BEFORE YOU READ: The Dark Tower

Before you read the dark tower, maybe give this a watch. Migh help. Stephen King is polarizing, but the Dark Tower is kinda a big deal for fantasy.
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HOW TO START READING Stephen King: • How To Start Reading S...

[@DanielGreeneReviews]

I have no idea why I made that intro either. Notice how I said Susan and now Susannah? That will haunt me forever.

[@shosty575]

I loved it

[@pexrinne5144]

Yup, it was awesome

[@TysonJeremy]

I loved it!

[@pexrinne5144]

Yeah those times when I dont understand what's going on is why I subscribed

[@petero.489]

Not a fan of the dark tower and didn't really watch everything, but I liked the video since the fantasy jeopardy and punchline got a chuckle out of me while giving a punctual summary.

[@jarltrippin]

The Drawing Of The Three is the most cocaine fuelled book I've ever read. The stakes, the pacing, the tension between characters and the sharp focus of the plot. It absolutely does not stop. I'm a slow-ass reader but I read that shit in four days. And yes, the book was literally fuelled by cocaine.

[@irockmajorly]

Lol I really disliked the second one. Almost made me stop reading

[@lazyrmc]

It's definitely my favorite of the series, though the Wastelands is a very close second. I love how the pacing in Drawing is relentless, and it goes a bunch of weird and crazy places while always keeping tension between the main cast

[@newfieocean]

The Drawing made me a life long reader!

[@chaitanyasharma6270]

Just started reading it yesterday and oof the cocain

[@matthewwhite3967]

I never finished this series, but The Drawing of the Three was my favorite. I decided to continue on after The Gunslinger, which was a slog to me, and boy am I glad I did because the second book was great. I do intend to finish eventually. After Wizard and Glass I started reading other tie-in books like Insomnia and Hearts in Atlantis because of their direct connections to the series (plus I had been on a King kick leading up to starting the series), but Insomnia wore me out and afterward I just took a break which lead to me starting Malazan which lead to me finishing Malazan and... you get the picture.

[@infernophoenix99]

I remember my introduction to The Dark Tower. After asking my chemistry teacher some question on whether something was possible or not, he says "You know, I have been waiting for someone like you." goes to his shelves packed with stuff and pulls out the the first four books of the series and gives them to me. Now I was extremely confused since it came out of nowhere but I wasn't to turn down free books. I ended up reading them some time later and as my introduction to Stephen King and enjoyed the series immensely.

[@personofnoimportance5590]

You have a cool teacher

[@rcschmidt668]

I bought The Waste Lands from a used book shop with part of the cover missing... Hooked on the series until the end of books 7 and 4.5 😜

[@thedarkgunslinger2869]

My introducción to king was IT That shit creeped me out But The Dark Tower is my favorite of all his series

[@PhoenixWorx]

@@thedarkgunslinger2869 we have something in common, It was my introduction to Stephen King also, but the Dark Tower has surpassed everything I have ever read before! Maybe I'm more like "the prisoner" than I thought, I'm hooked like a drug (and like Eddie, I know the feeling, unfortunately). It is an amazing story! But The Dark Tower touches every single part of my brain that brings pleasure. Maybe I'm a weirdo, but I know that Mid World has me hooked almost as bad as my literary companion, Eddie (or Jake if names mean anything).

[@izzle9181]

I had picked up and put down the gunslinger several times, the first chapter couldn't grab my ADHD like King's other books. But once a friend got a few books in and couldn't stop talking about it. Once I finished Gunslinger, I couldn't get through them fast enough. Luckily my dad had the whole collection and actually started re-reading each after I finished which was awesome to have 2 people to talk about it with. Lastly it's those teachers that I truly appreciate, who can spot the odd kids and know just what they'll need

[@hikethemike7349]

Roland is imo one of the best fantasy characters. Period.

[@dreamer2260]

He's supreme for me. Just a fascinating, heartbreaking, admirable, brutal, incredible character.

[@tonywiseman1874]

He definitely is for sure, two of my personal favourite fantasy heroes are Roland Deschain and Geralt Of Rivia from the Witcher books. They both share qualities I love about main protagonists: incredibly badass being the most obvious, extremely skilled at fighting albeit both of them have quite different methods of doing so, a romantic side, loyalty to their friends, and more. Out of the two I find Roland more frightening, he is metaphorically and one could say quite literally a ghost in his own world. We don't really know how old he is due to time in Mid-World being whacky but we know he is older than he looks. We find out quite a lot about him during the series but it's the stuff we don't truly know that always spooked me about him. On the back of my Gunslinger book (Dark Tower volume 1) he is described as "a haunting figure" which to me sums him up perfectly.

[@hdervish2497]

His story personal growth was beautiful in it's painful truth that sometimes you can change but it's still not quite enough.

[@grandmaxtarkin3567]

amen brotha 🙏

[@Grab_N001]

I raise you Kaladin Stormblessed from the Stormlight Archive and Rand Al'Thor from Wheel of Time

[@FrankEPotts]

The genius of Stephen King is how all of his books revolve around The Dark Tower. Yes I did say all of his books. I loved the ending it was so fitting.

[@turtleanton6539]

Yes

[@MagusMarquillin]

Did you say _all_ of his books!? Even "On Writing"? ;)

[@Thunder117]

@@MagusMarquillin even on writing jaja

[@paulonetoneto3989]

Yes, I found the ending to be very fitting and to be honest, it really could not have ended in another way. Roland is obsessed with the Tower, so it's only fitting. And of course, King's whole multiverse is phenomenally written and I love how at every new book I read, I find out a little bit more about either the Tower itself, the characters in the saga or the mythology we see in there

[@mpsensha]

I want to reread the series. When I read it for the first time and got to the end I was just staring into thin air for some minutes. But I want to get back into the world. It's not about the destination, it's about the journey!

[@zollieberdy4405]

You had way to much fun making this.

[@miguelangelthomas5154]

*too

[@miguelangelthomas5154]

@Wil E *you're

[@miguelangelthomas5154]

@Wil E nah, don't worry about it. I was just having some fun being a grammar Nazi in the comments.

[@lupercalrising2208]

I love the first book, Roland isn't alone again for almost the rest of the story. His musings, recollections, and personal heartaches are fascinating - and we never really get those insights again for the rest of the series.

[@gerhardfrog]

My favorite fantasy series. I love its unhinged, if slightly unfocused, flavor. It's a thing of unique flawed beauty. Profound, and deeply haunting.

[@curranfrank2854]

This comment fits Stephen King's total body of work quite nicely too

[@davidtaylor142]

It's a series that feels almost so purely Stream of Consciousness

[@robertwinslade3104]

I would love versions of this type of video for The First Law and Discworld

[@irockmajorly]

Pretty sure theres a why you should read for at least first law

[@robertwinslade3104]

@@irockmajorly ah; you're right; Discworld still needs one though; and considering how many different options there are for jumping into the series, and that starting with book 1 is generally considered to not be the best way of starting the series, i feel like Discworld really NEEDS a video explaining the series and where to start

[@Zetamen7]

Daniel, stop it, I started The Wheel of Time 3 days ago, have only been reading it for the past 3 days, won't really stop till I'm done, so NO MORE RECOMMENDATIONS

[@Will-nq3fo]

Enjoy the ride, my man. Its totally worth it!

[@robertrains4634]

Please please please read the dark tower it’s amazing

[@Zetamen7]

I'm almost done with The Great Hunt and it has been a really good way of unwinding from my thesis project for the masters. The book are great. And I'll definitely read the Dark Tower, it's on the tbr with Stormlight, Mistborn and Dresden

[@kanadiankandy6647]

😂😂😂 the wheel of time is great. Get through book five (it’s a difficult one, very slow). Also The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind is great. Much lighter read but fantastic nonetheless

[@faridelh9860]

One of the bestest sagas I've ever read.

[@sentinelshoshin4632]

Oh, oh, baby daniel. Roland's not a sociopath...he's just highly damaged.

[@pookaverse]

Still a sociopath lmao

[@tstot0404]

The Dark Tower is far from perfect. But when you finish it, you feel like you've glimpsed some deep unseen truth of the universe. I finished the series almost 2 years ago and I still can't decide how I feel about the ending. But the series is excellent overall and it stays with you.

[@Legionbass19]

Now, 11 years after first reading the series in high school and having finally learned to appreciate English courses of so long ago, I recognize the series as one about addiction. The Tower is Roland’s drug and he needs his fix. The cycle is away of giving him the chance to forsake the Tower, save his soul and be happy. Each time around, he becomes more attached to his Ka-Tet and regains a bit more humanity. When he can accept that nothing is worth the trail of corpses he walks upon and turn around, he’ll be free. Eddie even calls the guy a Tower junkie, so make of that what you will.

[@keithclayton1271]

I read the entire series in prison. I felt the ending was inevitable and perfect.

[@danielwright2993]

Finding out that all 7 volumes was a prequel to the Robert Browning epic poem was a huge snake eating it's own tail ending. I love that shit! Happy ending disappear from my memory bank like a fart in the wind, but the fucked up endings stay with me for life.

[@thedarkgunslinger2869]

@@Legionbass19 wait I thought he needed to slowly conrinue the cycle in order to stop Crimson from tsking over the whole plane of existence And only when Roland stopped thinking of restarting everything and be happy for what came after everything would stop and he would finally heal the tower

[@fenixchief7]

You're putting too much stock in the words of a man.

[@michaelandrews117]

The opening line of the Dark Tower series is one of *THE* opening lines in fantasy. I can't put my finger on why but it just grabbed me immediately upon reading it and I didn't stop until all of the books had been devoured.

[@MusicalRocky]

It geniusly raises so many questions (who is the gunslinger? who is the man in black? why is the man in black fleeing? why is the gunslinger following?) in such a concise and simple sentence.

[@robertlehnert4148]

Written by a 19 year old in his first profession published work-- the rest of the first story, as originally written shows it's a 19 year old's work, and you see traces of that awkwardness even in the re-written in his 50s reissue.

[@JoriamRamos]

My favorite thing about the Dark Tower is that it keeps coming back to me after decades. Its themes walk with me, evolve with me, sooth me when I need and sometimes bang me in the head. The world has no remote control, no wish-granting fairy, no justice. The world (their world and ours too) has only Ka. Yes, there are bad bits and I even dislike an entire book (Song of Susannah), but no other series did change me as much. So much so that I have a Dark Tower over a field of roses tatooed on my arm. Of course, the theme I connected with the most is """destiny""" - which can't be called that way, really. The Christian-Islamic concept of destiny we've developed in the West has nothing to do with what other cultures have created and Ka points to a different development. The question: 'what if you didn't want your destiny?' can change profoundly if the word destiny means something else entirely. I think the whole series is deeply enhanced when you read the prefaces of all the books and find out how the story came sorta aggressively to Stephen King's imagination. Not as a story he was looking for, but a story demanding to be told. In a way, even his writing process if part of the worldbuilding - good stuff. But I gotta say, Daniel, even if I agree with most of what you said... you did something unforgivable... You... You used the movie... footage... the forbidden movie adaptation... You have forgotten the face of your father.

[@mako1181]

Ka has also changed my own worldly vies on destiny and life....so strange when a book manages to transform you in that way!

[@JoriamRamos]

@@mako1181 Right? And in a positive way! At least in my case

[@Thunder117]

It actually made me believe in some kind of good destiny

[@mako1181]

@@JoriamRamos I can't say if its positive nor negative. Like, it fits into my belief that we have free will, but that destiny has the last say. Or in other words, Ka is like when you are caught unaware in a summer storm, you are pushed to find shelter; or rather, you were always in control of you will, but your hand was forced. Ya I don't know if this makes sense, I am still digesting it all.

[@bceaser1]

OOhhh..the use of "the face of your father" line was epic!

[@Saturnia2014]

"Blaine is a pain."

[@dwightvol473]

AND THAT'S THE TRUTH!!

[@codycooper5768]

I HAVE TO GO BACK AND THAT IS THE TRUTH

[@andrewdevine3920]

Why did the dead baby cross the road?

[@johnchristopher3032]

@@andrewdevine3920 it was stapled to the chicken

[@thedarkgunslinger2869]

@@johnchristopher3032 that shit was one of my favorite on rhe book The whole jokes pages was great

[@adsim92]

I'm half way though book 5. I genuinely think this series is my favourite piece of fiction in any medium.

[@Dascrunk13]

Me too! Love book 5

[@adsim92]

​@@Dascrunk13 Im working on Book 6 now. Man, things escalated so amazingly in the end of 5. Cant wait to see how this series finishes as a whole.

[@michaelhopkins7360]

Enjoy the series. I recently finished its entirety. I wont say anything but I really enjoyed Wizard and Glass. I might even say The Gunslinger, but if I'm being honest with myself it could be just going against the dislike it gets. Yes it's slow. The story may be simple, but its gripping. It has to be otherwise you wouldn't be further in the series. Have a great day, and again enjoy.

[@Dascrunk13]

@@adsim92 I'm excited for you. I finished book 7 a month or so ago. Its conclusion is perfect.

[@thesoupisburning89]

well, hey, did you like the ending?

[@teletran1175]

Roland is not remotely a sociopath. Only obsessed, dispassionate, and possessing little imagination.

[@3squareddesigns]

Agreed!

[@gankhef5564]

On the whole, I agree. Though there was a period in his life when the case could be made.

[@Irishhound]

So he's relatively close to a sociopath 🤣

[@gankhef5564]

@@Irishhound Call him a recovering sociopath XD

[@dreamer2260]

Well said. So many people seem to struggle to connect with or understand Roland, but he's always been the heart of the story for me. He's actually a sensitive and caring person deep down (not necessarily that deep either), but it's covered with layers of pain, toughness, coldness and unyielding rigidity and determination.

[@Getwright-]

The Video: there are Dr. Doom werewolf murder bots in this story Me: dont forget about there lightsabers! (Not even kidding)

[@peculiarpangolin4638]

And their golden sneetches!

[@unrelentingawesomeness7501]

Their

[@ShinigamiRazgirz]

I don't think Roland qualifies as a Sociopath. He shows empathy on more than one occasion. I'd say he's obsessed and it borderlines on sociopathy.

[@hansgougar1874]

I love that you post videos so consistently. Thanks for all the hard work you put into keeping us entertained!

[@TheBrotherGrim]

I was a 12 year old in middle school when I first read The Gunslinger, going through a big Stephen King phase, and pretty new to fantasy as a whole. Before that I'd mostly stuck to horror and suspense tales. This was the first book that just completely blew my mind. I was just reeling by the time I got to the end, I'd never had a book that left me feeling so amazed by the time I finished. It started me down a path of adoring unconventional fantasy, and at 34 years old now it remains one of my favorite series ever.

[@ryanb3665]

If anyone’s curious, here’s a reading order I’d recommend for an extended Dark Tower reading experience. The Talisman The Gunslinger The Shining The Eyes of the Dragon The Drawing of the Three The Stand The Wastelands IT Wizard and Glass Insomnia Wind through the Keyhole Salem’s Lot Everything’s Eventual (titular story and Little Sisters of Eularia) On Writing (or Dr. Sleep, although neither are essential) Wolves of the Calla Hearts in Atlantis (the WHOLE book) Song of Susannah Black House The Dark Tower

[@colinmacvicar2507]

That would have drove me nuts if I had to read It before finding out how the story in The Wastelands concluded.

[@frankpeters604]

the talisaman was another book i really enjoyed

[@MistressTexi]

I came very late into reading King's novels and two years ago I began reading in perpetration for DT with a list similar to this. I took me an entire year, but I found that it gave me such a solid foundation for his works. I'm the youngest in a family of King readers, but I'm the only one that has tacked DT like this and it really does make his outter works more whole. Green Mile and Cujo also have touches that I remember stood out to me as part of the Tower reads.

[@mrnukes797]

I would also recommend reading Stephen King's The Outsider, The Institute, and If It Bleeds

[@blairbuskirk5460]

Desperation and The Regulators belong on that list too.

[@psygrit]

Love the dark tower! Went into it without reading any other stephen king book, being reccomended to me as a weird western. I think if you like the new weird you might also like the dark tower. And the characters! Amazing. No, they're not heroes, in a way they are a necessary evil. But their struggles are so well realized that you can't help yourself but love them

[@MyYouTubeNameisTaken]

I don’t think the first book is weak. I think it’s just written differently. It’s more poetic than King’s usual style. And it could have stood alone imo.

[@DarthRevan-lu6xp]

I've read the books more times than I can count, and I'll give you one reason with two letters why I think people should read it: Oy. And Oy vs Tick Tock. Wolves is probably my favorite book, but I love em all.

[@Saturnia2014]

My favorite books of the series are the 1st 3 novels and book 7. Tick tock has a horrible day in the wastelands.

[@IronianKnight]

To this day I can barely believe we witnessed King's answer to Scooby Doo

[@rafisanders]

I loved the books, and I haven't read many Steven king books

[@benparrish6157]

*Stephen (sorry)

[@destinyblade1167]

King wrote in a foreword to a new edition of the gunslinger that he wanted to write a fantasy series that captured the feeling of dislocation and size he got while watching The Good, The Bad and The Ugly(amazing film btw). Edt : "I saw a film directed by Sergio Leone. It was called The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and before the film was even half over, I realized that what I wanted to write was a novel that contained Tolkien’s sense of quest and magic but set against Leone’s almost absurdly majestic Western backdrop." "What I wanted even more than the setting was that feeling of epic, apocalyptic size. The fact that Leone knew jack shit about American geography (according to one of the characters, Chicago is somewhere in the vicinity of Phoenix, Arizona) added to the film’s sense of magnificent dislocation. And in my enthusiasm-the sort only a young person can muster, I think-I wanted to write not just a long book, but the longest popular novel in history."

[@DirtScraps]

A favorite film of mine! I wasn’t aware of this factoid though! This makes both the film and book series that much more special to me! ❤️😱🤯❤️

[@dreamer2260]

That's a very interesting anecdote, thanks and very much echoes the effect the series had on me, and part of why I love it so much.

[@Struggler12349]

never have I clicked one of your videos so damn fast... pants off and full volume, the dark tower is my absolute favorite

[@JLAShazam]

As a massive Stephen king fan, this is my favorite series all time! I’ve actually only recently(in the last few years) got into fantasy!

[@Nemo37K]

Keystone Daniel is having a tough time based on that opening. Hang in there Keystone Daniel.

[@thomasmuandersontheneousul4184]

GAN!

[@sunshineroth9605]

@@thomasmuandersontheneousul4184 Tak!

[@thomasmuandersontheneousul4184]

@@sunshineroth9605 Ka-tet?

[@sunshineroth9605]

@@thomasmuandersontheneousul4184 Long days and pleasant nights

[@bracerofplanets6274]

How to best explain The Dark Tower series: yeah it’s written by Stephen King Ok, thx!

[@lynxx7515]

You forgot to say that it's a long, long shaggy dog story.

[@pedropaulobianconi4325]

I'm reading it right now 😂 (currently The Wind Through the Keyhole)

[@dandickson3370]

The Drawing of the Three re-ignited my passion for reading again.

[@majormetcalf1225]

The gunslinger is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s such a great opening.

[@jeffodabear]

The dark tower is honestly a journey. It has highs and lows, some of it is nuts and some of it is amazing, but as a Stephen King fan I honestly loved it.

[@Kayo898]

"his companions eddie and susan" such a subtle spoiler free sentence lol well done

[@christopherjames5192]

Right! I was like wait is he talking about Susan or Susanna??

[@franksalo3466]

I read the Dark Tower series a few years ago, and loved it. It's very unique. Don't bother watching the movie...it sucks!

[@ryanbouchard2907]

To be fair, the movie is a sequel to the series and was not stated as such on its release. That info would have changed a lot of opinions for sure. When you know the books ending and the man in black saying in the movie " Around we go again my old friend", that connection makes it better

[@michelleowens2583]

This series worked the opposite way on me. I grew up in the 80s & 90s reading horror almost exclusively, because I read what my mom read. "It" has been my favorite book since 1990. This series was my introduction into high fantasy. Now fantasy is all I read and I'm annoyed/upset that no one in my personal circle will read it. They can't wrap their heads around it. I'm slowly introducing fantasy to my nephew, but I will not be giving him The Dark Tower anytime soon even though I started reading King when I was younger than he is now.

[@destro6971]

Spot on, this is not an easy series to get through for those of us who prefer a classical bend to our fantasy books. I’ve read the series front to back 3 times now, and each time I both Love and Hate it to greater extremes. It’s a masterclass in “What DaFuq did I just read?!” Go then, there are other worlds than these.

[@kahlbutomacfarland]

The ending is a genius middle finger. It shouldn’t be any other way and I literally cheered when I got to it.

[@shoresean1237]

I think you only left out how much of a kitchen sink of all fantasy Dark Tower is, from children's books to Arthurian literature to what have you. Otherwise, great pitch.

[@robertdullnig3625]

"Bodily fluids" was the giveaway that it was a Stephen King book.

[@waylonoconner9121]

Love the book series. It’s my favorite fantasy world ever. Liked the video. But, Roland’s main objective wasn’t following the man in black, his goal was the tower.

[@3squareddesigns]

My favorite series of all time. It feels like coming home when I take another journey to the tower.

[@ImPhattyphat]

The dark tower series was the first Stephen King's books that I've read. I agree with Woleves of the Call a being my favorite. The a second one I woukd say is The drawing of Three. Great vid liked and subbed

[@gabemiz2021]

Who else found this channel in the atla torture event and became obsessed ever since

[@reiii69]

I just finished the stand a couple weeks back... Shit was hitting right in this time 😂.. And started It... Soon i will enter the dark tower... Can't wait.. 😊

[@richardmartin7904]

When I did my Fantasy series rankings...Dark Tower is number 3. I am sure if if I reread it it would be number 1. I cried multiple times reading it. The ka-tet was so believable and human. And King never shied away from telling the reader in great detail what a collapsing civilization actually means. He is the best at that.

[@dreamer2260]

Yes, me too, series made me cry quite a few times. And thank you for highlighting King's focus on portraying a collapsing civilisation. It's so key to the character of Roland and his world, but many seem to overlook its importance as a theme in favour of the 'meta' aspects, or fate/Ka aspects, which have never been as interesting to me.

[@TheJeceda]

Before I read this series, the only other Stephen King book I read was Eyes of the Dragon, and ohhh boy was it different. But, not bad different. I would say if you are okay with everything Daniel listed, and are okay with handling the very real and raw themes of violence, racism, drug use, and rape, then it is honestly a fantastic series!

[@newfieocean]

Thankee Sai, long days and pleasant nights.

[@NECROcontent]

This series is one of my favs. Even if it’s batshit insane and a mess, it’s got so much heart and creativity that it doesn’t bug me. It’s hard to recommend to everyone unfortunately but damn is it up my alley. Hope you read The Wind Through The Keyhole sometime, Daniel. It’s an afterthought but it’s a pretty dope epilogue. I know the series is done and usually I don’t want more but I wouldn’t say no if King wrote another book with Roland.

[@madcow1326]

I was literally just about to start reading this tonight when I saw this

[@GenericUser860]

I tried reading the series a few years ago, but the absolutely glacial pace of Wizard and Glass was only enough to propel me through to the beginning of Song of Susannah, where I gave up. This video is tempting me to start again.

[@jangofatt7135]

Nice intro. I needed a good laugh after my night shift.

[@bradpitt9428]

See the Turtle of enormous girth, on his back he holds the earth…

[@riotintheair]

I know it's controversial but I thought for once King really did stick the ending. It wasn't what we expected or felt we deserved, but it resonated with the theme in a way that for me was unforgettable. I'm not overall super into King, and I probably read less fantasy than a lot of your audience, but I thought these novels were brilliant to me.

[@gabrieltoscano8480]

Never read any SK book, so I don't think I'll start with this one. But maybe in a later time. Great Video Daniel

[@owlmangaming2076]

I’m starting the gunslinger and so far I think it’s wonderful. This is my first book I’ve picked up in a long time and man I love Stephen kings writing. This is my first Stephen king novel I’ve ever read :) it’s gonna be a good series

[@francescomalagoli2467]

Hi im starting now the first one, can i ask you thoughts 10 months later?

[@thedarkonestaint6105]

Stephen king was one of the first authors I started reading and I attribute my like of word vomiting to him

[@antonioppinheiro]

I've only read Under The Dome before reading The Dark Tower, and loved it! I agree that the first book is slow, but the second got me hooked quickly. I ended up reading the whole series very fast, the characters are amazing and very flawed, which makes them very real

[@Struggler12349]

The moment roland opened the first door on the beach was when the dark tower became my drug

[@elizamb5280]

well... guess what I'm reading next!?

[@alexnieves]

I'm pretty confident that when I dive into King I'm going into the Dark Tower. Whether that is smart or not remains to be seen.

[@paulonetoneto3989]

Well, If you like his writing and are familiar with some of his works and some of his weird decisions as a writer, then I'm sure you'll love it. However, I would recommend that you read some specific books in order to have a more complete understanding and enjoy the story more. Books like Salem's Lot, The Talisman, Black House, Insomnia, The Eyes of the Dragon and/or The Stand and maybe IT as well (IT isn't directly connected, but it will help you understand the mythology a little bit better. Besides, it's a fantastical book so you can't go wrong with it)

[@willprotector]

I read the Gunslinger and it drew me toward reading the series. When I finish Malazan, this is the next big series that I plan to complete. Gunslinger was VERY different and yes, a bit disorientating at first. However, I cannot wait to chase the Man in Black.

[@Nasser851000]

Skits are what daniel does best ;)

[@filipjanik87]

Stephen King is the epitome of "pantsers". I find that 90% of the criticism laid out against the DT is due to this (meandering plot, even the genius ending...) however, what people often fail to realize that this style is what gives us the other "gold" in the series. The characters having so much life. Spending a whole book in an EPIC flashback that could easily be a standalone novel. Or getting certain scenes (remember the first encounter with Eddie? Basically a "Narina/Alice in Wonderland" what-if fantasy in reverse?) which would be very difficult to pull off and not feel contrived if all planned out. This series is not perfect. But made a huge impact on my life. Very few pieces of fiction can transcend just pure enjoyment and make you question how you see the world, yourself etc. While I have not reread it lately and don't even feel a huge need to, it has left an impact and I think it is a maserpiece. PS Some of the prose is magnificent... sometimes it is worth it just to stop and reread a sentence for the beauty of the language. But if you only ever want to read one thing by Stephen King, go read the novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank redemption (or the whole DIfferent Seasons compilation it is a part of). You may have seen the movie... it may even be one of your favourites... but trust me, read the book. It will blow you away.

[@psygrit]

Love the dark tower! Went into it without reading any other stephen king book, being reccomended to me as a weird western. I think if you like the new weird you might also like the dark tower. And the characters! Amazing. No, they're not heroes, in a way they are a necessary evil. But their struggles are so well realized that you can't help yourself but love them

[@PriscilaQuin]

Good Lord, this book was my FIRST Stephen King and It was ALNOST IMPOSSIBLE for me tô understand what the hell was going on..... And yet .. somehow.... I kinda enjoyed....

[@telynns8490]

These books had my emotions all over the place. I can count on one hand books that made me cry and I cried a couple of times in this series. And at one point I was so angry I literally threw the book down and didn't try to read again for a few days. Never been that angry at a fiction character before or since. Will probably re-read some of these books in the future, but will probably never re-read the last two. But overall, I'm ok with the ending. The deaths of some villians..... not a fan.

[@Struggler12349]

It is weird that I know exactly what scene you are talking about when you threw the book down haha (after liberating the breakers) Seriously I cried more reading that last book than I did watching the green mile and interstellar combined

[@sblinder1978]

>>>VERY IMPORTANT> IT'S VERY IMPORTANT

[@munki83]

My first ever Stephen King book was the Gunsligner. I was in my early 20s at the time and still on a LOTR high and this series was just as Daniel said it was a pallet clenser. I also pic ked up the series at the right time when the last few books were comming out. I remember waiting outside the bookshop for it to open and paying with a cheque as I didn't have money for it at the time. This series is also holds a special place in my heart. At the time I was in a fairly dark place and was depressed. This series gave me a place to escape to

[@ryancoulter4797]

Got into it when Wastelands came out in paperback. When I read the last one and dared to read the ending/epilogue I went full on Annie Wilkes.

[@EZ1977]

I love King and I honestly think Drawing of the Three, The Waste Lands, and Wizard and Glass are three of his best.

[@peterconlon8234]

Totally agree

[@hdervish2497]

Recommended side reading from King: Salem's Lot The Shining/Dr Sleep Insomnia It The Talisman/Black House Everything's Eventual

[@benjaminallen3671]

I finished this series back in January, took me like 2 years to get through. Before this series I had only really read Harry Potter and LotR, which functioned as my general palate as I went into this series. Was not ready. Not gonna lie, it was tough, which I think is why it took me a couple years to get through (also college reading got in the way of my fun reading time), but by the end of waste lands, I was pretty much in it, and it was a brilliant ride imo. It had slow moments and odd decisions. But its quirk and character really made it stand out, and I still often think about Roland and the Ka-tet. It’s honestly just wacky and wholly unique.

[@rondaallen7211]

the Dr Doom murder bots are NOT werewolves.

[@BlindGardener]

Hugh Jackman would have been a great Roland.

[@crackajack913]

@@ohthreefiftyone that's my pick too! My girlfriend's pick is Pedro Pascal

[@noodle_boi]

@@crackajack913 I feel like Pedro Pascal is too young, and Hugh Jackman is too... Action starry. Mortensen would be good though.

[@blairbuskirk5460]

I'd pick Ed Harris honestly especially after his work on WestWorld on HBO at least for the more aged Roland we encounter for most of the Story.

[@jbryant5253]

I'm too poor to buy this whole series and my perfectionist collector in me won't let me buy just one, but I'm going to watch this video anyways.

[@wwfix3224]

“This is an ending to a book.” Yes. It is.

[@Jrseydevil]

If the first sentence of this video isn't "DO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE, IT WILL MAKE YOU NOT WANT TO READ THE BOOKS" im gonna be very very disappointed. Edit: I am very disappointed

[@saketjha8515]

Oh! Daniel Greene tries pulling off a Ryan George in his intro.

[@Hadrian1616]

So, do do you have a book recommendation for me? Yes sir I do.

[@Hadrian1616]

Oh. Greene screen intros are tight.

[@saketjha8515]

@@Hadrian1616 😅

[@genericallyentertaining]

When you have a green screen, it's super easy, barely an inconvenience.

[@Hadrian1616]

Looks around. Checks the news. Yep, this is the dumbest timeline. 😣☹️😷

[@tomfoolery5680]

Thankee Sai. The series definitely darkles and tincts. Good analysis, but The Waste Lands is the superior installment. After the character buliding sorta dry narrative of The Drawing of the Three The Waste Lands explodes. What's your take on my sorta theory that. Eddie is ego, Roland is id and Susannah is identity, and Jake is innocence and hope.

[@ultantuffy1194]

This is... *magnificent*

[@mycaleb8]

"Your protagonist Gunslinger, is *without question* a sociopath" No? This is a bizarrely bad take.

[@ericw.9907]

"Wizard and Glass" is the best in the series. It's a novel of it's own. I still hate the Big Coffin Hunters, and I'm not the type to hold grudges.

[@topquark4208]

The dark tower completely blew me away years ago. Ive never been the same since. Gasher was one foul mouthed, sick, and twisted psychopath in any of kings novels. "Hail the crimson king."

[@jeanfish7]

The King universe is what Brandon Sanders is reaching for.

[@turtleanton6539]

He cannot

[@christopherhall1982]

Your continual references to Tolkien are so crazily, insanely wrong. The Dark Tower is NOTHING like Tolkien. It is a great story on its own, but there are literally no parallels to draw from. These are radically different stories with radically different themes, moods, styles, and characters. I cannot understand your constant fixation on continuously comparing The Dark Tower to Tolkien's LOTR. It's like comparing apples to steak.

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

I actually just ordered The Gunslinger a couple days ago and intend to get started with the Dark Tower series (and perhaps finish it) this summer, so your video was quite timely for me! Thanks -- I enjoyed this spoiler free review a lot, and I'm excited to get started on The Gunslinger.

[@andrewdevine3920]

A series that features multiple supernatural rape scenes, babies on spits and constant body horror, alongside a cute talking raccoon. And also Doctor Doom robots with lightsabers and Harry Potter golden snitches as weapons. It's completely bonkers and I love it. Well, maybe not the rapey stuff...

[@parkerbeverley4271]

It's a good series but if it's your first time reading, it took something like 40 years to write. The style changed a lot from the gritty atmosphere to a more whimsical one later in the series. Personally I found this switch in book 4. Another thing you have to consider is Kings substance abuse you can tell which books were influenced by them. Besides book 4 and 6 the series is really good however

[@rafisanders]

I think books one and four are the weakest books. I wasn't a fan of the gunslinger and wizard behind the glass. But the rest of the series was excellent

[@alfieholloway]

I am a shit reader but found these books compelling. Never read King before. This is amazing work. Now reading The Stand which is long but amazing when it gets going

[@kght222]

i have been forcing myself through the series, and forcing is the word even though i AM enjoying it. i find myself having to take a break far more often than i have with more traditional fantasy, it might be 5 minutes, it might be a day, but i still am going back, and i am honestly enjoying it at about halfway through book 3.

[@bffoxjr]

Just don't read it. The last two books were awful. The story is literally "we need to save Stephen King so he can finish writing our story."

[@SumDumGy]

I’m so pissed off that King’s publisher switched formats from Mass Market Paperback to Premium Paperback halfway through the series. As such, I own only the first four books, and not the last three. I adamantly refuse to ever purchase a Premium Paperback book.

[@n543576]

I've read the books and even im having a hard time keeping up with what you're even trying to say. I don't get why its so difficult to just talk about the book, its like everyone is skirting around themes of the story but are too afraid to "spoil the book" without even talking about the series in any significant way. I'd rather you spoil the book for those watching the video than say nothing of substance at all.

[@Ohnonono123]

Subbed because you said existence is painful, and then unsubbed when you referred to a revolver as a "pistol". JK

[@jeffgrey2161]

The last two books in that series were just awful. The first one wasn’t very good, the second one was pretty good, third fourth and fifth were excellent.

[@garyjohnson7424]

I absolutely love The Dark Tower, but I find it funny Daniel's favorite is Wolves of the Calla because it is my least favorite book of the series

[@SkywalkerAni]

I actually made the mistake you said- I read the first Dark Tower book without reading any other Stephen King book. I enjoyed it, but not enough to continue reading the series. Perhaps I should read a different King novel, then go back and read The Gunslinger again.