The Dark Tower is a series of books written by American author Stephen King, which incorporates
themes from multiple genres, including fantasy, science fantasy, horror, and Western. It describes
a "gunslinger" and his quest toward a tower, the nature of which is both physical and metaphorical.
King has described the series as his magnum opus. In addition to the eight novels of the
series proper that comprise 4,250 pages, many of King's other books relate to the story,
introducing concepts and characters that come into play as the series progresses. A series
of prequel comics followed the completion of the novels.
The series was chiefly inspired by the poem "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came" by
Robert Browning, whose full text was included in the final volume's appendix. In the preface
to the revised 2003 edition of The Gunslinger, King also identifies The Lord of the Rings,
Arthurian Legend, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as inspirations. He identifies Clint
Eastwood's "Man with No Name" character as one of the major inspirations for the protagonist,
Roland Deschain. King's style of location names in the series, such as Mid-World, and
his development of a unique language abstract to our own, are also influenced by J. R. R.
Tolkien's work. In 2009, King announced an eighth book, The
Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole. December 7, 2009 saw the release of a spin-off
online game titled Discordia. As of 2010 more than 30 million copies of the series have
been sold in 40 countries. A live-action adaptation was announced in September 2010, consisting
of alternating feature films and television series. The project was reportedly cancelled
in July 2011, but in October 2011, it was announced that the film was still on track,
and that the television series was slated to air on HBO.
On March 13, 2012, it was reported that Warner Bros. was interested in making at least the
first film, and would be in prime position to green-light the TV element through its
sister company, HBO. Javier Bardem was originally set to play Roland, but the role was subsequently
offered to Russell Crowe. Initial reports indicated filming was going to commence as
early as the first quarter of 2013. Warner Bros. has since passed on the project, but
Media Rights Capital has entered talks to distribute it.
Stephen King saw the Dark Tower series as a first draft. He planned to rewrite it to
eliminate continuity errors and possibly remove himself from the later books, but after revising
The Gunslinger, he decided a rewrite for the entire series was no longer necessary.
Overview Plot summary
In the story, Roland Deschain is the last living member of a knightly order known as
gunslingers and the last of the line of "Arthur Eld", his world's analogue of King Arthur.
Politically organized along the lines of a feudal society, it shares technological and
social characteristics with the American Old West but is also magical. Many of the magical
aspects have vanished from Mid-World, but traces remain as do relics from a technologically
advanced society. Roland's quest is to find the Dark Tower, a fabled building said to
be the nexus of all universes. Roland's world is said to have "moved on", and it appears
to be coming apart at the seams. Mighty nations have been torn apart by war, entire cities
and regions vanish without a trace and time does not flow in an orderly fashion. Sometimes,
even the sun rises in the north and sets in the east. As the series opens, Roland's motives,
goals and age are unclear, though later installments shed light on these mysteries.
For a detailed synopsis of the novels, see the relevant article for each book.
Characters
Along his journey to the Dark Tower, Roland meets a great number of both friends and enemies.
For most of the way he is accompanied by a group of people who together with him form
the Ka-tet of the Nineteen and Ninety-nine, consisting of Jake Chambers, Eddie Dean, Susannah
Dean, and Oy. Among his many enemies on the way are The Man In Black, Mordred and The
Crimson King. Language
King created a language for his characters, known as the High Speech. Examples of this
language include the phrases Thankee, Sai and Dan-Tete. In addition, King uses the term
Ka, which is the approximate equivalent of destiny, or fate, in the fictional language
High Speech. This term originated in Egyptian mythology and storytelling, and has figured
in several other novels and screenplays since 1976. The term also appears in King's short
story, Low Men in Yellow Coats, in which Ted describes its meaning to Bobby.
Series The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger – 224 pages
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three – 400 pages
The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands – 512 pages
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass – 787 pages; 1998 Locus Award nominee
The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla – 714 pages; 2004 Locus Award nominee
The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah – 432 pages; 2005 Locus Award nominee
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower – 845 pages; 2005 British Fantasy Award winner
The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole – 336 pages
Continuation While the series was declared finished with
the publication of the seventh volume in 2004, King described in an interview in March 2009
an idea for a new short story he'd recently had: "And then I thought, 'Well, why don't
I find three more like this and do a book that would be almost like modern fairy tales?'
Then this thing started to add on bits and pieces so I guess it will be a novel." According
to King, the idea is a new Dark Tower novel. King said, regarding the Dark Tower series,
"It's not really done yet. Those seven books are really sections of one long über-novel."
Stephen King confirmed this during his TimesTalk event at The Times Center in New York City
on November 10, 2009, and the next day King's official site posted that King will begin
working on this novel in about eight months, with a tentative title being The Wind Through
the Keyhole. King noted that this novel should be set between the fourth and the fifth books
of the series. The book, titled The Dark Tower: The Wind
Through the Keyhole, was announced on Stephen King's official site on March 10, 2011, and
was published on April 24, 2012. Illustrations
Each book in the series was originally published in hardcover format with a number of full-color
illustrations spread throughout. Each book contained works by a single illustrator only.
Subsequent printings of each book in trade paperback format usually preserve the illustrations
in full, except for books I and IV. Pocket-sized paperback reprints contain only black-and-white
chapter or section header illustrations.The illustrators who worked on each book are:
Michael Whelan – multiple award-winning science fiction and fantasy painter. The Dark
Tower is among his early notable works. Phil Hale – the only Dark Tower illustrator
who created a second set of illustrations for a later printing of the book he illustrated.
Ned Dameron. Dave McKean – graphic designer noted for
working in many media, including photography and film. The only Dark Tower illustrator
to work in photocollages. Bernie Wrightson – established illustrator
for 1960s and 1970s horror comics, and also provided the illustrations for King's novella,
"Cycle of the Werewolf.". Darrel Anderson – the only Dark Tower illustrator
who used digital illustration techniques. Michael Whelan – returning more than 20
years later as the only recurring Dark Tower illustrator.
Jae Lee – an illustrator who had previously worked on the Marvel Comics adaptation of
the series, illustrated The Wind Through the Keyhole.
Reception Bill Sheehan of The Washington Post called
the series "a humane, visionary epic and a true magnum opus" that stands as an "imposing
example of pure storytelling," "filled with brilliantly rendered set pieces... cataclysmic
encounters and moments of desolating tragedy." Erica Noonan of the Boston Globe said, "There's
a fascinating world to be discovered in the series" but noted that its epic nature keeps
it from being user-friendly. Allen Johnston of The New York Times was disappointed with
how the series progressed; while he marveled at the "sheer absurdity of [the books'] existence"
and complimented King's writing style, he said preparation would have improved the series,
stating "King doesn't have the writerly finesse for these sorts of games, and the voices let
him down." Michael Berry of the San Francisco Chronicle, however, called the series' early
installments "highfalutin hodgepodge" but the ending "a valediction" that "more than
delivers on what has been promised." Other media
Tie-in books The series has prompted related non-fiction
books by authors besides King. Robin Furth has published the two-volume Stephen King's
The Dark Tower: A Concordance, an encyclopedia-style companion to the series that she originally
wrote for King's personal use. Bev Vincent has published The Road to The Dark Tower:
Exploring Stephen King's Magnum Opus, a book containing back story, summary and analysis.
Stephen King has endorsed both books. Prequel comic series
A prequel to the Dark Tower series, set around the time of the flashbacks in The Gunslinger
and Wizard and Glass, has been released by Marvel Comics. With the project overseen by
King, The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born is plotted by Robin Furth, scripted by Peter
David, and illustrated by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove. The first issue of this first arc
was released on February 7, 2007. A hardcover volume containing all seven issues was released
on November 7, 2007. The second arc in the Dark Tower comic series
was released by Marvel Comics. Called The Long Road Home, the first issue was published
on March 5, 2008. A hardcover volume containing all five issues was released on October 15,
2008. The third arc in the Dark Tower comic series
was released by Marvel Comics, and it is called The Dark Tower: Treachery. The first issue
of the six issue arc was published on September 10, 2008. A hardcover volume containing all
6 issues was released on April 21, 2009. Following the completion of the third arc
a one-shot issue titled The Dark Tower: Sorcerer was released April 8, 2009. The story focuses
on the history of the villainous wizard Marten Broadcloak.
The fourth arc in the Dark Tower comic series was released by Marvel Comics, and it is called
The Dark Tower: The Fall of Gilead. The first issue of the six issue arc was published on
May 13, 2009. A hardcover volume containing all 6 issues, as well as the Sorcerer One-Shot
was released on February 2, 2010. The fifth arc in the Dark Tower comic series
was released by Marvel Comics, and it is called The Dark Tower: Battle of Jericho Hill. The
first issue of the five issue arc was published on December 3, 2009. A hardcover volume containing
all 5 issues was released on August 17, 2010. Marvel Comics has also published three supplemental
books to date that expand upon characters and locations first introduced in the novels.
The Dark Tower: Gunslingers' Guidebook was released in 2007, The Dark Tower: End-World
Almanac was released in 2008, and The Dark Tower: Guide to Gilead was released in 2009.
All three books were written by Anthony Flamini, with Furth serving as creative consultant.
End-World Almanac and Guide to Gilead feature illustrations by David Yardin.
Further comic adaptions
An adaption of King's novella The Little Sisters of Eluria, titled The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger
- The Little Sisters of Eluria, was made into a comic series and released by Marvel Comics.
The first issue of the five-issue arc was published on December 8, 2010. The collected
hardback edition was released on June 08, 2011.
An adaption of King's novel The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, titled The Dark Tower: The
Gunslinger - The Journey Begins, was made into a comic series and released by Marvel
Comics. The first issue of the five-issue arc was published on May 19, 2010. The collected
hardback edition was released on January 26, 2011.
A second adaption of King's novel The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, titled The Dark Tower:
The Gunslinger - The Battle of Tull, was made into a comic series and released by Marvel
Comics. The first issue of the five-issue arc was published on June 1, 2011. The collected
hardback edition was released on January 25, 2012.
A third adaption of King's novel The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, titled The Dark Tower:
The Gunslinger - The Way Station, was made into a comic series and released by Marvel
Comics. The first issue of the five-issue arc was published on December 14, 2011. The
collected hardback edition was released on June 27, 2012.
Discordia December 7, 2009 saw the release of a spin-off
online game titled Discordia, available to play free of charge on the official Stephen
King website. The game is a continuation of the original Dark Tower story, following the
war between the Tet Corporation and Sombra/NCP in New York, and it has been supervised by
both Stephen King and Robin Furth. From the website: "Exploring the behind-the-scenes
conflict between the two companies, Discordia introduces long-time Dark Tower fans to new
characters and numerous mechanical/magical items developed by Mid-World's Old Ones. Over
the course of our adventure we will visit many locations, both those familiar to Dark
Tower fans and others which we only glimpsed in the Dark Tower novels. While we may not
see Roland and his ka-tet in this adventure, the development team has remembered the faces
of its fathers. We have done our best to honor the original Dark Tower series while simultaneously
mapping new and exciting Dark Tower territory." Film/Television adaptation
Initially, in 2007 J. J. Abrams was connected to a film adaptation but later revealed he
had removed himself from involvement in the project. On September 8, 2010, an official
announcement was made that the series would be brought to both the big and the small screens
via a trilogy of feature films and two seasons of a television series to bridge gaps between
the films. According to a press release from Universal Pictures from October 29, 2010,
the first Dark Tower film would open on May 17, 2013. On July 19, 2011, Universal pulled
its support from the production of the Dark Tower films and television series. According
to reports, the studio was unable to come to terms with producer Ron Howard. Despite
this, Stephen King remains confident Howard will see the project through with another
studio, and Howard confirmed the adaptation is still on track, noting that HBO will now
carry the television series portion of the project. On March 13, 2012 it was reported
that Warner Bros. is now interested in making at least the first film, and would be in prime
position to green-light the TV element through its sister company, HBO. Russell Crowe, tipped
to play Roland Deschain, is reportedly still on board. Reports indicated that filming may
have commenced as early as the first quarter of 2013. However, Warner eventually passed
on the film. Connections to King's other works
The series has become a linchpin that ties together much of King's body of work. The
worlds of The Dark Tower are in part composed of locations, characters, events and other
various elements from many of King's novels and short stories.
References
External links Official website