The Dark Tower: In Conclusion
Okay, so. While in England, I finally, FINALLY finished the last book in the Dark Tower series, AND since then I have also finished the graphic novel The Gunslinger Born and read the first 3 issues of The Long Road Home. So basically I am 99.9% on top of all things Dark Tower, and I can now SQUEE AT GREAT, EPIC LENGTH about the series for the handful of people on my f-list who actually give a crap. All the rest of you should probably scroll on by, it's All About Uncle Steve in this post.
Okay, first, I need to get my reactions to book 7 out of the way. And by "reactions" I mean OH MY GOD I CRIED SO MUCH, FUCK YOU STEPHEN KING, FUCK YOUUUUUUU! I'll admit, I had accidentally spoiled myself for the Completely Uncalled For Death of Jake Chambers, and I'd had a clue Eddie was going to die since Song of Susannah (if I quote the "parted by DEEAAAAATH" line one more time, someone's gonna scream, and I can't promise it won't be me). Seriously, though. In so many ways, despite how painful and heart-wrenching and hard to read parts of it were (oh, oh my god you guys, my heart when Eddie died, and Roland rocking himself and weeping in the clearing where he buried Jake... I COULDN'T HANDLE IT)... Book 7 was so amazing. And hahahaha, I cried SO MUCH.
I cried when they had their reunion, because it was one of the sweetest scenes in any story I've ever read or watched, bar none. I cried during "Ka-shume" (OWWWWW), I cried when Sheemie described the Beam in his dream, I cried (A LOT) during Eddie's death scene (oh god, when Roland asks Eddie to open his eyes and look at his face and calls him "dear"? When Eddie calls him "Father"? *BREAKS*), and I cried my EEEYES out when Roland lost Jake. Oh, oh Jake. And Suze without her Eddie! And poor broken-hearted, lonely Roland, finally figuring out what's really important just in time to have lost it all. I LOVED all the parts with Dandelo & the Ho Fat Taxi, though. AHAHAHAHAAAAA, and this book was soooo amazingly shippy of basically every single pairing. EVERY ONE. I COULD SEE IT, I SWEARSIT.
I also need to note, right here and right now, that I felt really truly sorry for Mordred. YES, I realize he was a scary evil werespider-baby, but... baby. CHILD. That did not ask for his lot in life, and certainly spends most of the book being miserable and lonely and hating everyone for having all the things in life that he doesn't have, as well as just, you know, being evil. (Oh my god the part where he killed Walter squicked me so BAD, though. HIS EYEBALLS!!! I just. ASLKDFJAKSFADS *keymash* JESUS.) Him dying of poisoned horseflesh was somehow epically hilarious, though.
So many parts that I loved! The uffi (is that how you spelled it?) at the castle of the Crimson King, that was awesome. Suzie's Cruisin' Trike! And I thoroughly approve of Roland's temporary girlfriend Irene. Rosalita Munoz is still the best gunslinger-GF in the series (go away, Susan Delgado, you suck) but Irene was pretty awesome and fun.
You wanna know the part I cried the hardest at, though? I cried so fucking hard at the epilogue in New York because it took me completely by surprise. For whatever reason, I just did not expect it at all. I got to the end of the epilogue (
jou will tell you how loudly I gasped when we found out Jake was Eddie's younger brother in this world), put my bookmark in place, and sobbed on jou's shoulder. For whatever reason that just hit me really, really hard.
And of course I read the ending, how could I not? And at first my reaction was more along the lines of outraged squawking than anything else. But after I'd had a day or so to digest it (and to stop feeling COMPLETELY CHEATED at having gotten all the way to the end, only to be sent packin' back to the beginning), I decided that I actually really, really like the ending. It fits. It fits the story, it fits the TYPE of story and the themes King introduced, and I could go into greater detail but I just think it fits even though, astragic_frog so succinctly put it: "Roland gets BONED!"
And now I feel like I really have to react to the series as a whole in some way; not because anyone here is expecting me to, but just because this story has affected me so deeply and so profoundly that to NOT react would be worse than lazy; it'd be a lie. I have not been this deeply affected by a story since I first got into Star Wars and Lord of the Rings before I hit double digits in age. It has THAT kind of mental resonance for me, the kind I thought you could only have as a child, when everything moves through your spheres of reality with a huge, mythic sort of presence. But oh, I loved this story so, so much. The characters were amazingly real to me, and worked their ways into my heart almost immediately and then just dug deeper and deeper the more time I spent with them. It's as if Stephen King sat down and made himself a list of all the really important, meaningful things in life, and then set out to write an epic about it, and it just so happens that his list and my list seem to overlap a hell of a lot. At least, that's the way it feels.
What do I love most about the series? Ummmm... that'd be an essay unto itself, worthy of a final in any 300-level English class, so we'll try to keep it a bit shorter. I loved the characters, like I said. They're SO real and they experience such dynamic, interesting change as the series go on and they all grow. I love the characters' relationships with each other; I could read endless stories about these characters doing their laundry and making turkey sandwiches and making stupid jokes and scratching their damn butts, and I'd be endlessly entertained and happy. They're like good friends whose mere presence makes any task worthwhile and enjoyable. I love them. Um, I have to admit to loving the "shit just happens and it's KA" method of story-telling. I think the series does a really great job of bringing up the question of destiny vs. free will (I love that the characters DEBATE this point a LOT, and it doesn't necessarily leave you with a definitive answer to any of those myriad questions, either!). I loved how flippant and random and pop-culture-referencing it was, though no doubt it'll be dated somewhere down the line because of it, but whatever. I loved the symmetry and cohesion of the story when it was done right (like you'd admire a well-made—or at least, interesting—car), and I laughed my ASS off at the parts where it was really obvious that Sai King was reeeaaaaching to cover those plot holes and dropped loose ends. Seriously? Evil demon-baby spawn of both Roland and the Crimson King? WAY TO PULL THAT ONE OUT OF THE FIRE AFTER YOU DROPPED IT, UNCLE STEVE. But asjou says, it pushes all my buttons.
What don't I love? The lack of a good bad-guy. I WAS SO DISAPPOINTED AT THE CRIMSON KING, YOU GUYS. I wanted an epic showdown between age-old nemeses! Instead, Roland.... gets Patrick to erase the goddamn Crimson King. To a pair of eyes. (WHAT'RE YOU GONNA DO, GLARE AT ME?!) And Walter never seemed to have enough of a presence to make me really hate him, either. He just wasn't around enough. Also, he was completely, irrevocably bizarre. And Mordred was dying of poisoned horsemeat before Roland ever shot him. Good job, Ro. Fail, Mordred.
In conclusion, I have MORE than one plot-bunny currently gnawing the electrical wires in my brain, I want to get the 2 (3?) companion books to the Dark Tower series, and upon finishing the last book I IMMEDIATELY wanted to pick up book #1 again and start re-reading. (BASTARD!) I'm forcing myself to read DT-related books instead, and I've started with The Talisman. :D Falling asleep now so I'm gonna go to bed. Have a good night, all!
Okay, first, I need to get my reactions to book 7 out of the way. And by "reactions" I mean OH MY GOD I CRIED SO MUCH, FUCK YOU STEPHEN KING, FUCK YOUUUUUUU! I'll admit, I had accidentally spoiled myself for the Completely Uncalled For Death of Jake Chambers, and I'd had a clue Eddie was going to die since Song of Susannah (if I quote the "parted by DEEAAAAATH" line one more time, someone's gonna scream, and I can't promise it won't be me). Seriously, though. In so many ways, despite how painful and heart-wrenching and hard to read parts of it were (oh, oh my god you guys, my heart when Eddie died, and Roland rocking himself and weeping in the clearing where he buried Jake... I COULDN'T HANDLE IT)... Book 7 was so amazing. And hahahaha, I cried SO MUCH.
I cried when they had their reunion, because it was one of the sweetest scenes in any story I've ever read or watched, bar none. I cried during "Ka-shume" (OWWWWW), I cried when Sheemie described the Beam in his dream, I cried (A LOT) during Eddie's death scene (oh god, when Roland asks Eddie to open his eyes and look at his face and calls him "dear"? When Eddie calls him "Father"? *BREAKS*), and I cried my EEEYES out when Roland lost Jake. Oh, oh Jake. And Suze without her Eddie! And poor broken-hearted, lonely Roland, finally figuring out what's really important just in time to have lost it all. I LOVED all the parts with Dandelo & the Ho Fat Taxi, though. AHAHAHAHAAAAA, and this book was soooo amazingly shippy of basically every single pairing. EVERY ONE. I COULD SEE IT, I SWEARSIT.
I also need to note, right here and right now, that I felt really truly sorry for Mordred. YES, I realize he was a scary evil werespider-baby, but... baby. CHILD. That did not ask for his lot in life, and certainly spends most of the book being miserable and lonely and hating everyone for having all the things in life that he doesn't have, as well as just, you know, being evil. (Oh my god the part where he killed Walter squicked me so BAD, though. HIS EYEBALLS!!! I just. ASLKDFJAKSFADS *keymash* JESUS.) Him dying of poisoned horseflesh was somehow epically hilarious, though.
So many parts that I loved! The uffi (is that how you spelled it?) at the castle of the Crimson King, that was awesome. Suzie's Cruisin' Trike! And I thoroughly approve of Roland's temporary girlfriend Irene. Rosalita Munoz is still the best gunslinger-GF in the series (go away, Susan Delgado, you suck) but Irene was pretty awesome and fun.
You wanna know the part I cried the hardest at, though? I cried so fucking hard at the epilogue in New York because it took me completely by surprise. For whatever reason, I just did not expect it at all. I got to the end of the epilogue (
jou will tell you how loudly I gasped when we found out Jake was Eddie's younger brother in this world), put my bookmark in place, and sobbed on jou's shoulder. For whatever reason that just hit me really, really hard. And of course I read the ending, how could I not? And at first my reaction was more along the lines of outraged squawking than anything else. But after I'd had a day or so to digest it (and to stop feeling COMPLETELY CHEATED at having gotten all the way to the end, only to be sent packin' back to the beginning), I decided that I actually really, really like the ending. It fits. It fits the story, it fits the TYPE of story and the themes King introduced, and I could go into greater detail but I just think it fits even though, as
tragic_frog so succinctly put it: "Roland gets BONED!"And now I feel like I really have to react to the series as a whole in some way; not because anyone here is expecting me to, but just because this story has affected me so deeply and so profoundly that to NOT react would be worse than lazy; it'd be a lie. I have not been this deeply affected by a story since I first got into Star Wars and Lord of the Rings before I hit double digits in age. It has THAT kind of mental resonance for me, the kind I thought you could only have as a child, when everything moves through your spheres of reality with a huge, mythic sort of presence. But oh, I loved this story so, so much. The characters were amazingly real to me, and worked their ways into my heart almost immediately and then just dug deeper and deeper the more time I spent with them. It's as if Stephen King sat down and made himself a list of all the really important, meaningful things in life, and then set out to write an epic about it, and it just so happens that his list and my list seem to overlap a hell of a lot. At least, that's the way it feels.
What do I love most about the series? Ummmm... that'd be an essay unto itself, worthy of a final in any 300-level English class, so we'll try to keep it a bit shorter. I loved the characters, like I said. They're SO real and they experience such dynamic, interesting change as the series go on and they all grow. I love the characters' relationships with each other; I could read endless stories about these characters doing their laundry and making turkey sandwiches and making stupid jokes and scratching their damn butts, and I'd be endlessly entertained and happy. They're like good friends whose mere presence makes any task worthwhile and enjoyable. I love them. Um, I have to admit to loving the "shit just happens and it's KA" method of story-telling. I think the series does a really great job of bringing up the question of destiny vs. free will (I love that the characters DEBATE this point a LOT, and it doesn't necessarily leave you with a definitive answer to any of those myriad questions, either!). I loved how flippant and random and pop-culture-referencing it was, though no doubt it'll be dated somewhere down the line because of it, but whatever. I loved the symmetry and cohesion of the story when it was done right (like you'd admire a well-made—or at least, interesting—car), and I laughed my ASS off at the parts where it was really obvious that Sai King was reeeaaaaching to cover those plot holes and dropped loose ends. Seriously? Evil demon-baby spawn of both Roland and the Crimson King? WAY TO PULL THAT ONE OUT OF THE FIRE AFTER YOU DROPPED IT, UNCLE STEVE. But as
jou says, it pushes all my buttons.What don't I love? The lack of a good bad-guy. I WAS SO DISAPPOINTED AT THE CRIMSON KING, YOU GUYS. I wanted an epic showdown between age-old nemeses! Instead, Roland.... gets Patrick to erase the goddamn Crimson King. To a pair of eyes. (WHAT'RE YOU GONNA DO, GLARE AT ME?!) And Walter never seemed to have enough of a presence to make me really hate him, either. He just wasn't around enough. Also, he was completely, irrevocably bizarre. And Mordred was dying of poisoned horsemeat before Roland ever shot him. Good job, Ro. Fail, Mordred.
In conclusion, I have MORE than one plot-bunny currently gnawing the electrical wires in my brain, I want to get the 2 (3?) companion books to the Dark Tower series, and upon finishing the last book I IMMEDIATELY wanted to pick up book #1 again and start re-reading. (BASTARD!) I'm forcing myself to read DT-related books instead, and I've started with The Talisman. :D Falling asleep now so I'm gonna go to bed. Have a good night, all!