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View Full Version : Cell or The Stand? Small chance of spoilers.



Mark
05-01-2008, 09:12 AM
Me and Ka-tet were arguing which one was better, i prefer The Stand, he prefers Cell. Which do you prefer? Why?

jayson
05-01-2008, 09:16 AM
The Stand, by a WIDE margin. The Stand is, in my opinion, the best non-DT book King ever wrote. Cell, in my opinion, is the single worst thing King ever wrote [well, maybe Lisey's Story, but still]. I think there's no real comparison. The Stand is something I re-read at least every five years. Cell I could not even finish I hated it so much. I suspect this poll is going to be a runaway victory for The Stand, we shall see...

ladysai
05-01-2008, 09:43 AM
The Stand.
No contest.

Mark
05-01-2008, 09:46 AM
The Stand.
No contest.

Care to explain why?

ladysai
05-01-2008, 09:55 AM
With The Stand, there's so much more to love.
More fantastic characters, more plot, more depth overall.
The Stand is just a different breed of book than Cell.
(imho)
:)

Brice
05-01-2008, 09:59 AM
The Stand...basically for the same reasons ladysai said.


Oh, and I have a question...if someone's choice is not that they are both equal than how could neither be better? :P

Mark
05-01-2008, 10:04 AM
Brice, that has confused me, but, i think, if i'm getting it right, you've got the wrong end of the stick, i mean, both equally good, and the last one means you hated them both.

Jean
05-01-2008, 10:06 AM
Brice, that has confused me, but, i think, if i'm getting it right, you've got the wrong end of the stick, i mean, both equally good, and the last one means you hated them both.
quite. It's that old R.Smullian pair: "all delicious food is expensive" and "all cheap food is nasty". Logically the same, but essentially very, very different.

I don't really think this poll is needed, you only have to look into Your Top 5 (non DT) SK books (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=426)to see where The Stand is, and where Cell. I gave this statistics (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showpost.php?p=129577&postcount=119) there not too long ago.

jayson
05-01-2008, 10:10 AM
I don't really think this poll is needed, you only have to look into Your Top 5 (non DT) SK books (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=426)to see where The Stand is, and where Cell.

yeah, but it'd be nice to see it play out and see just what the humbers are in the end. i like statistics and i would lay odds that Stand wins with at least 95% of the vote. this should be a true blow-out.

Mark
05-01-2008, 10:11 AM
Oh, didn't see them, i was just proving a point to Ka-tet that The Stand is far superior.

Matt
05-01-2008, 10:17 AM
I believe your point may be proven Mark--The Stand is far an above superior to Cell

(even though I loved Cell, they just aren't in the same league)

Jean
05-01-2008, 10:18 AM
sure guys, I didn't say I was going to delete it! http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gif I think we'll let it be for some time, just to see if anyone will ever vote Cell against The Stand

jayson
05-01-2008, 10:19 AM
(even though I loved Cell, they just aren't in the same league)

i'm not sure it's the same sport they are so far apart

jayson
05-01-2008, 10:20 AM
sure guys, I didn't say I was going to delete it! http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gif I think we'll let it be for some time, just to see if anyone will ever vote Cell against The Stand

and we know from mark's testimony that if ka-tet does not vote, he still voted for Cell thus initiating the thread.

Matt
05-01-2008, 10:25 AM
(even though I loved Cell, they just aren't in the same league)

i'm not sure it's the same sport they are so far apart

We could say one is Golf and the other is NASCAR :lol:

jayson
05-01-2008, 10:27 AM
(even though I loved Cell, they just aren't in the same league)

i'm not sure it's the same sport they are so far apart

We could say one is Golf and the other is NASCAR :lol:

that's actually a really good analogy! one is long and slow and multi-faceted and i love it, the other is fast-paced and bothers me.

Jean
05-01-2008, 10:29 AM
(even though I loved Cell, they just aren't in the same league)

i'm not sure it's the same sport they are so far apart

We could say one is Golf and the other is NASCAR :lol:
I would say one is a great piece of literature, while the other is Golf, NASCAR, blotting paper, flat tyre, bottle stopper, or anything else that comes to mind

Mordred Deschain
05-01-2008, 10:40 AM
the cell was alright, but it was to close to the Stand concept and it reminded me more of Night of the Living Dead or any Zombie movie like that.

Mark
05-01-2008, 10:41 AM
Ka-tet mightn't get to vote, because he isn't at his Nana's

Brice
05-01-2008, 11:00 AM
Okay, I will just cast his vote for The Stand for him in his absence. :evil:

ManOfWesternesse
05-01-2008, 11:35 AM
I was pretty happy with Cell - not a bad little book at all.
But The Stand is in a whole different universe.
'Cell' need'nt feel bad - most books ever written would fail this contest.

Matt
05-01-2008, 11:50 AM
:lol:

Exactly, almost any book in the world could be against The Stand in this poll and would lose.

Odetta
05-01-2008, 12:44 PM
The Stand...
I will quote someone from another board... The Cell is like The Stand's annoying little brother.

NeedfulKings
05-01-2008, 01:01 PM
I wasn't a fan of Cell either. Great concept, but I felt that the overall execution fell short. Maybe it just wasn't long enough--I really can't put my finger on it.

The Stand is great, and though I have a few nit-picky coomplaints about it, it's still WAY up there in my favorites list. Cell is on the other end of that list. :p

Daghain
05-01-2008, 01:03 PM
The Stand. Definitely.

Mark
05-01-2008, 01:11 PM
How come Daghain?

Daghain
05-01-2008, 01:27 PM
It's a far superior book. Good plot, great character studies, just all around better. It's like comparing Poe to a Marvel Comic. :lol:

MonteGss
05-01-2008, 03:03 PM
I have not read Cell yet. It is the next King book for me to read. However, I will vote because there is absolutely, not even the remotest possible chance that it comes even close to The Stand. Ever. No chance. :)
Was I clear on my opinion? :lol:

Matt
05-01-2008, 03:08 PM
:lol:

Totally, and I believe that can be comfortably said. But read Cell, its actually quite good imo.

MonteGss
05-01-2008, 03:11 PM
Honestly Matt, there aren't many King books I don't enjoy so I'm sure I will like it. But, honestly, like R_of_G said, this poll will not even be close. I can't believe somebody even said they are equal. :lol:

LadyHitchhiker
05-01-2008, 03:26 PM
The Stand hands down.

I have truly worn out 5 copies of the stand already... I should have saved one to send to SK to sign but it's okay... I'll wear out another one for him to sign...

mia/susannah
05-01-2008, 04:56 PM
The Stand, hands down. I love that book. You are right, there is not to many books that could win against The Stand. I love the plot of the stand, most of the characters and of course the connections to the dark tower. Cell was a good book and I enjoyed it. But cannot stand against The Stand. :onfire:

Woofer
05-01-2008, 08:35 PM
<snip>Maybe it just wasn't long enough </snip>

Boy, that's something you don't hear often about a Stephen King book.

The Stand, no question. For all the reasons listed thus far and a certain je ne sais quois.

Mordred Deschain
05-02-2008, 06:48 AM
don't get me wrong. I did like the cell. But it was just another take on the whole "end of days" thing.

Matter of fact, I don't think I ever answered my cell phone while reading it or for hours after words.

obscurejude
05-02-2008, 07:32 AM
Before I get into my post, I understand that everyone will disagree with me.

I voted for Cell because I think it demonstrates King's reservations about technology much more clearer than the Stand. The characterizations are not as strong as the Stand, but part of that is only do to its brevity. One of the common critiques about the Stand unabridged is that the added parts really don't supplement the text in any substantive way. I think this is due to the fact that the text contains far too many unnecessary passages to begin with. A lot of the Stand is disjointed for me, sub plots within subplots, and upon my fairly recent re-read, I decided I didn't like it very much. Cell had a defined plot (action via Aristotle) and everything else at his disposal in terms of writing was subservient to a defined moral impression that he was trying to get across. While I appreciate spontaneous whimsical writing, sometimes it becomes self defeating when perspective is lost. I found Cell much more cogent in terms of ideology, and that is the sign of a mature writer in my opinion.

jayson
05-02-2008, 07:37 AM
One of the common critiques about the Stand unabridged is that the added parts really don't supplement the text in any substantive way.

i won't/can't debate the subjective opinions of which book is "better" bc we are each to our own there, but the critique of the unabridged is way off as i see it. in the abridged version the voyage of the Trashcan man is disjointed and makes no sense. In the unabridged it is cohesive and he makes a MUCH better character. I think this is very important to the overall cohesiveness the story.

obscurejude
05-02-2008, 07:39 AM
I liked the added trashcan man stuff Jayson. Maybe my favorite part, but an exception to what I was saying, in my opinion.

nordh
05-05-2008, 02:50 AM
They are hard to compare. The Stand is a tale of epic proportions in all categories. Cell, while I liked it a lot, is more of a very entertaining and well produced zombie movie (but in book format).

It's like comparing the movie version of The Lord of the Rings with Dawn of the living dead (the original). Both are extremely good for what it's set out to be. But if you have to choose which of the two that is the very best, The Lord of the Rings win by far.

MonteGss
05-05-2008, 02:10 PM
Before I get into my post, I understand that everyone will disagree with me.

I voted for Cell because...

Banned. Don't come back.


:lol:
Just kidding jude...you're still awesome!
After all, CK likes that monstrosity Insomnia and I still like him. :)

obscurejude
05-05-2008, 02:42 PM
:hangs head in shame:

Its strange, the critique that I gave the Stand above could easily be applied to the gunslinger as well, but I love it despite disjointed feel.

Folks, I love the Stand, but I stand by my critique (no pun intended). I read somewhere that King himself was pretty sick of it and put it down for a number of months before picking it back up again, not sure how to keep the story flowing (this is when he wrote the scene where the bomb takes out a number of the good guys- he needed something to keep the plot going). King was also very surprised that so many people embraced it. I think Cell hits a very similar thematic nerve in the collective conscience of modern America, but it doesn't have the same novelty of the Stand.

MonteGss
05-05-2008, 03:13 PM
I'm sure I'll like Cell when I read it. :)

ladysai
05-05-2008, 03:49 PM
I think Cell hits a very similar thematic nerve in the collective conscience of modern America, but it doesn't have the same novelty of the Stand.

I agree that Cell hits a similar nerve, but I disagree that it was novelty that made The Stand better.
In The Stand, we meet and come to care about characters who are experiencing the event from many perspectives-most especially geographically. Cell seemed a more isolated event (to me, anyhow) because the characters were all in one general area of the after-effects. I guess I'm trying to say The Stand felt more "grand" or "epic" to me due to there being so many characters in so many places going through the same disaster.

obscurejude
05-05-2008, 05:08 PM
Ladysai, I meant novelty in the sense that apocalyptic fiction wasn't as popular in the early eighties. The Stand is one of the reasons that the genre is over done today. If it was written today, I'm not sure that it would have the same impact.

Love the Blake quote. :thumbsup:

alinda
05-05-2008, 05:26 PM
I wasnt sure this was even a serious question(poll).
The Stand wins for certain in my opinion.

ladysai
05-05-2008, 05:30 PM
Ladysai, I meant novelty in the sense that apocalyptic fiction wasn't as popular in the early eighties. The Stand is one of the reasons that the genre is over done today. If it was written today, I'm not sure that it would have the same impact.
Hm. Maybe so. I wasnt really thinking in terms of when it was published. :orely:

Love the Blake quote. :thumbsup:
Thankee. :)

Jean
05-05-2008, 10:29 PM
I read somewhere that King himself was pretty sick of it and put it down for a number of months before picking it back up again, not sure how to keep the story flowing (this is when he wrote the scene where the bomb takes out a number of the good guys- he needed something to keep the plot going). King was also very surprised that so many people embraced it.
how is that relevant to the result we have (the book)?

obscurejude
05-06-2008, 04:27 AM
Its relevant in at least 2 ways:

1) I was indelibly aware that King had lost his way and so it was hard for me to be captive by a story that was struggling itself to remain alive.

2) King was surprised and after some discussion last night with my roomate I think I know why. Due to the weakness of the plot (in terms of linear dynamic) the characters of the story are exceptionally strong because so much information is given about them. Perhaps King recognized (due in part to reader response) that this was one of his exceptional gifts. I think IT is a much better example of a combination of strong characters and a strong plot. So many parts of the Stand are anti-climactic because nothing could really stop the momentum of the characters (it took an ex deus machina in the form of the hand of God to end the novel). I'm glad the Stand happened, because I think it taught him a lot about writing. I often think of the Stand when I read the opening essay to the revised Gunslinger and King talks about the original having a lot of the problems associated with young writers. I see a lot of the problems (I use this word loosely, King's not mine) magnified with the Stand because it is so much longer. The Stand is a book by a young writer, that's really all I'm saying. For that reason its stronger and weaker, full of brave pretension but also naive brashness. The same disparity between the Gunslinger and the rest of the DT books is analogous to the Stand and Cell (at least in regards to my aforementioned posts).

Hope this explains it Jean.

Good morning everyone. :grouphug:

Ka-tet
05-06-2008, 05:09 AM
Okay first of all i sugested to mark it was pointless to even think about posting this. I knew the poll would turn out like this.

But Cell regardless, i just really enjoyed reading it i finshed it in like a week.

With the stand, well it bored me to put it simply, i didnt even finish the book.

So ill ask another question, ive never really looked that deaply but i notice that a lot of you guys HATE Cell with a passion.

I would like to ask why?

Steve
05-06-2008, 09:44 AM
I don't hate Cell at all. I think it's a fantastic book. Hell, Tom McCourt is one of the best non-DT characters I've seen King pump out in a while.

But The Stand is simply greater, more epic, and better all around.

Jean
05-06-2008, 11:17 AM
obscure: I see what you mean regarding the Stand; I still don't see how whatever King said or didn't say can have any bearing on that. We're not his psychoanalists or therapists, we're his readers. We have to do with the result of his work only, not with anything it occured to him to say about it. Inspiration works differently every time it works at all, and I see no reason why this time it wouldn't have worked through the author's periods of disappointment, sickness or whatever else he saw fit to make known.

alinda
05-06-2008, 11:24 AM
Right on Jean. By the way, I enjoyed both books.
Just one more than the other.
Ryan, Heavy. I'd like to at your house for breakfast.
Interesting topic of conversation to say the least.

OchrisO
05-06-2008, 11:25 AM
I prefer The Stand, because the ending of Cell was a big steaming pile of shit. Had the ending not sucked so much, it would have been an amazing book, though, and I probably would have voted for it.

obscurejude
05-06-2008, 12:12 PM
Jean, I was mostly using his comments to provide more evidence for my position, which would remain the same regardless of what he said or didn't say. Authorial intent is difficult to ascertain, but I think its important and relevant. I'm not sure I like your distinction between author and artifact. I found it interesting that half of King's treatise On Writing is about him, biographical tidbits about the author, and not just writing as a craft. I'd be remiss not to read what he, himself, has written about his own works in order to understand them better. The compartmentalization that you seem to espouse is distinctly modern, and as a postmodernist, I'm inclined to disagree. I would love to expand on that point, but it would distract from this thread. Suffice it to say, that I argue for unanimity between author and artifact because they arise from the same things and are not mutually exclusive. I am his reader, but I'm also a student of literature and desire to understand the whole process, not just the end result.

Alinda, you're welcome to eat breakfast at my house anytime. :thumbsup:

Ka-tet
05-09-2008, 09:26 AM
I prefer The Stand, because the ending of Cell was a big steaming pile of shit. Had the ending not sucked so much, it would have been an amazing book, though, and I probably would have voted for it.

I both loved and hated the ending. I also kind of expected it >.<

Sam
05-31-2008, 11:27 AM
While I enjoyed Cell and thought it was an excellent story, it falls far short in both depth and scope when compared to The Stand. The Stand is a story that deals with the very nature of Good and Evil. The lives of the people within are fully realized in a way that only a book of such immensity as The Stand can allow. Comparing The Stand to Cell is like comparing a 300 page novel with a 50 page short story. There is just not enough room in the short story for it to compare to the richness of the novel. The story can be good, have no doubt, but it's not long enough to learn as much about the character.

Compare It to The Stand. Compare Pet Semetary to Cell. That Stand and It stand alone and together against the rest of King's work. It is the ultimate boogeyman story, and The Stand is the ultimate Good v. Evil story. There is no comparison against that. Just my thoughts mind you.

towerguard
05-31-2008, 04:12 PM
The Stand, by a WIDE margin. The Stand is, in my opinion, the best non-DT book King ever wrote. Cell, in my opinion, is the single worst thing King ever wrote [well, maybe Lisey's Story, but still]. I think there's no real comparison. The Stand is something I re-read at least every five years. Cell I could not even finish I hated it so much. I suspect this poll is going to be a runaway victory for The Stand, we shall see...

Exactly, Cell was the book that ruined SK for me, and The Stand was the book that hooked me.

Ves'Ka Gan
06-01-2008, 10:03 AM
The Stand...
I will quote someone from another board... The Cell is like The Stand's annoying little brother.
I think this sums it up for me!

I enjoyed Cell a lot, but I kept feeling like I had been there before, and had a lot more fun the first time!

Ledzepplinrules
06-03-2008, 09:47 AM
I like The Stand(still reading it) but, I loved cell.

MonteGss
06-04-2008, 06:31 AM
Nearly 83% for The Stand.
No surprise there. :)

obscurejude
06-04-2008, 08:21 AM
Being in the minority has never bothered me before. :D

Heather19
06-04-2008, 02:02 PM
These 2 books aren't even really comparable. It's no surprise The Stand is winning.
I agree with Sam Catoe. Put The Stand up against It and I'm curious which will come out on top.

obscurejude
06-04-2008, 05:00 PM
These 2 books aren't even really comparable.

Care to elaborate? I think I've made several comparable points, whether they are the majority opinion or not.

Heather19
06-05-2008, 01:50 PM
I pretty much agree with everything Sam Catoe said a few posts up. I think that putting the 2 against each other is like comparing a novel to a short story. Whether or not the short story is good, the novel will in most cases win.

The Stand is about 5 times as long as Cell, so there is so much more room to go into depth about the characters. And after reading a novel of that length, you're most likely by the end of story going to have grown very attached to them. It also has the ability to cover more characters and events because it has the room to. Whereas Cell is almost put at a handicap because it doesn't have the means to go as deeply as it could, as say if it was The Stands length.

Put It up against The Stand and I think you've got a more even playing field. They're both epic long novels, and considered to be some of Kings greatest works.

obscurejude
06-05-2008, 04:02 PM
You should read my posts, again, there are comparable points.

mdcphoto
06-08-2008, 11:04 AM
I was a bigger fan of the Stand over Cell. With that said Cell to me was still a good book! I couldn't put it down and just got sucked into the world they were involved in at that time.

The Stand though was the the first book of Stephen Kings that I read and I guess that automatically puts it ahead of a lot of books. So much depth to the book which gives it an advantage over other books, including Cell.

Mordred Deschain
06-10-2008, 04:39 PM
This movie just came out on DVD I believe, it's called "The Signal" here is the intro: As glasses are raised for a New Year's Eve toast, the denizens of the city of Terminus fall prey to a mysterious transmission that pulses through all electronic devices and transforms rational, sane people into murderous, rampaging psychopaths. All forms of communication have been jammed, and now the airwaves have been saturated with an ominous signal that preys on fear and deep-rooted desire. Though Terminus was once a city defined by conformity, any semblance of order in this concrete jungle has now been replaced with screaming, bloody chaos. Fortunately, Ben has managed to avoid having his brain scrambled by the signal, and now he's determined to make his way through the bedlam that's sweeping the streets and rescue the woman he loves. It's not going to be an easy task, though, and in order to sweep his love to safety, Ben will first have to face off against her rabid husband. In a city where everyone seems to have lost their mind, the only way Ben will be able to determine who he can trust and who has given in to their bloodlust is to find out the true origins of this ominous broadcast.

does this sound somewhat familiar?

The Cell ?

obscurejude
07-21-2008, 09:58 PM
obscure: I see what you mean regarding the Stand; I still don't see how whatever King said or didn't say can have any bearing on that. We're not his psychoanalists or therapists, we're his readers. We have to do with the result of his work only, not with anything it occured to him to say about it. Inspiration works differently every time it works at all, and I see no reason why this time it wouldn't have worked through the author's periods of disappointment, sickness or whatever else he saw fit to make known.

Did you see my response to this? I'd be interested in your thoughts.

Jean
07-21-2008, 10:10 PM
of course I read it immediately after you posted... it is increasingly hard for me to take part in intelligent discussion; I still hope this condition is temporary, but now I frankly don't know.

obscurejude
07-21-2008, 10:14 PM
of course I read it immediately after you posted... it is increasingly hard for me to take part in intelligent discussion; I still hope this condition is temporary, but now I frankly don't know.

Jean, I really don't know how to respond to this. I'm sorry you're having troubles and always feel free to pm me and know that I'll be thinking about you. For the record, your posts are the most astute for me personally that I have come across and I always look forward to reading them.

Jean
07-21-2008, 10:18 PM
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gif

kirin
08-08-2008, 12:06 PM
i voted equal but that is mostly because i dont see how these two books can be compared the only similarity between the two is the author the stories cant be compared there are no similarities

Matt
08-08-2008, 12:27 PM
I totally agree Kirin, apples and oranges imo.

I suppose people try and tie them together as post apocalypse type books but that is so very general when considering them.

One is about good and evil the other is about the potential to "reboot" the human brain.

Heather19
08-08-2008, 02:41 PM
And I completely agree with both of you guys. I really don't see much of a similarity between the two.

kirin
08-16-2008, 12:19 PM
i got lucky hardback longer version of the stand charity shop 10p thats somewhere around 5 cents

alinda
08-16-2008, 12:52 PM
GET OUT of here! *starts browsing charity shops* :)