were fantastic! For me, the middle fell apart but the beginning and ending were great.
The best and worst of King is like a plate of food -everyone has an opinion of what is good or not. I have read the series a long time ago and have favorites. One of them is Wolves of the Calla. 😃
I've read the series 1.5 times and I agree with everything you said. King himself has said the books were never edited and that bothers him. It's super obvious after you've finished that he had no idea what was going on. There's moments of brilliance coupled with seeming bizarre fever dream sequences that make no sense.
I very much enjoyed the ending of Roland being on a perpetual cycle, but I despised the laughably dumb way the Crimson King is defeated. He's been played up as this all powerful super villain for 7 books and is then reduced to barely a speed bump? That felt cheap.
Kind of like a Wizard of Oz moment at the end.
Indeed it was😊
They definitely weren't edited! Ha ha. That much was as clear as crystal. Several characters names change throughout the series due to King's terrible memory and sheer lack of care. This happens in his other novels too, not just The Dark Tower. An abhorrent series by an abhorrent author. I'd sooner have gout than read anything by him ever again. Between myself and Harold Bloom I'm honestly not sure who detests King more.
I’m on the journey myself right now, on the 3rd book now, I skipped the spoiler section but you confirmed some of my suspicions about the series because I am used to SKs other well known works outside of the dark tower series
I absolutely love this series. So much so that I have a full sleeve tattoo with the Dark Tower theme. I'm glad you enjoyed it for the most part, and that you enjoyed the ending as well. It's interesting to note that King basically warned the reader to stop reading before the end of Roland's story.
I'm curious to know which book was your favorite?
Great video Olly! I stalled out at the huge mechanical bear in the woods scene, whichever book that was but kudos for pushing through. Authors should know how a story is going to end, at least roughly. When they get there some tweaks are fine, but pure pantsing 4000 pages ... eh.
In my opinion, I thought the first book had the best VIBE to it. I loved the dark, eerie, western, mysterious tone it presents.
Yeah it is cool
I never got around to reading the last two books. Probably have to reread the rest since it has been years since I read them. I kind of remember how the last one ended.
My favorite opening line of any novel ever (The Gunslinger) and one of my favorite closing lines of any novel ever (The Dark Tower). I definitely feel like King stuck the landing here, which isn't always the case with him. There is some slog in the middle, however. Cheers!
The best of times, the worst of times, eh ?
For the record, and im sure most know, but The Gunslinger (in it's initial form: he did revise it at some point) is actually a collection of short stories...all written at various times but coallated when he realized he'd be moving forward with a novel not more short stories...its part of what gives it that distinct episodic feel because, well, it is 5 episodes.
I, personally, rank DT2,3 & 4 among Kings finest writings: they occupy positions 2 thru 4 on my favorite King list....DT1 is somewhere in my top 15.
DT5, 6 & 7, however, all occupy the bottom 5 for me: they lack the earthy, organic, seat of your pants hyper creativity the first four are bathed in...they feel, to me, to be written to an outline.
But many love them, so what do i know.
I’m not sure I did know that about The Gunslinger, but it makes perfect sense
The height of the series was The Drawing of the Three. The worst for me was The Wolves of Calla. I laughed at the hoedown dance scene and all the meta fiction aspect didn’t work. Meta fiction requires a deft hand to do right and King did it wrong. I never read the follow up novel.
I've always felt a bit bad that I don't enjoy King's writing more. I'm originally from what was his home town for a long time, Bangor, Maine (Dairy in his stories). I grew up a 15 minute walk from his house, went to high school with his youngest, and met him a few times in passing. Always a nice guy and someone who did a lot for the community. And his son Owen was a really nice guy, too, when I knew him in school, which speaks well of the father (and mother).
But I just don't like the way he writes. I find the overall story of the Dark Tower series fascinating, and was hoping they'd do a TV series or something, because I'm never going to read it, but I still like a lot about it. Sadly, the movie they did make was garbage, so who knows if more will happen.
Mike Flanagan (the genius behind the Netflix Haunting of Hill House, Fall of the House of Usher, Midnight Mass shows, and way more awesome stuff) is developing The Dark Tower now for TV. If anybody can finally make it work, it'll be him
@@anotherbooktubechannel I hope Mike can stay true to the books and not interject Woke messaging. House of Usher was a fail. I disliked the characters and never finished. The Dark Tower movie was an insult. An Arthurian legend and Western mashed up was culturally appropriated by an UK African. It is ok to say enough tearing down of Western Civ. and boycott the bs.
@@willt8988white fragility is fucking hilarious
I made the mistake of starting the series. I finished book 3 and I'm hating it.
The Dark Tower is only one of two fantasy series I have liked. I think it is partly due to the fact that I am a fan of King's work and partly because it is like no other fantasy story. The strong clear Western feel with the world jumping and horror just makes it something special in a genre that seems full of books about stories that boil down to medieval Europe only with magic or\and Dragons.
Great review Olly! I really enjoyed this series, and I also liked the ending as well. I could’ve done without King himself as a character though.
I’m at wizard and glass in the series and I’m having trouble finishing it. It feels so random at times as if king is winging it as it’s written. I just finished Lonesome Dove not too long ago and loved it! Maybe I should complete the rest of those books.
If any author just wings his work then it's definitely King. I'm pretty sure he's a complete lunatic among other things that I won't mention.
It is worth finishing, I also struggled with Wizard and Glass, but there is definitely a clearer direction in the final three novels.
Drawing of the Three was top notch, especially with character development and bringing some very different people together. ☺️
I have weird guilt with this series because one of my best friends recommended this series to me when we were like 20 and I still haven't gotten around to it😅 she always gives me shit for it because she reads my recs, but im like "its 8 huge books!!" and she goes its been like 15 years and what can I really say to that lol
Ha ha yeah it is a big commitment! Worth it though IMO
You're not missing anything. Stephen King is a 💩 writer. These books are terrible.
I'm always going to wonder what the last three* books would have been like if he'd written them much earlier, but I'm not the hugest fan of books 3 and 4.
I also have to wonder what the movie adaptation would have been like if they hadn't tried to cram seven books into 90 minutes. Seriously, wtf Hollywood?
*Dnfed Wind Through the Keyhole out of boredom, so I don't count it.
Nothing else quite like it! Books 2 and 3 are some of Kings most original and exciting reads and I loved the ending of book 7. It’s far from perfect but it’s yet to be truly out-weirded and that makes it special. Gotta love Oy 😁
Those books are part of my childhood, my late uncle started letting me read his stephen king collection back when there were only three dark tower books. Honestly i think the series would have been better it could have been finished at its natural pace, if king had never had his car accident and decided to push to finish it. Wolves is still good, but for me thats where the quality starts to go downhill, and the gimmicky stephen king -isms (the repeating numbers and symbols and shit) get a little too corny and overbearing
I pretty much agree with all the main points of your critique and I also love this series soooo much. I read it every year.
Glad you felt I got it right. I can see myself reading it again at some point
A lot of people really, really love this series. Having read the whole thing twice. I am lukewarm on it. I think most of the books are at least good, with occasional great entries and one entry which I hate completely (Wizard & Glass). I've seen people say Wizard & Glass is one of the best King books ever, and I don't see it at all. Your points about King not knowing where the story was going from a book to book basis is probably the most important thing to keep in mind while reading it, and I do think it's a big reason why I am lukewarm on the series. It feels like it meanders at times and the stakes are often unclear.
Thank god I thought I was the only one that hated that book. While I have never gotten around to reading the last two the wizard and the glass was the worst for me and took forever to get through. I think in large part because it was all flash back.
@@stephennootens916 Yeah I can't get around the fact that the progression of the series as a whole stops dead with W&G. Maybe as it's own book it has some merits, but nowhere near enough in my opinion
I'd probably say it's my favorite, personally, but only if you put a gun to my head
Yeah I thought Wizard and Glass was good, but I am shocked that some hold that opinion that it’s this “fantastic GOAT book that King wrote”
My favorite Dark Tower story may have been The Little Sisters of Eluria in Everything's Eventual
It is cool. There are also comics😊
SPOILER!!!!
My 2 biggest gripes were the self indulgence of King as a charecter. He was in the story way too long and then to have the audacity to make the little boy charecter sacrifice himself to save himself was a bit much for me. 2nd issue was the man in blacks stupid pointless death. I waited 7 books to finally get a showdown between Roland and him and a stupid spider baby eats him? I was extremely angry at that bit. I felt robbed.
As someone who reads a lot of fantasy, 4,000 words over 7 books feels pretty breezy. I'm reading Malazan Book of The Fallen right now and the current book is 1200 pages.
Now that you're done with the series, I have to know where you land on the most divisive book, Wizard and Glass? I feel like most people have it as one of King's best books or they hate it. I love it.
In my opinion, here is my ranking of the books from best to worst:
1. Wolves of the Calla
2. The Dark Tower
3. The Drawing of the Three
4. The Gunslinger
5. The Wastelands
6. Wizard and Glass
7. Song of Susannah
Maybe he omits guns more often than not due to the rage controversy?
A severe lack of creativity or an intentional humble homage to the master of fantasy or an unconscious exercise in trying to outdo one’s teacher? IDK, but I do know I didn’t like it. I was a huge fan of King’s and read a few dozen of his novels before jumping into the Dark Tower series, ready to take on a different kind of story of his. Read books 1-4 back-to-back and didn’t continue. I was just bored. I couldn’t get into the premise, the setting, the characters, the whole damn thing. It just felt like King had a goal, a challenge he set for himself: give Tolkien a run for his money, but didn’t have an idea worthy of all those pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and pages and… King said he wanted to do an epic fantasy in the vein of Tolkien. Sadly, he flat out ripped off the phallic TOWER male power symbolism, even using the word in the series title. King’s dark, little tower just laid there, limp and lifeless. I didn’t care to find out what happened at the end. Twenty-five years+ later I still don’t. And no, I’m not a Tolkien fanboy. Can’t stand his writing. Just a big King fan who has an honest opinion on some of his work. They can’t all be winners.
If I’m being honest, after hearing those spoilers, im glad I never attempted to read this series. Sounds like I wouldn’t be satisfied
The big twist that happens in the later books (yall know what I mean) is really a make or break. In my opinion, I didn’t like the twist. But the twist itself was well written and was executed fairly, I just didn’t care for the concept.
Agree that it’s make of break.
For me, the final volume was a travesty and better left unpublished. Made me regret the time I wasted reading the series. I hated the things you liked.
I felt much the same the first time I read it, but I listened to the audiobooks a few years ago from start to finish again and had a change of heart. And in many ways Roland "got what was coming to him" so to speak. He may have been the protagonist of the story, but he proceeded in such a way that the end justified whatever means it took to reach it
@@jakegriffin8387 Why did you give it a 2nd chance?
@@delhatton I had liked a lot of the story and characters and just wanted to revisit it. It was also a different experience in audiobook with the voice acting.
🖤💚
The ending of this series is my most favourite ending that I have ever read. I loved the full circle of it.
The demographic of his readership like guns, I suspect he succumbed for commercial reasons. This meta fiction thing is new to me. How incredibly lame 🤣 Authors really do this? I didn't know it was a thing. That would be an instant, throw a book at the wall for me. I'd give McBain a pass on the birth date too. That gets DDB's approval 👍, which let's face it, is all that matters 😉