Post by fonebone on Aug 5, 2023 14:14:52 GMT -8
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Sheemie's Tale 1 (Marvel Comics)
Sheemie's Tale: Part 1
A lot of this stuff was already referenced in the books and earlier comics, so it's interesting and delightful to see it all put down in a narrative and confirm all of the theories and speculations. Furth claims there are some stories that are seeds around a main tale. For this one, I don't actually think she had to stray outside the main canon at all.
King Connections of Note: Ted Brautigan is from "Low Men In Yellow Coats" from "Hearts In Atlantis". For the first time in the comics, various aspects of the fifth and seventh Dark Tower books ("Wolves Of The Calla" and "The Dark Tower") are referenced.
For the record, despite him being referred to as a halfwit, which is something I think even Furth has come to believe about him, I don't think Sheemie is remotely stupid. He says incredibly wise and insightful things about people and how they should treat each other as opposed to how they really do. I feel it's sort of what would happen if Forrest Gump's supposed pearls of wisdom were told sincerely by the writers of that movie, instead of being cynically calculated to manipulate the audience through punishing him for no reason. I think Sheemie is what would happen if Forrest Gump wasn't written by a group of aholes. Like if Forrest's creators actually cared about him instead of making up b.s. reasons why the audience should. Sheemie is what would happen if Forrest Gump held up to scrutiny.
Outstanding. I think Furth might be even better at scripting than Peter David was. *****.
The Origins Of Sheemie's Tale
It's interesting Furth's initial idea was to tell this story third person, undoubtedly using the comic's snarky Narrator. Sheemie relating the story himself is WAY more effective.
King Connections: Besides Ted Brautigan, Dinky Earnshaw from the novella "Everything's Eventual", found in the short story collection of the same name, is mentioned too. ****1/2.
Issue Overall: *****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Sheemie's Tale 2 (Marvel Comics)
Sheemie's Tale: Part 2
A lot of horrific imagery for Sheemie being tortured by the Great Old Ones of the Prim. It reminded me of how I often found comics horrifying as a kid. Total nightmare fuel.
King Connections: The Old Ones of the Prim strongly resemble the creatures seen in the novella "The Mist" found in the collection "Skeleton Crew". It they are related, or even the same beings, the fact that they are both sentient and deliberately evil raises extra questions about THAT story.
Good stuff. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower As Axis Mundi
In discussing world-building influences Furth mentions Norse mythology, Robert Browning, and even J.R.R. Tolkien and Frank Herbert. It feels like she's deliberately ignoring the elephant in the room: H.P. Lovecraft. Is she worried people would accuse King of ripping him off for the Great Old Ones? If so, it's a foolish fear. As big of a dirtbag as Lovecraft was in real life, he made it so the Cthulhu Mythos could be built upon and expanded by other writers long after he was gone. It's weird Furth doesn't bring up the huge influence he not only had for "The Mist", and the entire notion of Todash Space, but King's entire career itself.
I'm declaring this essay a failure for that reason. **1/2.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Evil Ground 1 (Marvel Comics)
Evil Ground: Part 1
I love Roland telling Cuthbert that now is not the time to doubt him and Bert retorting that he doubted him from the beginning and this wasn't some last minute thing. I love Bert. King believes that Eddie Dean is Cuthbert's spiritual successor, but not only would Eddie never say that, he's always too starstruck by Roland, he'd never even THINK to say it. Whatever we think of Eddie and his dumb jokes, I believe he had more discipline than Cuthbert, if only because instead of the friend and equal Bert viewed Roland as, Eddie actually saw him as a mentor and role model instead.
I love the detail that in Mid-World it's considered bad luck to shoot a man in the back. And you know a LOT of superstitions, or as least religious beliefs and rules, seem to have less to do with religious orthodoxy, and were perhaps instead a case of a priest somewhere down the line inserting the proper lesson into the texts so people would behave more kindly and ethically towards each other. There is no honor in shooting a man in the back. Perhaps people of Mid-World are less inclined to be dishonorable if it's drilled into their heads early on that this specific brand of dishonor will cause them karmic misfortune. It's a detail I love. ****.
Stories Within Stories
Surprisingly Furth's big influence for this one is "The Wind Through The Keyhole". I say surprisingly, because I still can't believe that Furth isn't super pissed King knocked the comic she put in over ten years of hard work on out of continuity himself. Were I her I would have been furious. It's interesting she loves the book instead. ****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Evil Ground 2 (Marvel Comics)
Evil Ground: Part 2
It was all right. I like Arthur Eld and his Knights riding to the rescue at the end, but the thing about nightmare tropes is that they aren't actually real, so it feels less rewarding than it should. ***.
Evil Ground Part II: The Horn Of Eld
Apparently before writing this article, Robin Furth did mad research on horns. Which is why we love Robin Furth.
Furth resists spoiling the time loop, but whenever the Horn of Eld is discussed, it's always the elephant in the room. How to talk about its importance without spoiling the ending of the final book? Hmmm. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: So Fell Lord Perth (Marvel Comics)
So Fell Lord Perth
Honestly, I take this kind of thing with a grain of salt. This specific kind of fictional Mid-World mythology is the precise type of thing King himself would have no problems retconning with another midquel Dark Tower novel or short story. Like the comics for Buffy The Vampire Slayer, I don't believe their reality because the creators have repeatedly proved they would have no problems ignoring them if the franchise was ever "properly" returned to. The "true" tale of Lord Perth feel especially ripe for a rewrite from Stephen King.
I'm less interested in Arthur and Perth's parallels with the Biblical David and Goliath, and more with the ones Perth's army riding wolves raises with the robotic wolves of Thunderclap from "Wolves Of The Calla". Is this where the Crimson King got the idea (with some good ol' Harry Potter and Marvel Comics mixed in)?
I love that Arthur Eld was born in a place called Topeka. It not only raises the proper comparisons to the Wizard of Oz, but it ties into the fact that Blaine the Mono seemed to be able to travel between Universes, including a version of Topeka that suffered under Captain Trips from "The Stand". Is Furth hinting that Arthur's homeland was an Earth-based realm like our own and he journeyed out into End-World as part of crossing into the Multiverse? Maybe. Maybe. I love that question being raised.
King Connections Of Note: The land of Garlan is from "The Eyes Of The Dragon".
"Once Upon A Bye" IS from "A Wind Through The Keyhole". I still don't understand how or why Furth always pays tribute to that one, (which destroyed a great deal of her work in hindsight). It would have driven me nuts instead. She's way cooler than me.
Good for the comic for mentioning Roland does NOT say Aileen's name when he comes to the Dark Tower. Makes it a total d-word move after promising he would. He mentions Dinky Earnshaw but not Aileen? Part of me LIKES it when King knocks the comics out of canon, because a lot of the things they suggest about Roland are unforgivable.
Nice enough, but it's the kind of think King himself would make unofficial so fast your head would spin. ***1/2.
Dark Tower: How The Journey Began
Both Furth and the other creators are unsure about the future of the comics, but although Marvel DID do a loose adaptation of The Drawing Of The Three and the first half of The Waste Lands, this still saddens me because this wound up Furth's last essay in the comics. If you asked me, I think they were almost always the best parts of the comic. You read Groo The Wanderer for the letter column edited by Mark Evanier. You read The Dark Tower comics for the essays by Robin Furth. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 1 (Marvel Comics)
It's an interesting idea to tell the second novel from the perspective of Roland's new tet rather than Roland himself, but it lowers the stakes a bit.
King Connections: The missing dog posters are from "Low Men In Yellow Coats" from "Hearts In Atlantis".
Still, the idea that Balazar's men accidentally killed Eddie's sister Gloria in a botched attempt on his life as a baby is new information, as is the revelation that Walter O'Dim and the Dixie Pig were a big part of it too. Can't accuse the comic of refusing to Go Big, especially considering what a small-scale and personal story The Drawing Of The Three ultimately was (comparatively speaking at least). ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 2 (Marvel Comics)
Interesting revelation about Calvin Tower and that the bookstore The Manhattan Restaurant Of The Mind used to actually be a deli. I forgot about that. But the same purpose was for Tower to protect the rose.
Mindblowing Easter Egg that Balazar had candid photos of Eddie Dean at all ages from different worlds, but I will call retcon instead. His behavior is the second book towards Eddie belies any possibility he remotely thinks that damn junkie is good for anything. Lucky Furth has stated the comic take place on a different level of the Tower than the books do. It simply doesn't fit.
Speaking of which, I hate that each time we get a new artist, they do a drastically different interpretation of The Dark Tower. Has the comic book industry never heard of consistency? I mean, maybe comics of the 1960's to 1980's weren't as visually interesting to look at, but they all looked like they credibly shared the same universe / larger stories. The conflicting art styles of all modern comics is MUCH harder for me to reconcile. I think things were probably better when there was a "House Style" to these things.
Balazar shooting a guy for knocking down his house of cards is directly from the book, as are his instructions that the body be buried in a place where chickens will poop on it.
Henry is pretty much as much of an irredeenable jerk as in the books. Jerkier than in The Drawing Of The Three actually, because we never understood this about the character until The Waste Lands. He was too doped up in the second book to determine what a sociopath he was.
And yeah, it's him running without looking back to check on Eddie that damns him. Absolutely worthless.
King Connections: I see less of "Christine" in the Bad Car than I do the Buick from 'From A Buick 8". Those brightly colored sedans are also seen in "Low Men In Yellow Coats".
Good issue, I think although I'm getting a bit impatient for the Lobstrosities. Where's my did-a-chiks at? ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 3 (Marvel Comics)
The "All is silent in the halls of the dead" thing is super freaky. Is that new? I don't seem to recall it from the novels. If so, it's absolutely great.
And yes, Henry Dean is a turd with almost no redeeming qualities. And the one redeeming quality he had in the books (when he bragged to his friends Eddie could talk the devil into setting himself on-fire) was not yet explored by the now defunct comics. Too bad. The guy is a total d-bag otherwise.
Possible King Connection: Is the Ronnie Henry describes from Vietnam Ronnie Malenfant from "Hearts In Atlantis"? I'm betting he's a VERSION of him, at least was intended to be by Robin Furth. Ronnie does not die in that novel, but Eddie's level of the Tower is also different than most other King Universes (it's the Co-Op City thing) so it would fit that it's both him and not him at the same time. Also the character seen here has red-hair which was Malefant's trademark. I think it is and isn't him simultaneously.
But where's my damn Lobstrosities at? Roland's fingers won't eat themselves. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 4 (Marvel Comics)
That's more like it, Dad-a-chum!
I know Eddie has no way of knowing the Walter he's talking about is Roland's Walter. But it's something he would have put together later on if it had actually happened. I'm gonna say this is one of the additions to the canon Furth made that doesn't actually fit.
That last page was a killer though, right? ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 5 (Marvel Comics)
Finally starting to get to some of the good stuff from The Drawing Of The Three. Felt like we were spinning our wheels a bit for four issues.
I love the bit on the plane. Popkins. Roland's gonna get him busted.
It's funny when Roland tells him name Eddie says he likes, "Johnny Bronco" better and Roland concedes he does too. That is purely an addition to the comic and it fabulous. Kudos to Peter David or Robin Furth, whichever one of them came up with it. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 1 (Marvel Comics)
House Of Cards: Part 1
This stuff is all just great. No negative notes for this one. *****.
Eddie Dean And The Force Of Ka
Not QUITE an essay by Robin Furth. More like a recap. But it's wordy and I like it. Although if I'm being honest, it probably should have accompanied the first issue of "The Prisoner" instead. ****1/2.
Issue Overall *****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 2 (Marvel Comics)
Eddie's interrogation in customs is great. I love that he says he'll only agree to a drug test if every Fed there gets tested too and the results are sent to his lawyer. That was a genius idea for King to write in the 1980's, and the hell of it is, it's not a threat I've seen elsewhere. It's something so obvious you'd figure cop and lawyer shows would be itching to ape. A lot of times a fictional project hits on an amazing idea that could change either the medium or the genre, and other Hollywood writers and producers simply don't appreciate how great it is. Eddie demanding blood test from TSA agents who were probably not clean themselves should not the only time I've ever seen that scene. After it hit, it should have become common.
Eddie is a pretty good lawyer himself if you ask me. His Miami Vice excuse is really perfect.
I think the meal Eddie sends Roland was handled better in the book. Because of branding issues, the soda is unnamed here. It's Pepsi in the book, and Roland is so hooked and delighted by it he wonders if it's the drug Eddie is carrying. He likes the hotdogs here, which is also a step down from the book. I love the idea that a guy who exists on a world with Mutant animals, and pure beef stock is a near impossibility, and a rare treat, can take or leave a New York hotdog. That didn't just say a lot about Roland and Mid-World. It said a lot about New York hotdogs, especially if it's not actually snobbery on his end, and he truly loved the Pepsi.
Good issue altogether. ****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 3 (Marvel Comics)
The Walter Brennan thing just does NOT work here. In the book King had Henry do the Johnny Cash answer for a few questions, setting up the punchline. The comic actually has to explain the joke after the fact, simply because it's been so abbreviated it no longer plays.
Similarly, Eddie is wearing boxers in the final scene instead of being naked. It's a stark reminder of the fact that the comic is still under plenty of restrictions that did in fact water down the story quite a bit in places. For Detta Walker that was for the better. For Eddie's final stand against Balazar and his men it was for the worse.
I love Roland's expression as he views the Tower. I believe it more or less matches what my head imagined when I first read it.
Still solid, but not as solid as the book. At least not for this issue. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 4 (Marvel Comics)
I love that when Roland smells pizza, and Eddie tells him what it is, he suggest they try it after this is all over. And Eddie tells him that's the correct viewpoint. That is definitely a cute scene, and it's not in book.
Also not in the book? I love that even through his grief Eddie frustratedly has to ask what "puling" means. Talk normal, Roland. Dude just lost his brother. Knock it off.
While I wish Eddie had fought naked, some of the rest of the comic was actually better than the book. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 5 (Marvel Comics)
Eddie is not just observant. He says things Roland needs to hear but doesn't want to. Like that Roland will use people and discard them, and that he's smart enough to feel bad afterwards, but hard enough not to let it stop him. And Roland is hurt and offended by that observation. Mostly because it's true and it's not something he likes to believe is obvious. He wants to pretend his secret dark heart is entirely his. Maybe it never was. Maybe Roland isn't actually all too hard to figure out. What I especially love about Eddie's saying that is Eddie is telling him that behavior is not normal. Frankly Eddie's idea of being needed isn't exactly emotionally healthy either, but his telling Roland that that part of him is weird and unlike most other people is another thing that needed to be explained to him. Because I don't think Roland actually knew that.
I love Eddie hoping that he's eating one of the Lobstrosities that ate Jack Andoloni, and Roland crossly reminds him one of those things ate his fingers. And Eddie get a big dreamy smile while savoring the flavor: "Even better." Roland is also offended by THAT joke but I can't see why. He had it coming. How does he not know that?
Good reminder of the Jake situation. That is going to come up again soon and a refresher might have been necessary for people who hadn't read the books yet.
Interesting. Interesting. Interesting. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 1 (Marvel Comics)
A little dry, much like the first chapters of "The Pusher". But no lie, I found the issue's exploration of the civil rights struggle (such as referring to The Green Book) far more interesting than Eddie being picked on by his sociopathic brother as a kid.
I also love the League of Gileadites. The Klan may wear the robes, but it's truly the Gileadites fighting for the side of Stephen King's The White. I love that they executed the Klansman for it. It's a freaking war. What else were they supposed to do with them? Let the law handle it? For real?
And Bert Albueno might be Cuthbert Allgood's Twinner. Even Susannah herself raises the possibility there are other worlds than these.
I'm surprised Walter is going by Walter here. A Klansman under the hood is exactly how that character tends to use the R.F. alias. It's weird he's using his real name instead of Rusty Frostbite.
I don't much respond to the biographical portions of this comic miniseries. But Susannah's story is so far a little better than Eddie's, so partial credit. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 2 (Marvel Comics)
The Jack Mort reveal is interesting and the comic is choosing to tell the story in a different order. In the book, all of the Jack Mort stuff comes out to the reader AFTER Roland enters his mind and learns the shocking truth. We learned those horrific things the same time Roland did.
Here Mort's guilt in the brick incident is explicit BEFORE it even happens. But the reader gets some additional context Roland would have no way of knowing: Walter was so impressed by him he went into cahoots with him and they plan to go for Odetta again, and then Jake Chambers. Mort's random sociopathy suddenly makes him the ideal candidate for Walter to hire to kill off Roland's gunslingers one by one before they even came to be.
It could be argued that Walter refusing to finish describing what Jack did after he dropped the brick is a troubling example of the comic watering down the actual novel. But no, I actually believe King was simply too crass there. I actually would have understood what Walter was referring to even if I hadn't read the book. King's prose is often way grosser than it actually needs to be.
The art while Odetta is imagining her tea party is quite fanciful.
Interesting, but the biographical stuff IS less interesting than everything else. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 3 (Marvel Comics)
In my opinion Detta Walker remains one of Stephen King's most shameful story turns in a career with more than a few things to gripe about. "Problematic" is the nicest thing I can say about the idea. In reality, it's racist and insulting. And the comic cannot possibly polish that turd. Can't be done. She doesn't ruin the entire Dark Tower saga. But she DOES ruin a large part of it.
I liked the colorful art for the mindscapes though. I DO prefer house styles for comic books, but you don't get stuff this creative with that either.
But this is bad. *.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 4 (Marvel Comics)
I like Dan Holmes saying The World Has Moved On. Prophetic words.
The parts of the issue that are Odetta are interesting. The parts that are Detta suck. And it's about 50/50 of each. Middling. **1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 5 (Marvel Comics)
I think the argument of JFK as the last gunslinger was handled better in the book. Especially because Susannah wound up changing her mind entirely on the subject.
The notion of Odetta being forced to stay in the jail cell just so she'd wet herself is both powerful and outrageous in its shocking unfairness. But this is what people of color had to face when they stood up against the corrupt system.
Sadly, I have to say the last panel didn't close strong. Often David and Furth come up with a strong closing joke or line to end the issue on and they just... did NOT this time. Sort of disappointing. They can do better than "I don't have anything else to do." It's weird that they are trying to convince me they can't.
Still, adding Roland and Eddie to the mix at the end helps. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 1 (Marvel Comics)
I love Roland saying to himself "Handicap Accessible. Where does he get these things?"
For the record, Roland's quest jive is a b.s. rationalization. Eddie has it right in calling it a kidnapping.
Some of it was good. Which was all right. Some of it was Detta. Which was not. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 2 (Marvel Comics)
The "candles" stuff is offensive even by Detta Walker standards.
Seriously, man. What the hell? *.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 3 (Marvel Comics)
It's a pity it looks like Roland in Jack Mort's body will probably only last two issues past this (at most). It was the best part of the novel, and I would argue when he wrote it, it was the best thing Stephen King had written up to that point. King is a master of tense exciting climaxes. But few were as funny and pleasurable as the one from The Drawing Of The Three. King proved he wasn't merely a thrilling storyteller with that. He was an awesome one as well.
I like Roland's only note when he gets back is that Eddie gave her the gun. Eddie is furious because of all of the work him put in and THAT'S the first thing he says. I think perhaps Roland noting it was the only thing that actually NEEDED to be said was actually sadly right.
Roland as Jack Mort in da house! Things are about to go bananas! ****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 4 (Marvel Comics)
It's not as fun as the book because it omits small details. Like the fact that Roland is amazed and borderline greedy he can replace all of his ammunition (and then some) so cheaply. Part of him finds the world wasteful for that. His judgments against the sloppy cops in the book are also more explicit and understandable.
They kept the best part of Roland robbing a pharmacy at gunpoint for 60 bucks worth of penicillin, and leaving a gold Rolex watch as recompense. Honestly the way King describes it in the book is actually funnier, but I'm pleased they got the basics to that scenario down at least.
Fun. Which the Dark Tower has NOT previously been up until this point. *****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 5 (Marvel Comics)
In the 1980's King used the fact that Jack Mort wore women's underwear as a sign of his deviancy and psychopathy. Did the comic really need to do the same things decades later when it should know better? I don't appreciate the fact that Mort is probably nonbinary being used as some sort of humiliating punchline. It's almost forgivable King was clueless enough to do that in the 1980's. There's no excuse for the comic not excising that gag 20 years later when people should know better.
That kind of wrecked my enjoyment of things. *1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 1 (Marvel Comics)
The adaptation of The Drawing Of The Three is over. We are actually in The Waste Lands now. What I think happened was the title got canceled AGAIN, but the creators kind of knew there would be no third reprieve. And Jake was the loosest of ends. So they added a brief adaptation of the first half of The Waste Lands for five issues, just to leave thing off on a better place if there was nothing else coming. I think it was the right move.
The artwork in this arc is the most basic art in the entire run of the series. But that's why I like it the most. I can actually tell what things are and easily read people's expressions. It's weird how little modern comics currently value that. To me, that's the most important thing comic book art can do.
And we end on Shardik's boogery sneeze. Never let is be said that David and Furth refused to take after Sai King and Go For The Gross-Out. They are not proud. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 2 (Marvel Comics)
The art may be simpler, but it's simplicity makes the action scenes, like the ones with Shardik, feel much more dynamic. There is a feeling of motion and movement in these drawings absent from all the previous issues. It's actually really cool. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 3 (Marvel Comics)
Here, the simplistic art works against things. The Rose, one of the most visually important moments from the book, looks utterly pedestrian and underwhelming here.
Also Calvin Tower's design feels wrong to me.
I also previously wished that all the different artists drawing the Dark Tower used one agreed upon design and stuck with it. Consistency in a comic book is not too much to ask. **.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 4 (Marvel Comics)
It feels a bit rushed, as if they are compressing things in these final two issues to get Jake to Roland. Probably because that's what's happening. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 5 (Marvel Comics)
Rushed, condensed, and ended too quickly, but I think it was better to get to where they could leave off where they did. Would another of couple of issues helped? Yes. But knowing this was it, did the creators do the best they could? Also yes. ****.
Sheemie's Tale: Part 1
A lot of this stuff was already referenced in the books and earlier comics, so it's interesting and delightful to see it all put down in a narrative and confirm all of the theories and speculations. Furth claims there are some stories that are seeds around a main tale. For this one, I don't actually think she had to stray outside the main canon at all.
King Connections of Note: Ted Brautigan is from "Low Men In Yellow Coats" from "Hearts In Atlantis". For the first time in the comics, various aspects of the fifth and seventh Dark Tower books ("Wolves Of The Calla" and "The Dark Tower") are referenced.
For the record, despite him being referred to as a halfwit, which is something I think even Furth has come to believe about him, I don't think Sheemie is remotely stupid. He says incredibly wise and insightful things about people and how they should treat each other as opposed to how they really do. I feel it's sort of what would happen if Forrest Gump's supposed pearls of wisdom were told sincerely by the writers of that movie, instead of being cynically calculated to manipulate the audience through punishing him for no reason. I think Sheemie is what would happen if Forrest Gump wasn't written by a group of aholes. Like if Forrest's creators actually cared about him instead of making up b.s. reasons why the audience should. Sheemie is what would happen if Forrest Gump held up to scrutiny.
Outstanding. I think Furth might be even better at scripting than Peter David was. *****.
The Origins Of Sheemie's Tale
It's interesting Furth's initial idea was to tell this story third person, undoubtedly using the comic's snarky Narrator. Sheemie relating the story himself is WAY more effective.
King Connections: Besides Ted Brautigan, Dinky Earnshaw from the novella "Everything's Eventual", found in the short story collection of the same name, is mentioned too. ****1/2.
Issue Overall: *****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Sheemie's Tale 2 (Marvel Comics)
Sheemie's Tale: Part 2
A lot of horrific imagery for Sheemie being tortured by the Great Old Ones of the Prim. It reminded me of how I often found comics horrifying as a kid. Total nightmare fuel.
King Connections: The Old Ones of the Prim strongly resemble the creatures seen in the novella "The Mist" found in the collection "Skeleton Crew". It they are related, or even the same beings, the fact that they are both sentient and deliberately evil raises extra questions about THAT story.
Good stuff. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower As Axis Mundi
In discussing world-building influences Furth mentions Norse mythology, Robert Browning, and even J.R.R. Tolkien and Frank Herbert. It feels like she's deliberately ignoring the elephant in the room: H.P. Lovecraft. Is she worried people would accuse King of ripping him off for the Great Old Ones? If so, it's a foolish fear. As big of a dirtbag as Lovecraft was in real life, he made it so the Cthulhu Mythos could be built upon and expanded by other writers long after he was gone. It's weird Furth doesn't bring up the huge influence he not only had for "The Mist", and the entire notion of Todash Space, but King's entire career itself.
I'm declaring this essay a failure for that reason. **1/2.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Evil Ground 1 (Marvel Comics)
Evil Ground: Part 1
I love Roland telling Cuthbert that now is not the time to doubt him and Bert retorting that he doubted him from the beginning and this wasn't some last minute thing. I love Bert. King believes that Eddie Dean is Cuthbert's spiritual successor, but not only would Eddie never say that, he's always too starstruck by Roland, he'd never even THINK to say it. Whatever we think of Eddie and his dumb jokes, I believe he had more discipline than Cuthbert, if only because instead of the friend and equal Bert viewed Roland as, Eddie actually saw him as a mentor and role model instead.
I love the detail that in Mid-World it's considered bad luck to shoot a man in the back. And you know a LOT of superstitions, or as least religious beliefs and rules, seem to have less to do with religious orthodoxy, and were perhaps instead a case of a priest somewhere down the line inserting the proper lesson into the texts so people would behave more kindly and ethically towards each other. There is no honor in shooting a man in the back. Perhaps people of Mid-World are less inclined to be dishonorable if it's drilled into their heads early on that this specific brand of dishonor will cause them karmic misfortune. It's a detail I love. ****.
Stories Within Stories
Surprisingly Furth's big influence for this one is "The Wind Through The Keyhole". I say surprisingly, because I still can't believe that Furth isn't super pissed King knocked the comic she put in over ten years of hard work on out of continuity himself. Were I her I would have been furious. It's interesting she loves the book instead. ****.
Issue Overall: ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: Evil Ground 2 (Marvel Comics)
Evil Ground: Part 2
It was all right. I like Arthur Eld and his Knights riding to the rescue at the end, but the thing about nightmare tropes is that they aren't actually real, so it feels less rewarding than it should. ***.
Evil Ground Part II: The Horn Of Eld
Apparently before writing this article, Robin Furth did mad research on horns. Which is why we love Robin Furth.
Furth resists spoiling the time loop, but whenever the Horn of Eld is discussed, it's always the elephant in the room. How to talk about its importance without spoiling the ending of the final book? Hmmm. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger: So Fell Lord Perth (Marvel Comics)
So Fell Lord Perth
Honestly, I take this kind of thing with a grain of salt. This specific kind of fictional Mid-World mythology is the precise type of thing King himself would have no problems retconning with another midquel Dark Tower novel or short story. Like the comics for Buffy The Vampire Slayer, I don't believe their reality because the creators have repeatedly proved they would have no problems ignoring them if the franchise was ever "properly" returned to. The "true" tale of Lord Perth feel especially ripe for a rewrite from Stephen King.
I'm less interested in Arthur and Perth's parallels with the Biblical David and Goliath, and more with the ones Perth's army riding wolves raises with the robotic wolves of Thunderclap from "Wolves Of The Calla". Is this where the Crimson King got the idea (with some good ol' Harry Potter and Marvel Comics mixed in)?
I love that Arthur Eld was born in a place called Topeka. It not only raises the proper comparisons to the Wizard of Oz, but it ties into the fact that Blaine the Mono seemed to be able to travel between Universes, including a version of Topeka that suffered under Captain Trips from "The Stand". Is Furth hinting that Arthur's homeland was an Earth-based realm like our own and he journeyed out into End-World as part of crossing into the Multiverse? Maybe. Maybe. I love that question being raised.
King Connections Of Note: The land of Garlan is from "The Eyes Of The Dragon".
"Once Upon A Bye" IS from "A Wind Through The Keyhole". I still don't understand how or why Furth always pays tribute to that one, (which destroyed a great deal of her work in hindsight). It would have driven me nuts instead. She's way cooler than me.
Good for the comic for mentioning Roland does NOT say Aileen's name when he comes to the Dark Tower. Makes it a total d-word move after promising he would. He mentions Dinky Earnshaw but not Aileen? Part of me LIKES it when King knocks the comics out of canon, because a lot of the things they suggest about Roland are unforgivable.
Nice enough, but it's the kind of think King himself would make unofficial so fast your head would spin. ***1/2.
Dark Tower: How The Journey Began
Both Furth and the other creators are unsure about the future of the comics, but although Marvel DID do a loose adaptation of The Drawing Of The Three and the first half of The Waste Lands, this still saddens me because this wound up Furth's last essay in the comics. If you asked me, I think they were almost always the best parts of the comic. You read Groo The Wanderer for the letter column edited by Mark Evanier. You read The Dark Tower comics for the essays by Robin Furth. ****.
Issue Overall: ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 1 (Marvel Comics)
It's an interesting idea to tell the second novel from the perspective of Roland's new tet rather than Roland himself, but it lowers the stakes a bit.
King Connections: The missing dog posters are from "Low Men In Yellow Coats" from "Hearts In Atlantis".
Still, the idea that Balazar's men accidentally killed Eddie's sister Gloria in a botched attempt on his life as a baby is new information, as is the revelation that Walter O'Dim and the Dixie Pig were a big part of it too. Can't accuse the comic of refusing to Go Big, especially considering what a small-scale and personal story The Drawing Of The Three ultimately was (comparatively speaking at least). ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 2 (Marvel Comics)
Interesting revelation about Calvin Tower and that the bookstore The Manhattan Restaurant Of The Mind used to actually be a deli. I forgot about that. But the same purpose was for Tower to protect the rose.
Mindblowing Easter Egg that Balazar had candid photos of Eddie Dean at all ages from different worlds, but I will call retcon instead. His behavior is the second book towards Eddie belies any possibility he remotely thinks that damn junkie is good for anything. Lucky Furth has stated the comic take place on a different level of the Tower than the books do. It simply doesn't fit.
Speaking of which, I hate that each time we get a new artist, they do a drastically different interpretation of The Dark Tower. Has the comic book industry never heard of consistency? I mean, maybe comics of the 1960's to 1980's weren't as visually interesting to look at, but they all looked like they credibly shared the same universe / larger stories. The conflicting art styles of all modern comics is MUCH harder for me to reconcile. I think things were probably better when there was a "House Style" to these things.
Balazar shooting a guy for knocking down his house of cards is directly from the book, as are his instructions that the body be buried in a place where chickens will poop on it.
Henry is pretty much as much of an irredeenable jerk as in the books. Jerkier than in The Drawing Of The Three actually, because we never understood this about the character until The Waste Lands. He was too doped up in the second book to determine what a sociopath he was.
And yeah, it's him running without looking back to check on Eddie that damns him. Absolutely worthless.
King Connections: I see less of "Christine" in the Bad Car than I do the Buick from 'From A Buick 8". Those brightly colored sedans are also seen in "Low Men In Yellow Coats".
Good issue, I think although I'm getting a bit impatient for the Lobstrosities. Where's my did-a-chiks at? ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 3 (Marvel Comics)
The "All is silent in the halls of the dead" thing is super freaky. Is that new? I don't seem to recall it from the novels. If so, it's absolutely great.
And yes, Henry Dean is a turd with almost no redeeming qualities. And the one redeeming quality he had in the books (when he bragged to his friends Eddie could talk the devil into setting himself on-fire) was not yet explored by the now defunct comics. Too bad. The guy is a total d-bag otherwise.
Possible King Connection: Is the Ronnie Henry describes from Vietnam Ronnie Malenfant from "Hearts In Atlantis"? I'm betting he's a VERSION of him, at least was intended to be by Robin Furth. Ronnie does not die in that novel, but Eddie's level of the Tower is also different than most other King Universes (it's the Co-Op City thing) so it would fit that it's both him and not him at the same time. Also the character seen here has red-hair which was Malefant's trademark. I think it is and isn't him simultaneously.
But where's my damn Lobstrosities at? Roland's fingers won't eat themselves. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 4 (Marvel Comics)
That's more like it, Dad-a-chum!
I know Eddie has no way of knowing the Walter he's talking about is Roland's Walter. But it's something he would have put together later on if it had actually happened. I'm gonna say this is one of the additions to the canon Furth made that doesn't actually fit.
That last page was a killer though, right? ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Prisoner 5 (Marvel Comics)
Finally starting to get to some of the good stuff from The Drawing Of The Three. Felt like we were spinning our wheels a bit for four issues.
I love the bit on the plane. Popkins. Roland's gonna get him busted.
It's funny when Roland tells him name Eddie says he likes, "Johnny Bronco" better and Roland concedes he does too. That is purely an addition to the comic and it fabulous. Kudos to Peter David or Robin Furth, whichever one of them came up with it. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 1 (Marvel Comics)
House Of Cards: Part 1
This stuff is all just great. No negative notes for this one. *****.
Eddie Dean And The Force Of Ka
Not QUITE an essay by Robin Furth. More like a recap. But it's wordy and I like it. Although if I'm being honest, it probably should have accompanied the first issue of "The Prisoner" instead. ****1/2.
Issue Overall *****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 2 (Marvel Comics)
Eddie's interrogation in customs is great. I love that he says he'll only agree to a drug test if every Fed there gets tested too and the results are sent to his lawyer. That was a genius idea for King to write in the 1980's, and the hell of it is, it's not a threat I've seen elsewhere. It's something so obvious you'd figure cop and lawyer shows would be itching to ape. A lot of times a fictional project hits on an amazing idea that could change either the medium or the genre, and other Hollywood writers and producers simply don't appreciate how great it is. Eddie demanding blood test from TSA agents who were probably not clean themselves should not the only time I've ever seen that scene. After it hit, it should have become common.
Eddie is a pretty good lawyer himself if you ask me. His Miami Vice excuse is really perfect.
I think the meal Eddie sends Roland was handled better in the book. Because of branding issues, the soda is unnamed here. It's Pepsi in the book, and Roland is so hooked and delighted by it he wonders if it's the drug Eddie is carrying. He likes the hotdogs here, which is also a step down from the book. I love the idea that a guy who exists on a world with Mutant animals, and pure beef stock is a near impossibility, and a rare treat, can take or leave a New York hotdog. That didn't just say a lot about Roland and Mid-World. It said a lot about New York hotdogs, especially if it's not actually snobbery on his end, and he truly loved the Pepsi.
Good issue altogether. ****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 3 (Marvel Comics)
The Walter Brennan thing just does NOT work here. In the book King had Henry do the Johnny Cash answer for a few questions, setting up the punchline. The comic actually has to explain the joke after the fact, simply because it's been so abbreviated it no longer plays.
Similarly, Eddie is wearing boxers in the final scene instead of being naked. It's a stark reminder of the fact that the comic is still under plenty of restrictions that did in fact water down the story quite a bit in places. For Detta Walker that was for the better. For Eddie's final stand against Balazar and his men it was for the worse.
I love Roland's expression as he views the Tower. I believe it more or less matches what my head imagined when I first read it.
Still solid, but not as solid as the book. At least not for this issue. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 4 (Marvel Comics)
I love that when Roland smells pizza, and Eddie tells him what it is, he suggest they try it after this is all over. And Eddie tells him that's the correct viewpoint. That is definitely a cute scene, and it's not in book.
Also not in the book? I love that even through his grief Eddie frustratedly has to ask what "puling" means. Talk normal, Roland. Dude just lost his brother. Knock it off.
While I wish Eddie had fought naked, some of the rest of the comic was actually better than the book. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: House Of Cards 5 (Marvel Comics)
Eddie is not just observant. He says things Roland needs to hear but doesn't want to. Like that Roland will use people and discard them, and that he's smart enough to feel bad afterwards, but hard enough not to let it stop him. And Roland is hurt and offended by that observation. Mostly because it's true and it's not something he likes to believe is obvious. He wants to pretend his secret dark heart is entirely his. Maybe it never was. Maybe Roland isn't actually all too hard to figure out. What I especially love about Eddie's saying that is Eddie is telling him that behavior is not normal. Frankly Eddie's idea of being needed isn't exactly emotionally healthy either, but his telling Roland that that part of him is weird and unlike most other people is another thing that needed to be explained to him. Because I don't think Roland actually knew that.
I love Eddie hoping that he's eating one of the Lobstrosities that ate Jack Andoloni, and Roland crossly reminds him one of those things ate his fingers. And Eddie get a big dreamy smile while savoring the flavor: "Even better." Roland is also offended by THAT joke but I can't see why. He had it coming. How does he not know that?
Good reminder of the Jake situation. That is going to come up again soon and a refresher might have been necessary for people who hadn't read the books yet.
Interesting. Interesting. Interesting. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 1 (Marvel Comics)
A little dry, much like the first chapters of "The Pusher". But no lie, I found the issue's exploration of the civil rights struggle (such as referring to The Green Book) far more interesting than Eddie being picked on by his sociopathic brother as a kid.
I also love the League of Gileadites. The Klan may wear the robes, but it's truly the Gileadites fighting for the side of Stephen King's The White. I love that they executed the Klansman for it. It's a freaking war. What else were they supposed to do with them? Let the law handle it? For real?
And Bert Albueno might be Cuthbert Allgood's Twinner. Even Susannah herself raises the possibility there are other worlds than these.
I'm surprised Walter is going by Walter here. A Klansman under the hood is exactly how that character tends to use the R.F. alias. It's weird he's using his real name instead of Rusty Frostbite.
I don't much respond to the biographical portions of this comic miniseries. But Susannah's story is so far a little better than Eddie's, so partial credit. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 2 (Marvel Comics)
The Jack Mort reveal is interesting and the comic is choosing to tell the story in a different order. In the book, all of the Jack Mort stuff comes out to the reader AFTER Roland enters his mind and learns the shocking truth. We learned those horrific things the same time Roland did.
Here Mort's guilt in the brick incident is explicit BEFORE it even happens. But the reader gets some additional context Roland would have no way of knowing: Walter was so impressed by him he went into cahoots with him and they plan to go for Odetta again, and then Jake Chambers. Mort's random sociopathy suddenly makes him the ideal candidate for Walter to hire to kill off Roland's gunslingers one by one before they even came to be.
It could be argued that Walter refusing to finish describing what Jack did after he dropped the brick is a troubling example of the comic watering down the actual novel. But no, I actually believe King was simply too crass there. I actually would have understood what Walter was referring to even if I hadn't read the book. King's prose is often way grosser than it actually needs to be.
The art while Odetta is imagining her tea party is quite fanciful.
Interesting, but the biographical stuff IS less interesting than everything else. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 3 (Marvel Comics)
In my opinion Detta Walker remains one of Stephen King's most shameful story turns in a career with more than a few things to gripe about. "Problematic" is the nicest thing I can say about the idea. In reality, it's racist and insulting. And the comic cannot possibly polish that turd. Can't be done. She doesn't ruin the entire Dark Tower saga. But she DOES ruin a large part of it.
I liked the colorful art for the mindscapes though. I DO prefer house styles for comic books, but you don't get stuff this creative with that either.
But this is bad. *.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 4 (Marvel Comics)
I like Dan Holmes saying The World Has Moved On. Prophetic words.
The parts of the issue that are Odetta are interesting. The parts that are Detta suck. And it's about 50/50 of each. Middling. **1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Lady Of Shadows 5 (Marvel Comics)
I think the argument of JFK as the last gunslinger was handled better in the book. Especially because Susannah wound up changing her mind entirely on the subject.
The notion of Odetta being forced to stay in the jail cell just so she'd wet herself is both powerful and outrageous in its shocking unfairness. But this is what people of color had to face when they stood up against the corrupt system.
Sadly, I have to say the last panel didn't close strong. Often David and Furth come up with a strong closing joke or line to end the issue on and they just... did NOT this time. Sort of disappointing. They can do better than "I don't have anything else to do." It's weird that they are trying to convince me they can't.
Still, adding Roland and Eddie to the mix at the end helps. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 1 (Marvel Comics)
I love Roland saying to himself "Handicap Accessible. Where does he get these things?"
For the record, Roland's quest jive is a b.s. rationalization. Eddie has it right in calling it a kidnapping.
Some of it was good. Which was all right. Some of it was Detta. Which was not. ***.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 2 (Marvel Comics)
The "candles" stuff is offensive even by Detta Walker standards.
Seriously, man. What the hell? *.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 3 (Marvel Comics)
It's a pity it looks like Roland in Jack Mort's body will probably only last two issues past this (at most). It was the best part of the novel, and I would argue when he wrote it, it was the best thing Stephen King had written up to that point. King is a master of tense exciting climaxes. But few were as funny and pleasurable as the one from The Drawing Of The Three. King proved he wasn't merely a thrilling storyteller with that. He was an awesome one as well.
I like Roland's only note when he gets back is that Eddie gave her the gun. Eddie is furious because of all of the work him put in and THAT'S the first thing he says. I think perhaps Roland noting it was the only thing that actually NEEDED to be said was actually sadly right.
Roland as Jack Mort in da house! Things are about to go bananas! ****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 4 (Marvel Comics)
It's not as fun as the book because it omits small details. Like the fact that Roland is amazed and borderline greedy he can replace all of his ammunition (and then some) so cheaply. Part of him finds the world wasteful for that. His judgments against the sloppy cops in the book are also more explicit and understandable.
They kept the best part of Roland robbing a pharmacy at gunpoint for 60 bucks worth of penicillin, and leaving a gold Rolex watch as recompense. Honestly the way King describes it in the book is actually funnier, but I'm pleased they got the basics to that scenario down at least.
Fun. Which the Dark Tower has NOT previously been up until this point. *****.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: Bitter Medicine 5 (Marvel Comics)
In the 1980's King used the fact that Jack Mort wore women's underwear as a sign of his deviancy and psychopathy. Did the comic really need to do the same things decades later when it should know better? I don't appreciate the fact that Mort is probably nonbinary being used as some sort of humiliating punchline. It's almost forgivable King was clueless enough to do that in the 1980's. There's no excuse for the comic not excising that gag 20 years later when people should know better.
That kind of wrecked my enjoyment of things. *1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 1 (Marvel Comics)
The adaptation of The Drawing Of The Three is over. We are actually in The Waste Lands now. What I think happened was the title got canceled AGAIN, but the creators kind of knew there would be no third reprieve. And Jake was the loosest of ends. So they added a brief adaptation of the first half of The Waste Lands for five issues, just to leave thing off on a better place if there was nothing else coming. I think it was the right move.
The artwork in this arc is the most basic art in the entire run of the series. But that's why I like it the most. I can actually tell what things are and easily read people's expressions. It's weird how little modern comics currently value that. To me, that's the most important thing comic book art can do.
And we end on Shardik's boogery sneeze. Never let is be said that David and Furth refused to take after Sai King and Go For The Gross-Out. They are not proud. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 2 (Marvel Comics)
The art may be simpler, but it's simplicity makes the action scenes, like the ones with Shardik, feel much more dynamic. There is a feeling of motion and movement in these drawings absent from all the previous issues. It's actually really cool. ****1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 3 (Marvel Comics)
Here, the simplistic art works against things. The Rose, one of the most visually important moments from the book, looks utterly pedestrian and underwhelming here.
Also Calvin Tower's design feels wrong to me.
I also previously wished that all the different artists drawing the Dark Tower used one agreed upon design and stuck with it. Consistency in a comic book is not too much to ask. **.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 4 (Marvel Comics)
It feels a bit rushed, as if they are compressing things in these final two issues to get Jake to Roland. Probably because that's what's happening. ***1/2.
The Dark Tower: The Drawing Of The Three: The Sailor 5 (Marvel Comics)
Rushed, condensed, and ended too quickly, but I think it was better to get to where they could leave off where they did. Would another of couple of issues helped? Yes. But knowing this was it, did the creators do the best they could? Also yes. ****.