The Official End Thread

[MonteGss]

Hello. Welcome and nice idea for a thread. However, be sure to read posting and spoiler guidelines listed in relevant forums. Here are some examples:

Content which would give away the end of the series MUST be marked with Spoiler Tags

Threads which allow spoilers to go unmarked are permissible, if the thread is labelled in its title as a Spoiler Thread (ex- Thread title: Asfdglsajf ***SPOILERS), but the topic must be tagged in its first post with the radioactive post icon.

For next time.

[glm]

I'll make sure to do it next time.

[Hannah]

Hi glm, I edited the title of your thread a little bit, and marked it for spoilers. If you'd like it titled anything different, please let me know.

Thanks, and welcome to the site!

[sarah]

Hi glm. Good question. I'm having a hard time seeing the first time around because of how it was this time around. I tend to just see this version. I guess I need to stretch my imagination a bit.

[Wuducynn]

Magic!

[mia/susannah]

I will have to think about this question. I cannot picture how Roland would be the first time around right now.

[Wuducynn]

Assuming that the loop that we read about him on, isn't the first time, I guess I picutre his first loop as much less introspective and not doing things like sacrificing himself for Jake in Maine, not thinking about the Horn of Eld and whether it was as important as his guns.

[nategator]

One thing that I remember hoping for after the book ended was whether King, since he loves meta-fiction, etc. was leaving himself an opening to return back to the DT series. Much like Gunslinger, where King decided to go back and add a bunch of content, King could throw in 20-30 pages of material per book adding some changes with the horn and show how it culminates in a different -- and perhaps more final -- ending. This would be satisfying for the fans in seeing how a subtle difference could have massive consequences plus would allow King to republish every book and make a lot of $$$. He could also substantially revise Susannah and DT, which seemed a little rushed due to King's brush with death. I don't know, probably wishful thinking...but what do you guys think?

[alinda]

King has said no , so I think I'll go with that answer

[mia/susannah]

Welcome nategator, I don't think King will be writing any more on the Dark Tower series. I am kind of sad about it but I understand as well

[alinda]

I had not noticed your post count, sorry nategator...

[nategator]

I had not noticed your post count, sorry nategator...

cry your pardon. Where did King say no?

[ATG]

I agree with your premise that it's not impossible. HE said he would rewrite them all, and who knows what that may lead to?

And welcome to the site nategator!

[alinda]

I'm not sure where, but I felt completely secure in this knowledge
untill you questioned it. I'm not sure how to respond...I hope your
right? Although for me it was the perfect ending, the only one.

[Wuducynn]

If he was going to do a re-write of the series, from what Ms. Mod says over on the SK.Com message board, it would be books 1 -3. Not the ending.

[Rjeso]

Dammit, those are the good ones! Leave them be!

[Wuducynn]

I meant 2 - 3. "Good ones". They're all great.

[Rjeso]

Eh, my interest tails off during WotC, and never comes back fully after that. I still like them, but they don't captivate me like the first 4 1/2 do. Those I can reread over and over.

[Wuducynn]

While I can re-read the whole series over and over. Which I am in the midst of at the moment.

[alinda]

Oh I am sure I didnt know any of that, thanks for setting me straight.
Altho' I have no doubt I'd buy the books I personally dont feel any re-write is needed.

[Brainslinger]

If King does do any rewrites (which I have my doubts), he would probably need to do Wizard and Glass too. He still thinks of Walter and Marten as separate people there, and there are also minor errors where Roland and Eddie keep swapping guns!

As for rewriting the rest... I doubt that will happen. I would love it if he were to fill in a few holes, things that were left unexplained. Not that everything need be explained, it's good to leave some mystery, but there are things here and there which have an impact on the plot.

One example would be that note which Calvin Tower found in his safe. It really bugged me that we never found out who sent that note, it just came out of nowhere.

There are some times that such things work. For example when useful items are found in the vacant lot near the rose such as Jake's key and the bowling bag/turtle can-tah later. I just figured, the Rose is the Tower, and can therefore generate tools required by the ka-tet. Besides the whole tone of those scenes (be it Jake's first experience at the Lot or the rest of the ka-tet minus Susannah/Mia) was magical, it felt right that such things could happen.

But the note in the safe? That I think should have had some explanation. After all The Writer stated in the book that he can only send things directly once, therefore the explanation should come from within the story not just because the writer put it there. (Actually King sends twice, but the second was something earned as a result of being saved by the ka-tet.)

I wonder if it was intentional on King's part or if he simply forgot in his rush to get the last books done. Not that I dislike the last books as a whole, I thought they had great moments.

There are other things which I disliked in the last book, but I don't think King should necessarily change them. For example, the way the various villains were depicted. I'd love to read a book where Walter played a bigger role in the end game, or Mordred didn't suddenly get sick from eating sickly meat. However, where those things are concerned it seems clear King just didn't see things that way, and it wouldn't be fair to expect him to change things for the readers' whim. (Of course if he changed his mind concerning Walter I'd really love to read that version, although I'd accept the fate of the other villains. I'd just count the two versions as occurring in different cycles. )

A bit more explanation as to why things turned out that way would be nice though. I.e. why Walter's foreshadowing in Wizard and Glass was not the prophesy it appeared, why the Red King the lord of glamour needed to rely on technical items like sneeches to attack Roland etc.

I.e. don't change those things, just explain them a bit better.

[CyberGhostface]

I'd like it if he rewrote the last book too, but I'm not holding my breath. King has said he had plans of revising the entire series in the future, but even if he did do that, I don't think there's going to be any substantial changes in terms of plot. Knowing him, it'd probably just have a lot of extra calla-speak and more 'foreshadowing'.

[eldsai]

I totally agree Kyonn--very well said too.

Welcome to the site

Thanks

I would like to add that not only is Roland being punished but we the readers are being punished in a metatextual way.

At the beginning of the last section King warns us to leave Roland’s tale at the door to the Dark Tower and just accept that he made it. King goes on to tell us that some people can never enjoy things in life and that it’s the journey not the destination that’s important, he uses the analogy with sex, how the true joy of lovemaking is the act and not the climax

Those of us who read on despite King’s warnings are “punished” with an ending that he knew most of us would find unsatisfying. To be honest I was pissed with the ending at first, thinking it was all to cruel a fate for Roland but after typing these few paragraph and reading what you others have written on here I now agree when sai King wrote “I wasn’t crazy about the ending either, if you want to know the truth, but it’s the right ending”

I only wish I could have stopped at what I like to call the “ninth gate” ending when Roland enters the Tower (if you’ve seen the movie you’ll understand why I call it that) but like Roland nothing (even sai King’s warning that it was a bad idea) would stop me seeing my little quest to the end.

so basically by reading on we all fell into the trap of "going for the tower" just like Roland did. Its kind of neat how King did that.

but being a book that I paid for Im obviously going to read every word.

[Kyonn]

I totally agree Kyonn--very well said too.

Welcome to the site

Thanks

I would like to add that not only is Roland being punished but we the readers are being punished in a metatextual way.

At the beginning of the last section King warns us to leave Roland’s tale at the door to the Dark Tower and just accept that he made it. King goes on to tell us that some people can never enjoy things in life and that it’s the journey not the destination that’s important, he uses the analogy with sex, how the true joy of lovemaking is the act and not the climax

Those of us who read on despite King’s warnings are “punished” with an ending that he knew most of us would find unsatisfying. To be honest I was pissed with the ending at first, thinking it was all to cruel a fate for Roland but after typing these few paragraph and reading what you others have written on here I now agree when sai King wrote “I wasn’t crazy about the ending either, if you want to know the truth, but it’s the right ending”

I only wish I could have stopped at what I like to call the “ninth gate” ending when Roland enters the Tower (if you’ve seen the movie you’ll understand why I call it that) but like Roland nothing (even sai King’s warning that it was a bad idea) would stop me seeing my little quest to the end.

so basically by reading on we all fell into the trap of "going for the tower" just like Roland did. Its kind of neat how King did that.

but being a book that I paid for Im obviously going to read every word.

So true.

But its just like when the leaders of the Tet corp. told Roland that he had saved the Tower and that he should stop his quest because it would not end well.

Just like Roland had come to far to stop, the same was also true for us the reader.

[John_and_Yoko]

I voted "Completely satisfied."

Yeah, there's no happy ending for Roland, nor should there be. He's not that kind of hero. He's so focused on one thing that he loses sight of all else, and even when given opportunities to reform, he doesn't always take them.

I honestly can't think of a better way to end it--besides, as long as it is, the whole series is too short to really do justice to the world Stephen King has described (which is why I'm glad for all the other, related books that I've been reading).

Besides, that ending moved me, and that's all I'm looking for in a story--I try not to nitpick and let things bother me, unless they're so blatantly nonsensical that they distract me from the emotion of the piece, and I didn't get that with the ending.

I am so grateful for having had the opportunity to experience Roland's journey to the Dark Tower, and--like Roland--I will return to it someday.