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But the men didn't even do anything either. Except show up and die. From parts of the book I chalked it up to being an Old Testament comparision, where God is just a dick because
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May 11, 2014 19:31
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Blade_of_tyshalle posted:Yeah, I love the Wastelands. Shardik, Blaine, the Tick-Tock Man ranting about Not-Sees, and the God Drums, man. Lud is a totally crazy place and the closest King comes to replicating that feel of utter surreality was Calla Cryn Sturgis, which was way less subtle about it. I think The Wastelands is definitely the best Dark Tower book.
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May 11, 2014 21:21
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muscles like this? posted:I think The Wastelands is definitely the best Dark Tower book. And based on that I've never anticipated a sequel as much as Wizard and Glass. Good book, but it could never have lived up to my expectations.
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May 11, 2014 21:48
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Blade_of_tyshalle posted:You know, I was convinced up until just now that the blind girl in the Langoliers was played by Sabrina Lloyd, but apparently not. I had totally forgotten Dean Stockwell was in it, but I remembered David Morse and Balki. Wow. Apparently she grew up  http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2433145344/nm0531069?ref_=nm_ov_ph
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May 11, 2014 22:06
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Maximum Overdrive is streamable on Netflix now. Thought you guys would want to know. Firestarter isn't but FIrestarter: Rekindled is.
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May 11, 2014 22:14
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Sylink posted:But what does it matter when the hand of deus ex machina comes down and kills some innocent bros for no reason. And it was ultimately no reason because no one survived the event to be able to tell anyone what actually happpened. I think that is the worst part. No one really knows what happened, and if they did it would have an obvious effect on the survivors going forward with their lives. Well.. yes... that's the point..
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May 11, 2014 22:49
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syscall girl posted:And based on that I've never anticipated a sequel as much as Wizard and Glass. Good book, but it could never have lived up to my expectations. I read all 7 books in order over the course of a couple of weeks. I had about 15 minutes after finishing The Wastelands before I started Wizard and Glass. I had very high expectations based on the first 3 books. Good book, but it never rose to anything in the first 3. Nor did the series ever recover those heights of glory. I had never seen King end a series the same way he ends most of his books, that slow glacial, fall-apart of all the early potential. Aquarium Gravel fucked around with this message at 00:16 on May 12, 2014 |
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May 11, 2014 23:29
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Aquarium Gravel posted:I rad all 7 books in order over the course of a couple of weeks. I had about 15 minutes after finishing The Wastelands before I started Wizard and Glass. I had very high expectations based on the first 3 books. Good book, but it never rose to anything in the first 3. Nor did the series ever recover those heights of glory. Imagine waiting on Blaine's riddle for six years. It's why I sympathize with grumpy GRRM fans even though I am a latecomer to the game of dragons.
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May 11, 2014 23:55
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Two Finger posted:Wow. Apparently she grew up The gently caress is this? I look slightly older/better than I did 18 years ago, but fucks sake.
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May 12, 2014 00:11
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WattsvilleBlues posted:The gently caress is this? I look slightly older/better than I did 18 years ago, but fucks sake. If it wasn't for the name, I would not have recognised her. I guess some win the genetic lottery.
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May 12, 2014 01:24
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syscall girl posted:Imagine waiting on Blaine's riddle for six years. Those fuckers get no sympathy from me until the GRRM skates death. Although I like Wizard and Glass better (I think it's better written than all the others) I feel The Waste Lands is the most Dark Tower of the Dark Tower books. When I think upon what the series is and the themes it touches on, they're all in the Waste Lands. 1, 4, 5 are westerns, 2, 6 are urban fantasies, and 7 is a bit of blend. But 3 is solidly the World that Was. 3 is the most like living in Fallout.
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May 12, 2014 03:29
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Just got in from work. Gonna make some tooterfish popkins so these astin don't upset my stomach. Anyone want one? All I have to serve them on are my auntie's special blue plates, though. Please refrain from breaking them in the parking lot at night while fingering yourselves. 
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May 12, 2014 04:07
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So has anyone been able to log into the site from the Mr. Mercedes video?
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May 12, 2014 18:06
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Sylink posted:Fran didn't bother me. But a lot of time was spent building Nadine to be this mythical demon mother, then she just says gently caress it (as if she couldn't have done this earlier when it would have had better results for everyone involved). The Stand is far from being my favorite King book, but I am always amazed at how many people completely misunderstand the ending. I've seen it again and again where people think that it was the literal hand of god, out of nowhere, that detonated the bomb. It wasn't the hand of god (Larry just thought it looked like it), and it wasn't a deus ex machina, it was the energy ball that Flagg had created earlier, himself. Because the point there is pretty clearly that the evil destroyed itself. You had highly powerful, highly equipped, highly competent people on the Vegas side and they lost. Not because the "hand of God" was necessary, but because they did themselves in. The guys who love destruction end up destroying themselves. So Trashcanman destroyed the airforce and brought the bomb in, Henreid assembles everybody for the public execution, Horgan gets Flagg worked up enough to fling the energy ball, Flagg himself kills Nadine (the "unbroken vessel") and then flings the energy ball that eventually leads to the destruction of the Vegas zone. The book is pretty much about the all powerful, vengeful religious leader that demands submission and tribute (Flagg) versus the new testament sort of religious view, and how the former inevitably destroys itself (like King says in the Slate interview on 30 years of the Stand:"Basically what Christ preached: get along with your neighbor and give everything away and follow me.") It wasn't an accident that the most significant thing Mother Abigail did after getting people together was disappearing. The ending is a bit rushed, which is why it is not among my favorite King books, but it is still amazing how many people misunderstand the ending thinking that it was literally the hand of god there.
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May 13, 2014 01:33
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I just read The Long Walk for the first time tonight, and I realize the end is probably supposed to be slightly ambiguous, but has King ever come out with what happened there? spoiler for a 35 year old book I'm assuming Garrety just snapped and was hallucinating the figure at the end. He wasn't really seeing what was in front of him which is why he kept walking/running. I didn't really get the sense that the government was going to kill him there.
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May 13, 2014 04:24
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Caught Cubs Posting
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juliuspringle posted:Maximum Overdrive is streamable on Netflix now Finally the wife will understand why I cannot visit an ATM without shouting "HONEY? COME ON OVER HERE SUGARBUNS"
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May 13, 2014 05:05
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Rev. Bleech_ posted:Finally the wife will understand why I cannot visit an ATM without shouting "HONEY? COME ON OVER HERE SUGARBUNS" This machine just called me an rear end in a top hat!!!
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May 13, 2014 05:25
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Devo posted:I just read The Long Walk for the first time tonight, and I realize the end is probably supposed to be slightly ambiguous, but has King ever come out with what happened there? I definitely think he lived and probably eventually recovered Look, the age of a book doesn't matter. There are literally new readers every single day. I'm not saying every piece of info should be spoilered, but plot points and climaxes certainly. I love how much the long walk and running man predicted 21st century competition tv.
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May 13, 2014 11:06
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Devo posted:I just read The Long Walk for the first time tonight, and I realize the end is probably supposed to be slightly ambiguous, but has King ever come out with what happened there? This is pretty much my reading. Whether he recovers or not, well, personally my interpretation tends to change based on how cynical I'm feeling when I think about it. I know some people complain about how ambiguous the ending is, but I thought it was perfect.
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May 13, 2014 18:42
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What's all this business about other non-Dark Tower books setting up The Dark Tower? This is the first I've heard of it and I'm slightly too afraid to look into it for fear of spoilers. (I'm only up to the second part of The Gunslinger at the moment - still no idea what is happening.) Also genuinely surprised by all the acclaim for The Stand (including from King himself in the foreword of The Gunslinger), considering I'm not entirely sure I'd even heard of it before. I should probably add it to my To Read list, huh?
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May 13, 2014 19:24
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rypakal posted:I definitely think he lived and probably eventually recovered Big Mad Drongo posted:This is pretty much my reading. Whether he recovers or not, well, personally my interpretation tends to change based on how cynical I'm feeling when I think about it. Mainly I just wish I had read this story sooner; it was really good! My mom has had an old beat up paperback copy of the Bachman books (the 1985 version) sitting around on the bookshelf for as long as I can remember. But for some reason I never read that one. The only Bachman I read as a teenager was Thinner and then much later The Regulators. Also on the subject of King books I haven't read that were sitting around forever: is The Tommyknockers worth picking up and reading now that I'm a grown up type person? To this day that is the only King book I started and never finished. Didn't come close really. It bored the poo poo out of 14 year old me.
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May 13, 2014 19:29
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VagueRant posted:What's all this business about other non-Dark Tower books setting up The Dark Tower? This is the first I've heard of it and I'm slightly too afraid to look into it for fear of spoilers. (I'm only up to the second part of The Gunslinger at the moment - still no idea what is happening.) The stand is definitely one of the more popular king books. It's also one of his better ones. If you want to know about connections, plus an order to read them in, spoiler free, http://honkmahfah.blogspot.com/2012/04/dark-tower-suggested-reading-order-for.html?m=1 The order here is actually pretty good, although going this route will make you take forever. The only thing I would really skip is from a Buick 8. Edit: it's worth noting that you can totally read the dark tower without reading any of the other books, but you will have a much reduced enjoyment of the story as a whole, and a lot of poo poo will make so much more sense. King sometimes just let's poo poo ride assuming you understand the characters/Connections already. I think it's seriously worth taking the time to read all the connect books. Pilfered Pallbearers fucked around with this message at 19:43 on May 13, 2014 |
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May 13, 2014 19:37
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Devo posted:Mainly I just wish I had read this story sooner; it was really good! My mom has had an old beat up paperback copy of the Bachman books (the 1985 version) sitting around on the bookshelf for as long as I can remember. But for some reason I never read that one. The only Bachman I read as a teenager was Thinner and then much later The Regulators. I quite like The Tommyknockers, but even I admit that the second quarter of the book is a huge drag. There's about 100 pages where nothing really happens. Everything from the time Bobbi starts to dig until Gard gets to Haven kinda sucks. Once it gets going, it's really awesome, and the final act is an orgy of destruction and chaos that rivals The Stand in intensity, if not scope. It also has one of King's better endings.
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May 13, 2014 19:59
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VagueRant posted:What's all this business about other non-Dark Tower books setting up The Dark Tower? This is the first I've heard of it and I'm slightly too afraid to look into it for fear of spoilers. (I'm only up to the second part of The Gunslinger at the moment - still no idea what is happening.) Pretty much throughout the Dark Tower series there are a few characters and/or settings that are from other King books. Some of these play major parts in the Dark Tower, some are minor. You can still get a lot of enjoyment from the Dark Tower series with little to no knowledge of these references beforehand - there's just additional enjoyment with knowing the backstory connections/crossovers. Some of these connections are directly described in the Dark Tower books so you'll mostly understand the reference anyway. I read the Dark Tower a couple years ago and at the time I had read a couple of the crossover books, knew a little backstory of a couple others I hadn't read, and there were a few I had no knowledge of the crossover book. I feel it didn't lessen my enjoyment of the series and had a blast the whole way through. I'd say if you've already started the series and are getting invested and don't mind knowing there are references that you won't even realize then go ahead and continue - it's quite a ride.
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May 13, 2014 20:26
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Devo posted:
Was wondering this too - Tommyknockers is one that my parents always had laying around that I just never picked up for some reason. Another one that was always on the shelf that I never read is The Dark Half - how does that one rank amongst King books?
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May 13, 2014 20:27
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The Dark Half is the only King book I ever stopped reading because it was so boring and bad. I hate that book.
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May 14, 2014 04:25
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The Berzerker posted:The Dark Half is the only King book I ever stopped reading because it was so boring and bad. I hate that book. Have you ever read Gerald's Game?
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May 14, 2014 10:51
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Having just re-read the Dark Tower books, I'd have to say that Wizard and Glass is the best novel, which may partially have to do with it having the least Susanna/Detta in it, outside of the first. The Roland flashback is the writing of his that most resembles Salem's Lot, which is a good thing. 6 and 7 actually completely change the writing style and toss in an omniscient narrator that talks to the reader constantly, which is just irritating. And I hate the rushed deaths in 7; they seem like obligatory "need to have people die" moments just tossed in there to be there, as opposed to things that are actually earned. That's the problem about tossing too much in the last book as opposed to pacing things out.
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May 14, 2014 14:40
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The Wastelands remains my favorite, but you make good points.juliuspringle posted:Have you ever read Gerald's Game? Nope, nor Rose Madder. I have both, I think, but they're very low on my priority list because of the constant poo poo they get everywhere people talk about Stephen King.
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May 14, 2014 15:05
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I liked Gerald's Game, but I seem to read the reality of the Space Cowboy for the protagonist a bit differently than other people usually do, it seems.
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May 14, 2014 15:09
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I loved the Dark Tower series but I almost couldn't finish Song of Susanah. It was just so boring and meandering. Going from a 7 Samuri fight with kidnapping robot wolves to checking into hotels and the exciting adventures of Aaron Deepneau, rare book collecting idiot was jarring. By the end nothing had really been settled and ends on a stupid cliffhanger.
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May 14, 2014 15:50
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Darko posted:Having just re-read the Dark Tower books, I'd have to say that Wizard and Glass is the best novel, which may partially have to do with it having the least Susanna/Detta in it, outside of the first. The Roland flashback is the writing of his that most resembles Salem's Lot, which is a good thing. I very rarely agree with your opinions, but I'm down with this one. The backstory in Wizard is really good. Maybe some of King's best writing, and some of the best fantasy ever written. I use the word "best" because the story avoids two traps that a lot of fantasy falls into: 1) it never gets lost up its own rear end with backstory, history, and world-building, and 2) it's original without being entirely alien. Originality, of course, doesn't always mean quality, but King maintains the human connection (the love story) while bringing to bear the conflict between Roland's ka-tet, Jonas's ka-tet, and the struggle between the Affiliation and Farson without throwing too much culture poo poo at the audience (a trap he fell into with Wolves, say sorry). It's a hell of a balancing act that he pulls off very well. The Meijis stuff has the same flavor as The Gunslinger, which none of the other books quite have. That isn't a bad thing, but it's worth mentioning. King was able to match a tone he wrote twenty years before. That's no small trick.
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May 14, 2014 21:09
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Install Windows posted:I liked Gerald's Game, but I seem to read the reality of the Space Cowboy for the protagonist a bit differently than other people usually do, it seems. I liked Gerald's Game but read it when it first came out and haven't read it as an adult.
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May 15, 2014 17:55
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I really like Stephen King and want to be a bigger fan of his. Read all the short story compendiums, the Shining, Salem's Lot, watched all the movies, etc. Loved them all. But, I read the extended edition of The Stand earlier this year and absolutely hated it. Hated it. Hated the pacing, the huge let down at the end of the story, the characters. It started off so promising then rambled for six hundred pages. I really want to read the Dark Tower series and was told that the villain in the Stand is also the villain in them and now I'm not sure if I want to do it. Is this series a significant upgrade over the Stand or is it similar?
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May 15, 2014 20:46
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The Dark Tower is better, and the villain from The Stand is not exactly the same villain in the Dark Tower. There are many villains in The Dark Tower anyway.
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May 15, 2014 21:07
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The Berzerker posted:There are many villains in The Dark Tower anyway. There are at least 19.
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May 15, 2014 21:14
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Doltos posted:I really like Stephen King and want to be a bigger fan of his. Read all the short story compendiums, the Shining, Salem's Lot, watched all the movies, etc. Loved them all. Dark Tower really isn't much like The Stand. Many King novels do suffer from squandering promising beginnings - that's why his short stories are often considered his best work - so you might want to get used to that, unfortunately. Very few (none?) pull the basic-premise bait-and-switch that The Stand does though. DT is certainly worth reading but you may want to read more of his standalone stuff beforehand - DT took so long to write that it may be helpful for your enjoyment to already understand the general trajectory of his writing style over time. Otherwise you may be put off by how much the series changes book to book. It's by no means a requirement, however. P.S. The post a page or so ago advising someone to skip From a Buick 8 is so wrong. It's a really good entry in the small-town-profile genre of King books as long as you aren't expecting a fast-paced thriller. Jazerus fucked around with this message at 21:31 on May 15, 2014 |
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May 15, 2014 21:27
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Jazerus posted:Dark Tower really isn't much like The Stand. Many King novels do suffer from squandering promising beginnings - that's why his short stories are often considered his best work - so you might want to get used to that, unfortunately. Very few (none?) pull the basic-premise bait-and-switch that The Stand does though. I was referring to skipping From a Buick 8 specifically as part of the extended Dark Tower lore.
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May 15, 2014 21:49
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The Berzerker posted:The Dark Tower is better, and the villain from The Stand is not exactly the same villain in the Dark Tower. There are many villains in The Dark Tower anyway. Like this fucker: 
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May 15, 2014 22:59
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Doltos posted:I really like Stephen King and want to be a bigger fan of his. Read all the short story compendiums, the Shining, Salem's Lot, watched all the movies, etc. Loved them all. It is similar to the Stand in that it starts off promising, becomes boring about half way through, then ends in a massive letdown. It's very rare to come across someone having read Dark Tower that doesn't think the last three books are really disappointing. That said, DT4:Wizard and Glass is my favorite King book due to a gigantic 500 page flashback in the middle of the 700 page book. By the time you get here, the main plot is never interesting again. But that flashback.. I think it's the best thing King ever wrote. It's detached from the rest of the series and probably should have been it's own book. I wonder if it could function as a stand alone story. Have you read IT? That's a big 1000 page books that's mostly fantastic all the way through.
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May 16, 2014 01:58
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