They made the official announcement in their newsletter today. Stephen King will be providing new content for a Dark Tower series to be published by Marvel. Written by King and illustrated by Jae Lee. First issue is schedule for April 6 with the first 6 issues to be collected in a hardcover for the holidays, 2006. Here are some pre-release images.
This is great news and can only be good for the comic book industry. I've often wanted to check out the Dark Tower series but never have before...this might be the time for me to start!
Posted by Jorg-EM on :
I'm with Cobalt. I always wanted to read the DT series. This can only be good for both parties. I'm a big Jae Lee fan.
Posted by Reboot on :
Isn't this "Plotted by Robin Furth and Joe Quesada, art by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, scripted by unknown, based on a story idea by Stephen King"?
[ October 31, 2005, 03:02 AM: Message edited by: Reboot ]
Posted by Lightning Lad on :
The press release says "new, original content produced by Stephen King". No mention made of those other hacks. Posted by Reboot on :
Interesting that the other names were left out of the official release run by the real news media. They hyped up Lee and King but no one else. Sounds like they want to line up sales before saying if King is truly writing it or not.
Posted by Reboot on :
quote:Originally posted by Lightning Lad: Interesting that the other names were left out of the official release run by the real news media. They hyped up Lee and King but no one else. Sounds like they want to line up sales before saying if King is truly writing it or not.
Thanks for that link Reboot. After reading that article I'm more inclined not to pick up the series. Not because it won't be written by King directly but because of the misdirection they seemed fit to put out there instead of being upfront with the truth. They knew from the beginning King wouldn't be writing this but did their best to not admit it. Posted by Kid Prime on :
King's not writing?!?
WHAT-EVER.
I can hardly believe he's whoring his baby out like this!
Posted by Jorg-EM on :
I am suprised he is not writing as well. My gf is a big Stephen King fan. So I've been looking into reading something of his. I'm not much of a horro guy so this book series of his caught my attention. If anything I will get the books and maybe the comics.
Yeah but King should write it. Posted by Lightning Lad on :
Already delayed. Newsarama Posted by Lightning Lad on :
quote:Originally posted by Kid Prime: King's not writing?!?
WHAT-EVER.
I can hardly believe he's whoring his baby out like this!
So, "Plotted by Robin Furth and Joe Quesada, art by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, scripted by Peter David, based on a story idea by Stephen King" then?
Posted by Matthew E on :
I don't know how many of you have read the series of books, but--and I won't spoil the way it ends--however they tell the story in this comic will fit very nicely alongside the story in the books. Whether it's a prequel, a sequel, or pretending to be an adaptation.
Posted by CJ Taylor on :
So really this is a licensing deal? Marvel is adapting King's series, with his approval, and expanding on it?
Posted by Lightning Lad on :
That's my understanding and what Peter David hinted at in his blog yesterday after the announcement.
Posted by Reboot on :
Apparently, it's new stories sketched out by King and hammered into workable form by Joe Q, PAD and the "continuity woman" for the DT series, Robin Firth.
Posted by CJ Taylor on :
So why not just be upfront and clear about it in all their press releases? JoeyQ has to make it sound like the second coming or something.
"Marvel is proud to announce we are working with Stephen King to produce a comic based on his Dark Tower series. We've licensed the property for adaptation and the creative teams will work closely with King to insure cohesiveness with his work and intellectual property."
Posted by Lightning Lad on :
So, did anyone start picking this up? I have the first couple of issues (#3 comes out tomorrow) but haven't read them yet. The art looks great but I want some uninterrupted time to spend reading the story.
Posted by Pov on :
I Jae Lee... I'm WFTT-- for that uninterrupted reading experience you want. Posted by Lightning Lad on :
I'll probably buy the trade too. I need help. Posted by Pov on :
Marvel will probably solicit the HC the same month as #6, and DCBS'll probably run a 50% special on it. That'll help. Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
I know people who don't collect comics and don't even realize I do collect them that are talking about this and buying it, so that's always good.
I haven't picked any issues up yet. I'm wondering if I should buy them now or wait for the trade. I'm already so stretched thin as it is by Marvel & DC alone (and starting to wonder why I even bother).
Posted by Pov on :
Time for a cull of the herd, Cobie! Drop that deadwood that's dragging on your soul (and wallet! )
And King's a book author-- I don't think he'd think less of you waiting for this in hardcover... Posted by Pov on :
Heading Marvel's solicits for November:
DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER BORN PREMIERE HC Written by PETER DAVID & ROBIN FURTH Penciled by JAE LEE & RICHARD ISANOVE Cover by JAE LEE & RICHARD ISANOVE “The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.” With those words, millions of readers were introduced to Stephen King’s Roland — an implacable gunslinger in search of the enigmatic Dark Tower, powering his way through a dangerous land filled with ancient technology and deadly magic. Now, in a comic book personally overseen by King himself, Roland’s past is revealed! Sumptuously drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by long-time Stephen King expert, Robin Furth (author of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower: A Concordance), and scripted by New York Times Bestseller Peter David, this series delves in depth into Roland’s origins — the perfect introduction to this incredibly realized world; while long-time fans will thrill to adventures merely hinted at in the novels. Be there for the very beginning of a modern classic of fantasy literature! Collecting DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER BORN #1-7. 232 PGS./Parental Advisory …$24.99 Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
I might get the hardcover. I recently read books #1-4 and have completley in love with the series. Books #5-7 are on my must buy list right now and I'll hopefully be getting them shortly.
I'm more excited about this than most things out right now!
Posted by Pov on :
Wow. I just started the hardcover collection. Beautiful art, engrossing story. I'm torn between wanting to keep reading and being afraid I'll miss story points if I don't put it down for the night, and pick it back up with fresh eyes tomorrow. Great stuff. Posted by Pov on :
The next chapter of the Dark Tower comics --The Long Way Home-- starts up with #1 scheduled to hit stores on March 5th.
Posted by Pov on :
P.S., I finished the HC last night and loved it... Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
Pov, are you still buying this? The latest mini-series is probably the best one yet! Jae Lee is producing some outrageously delicious artwork.
Don't know if I ever followed up on this, but I read the Dark Tower books #1-7 last year and loved them. I love the entire mythos and became completely immersed in them. And now its such a pleasant surprise to see the comic books filling in the gaps with all new stories and material, that meet King's approval but are being developed by Jae Lee and Peter David, not to mention Robin Furth who is really impressive.
I hope these are doing well sales wise. They've been a surprise hit for me and have helped me get non-comic book readers to check out comics.
Posted by Pov on :
I just got and started reading the HC collection for The Long Road Home. Will post more as reading progresses. Posted by Pov on :
I got the third hardcover collecting DT: TREACHERY last week and loved it. I'm currently rereading the first two HC's-- just finished up THE GUNSLINGER BORN and found elements I didn't appreciate on first reading. Looking forward to rereading LONG ROAD HOME tomorrow-- later today. Then I'll give TREACHERY a second reading as well.
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
I think TREACHERY was the best effort yet. What's really cool is the character Aileen is only mentioned in the books ONE TIME (of like 9,000 pages or something), but its obvious she's integral to Roland's history. So its so damn cool to finally see her and her interactions with them all.
Just got and read the Sorcerer One-Shot depicting Flagg / Marten / etc. Also very good. I just love how Jae Lee's art seems to meld so well with the Gunslinger mythos.
This entire project has just been one huge success IMO from a creative and quality perspective.
Posted by Pov on :
Was the one-shot drawn by Jae Lee? It was my understanding he was working ahead on the 5th and final mini while Richard Isanove drew the FALL OF GILEAD arc along with his regular coloring duties... Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
No, the one-shot was done by someone else (rereading my post, I can see how I unintentionally implied that). Its also written entirely by Robin Furth with no help from PAD, and its still really good.
Do we know if after this huge project is complete if Marvel and King have any further plans for Gunslinger comics? The mythos is so huge there are plenty of places for them. To be honest, I have no clue how well the book is doing sales-wise, only that you and I (Pov and Cobie, Legion World's two most important and brillant citizens) are reading them.
Posted by LardLad on :
Okay, in your learned opinions how accessible are these Gunslinger comics to potential readers who are unfamiliar with Dark Tower such as myself?
When all this began, there was lots of hubbub over it, and it was shown to have great crossover appeal to King's fans. What I've not heard in the comics press is anything resembling a positive buzz among the general comics-reading public. In fact there's been ZERO buzz--the silence has been deafening! The Dark Tower comics have basically been not reviewed at all by Newsarama or CBR, except for maybe the debut issue of the first miniseries. That implies zero interest outside of Dark Tower readers.
So I haven't read any Dark Tower novels. What are the chances I'll appreciate the comic on its own merit without feeling I'm missing out on the bigger picture?
Posted by Pov on :
For what it's worth, Lardy, I came into this "world" stone cold. My interest was in David and Lee as the creative team. I'm now interested in checking out King's novels, -solely- on the strength of the three HC's.
Do you kennit? (sorry, insiders will get that... )
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
I recently read the Dark Tower series so I have the opposite viewpoint of Pov, but I agree with his sentiment. I think the Dark Tower comic books actually do a really great job standing on their own apart from the novels and are more a gateway to a larger universe should the reader choose.
I'm not sure if Pov is aware of this, but the basic Dark Tower structure has Roland (the main character) much, *much* older than he is in the comics. What the comics are giving is basically his backstory and origin, which for the most part, Stephen King only ever referenced or hinted at. So its like a special treat to fans who know Roland very well already, but its all new story material, and its his early / formative / origin years--so in a sense, its the perfect way to jump in and meet the character. Only one of the books (the fourth, Wizard of Glass, which BTW is my favorite) ever delved into his backstory during this time period.
The comics also do a very good job at introducing the larger world of Roland, and each issue (I hope the TPB has these) has a 2-3 page article at the back going into detail of various parts of the Dark Tower world--which also isn't in the books! So the Dark Tower comics actually have like an appendix that really would have been helpful for the books. In other words, I'd say the comic books are actually a lot more accessible than the novels, which are pretty dense and confusing and the reader has to be committed to delving into the mythos (this isn't a criticism though; I'd say the Lord of the Rings novels are the same way, and its something that encouraged me to love them so much).
So yeah, I'd give the highest recomendation for the comics. They're very different though, with Jae Lee really having a ton of leeway to get as moody with his art as possible--I happen to love it, but it might not be everyone's cup of tea. There's a very Vertigo-esque feel here too, which I know you like Lardy.
Posted by LardLad on :
quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: The comics also do a very good job at introducing the larger world of Roland, and each issue (I hope the TPB has these) has a 2-3 page article at the back going into detail of various parts of the Dark Tower world--which also isn't in the books!
Are these articles included in the collected versions, Pov?
Posted by Pov on :
No. The bonus materials in the HC collections consist of maps, all of the covers, preliminary and finished pencil comparisons, and notes from Stephen King(V.1), Robin Furth and Peter David(vol.2)
The one actual comic I have is Long Road Home #1, which has a back-up prose story by Robin with art by Richard Isanove. Not in the LRH collection. Posted by LardLad on :
Hmm. Sounds like it may be worth it to buy the individual issues for the extra content. Price-checking, it seems I could get them reasonably. The solicits for each issue have the page count at 48. I guess that would boil down to 36 pages of content per ish? I guess the articles/prose account for the extra content?
Posted by LardLad on :
quote:Originally posted by LardLad: Hmm. Sounds like it may be worth it to buy the individual issues for the extra content.
Well, strike that--I won an eBay auction yesterday for all three hardcovers! The total including shipping was $9 less than what In-Stock Trades charges, so I couldn't resist. I hope it's worth the sacrifice of those extras Des spoke of....
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
Considering the price you got them for, it was well, well worth it. They're like $3.99 an issue! Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
And so I get to the final comics in my huge pile of 6+ weeks, and they are two of the best, the first two issues of the latest Dark Tower volume, "Fall of Gilead" (I also have Wednesday Comics but have to wait until my CBS gets #1 in, since I didn't orginally order it).
Well, they are excellent as I suspected they would be and the series continues to be a masterful blend of Stephen King, PAD's dialogue and pacing, Richard Isanove's immaculate art and Robin Furth's presence being on every page, guiding us through it.
I won't reveal too much on the actual plot, other than at this point things begin to go wrong for Gilead and everyone Roland loves and it will be a sad journey--some of which has already begun to happen. In the meantime, the creators are able to keep the tension up to the extreme and each scene invokes a ton of emotion even though the pacing immediately moves on to the next sequence. And all the while, the sense of being incredibly epic and grandiose is there too.
I continue to enjoy seeing one of my favorites, Cuthbert, on in comic book form and I love that Aileen has turned into a wonderful character after being only a brief mention in passing previously.
Robin Furth has done a tremendous job bringing in so many elements from the series that otherwise never appeared to be connected, and in #2's back-up she explains how she did that. In fact, her little essays at the end of each issue are equally as enjoyable.
There's little tidbits too in the art some may not pick up on. For instance, in #1, the clown painting shown in the background? That's the clown from It. His fate ultimately is handed out by Roland in the later Dark Tower books.
Richard Isanove is the artist as someone in this thread previously pointed out to me, which led me to relaly take a look at his artwork more thoroughly this time around. And its spectacular. I see he's doing both pencils and inks (as well as layouts following PAD's script), and you can see that this guy is a tremendous inker. The shadows play such a subtle and important part in places and just come through on every page. He's added a level of the mysterious and fantastic in places and yet in others makes things realistic and gritty.
Looking forward to more--I wish this project could go on perpetually.
Posted by THE LABRADORIAN on :
quote:Originally posted by Cobalt Kid: That's the clown from It. His fate ultimately is handed out by Roland in the later Dark Tower books.
Are you referring to Dandelo being IT, it has been stated by King that IT is not Dandelo, but the same type of creature.
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
Reading #2, I was glad to see the creative team moves things along a bit more quickly than the slow burn the series has been in for awhile. I hope now we get to see more of Alain, Cuthbert, Jamie DeCurry and the rest before the actual battle at Jericho Hill happens.
I'm still enjoying the Dark Tower comics immensely. I love the characters from King's novels but this is one of those titles where I actually think the artwork is my favorite part. The black inks are really rich and the art captures King's style so well.
Robin Furth's back-page essays are always great but this one was very welcome in which she expands a bit on the Old People, which are only really ever mentioned in the books but never really explained in full. Its kind of obvious the Old People are us if we kept creating newer and better technology and then ultimately destroyed one another through war. It was good to have that confirmed. What's really interesting is that in the back it says they were expert time travelers--if that was in the books, I must have missed it. It would be cool to see Roland meet a time traveler at some point.
I'm also exciting to see Roland's adventures continue once he starts pursuing the Man in Black. I hope they continue to expand on his story and don't simply retell the books.
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
With the end of Roland's younger years done, I'm pumped that Marvel is going to keep making Gunslinger comics so we can get to old Roland of the novels! And even better, it appears this first arc deals with the years between Jericho Hill and the first Gunslinger book of which we know next to nothing about.
The surprise ending made my jaw drop.
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
I’m still enjoying the Dark Tower comic books from Marvel and have begun the most recent miniseries, the “Sister of Eluria”. One of the problems, however, is not every story is consistently as good as the previous ones, despite having pretty much the same creators involved. It certainly is a little jarring.
In the back of each issue, plotter Robin Firth talks quite a bit about what she’s done in the story; I can’t help but feel at times, however, that she should be actually doing it more than just talking about doing it. It’s still a good comic book most of the time, but it in a way is like when she falls a bit flat, there is an explanation in back that explains why.
The artwork by Luke Ross and Richard Isanove is very good. They provide a very eerie, very “Stephen King” feel to the series. I’m curious how things will play out because the settings for the next few years of Roland’s life is mainly the desert and in desolate towns—which can be pretty bland from a visual perspective. I wonder if they’ll be able to make it visually interesting. I guess we’ll find out soon…
Posted by Pov on :
With the "Sisters of Eluria" collected, that brings us up to seven beautiful hardcover trades. SoE felt like a nicely flesh-out sidebar... I'm looking forward to where the next chapter in Roland's life takes us.
But even more, I'm eager to start reading the Dark Tower books-- so much so that I requested the first volume from the visiting librarian today. I was trying to explain how the Marvel mini's were drawing me to the actual books-- But I soon gave up talking about them in favor of actually *showing* her...
She was impressed by the quality and the artwork. I highly recommended she get these for her Teen Reading section, if they don't have a GN section. She remarked her daughter is a big DT fan, that the Library has all of the books because of her... I'd be interested to see if she gets into the GN's!
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
You're going to love them. The first one is a bit slow but the second one is mind-blowingly good.
Posted by Pov on :
I'm not finding The Gunslinger slow at all, actually... It's a cool mix of stuff I "know" from the DT mini's and new(to me) elements like the town of Tull and Jake...
I'm just starting "The Slow Mutants". I'll probably give Ginny a call midweek to drop by with the second book. Posted by Pov on :
Jump ahead six months, and I'm starting the fifth DT novel, Wolves of the Calla... I'm addicted, LOL. I've also continued getting the Marvel HC's, having read The Battle of Tull, which fleshed out the story from the original Gunslinger novel. I'm looking forward to the continuation and intro of Jake Chambers in The Waystation... I'm wondering if the mini takes thru the end of The Gunslinger and Roland's meeting with The Man in Black.
One question, and I'll ask it in a spoiler in case it's a salient story point: Click Here For A SpoilerIn the novels, Marten and Walter are separate characters: Marten, the wizard in Stephen Deschain's court, and Walter, a half-human Necromancer Roland is chasing in pursuit of the Dark Tower. But in the Marvel mini's, they're portrayed as being the same person? Posted by the Hermit on :
quote:Originally posted by Pov:
One question, and I'll ask it in a spoiler in case it's a salient story point: Click Here For A SpoilerIn the novels, Marten and Walter are separate characters: Marten, the wizard in Stephen Deschain's court, and Walter, a half-human Necromancer Roland is chasing in pursuit of the Dark Tower. But in the Marvel mini's, they're portrayed as being the same person?
Click Here For A Spoiler It's been a while since I read the novels, but I believe that in Wizard And Glass (or maybe one of the later novels) King retconned Marten and Walter (and Randall Flagg from the Stand) to be different aspects of the same character. Posted by Pov on :
Okay... I'm just over halfway through Wolves of the Calla and it's addressed. King had written that Click Here For A SpoilerFlagg and Marten were one and the same in the previous novel, but here he adds Walter and possibly Click Here For A SpoilerMerlyn to that mix, LOL...
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
Pov, it becomes clear they are all one and the same. They are also Flagg from the Stand and Eyes of the Dragon, two other King novels.
The only one that doesn't fit, which King first says and then back tracks, is Martyn being John Farson. Eventually it becomes clear that he is an entirely separate character.
Isn't Wolves awesome? It has such an epic build up! And the chapter where Father Callahan gives his story after Salem's Lot--I got literally goosebumps.
Posted by Pov on :
The whole epic has me wanting to go and read King's other stuff that he's tied into it... Salem's Lot, The Stand, Insomnia, It ... I'm almost done with the final book. It's really good, if not a bit meta-textual... Click Here For A SpoilerKing writing himself into the story threw me out of it for a bit, but like Roland, I have to see it through to the end!
Not sure if anybody's aware or not but King just released another Dark Tower novel, The Wind Through the Keyhole. My town librarian Ginny called this morning and asked if I was ready for it, LOL. I should be done with The Dark Tower by the weekend, so she's got me first on the list for it. I'm looking forward to it, if for no other reason than Jae Lee did the art for the limited HC editions... It'll be interesting to see exactly where it falls chronologically in the series...
Posted by Cobalt Kid on :
Really? I had no idea there was another one. Or maybe I did and forgot, because I seem to remember hearing of one out of order.
The last Dark Tower book is...an experience. With King, you always have to be prepared to not have the ending you wanted or even anticipated. I'll leave it at that, and once you've read it, we can discuss!
His best series that tie in, like Salem's Lot and the Stand aren't obvious tie-ins. I've never read Insomnia or some of the more direct tie-ins. IMO, his best books are Salem's Lot and Dolores Claybourne (which doesn't tie-in at all). The Stand is a masterpiece but those two have it beat.
I'm currently reading his 'Under the Dome'. It's about 200,000 pages so it's taking me my entire 30's.
Posted by Dev - Em on :
I lobve Kings stuff, and need to get back to the Dark Tower stuff.
I loved IT, The Stand (except for the (what I feel was) rushed ending. One that I thought was fantastic was The Girl who loved Tom Gordon. Totally not what you would expect.
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Jae Lee... I'm WFTT-- for that uninterrupted reading experience you want. ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
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