Dark Tower: The Long Road Home (Exclusive Amazon.com Cover)

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Product Description
It's the return of the best-selling comic book series, inspired by Stephen King's epic The Dark Tower! Gunslinger Roland Deschain has seen the death of his lover Susan Delgado. And the Big Coffin Hunters who burned her at the stake are now in pursuit of Roland and his ka-tet Cuthbert and Alain. The friends are forced to flee into the desert with the deadly posse in hot pursuit....and Roland is in a coma! Don't miss the next chapter in the saga of the Gunslinger whose quest for the Dark Tower will shake the foundation of reality itself! Collects Dark Tower: The Long Road Home #1-5.

Customer Reviews: Read 7 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

A long road ahead October 7, 2008
15 out of 17 found this review helpful

"The Gunslinger Born" explored the origins and early struggles of young Roland Deschain, as well as the loss of his first true love, Susan Delgado.

And Stephen King's "Dark Tower: The Long Road Home" picks up right after that, showing us more devastating events that shaped Roland Deschain into the gunslinger anti-hero we know and love. While the first part is rather slow, it has plenty of horrific moments and the haunting quality of a "world that has moved on."

A devastated Roland takes down Susan's charred body, as Alain and Bert argue about whether they should be stopping. But suddenly Roland fires at Maerlyn's Grapefruit -- which suddenly turns into a tentacled eyeball that jumps on Roland's face, and enthralls his very soul before they can peel it off. His ka-tet is chased by a bunch of local thugs, the last Big Coffin Hunter, and a ghastly pack of mutated wolves.

Nearby, a mentally challenged boy named Sheemie was seen climbing into old war machines, only to encounter a strange robot that is somehow still "alive."And inside Maerlyn's Grapefruit, Roland is slowly being driven mad in his own memories -- right before being dragged to the hellish citadel of the Crimson King, who reveals a ghastly secret to the young boy from long ago, which will change him forever...

"The Dark Tower: Long Road Home" isn't quite as gripping as its predecessor, "The Gunslinger Born" -- partly because it's a briefer story, and partly because it's simpler. It's a tribute to Stephen King's original story -- and to the hauntingly vivid artwork -- that it's still such an intense rollercoaster ride.

After the heartbreaking first few pages, the plot speeds into a suitably confusing, desperate chase through a lonely wilderness, with plenty of gunshots and dying creatures. Things actually get rather gory as Roland's pals struggle over rickety bridges and across a red-tinged wilderness, since one of them almost gets his arm bitten off (and announces that he'd rather die than shoot left-handed forever. Hardcore, kid).

And since this is a world made by Stephen King, we have plenty of the eerie and the horrible -- Sheemie's confrontation with a baby-faced robot is just one example. King's rich, old-time narrative translates well into comic form, almost as if he were conversing with the readers ("But don't be laughing at Sheemie, I beg ya, because he's been through considerable trials").

And Jae Lee and Richard Isanove really bring this story to life -- they create a world split between bright bloody red mist and autumnal twilight, filled with shadowy faces, barren lands, and ghastly pursuers. And inside the Grapefruit, we get a full cornucopia of horrors, with Roland defiantly trying to keep his sanity and soul intact in a dusty, hazy landscape full of withered trees, tragic future selves, evil crows, lumpy castles, and the vaguely spidery King with his hellish magic and his suitably evil offers to Roland.

"The Gunslinger Born" introduced Roland as a boy, but "The Long Road Home" has undeniably made him a man. He has the guts and integrity to snarl not just at Marte but at the King himself. And after being in Roland's shadow for so long, Alain and Cuthbert also get to take center stage here -- we get to see just how strong and capable they are.

"Dark Tower: The Long Road Home" is not as tightly-written as its predecessor, but it's filled with a sense of overhanging horror and some solid action for the sidekicks. Definitely worth checking out.

3 out of 5 stars

Dark Tower has taken a different path toward the clearing October 23, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Unlike Gunslinger Born this is pretty much new material, not a quick summary of Roland's flashbacks. The authors take some liberties with the story, especially concerning the story of Sheemie. (In DT7 Roland says he always knew Sheemie was special but according to this story that was quite the understatement.) But it also means it flows a lot better as a comic book. Read it if you're a tower junkie. If not, you probably won't get much out of it.

5 out of 5 stars

Roland and his ka-tet: part 2. October 21, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

The folks behind this project are determined to give readers the "back story" to how Roland became the man we first meet following the dark man across the desert. The first release in this series relied on the story from "Wizard and Glass", but now the authors are on their own. From this book on, there are no more tales from Stephen King's work to guide them, only hints here and there that don't add up to much, but are quite intriguing. As to the book itself, the artwork is excellent, and the dialogue is fairly true to the King style. It appears that this is going to be a long series, going from the end of this book all the way to the battle of Jericho Hill. No matter how long it takes, or how many books need to contain it, I will certainly be along for the ride!

3 out of 5 stars

It's Hard To Be The King November 10, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Shortly after graduating high school (too many years ago to admit to), I read my first Stephen King novel called Firestarter about young Ms. Charlie McGee. Shortly after, I decided to take on King's 800+ page epic called The Stand (updated in the 90s to 1100+ pages!)....After those two novels I was hooked on anything King...couldn't wait for his next release.

In 1982 King brought back the main antagonist (albeit under a different name) of The Stand for the beginning of what turned into an awesome seven-part series called The Dark Tower. In 2007 we were treated with a new beginning to The Dark Tower series, a prequel, a graphic novel called The Gunslinger Born. Hence, I could not wait for The Long Road Home...this second installment of the spinoff comic book Dark Tower series.

King again worked closely with Marvel, his personal assistant of several years (Robin Furth) and an experienced comic book writer (Peter David) in order to deliver this second adaptation of his work. The Long Road Home is a bit more Robin Furth and Peter David than was The Gunslinger Born. In other words, any King fan(atic) knows King's signature style and typical prose. And that style and prose was clear as day in The Gunslinger Born. But in The Long Road Home, it just seemed a bit less King and a bit more Furth and David. This is not really a bad thing. It's just that King has that magic that makes you a dedicated reader; that magic is kind of MIA in The Long Road Home.

Don't get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed The Long Road Home. But don't expect a Stephen King novel. Sure, King had oversight, and Furth and David are good...but they are not The King.

The story picks up with Roland Deschain and friends Alain and Bert as they make their way home from their first assignment by The Elders that was played out in The Gunslinger Born. It's a cool adventure, but I'd be more interested if from here Furth, David and King took the actual Dark Tower novels and converted them into graphic novels for an amazing, image-filled, refreshing re-read. After all...it's been 25 years since I read the first Dark Tower novel, and the way my memory has been working lately, a graphic novel adaptation would be like reading it for the first time. Do ya kennit?

Regardless, whether you've ever read a comic book, graphic novel, Dark Tower or Stephen King story for that matter, The Gunslinger Born and The Long Road Home are great escapes into a world that goes on forever. I highly recommend reading them in the order that they were released.

5 out of 5 stars

Execellent Story and Art Work - Amazon Has An Exclusive Cover October 9, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

If you're a fan of the Dark Tower Comics, then this book is a must have.

Gathered here is the Long Road Home story arc.

Please be aware - there is another Hardcover available only here at Amazon which features a different "sketch" cover.

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