Dan's comments (member since Aug 20, 2007)

Dan's comments from the Stephen King Fans group.

The Talisman is actually being made right now as a TV mini-series.

BOO!

Watch the ol' spoiler-roos there Moony!

I don't think they can do it justice and for that reason it shouldn't be made.

I read King sold the rights to 'talk' about making a film of the Dark Tower for $19 to Lost co-creators J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof.

I don't know about you guys, but I thought 'Lost' was a load of absolute unrealistic garbage. Give me Twin Peaks for my 'cult tv' viewing any day.

One more thing, how on earth are they going to explain all the references to King's previous books? Also, the fact of King's appearance??? The whole tale relies a lot on BOOKS and READING.

I can see that so much will be omitted from the story to make it into a film. Which is inevitable really.

I for one can't wait to play the Dark Tower videogame, own the Dark Tower lunch box and buy the Dark Tower action figures.

The Tower will always stand in my imagination as how I want it to be. Not some hollywood diluted CGI interpretation.

Excuse my scathing rant. Its Monday morning and I haven't had my coffee yet x

Hi Lisa. Here's how I interpreted the end of The Long Walk.


LONG WALK SPOILER WARNING!!!






Well, its definitely not the Major. As doesn't he push him aside to walk after the figure?

The "dark figure" he is walking to could be Randall Flagg. I doubt it though, that wouldn't make that much sense.

The figure could also be 'hope', or another fellow walker.

It could also be that he is walking towards 'death' itself. Just like the fate of the previous 'winner' of the walk.

It's an open ending really, so its down to interpretation as to who the 'dark figure' is and why he carries on walking.

It's the best way to have ended it. People sometimes complain about open endings, but when they're done well they work perfectly. They also make you think long after you've finished reading.

Yeah, I remember it.

I don't think its that pointless. I read it as King trying to get you to sympathize with Flagg's death. I don't know. I'd like to know Flagg's history from birth onwards.

Insomnia is SUCH an underrated book. I love it SOOO much.

If you're questing for the Dark Tower its an essential.

Awesome.

Not too bad thanks Mole! How's yourself?

Did anyone ever tell you how much you look like Stephen King in his bearded college years? Take that as a compliment my man!

So is Skeleton Crew the group read for August? If so, I'm on it!

"They all FLOAT!" - IT, Pennywise

"WOLF!" - The Talisman, Wolf

"My life for YOU!" - The Stand, Trashcan Man

"I don't like people, they fuck me up." - Dark Tower, Jake

"AKE!" - Oy, a certain Billy Bumbler

I read The Regulators before Desperation. But I agree, there isn't a particular order for these two books.

I enjoyed The Regulators more than Desperation.

I saw a trailer for this, might watch it.

I love how Stephen King is always trying to push new mediums for his stories. I read in 'On Writing' (I think) how he got into writing 'e-books' just because they were another way to get the stories out. Granted 'ebooks' haven't taken off as was probably expected, but he should definitely be praised for trying it.

Hello, I'm Dan.

A while back my girlfriend bought me a paperback of copy of 'IT'. It stemmed from there and I haven't looked back since. The peak of my King obsession was completing The Dark Tower. I can't say enough good things about that series.

I started reading The Mist last night. I've seen the film recently, which was probably a bad move. I don't usually do it that way around, especially with Stephen King. But I was at a loss with something to watch.

Anyhow! Here in England over the past few days we have been experiencing some extremely hot weather (for a change!). Last night was incredibly humid and I sat down to start reading The Mist. Would you believe that a few pages in the light dropped and the sky became gray, a thunderstorm loomed overhead. It was pathetic fallacy, but perfect atmospherics for reading The Mist.

So this morning, the night after the storm, I keep looking outside expecting a mist cloud to envelope the building.

I haven't read Duma Key yet, so unfortunately cannot say.

You're wise to have left it after reading Blaze though. I regretted reading it in the same sitting directly after finishing, as it just ruined the ending tone of Blaze.

Good short story though!

*possible (?) Desperation / The Regulators spoiler warning*


Hayley, yes some of them do die.

I believe they are set in alternate universes, that run somewhat parallel, but with differences! Let me explain. There is a moment in both books when Johnny Marinville is at a complete loss and is talking to his ex-wife on the phone. This is a turning point in Johnny's life, he can go one way or the other. Each book shows the consequences of each direction.

The end of The Regulators further shows the idea of different plains of existence. We should probably set up a different spoiler free post to discuss that though.

I believe that Tak also exists in the Dark Tower world. Simply because some of his own language is from that world.

I like it.

(My warning still stands on the Dark Tower website!)

I listened to some of King's radio station through the link at the bottom. Nice if you enjoy proper rock n' roll!

Also, I noticed just how many advert breaks you guys in the USA!

Congratulations Angie. Good luck!

I've read The Regulators this summer followed by Desperation. They are kind of like a mirror reflection of each other, using similar scenarios, the same characters and certain references to each other.

Collie Entragian in Desperation is a cop, just like in The Regulators. Though with quite a difference.

I enjoyed The Regulators the most.

TAK!

Finished reading Blaze. I really enjoyed it. A really laid back book to follow and visualise. There's some emotional moments in there too which caught me by surprise. It definitely adhered to the Bachman flavor of 'bleakness' anyway.

And so completes my reading of all the Richard Bachman books!

Also, in my paperback copy at the end there was a short story called 'Memory' that was the supposed original idea to Duma Key. Nice little extra.

I strap them to a chair, arms and legs shackled, and tell them everything that mainstream culture has taught us about Stephen King is jaded by the 'horror author' stereotype that has been branded upon him.

Trying to get someone to read the Dark Tower, if they haven't read any King I've found is quite impossible. For a start, the opener to the series The Gunslinger, is a great book, don't get me wrong, but can put a lot of people off carrying on.

I think it was wise of you to start with book II (which happens to be my favourite of the entire series) as this grabs the casual reader more. But if I can, I always suggest starting at the beginning. Just THINK of what you're missing by avoiding reading the first book. Anyway, I digress.

I've found the best way is to get people to read IT first. I think that book shows a varied range of King's writing abilities. You have the coming of age, friendship and of course horror. Different Seasons is a good opener too, its more than likely that they've seen one of the film adaptations, so if they like the film then odds are they'll like the book. That usually shows them that King isn't just about horror.

It makes you wonder just how many times he's repeated the journey. For example, it must have been at least twice because he finally realises towards the end when he is thrown back that everything seems familiar, such as the scent of alkali (I think its that) which he first smells on entering the tower.

Either way, I have high hopes for him this time. The tower gave him Cuthbert's horn this time, which he neglected to pick up off the battlefield of Jericho Hill.