The Dark Tower Ending - I HATED IT!

[vivazebool]

Hi everyone!

I have been a Stephen King fan for 20 years. I finally picked up the Dark Tower series and read every book one after the other in about three months. Yesterday, I turned the last page of book 7. It was 1:30 in the morning and I put the book away with the most haunted, heartbroken feeling I have ever felt from reading fiction.

It's my opinion that Stephen King has cheated his fans. In fact, last night, I thought of throwing the books of his that I own in the garbage and renouncing ever being his fan. And this is coming from a twenty year die hard!
That's how much I hated it.

Let me share with you why I thought he cheated his fans...

1) Stephen King's strength as a storyteller is in using a literary tool called 'indirect conflict' to drive his stories. By conflict I don't mean 'fighting.' By conflict I mean 'change.' That is, something changes...you don't know what happened or why...you only see the effect of the change. Therefore, you keep turning the pages to find out WHY everything is happening. By using this technique as a storyteller, the writer asks his readers to trust him that the unknown cause is important. And as a storyteller, it is important that he doesn't violate that trust!

Examples of Stephen King's indirect conflict would be:

CELL - people who use their cell phones all of a sudden turn into violent zombies on day. You don't know why it happened or exactly what happened. You keep turning the pages to find out why. Same with KASHWAK = NO - FO. You know it means something important but you don't know what it means or why. So you keep reading to find out why. By using this technique, Stephen King is asking us to trust him and it is important that he doesn't violate that trust!

You find this technique used in most of his stories...Sun Dog (why is the camera doing this? where is the dog from? why is this happening?), Library Policeman, Langoliers...the list goes on.

I read through 1 thin book and 6 fat ones just to find out that Roland has been to the Tower again and again and again, forgetting it everytime he passes through the top of the Tower. I enjoyed all the action, falling in love with Eddie Dean and the gang, I was sad over what happened to Susan Delgado. And all of this...just to find out that everyone's work in helping Roland find the Tower lead to him just repeating everything from the desert all over again.

I started off not knowing what the Tower was or why the quest was important. I put my trust in King's use of indirect conflict. And this is what I get.

I am interested in what others thought. You hated it? Why? You loved the end and can offer a better way for me to see it? Let me know.

If Stephen King wanted to turn the Dark Tower into the ultimate horror story, he did it by ending the series this way. This was a scary ending. I will give him that.

Anyways, that's all I have to say for now. Thanks for hearing me out.

[Moderator]

At the bottom of the page, you will see a section on the left that is titled Similar Threads and below that are a number of links to ones that have been started already. You might want to read through some of those.

[emjay999]

I've been very conflicted about the whole issue myself. I've been a fan of his most of my life as well (25 years now), and it's rarely ever been a problem for me. I don't know that there could have been a better resolution to the whole matter; I mean, what would his fans have expected, what could he have delivered that would have satisfied us all? I only know that there were so many hints at other paths, so many other clearings at the end of other paths that he pointed at. The allusions made in Insomnia, for example, or the tease he threw in with Black House that perhaps Jack could help the Ka-Tet in some way were completely deflated and turned out to be false hopes.

I think in a work this massive, that brooked this much time, threads of thought that he had at the beginning didn't appeal to him by the end, or they were forgotten. Coherence is difficult to maintain in even one continuous story, one volume, let alone a magnum opus that almost straddles a career as illustrious as SK's.

For me, the Dark Tower, book 7 is a true dark tower, a looming beast of a thing marking the end of my acquaintance with the Ka-Tet, and for that reason alone, I despise it - nevermind how I feel about the ending. I try to take comfort that Roland will again and again meet Eddie and Susannah and Jake and Oy, but it's cold comfort, at best.

After all, he's made the point before that hell is repetition, and a relentless killer like Roland deserves no heaven, but eternal damnation. Loving Roland for his faults as well as his virtues doesn't make that fact disappear. I only wish I could read the true ending, the resolution of the whole matter, because Gan does seem to give him relief by degrees from cycle to cycle. I only want to know in the end he'll be granted the mercy he cried for.

[Glen]

Yes, I agree with Ms. Mod. Please check out some of those related threads.

I sympathize with you, I really do. I too hated the ending at first, but after further reflection, the ending came to mean something more to me, something very deep. I don't think I'd be overstating things if I were to say it came to mean something life-changing for me.

[GravemakersAndGunslingers]

The ending was definately a shock to the system, it blew my mind, but on reflection...what other way could it have ended? King doesn't really do happy endings but because roland has the Horn of Eld for the next journey there is the promise that he will get it right the next time - it leaves it open to the reader to imagine what he could do differently. The Dark Tower is so involving that you're not the only one to react in this way - but in time I think you will come to accept it.

[EBK357]

i didnt like it at first either, but after you think about it a little i dont see how it can end any other way!!!!

[Todash]

The ending was definately a shock to the system, it blew my mind, but on reflection...what other way could it have ended? King doesn't really do happy endings but because roland has the Horn of Eld for the next journey there is the promise that he will get it right the next time - it leaves it open to the reader to imagine what he could do differently. The Dark Tower is so involving that you're not the only one to react in this way - but in time I think you will come to accept it.
I agree. Next time 'round Roland will finish it. I just know he will.

[brownmouse]

Perhaps it is meant to reinforce that the journey is often more important then the end. I know that no matter how a King book ends I will dissatisfied because, well, it ended! And I hate having to say good-bye to the characters.

[devious1]

i myself was disappointed in the ending at first, but for different (but similar) reasons.i felt bad because now, not only does Roland have to go back and do it all over again, but so do all the characters in all the other books that are connected to the tower.however, upon a second reading of the series i gained an appreciation for the ending. first of all, it's the only one that makes sense. i mean, no matter how he chose to end it, there would be people who didn't like the ending. also, from the words of the man himself, it was the only ending he had. besides, do we really, REALLY want to know who or what waits for us at the top of our Tower? does Stephen himself even know what's up there? i don't think he knows any more than we do about it, and to write an ending that didn't ring "true" to him would be a disservice to his fans.

[LadyPain]

I loved the ending. For me, the book was about the journey and not so much the ending. It was written on too grand of a scale to simply end and be solved. The way this worked out is that Roland is still out there all of the time trying to keep the beams from breaking while he finds his answers.

In life we don't always get our answers. We are on the journey as well. For me, my life is about the journey, and not the ending because I don't believe things truly ever end. As a believer in reincarnation, I found the ending appropriate. It just means I get to read the story again. And again. And again.

After such a magnificent tale, it would have seemed trite to come up with some sort of cut-and-dried answer at the end. Mysteries are more interesting.

[ilnino]

I am quite the same in the sense that I've been a fan for 20 years and have only recently read DT finished it no less than a month ago in fact, but I quite liked the end. Cant even say exactly why :)
I even want to start over again myself.

[deltadog32]

I hated the ending at first too but after continuing to read his books I sort of understand why it had to end that way and that's because the Tower is a never ending struggle Sai King is dealing with and until he himself is able to defeat the power of the Tower over him it will stay that way.

[rjt65]

Same here... at first thought of it as ....arrgh another it was a dream sequence noooooo...

But upon reflection, it was brilliant....and he does pick-up the Horn this time around...soooo, maybe it is the last....

Why is the horn so important..... Will anything else be different this time as he has the horn...

I have another thousand thoughts like those, but if it ended Roland wins crimson king dead Roland married and had kids those 1000 thought provoking ?'s would not have been there for me

Read Stephen Hawkings "the universe in a nutshell and a Brief History of Time" Read them like 50 times. Quantum Physics dumbed down so normal people can understand but there is (like todash) ways particles can be in more than one place at a time, different dimensions etc.

Point is the ending is great and the beams will someday show you the way!

Long days and pleaseant nights !

[el perverso]

I like it from the point where is was reading the last letter, it´s perfect and cold not be other ending. of course I also want to know, why he´s on the journey, why he´s damned, what the dark tower really is, but I think SK wants to keep this open, so everybody paint his own ideas, as I would say every reader have and will be done


sorry for the bad english, I think there are many mistakes in this post

[CR!P]

Well I hated it too but after a thinking it over for a few days I realised that I would never be happy with what was in the tower because the story would JUST END and the way Mr King did end it was perfect because the whole quest is a cycle and it leaves us to wonder what will happen this time around, who will Roland meet? will he have another Ka Tet and what strange places will he go to and which of our favouite characters will he meet?

Just my opinion.

[kisun]

I hated it at first, like many, but now I find it perfect.

This is how I see it:
Each time Roland encounters his quest he becomes more man than beast. The journey we read about was like reaching the top of a mountain. After all of his travails he finally reached the top and learned to love. Love is redemption. Getting to the top of a mountain is only half the battle though. The descent is after Roland has found redemption for his sins for the first time, and for his troubles to get to the top and how he learned to love he is rewarded with the Horn of Eld from Gan. The way down the mountain may be one more journey, or multiple, or many, but the one we encountered was the most significant because Roland encountered love and redemption for the first time.

[JohnDalglish]

I don't think I'd be overstating things if I were to say it came to mean something life-changing for me.

Hi,

Yes, exactly, I loved it from the gecko personally (although it caused half an hour of hysterics!).

Long days and pleasant nights

[Osminog]

You know, both my Ma and I liked the ending...I was surprised she liked it.
The entire series could be different with the Horn of Eld...mebbe it could scare off the Lobstrosities...and then Roland wouldn't be so desperate for Keflex and Astin. Who knows? That's the main point to me. Who knows how things would go down? It's the Horn of ELD...Arthur Eld. Who knows what powers it possesses?

[dragafari]

Hate is a hard/strong word. I feel like listening to Annie Wilkes :(

[Spideyman]

Never had a second thought- the ending was as it should be. This was an awesome journey for me, life changing. And each time I've taken it again, I've found new understanding and insight.

[duf70]

Well, Stephen warned us before getting into the ending, after Susannah was reunited with Eddie and Jake he said it was just as it should end, but since he was sure we wanted to see what was at the top of the Tower....he let us have it.
When I read the ending at 2:00 in the morning I couldn't breathe at first, trying to comprehend the magnificence of what really meant to start over again. After a while I realized that there was no other way and I started to accept it. The Horn of Eld would do the trick this next time.
I only regret that he didn't write more about the gaps that now are being filled in the Marvel comics, such as the Jericho Hill battle.

[tempest]

Well, I just finished DT a week ago so it is very fresh in my mind. :biggrin2: I read the part where Stephen King writes you do not need to read any further if you like this ending.(New York only). I did like the almost ending (NY), but I had to read on to the end.

The ending was uniquely Stephen King, and for that I loved it:love:. It was unexpected which is why it was so perfect.

From a philosophical point of the view, at the end, I thought of the "Hindu Theory of World Cycles". Not even sure if it applies..Saṃsāra or something like that--not something I believe in personally, but an interesting idea.

[devious1]

I hated it at first, like many, but now I find it perfect.

This is how I see it:
Each time Roland encounters his quest he becomes more man than beast. The journey we read about was like reaching the top of a mountain. After all of his travails he finally reached the top and learned to love. Love is redemption. Getting to the top of a mountain is only half the battle though. The descent is after Roland has found redemption for his sins for the first time, and for his troubles to get to the top and how he learned to love he is rewarded with the Horn of Eld from Gan. The way down the mountain may be one more journey, or multiple, or many, but the one we encountered was the most significant because Roland encountered love and redemption for the first time.that is a great theory, i never really thought of it that way, but it makes perfect sense and fits with the theme of redemption.

another way you can look at is that Ka is a wheel, and what is a wheel? a circle. so the story comes full circle and you end up right back where you started. maybe it will be different this time, with the Horn Of Eld, but maybe it never will be different because Ka is a wheel that always comes full circle.

[IfSoGirl]

i loved it. i don't think it could've ended any other way.

[Laretius]

I think it was the only possible/sensible ending. If the book had ended in some cheesy "happily ever after" -bit, I'd have vomited. It did leave me feeling a bit empty and dissatisfied, but Roland going to heaven or something would have felt wrong. These kind of endings are bittersweet. :eyebrow:
And it is true that they are kind of a trade mark to SK, as are things like "and they never saw each other again" in the beginning of the book. But that's a huge part of why we love his books, right?!

[La Belladonna]

I enjoyed all the action, falling in love with Eddie Dean and the gang, I was sad over what happened to Susan Delgado. And all of this...just to find out that everyone's work in helping Roland find the Tower lead to him just repeating everything from the desert all over again.

I actually like the ending. It made sense with the rest of the story and the other worlds than these and all the world/time jumping.

None of their actions were wasted or in vain. How do you/we know that this trip was Roland's first cycle to reach the Dark Tower? This may have been his second, third, tenth, etc.... Maybe in his prior cycle Susanah died or they didn't save King from getting killed by the drunk driver. All types of little yet vital things could have changed. And in his next cycle we know that Roland has the Horn of Eld. That may make a huge difference in the outcome.

I agree with others who said that King showed us that the journey is as important if not more important than the journey's end.

You know, SK warned the reader that they may not like the ending and that they could stop reading at that point where he made the warning in DT7.

I actually liked the ending. It made sense with the rest of the story and the other worlds than these and all the world/time jumping. How else could it have ended? If you want happily-ever-after and we all skipped home story endings then maybe you should start reading a different author or type of book. But again - to each his own.

[Romeo]

what's the dark tower about??!!:eyebrow:

[Moderator]

For more information, visit The Dark Tower (http://67.192.60.208/darktower/) portion of the site.

[JohnDalglish]

what's the dark tower about??!!:eyebrow:

Hi,

It's about seven books, and much recommmended.

Long days and pleasant nights

[M.O.DENGLER]

what's the dark tower about??!!:eyebrow:

LOL..Give it a read mate..

[rose key]

I think the ending was absolute perfection. As many have already said, and I agree, it could not have ended any other way. As was said over and over in the series, Ka is a wheel.
I will say I cried during many parts of the last book, and at one point I was actually angry with Sai King for killing some of the characters in the story.. I got over it. I hope you will too.
And, please read the other threads that pertain to this.

[MwNNrules]

The ending redeemed the story for me. After what I considered to be a lame confrontation with The Crimson King, my interest was rejuvenated by the twist, which was, whether you enjoy it or not, one which works. It wouldn't have been a logical ending to have found the room at the top of The Dark Tower empty, for why would the center of everything be represented by nothing? I am willing to accept that there may be another ending (or endings) which would work, but I was left extremely satisfied by this one. I can't say how Arthur Eld's horn will help him, but I doubt his journey will be any harder than it was in its previous "incarnation".

[Deavlynn]

The ending redeemed the story for me. After what I considered to be a lame confrontation with The Crimson King

I have to agree with you. The ending was "right" in my mind. Maybe not what my heart was hoping for, but definitely honest. The battle with the Crimson King left me disappointed however. I felt like that was a cop out seeing how Roland doesn't even fight him.

It was still an amazing series though - the best I've read.

[coolambindang]

Rosekey has hit the essence of it perfectly(see above post). And indeed any ending would have left somebody feeling cheated, but at least he made you feel something, how many books have you read where you feel nothing? Anger is great feeling to have and you should respect the fact that King is such a powerful writer that he could make you made at all!

[poisonbat]

I must admit I was too disappointed in the ending, but all of you have given me such a new and wonderful way of looking at it. I now want to take the journey again. It makes sense to me now, looking back at it. Thank you to all who took their time to post here.:bat:

[kisun]

I must admit I was too disappointed in the ending, but all of you have given me such a new and wonderful way of looking at it. I now want to take the journey again. It makes sense to me now, looking back at it. Thank you to all who took their time to post here.:bat:

I felt the same way after finishing (wanting to go back and read again) but I lent them to my friend. GAR!!!!!!! :biggrin2:

[Mugwomp]

I don't see how indirect conflicts "conflict" with the endless-loop ending at all. Sounds like you were expecting something particular... The loop concept pretty much rocked my brain. I can't dream of a better ending for the life of me...

My only complaint about conflicts would be the lack of a Roland/Flagg showdown.

My only other complaints about the books would be: King writing himself in the books, and "Songs of Suzannah" could have used some chapters from the last book to beef it up or something. Seemed a little short...

[BlackThorn]

The story of Roland reminds me pretty damn badly of the story of The Christ. Not the storybook version, mind you, but just what he was, and what he stood for. Believe me, I'd like to see that cat turn around and go home too, or find a better battle than the one he's fighting. But that's just not his bag. He's one of the most important gears in the grand scheme of things, and it's because he doesn't have it in his power to give up.

Stephen King knew what he was talking about in this story, although I can understand why a casual reader would have a hard time with the ending.

[jgmagic95]

I just wrote like two pages worth of a replay, and then it just got deleted, out of nowhere. That sucks, and I'm not even gunna try again, delete this is you want, Ms. Mod, but that sucks, big-big.

Crappy feeling 'cause of this, thanks. No offence.


I didn't delete it--it just hadn't been posted yet. All messages are read before they are posted so it was just in the queue awaiting moderation.

[jgmagic95]

I've been very conflicted about the whole issue myself. I've been a fan of his most of my life as well (25 years now), and it's rarely ever been a problem for me. I don't know that there could have been a better resolution to the whole matter; I mean, what would his fans have expected, what could he have delivered that would have satisfied us all? I only know that there were so many hints at other paths, so many other clearings at the end of other paths that he pointed at. The allusions made in Insomnia, for example, or the tease he threw in with Black House that perhaps Jack could help the Ka-Tet in some way were completely deflated and turned out to be false hopes.

I think in a work this massive, that brooked this much time, threads of thought that he had at the beginning didn't appeal to him by the end, or they were forgotten. Coherence is difficult to maintain in even one continuous story, one volume, let alone a magnum opus that almost straddles a career as illustrious as SK's.

For me, the Dark Tower, book 7 is a true dark tower, a looming beast of a thing marking the end of my acquaintance with the Ka-Tet, and for that reason alone, I despise it - nevermind how I feel about the ending. I try to take comfort that Roland will again and again meet Eddie and Susannah and Jake and Oy, but it's cold comfort, at best.

After all, he's made the point before that hell is repetition, and a relentless killer like Roland deserves no heaven, but eternal damnation. Loving Roland for his faults as well as his virtues doesn't make that fact disappear. I only wish I could read the true ending, the resolution of the whole matter, because Gan does seem to give him relief by degrees from cycle to cycle. I only want to know in the end he'll be granted the mercy he cried for.

Ah! But you don't see! What you said and what I'm talking about is in the spoilers, but here it is. HE MIGHT NOT MEET THEM AGAIN! Now that Susannah and Eddie and Jake are together in one world, things may be different in another, and with Roland having the Horn of Eld, it could all change. He could in up dying, as bad as that may be. I loved the ending after thinking about it for awhile.

[BidDaddyJxn]

You must remember that even King reflects to himself at the end of the book that "The joy is in the journey, not the destination". Basically, you should have had a wonderful time getting to the end, but once your there, regardless of how it happens, it's still the end. Your memories are going to come from the Journey itself. Just keep that in mind. I have never thought that King was a great finisher, but I still love all of his books!

[kono]

I hated it at first, like many, but now I find it perfect.

This is how I see it:
Each time Roland encounters his quest he becomes more man than beast. The journey we read about was like reaching the top of a mountain. After all of his travails he finally reached the top and learned to love. Love is redemption. Getting to the top of a mountain is only half the battle though. The descent is after Roland has found redemption for his sins for the first time, and for his troubles to get to the top and how he learned to love he is rewarded with the Horn of Eld from Gan. The way down the mountain may be one more journey, or multiple, or many, but the one we encountered was the most significant because Roland encountered love and redemption for the first time.

I may be coming into this discussion a little late, so I don't know what all has been said, but I think this was the point from the beginning. King explains ka as a wheel where it goes around in a circle as it moves forward. We don't know if things happened exactly the same way at all. We don't even know if Roland will meet the same people in his journey each time. Because he has the horn this time we do know that there is a difference between the next journey and the one he just completed. Understanding the end of this series can take going through the series a second time just as it takes Roland more than once to complete the journey.

[PLx81]

I sympathize with you, I really do. I too hated the ending at first, but after further reflection, the ending came to mean something more to me, something very deep. I don't think I'd be overstating things if I were to say it came to mean something life-changing for me.

same here i was highly p!$$ed, but now i think it was the only way that story could have ended. plus not all things where the same at the end

[WykydR]

The ending was the only one that fit. It was perfect. To me, it was karma--Roland was doomed to continue his quest until he could learn the lessons of this life. I think the lesson was that he was always putting his relationships with those who loved him second to the single-minded pursuit of the Tower.

I thought there was hope in this ending because Roland had finally taken the time to retrieve the horn, which he had failed to do perhaps many times before. So, in my mind, this would be the final quest, and Roland would finally be able to rest both his tortured body and mind.

[jgmagic95]

Ah! But you don't see! What you said and what I'm talking about is in the spoilers, but here it is. HE MIGHT NOT MEET THEM AGAIN! Now that Susannah and Eddie and Jake are together in one world, things may be different in another, and with Roland having the Horn of Eld, it could all change. He could in up dying, as bad as that may be. I loved the ending after thinking about it for awhile.


No, Ms. Mod, I didn't get the chance to press the "Post" button, it got deleted before I could. That was just a small part of it that I decided to repost, still kind of peeved about the other post getting deleted.


Just taking a guess that it may be that you weren't logged in with the Remember Me option and it timed out before you finished the post, but the deleting wasn't done as part of moderation.

[RJK1981]

I personally thought it was a great ending, and like others, don't see any other way it could have that would be better. I bought this book hearing that a lot of people hated the ending, along with King's own warning, but I had to know.

I was extremely surprised, and I also felt emotion reading that final book in the series (which really is longer than just 7 books if you include everything else that ties in, which I think is great as well). One emotion I did not feel though was anger over the ending.

I remember finishing the book and when I read the last words I just sat there and said Wow. Didn't even close the book at first, just say there and absorbed the ending, loved the ending. I can understand why people would hate the ending, maybe feel cheated even, but I never had those negative feelings about it.

Like was said before, even if you hated the ending, if it made you mad, then ponder just how much well of a story it was, from beginning to end, if it puts those emotions in you in the first place. Hate is a form of love, after all, in a weird way. It's the opposite of Love obviously, but the emotions can be just as strong and very similar, and you don't feel those emotions for things you could care less about. Have you ever hated someone, or something only to realize eventually that you loved it or them? I personally have not, but I know those who have. Not sure if anyone else sees it that way

[jenifer]

I also just finished the Dark Tower books. It took me 3 weeks, and I am rereading it again. I was pretty sure by the end of book five how the book was going to end, and I was hoping, hoping, hoping, not. (Also, it seemed that it was always going to end that way-from book one) Anyhow, I actually loved the ending, because Roland was carrying the horn that he had not bothered to pick up the last time around. I like to think Roland eventually gets everything right, but what would happen when Roland reaches the tower then?

This book is not about the ending though, really. It is the most incredible journey ever! Best story ever written!!! I enjoyed each and every page. Thank you, Sai King! You gave me the best read ever!

[BlackThorn]

I swear, I can't look at this topic title without thinking of the 'In Living Color' skit, with the two gay guys... you know, 'Men on Books', or 'Men on Film'...

HATED IT!

But 'The Long Road Home' comics, with that young version of Roland... That gets two snaps up in a circle!

Men On Books skit... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmL5s3k9o9U)

[kisun]

I may be coming into this discussion a little late, so I don't know what all has been said, but I think this was the point from the beginning. King explains ka as a wheel where it goes around in a circle as it moves forward. We don't know if things happened exactly the same way at all. We don't even know if Roland will meet the same people in his journey each time. Because he has the horn this time we do know that there is a difference between the next journey and the one he just completed. Understanding the end of this series can take going through the series a second time just as it takes Roland more than once to complete the journey.

Why did you quote me? Were you trying to prove me wrong or agree with me, for the words in your post don't lean towards either.

[kono]

Why did you quote me? Were you trying to prove me wrong or agree with me, for the words in your post don't lean towards either.

Just trying to expand on it a little bit.

[Koschei]

I loved the ending, although it made me rather sad and contemplative. Love the theories posted above; nice to see my own thoughts in there.

[kisun]

Just trying to expand on it a little bit.

Gotcha :biggrin2:.

[amandacolene]

To be perfectly honest, I finished the 7th book on xmas eve 2006 and was so over the top pissed off that I threw the heavy book across the room and knocked the tree over. King kept saying to let Suze, Jake and Eddie in NY be my last memory, but could I stop reading? No.

I read it a second time and I think that the ending is profoundly meaningful. Anyway, sometimes its not whats we find at the end of our quest at all, its the getting there that is was really matters, and sometimes its the deciding that there are things more important than obsession.

[Blane]

I have to say for myself, I also was dissapointed with the ending. But then again, I was expecting it because King himself said I would be and I believed him. But like Roland being helpless to resist the call of the Tower, I myself was helpless to not want to know what happened. (I gave in to my siren's call much more quickly than Roland did)

I kind of believe that this is the best way to end the series, however. This is strickly my way of looking at the adventure that is the Dark Tower series. As King has said before, the readers are just as important as the writer is when it comes to storytelling. If there is no one to hear (or read) the story than what is the point of telling it. Also, every reader puts their own touches on the story, imagining some elements of it their own way. They take just as much creative control and the writers or tellers do. It becomes a co-creative process. That is one of the reasons I think that they will never do a Dark Tower series of movies (a la Lord of the Rings). It just takes the audience out of the co-pilot's seat and merely takes them along for the ride. This would defeat that whole process.

My way of seeing it (getting back to my point), is that just as Stephen King plays an integral role in the story, especially near the end, we the readers are a kind of a ghost member of the ka-tet. We go along for all of the adventures when Roland starts across the desert, we are drawn into his world through a doorway as well (although ours is much smaller and doesn't open on a hinge, but rather on a binding), and we feel everything that they do. We share all their experiences. I can honestly say that I felt some kind of Ka-Shume when I knew in Volume VI that the group was definately going to break. Who knows, maybe our role is that our belief and dedication to the story helps strengthen and restore the beams itself. If you really want to get into the story completely.

Eddie, Oy, Susannah, Jake, and even Patrick weren't allowed to go into the Tower with Roland. I think our membership in the ka-tet prohibits us from really knowing how the tale truly ends. It is Roland's quest to find out what is at the top of the tower and to do it alone. Not even we athe readers are allowed to go with him there, no matter how much we want to. And as King said, we should stop with that beautiful scene in Central Park, and maybe let each of us in our imaginations come up with what Roland finds when he climbs those stairs. But King knows us all too well, knowing we would never be content with such a mysterious ending after seven volumes. So he puts this ending on, that is not really an ending, but another beginning. And so, once again we are left to wonder and come up with how the ending finally plays out to ourselves. Our greatest gift as readers is our imagination. We have used it on every page in the tale, so why shouldn't that be the ultimate ending to his greatest work?

And regarding Roland again. He has caused enough Hell to deserve this fate. He can slowly work his way back, but it is up to him to change and to earn his redemption. I think we can see that in the tale, and know that he really does have a chance at finally ending his quest. As for myself and how I came to accept the ending? I just remembered that the joy is in the redaing, the journeying, and the sharing in the ka-tet. Like King said, then ending is just another way of saying good-bye.

[kisun]

I have to say for myself, I also was dissapointed with the ending. But then again, I was expecting it because King himself said I would be and I believed him. But like Roland being helpless to resist the call of the Tower, I myself was helpless to not want to know what happened. (I gave in to my siren's call much more quickly than Roland did)

I kind of believe that this is the best way to end the series, however. This is strickly my way of looking at the adventure that is the Dark Tower series. As King has said before, the readers are just as important as the writer is when it comes to storytelling. If there is no one to hear (or read) the story than what is the point of telling it. Also, every reader puts their own touches on the story, imagining some elements of it their own way. They take just as much creative control and the writers or tellers do. It becomes a co-creative process. That is one of the reasons I think that they will never do a Dark Tower series of movies (a la Lord of the Rings). It just takes the audience out of the co-pilot's seat and merely takes them along for the ride. This would defeat that whole process.

My way of seeing it (getting back to my point), is that just as Stephen King plays an integral role in the story, especially near the end, we the readers are a kind of a ghost member of the ka-tet. We go along for all of the adventures when Roland starts across the desert, we are drawn into his world through a doorway as well (although ours is much smaller and doesn't open on a hinge, but rather on a binding), and we feel everything that they do. We share all their experiences. I can honestly say that I felt some kind of Ka-Shume when I knew in Volume VI that the group was definately going to break. Who knows, maybe our role is that our belief and dedication to the story helps strengthen and restore the beams itself. If you really want to get into the story completely.

Eddie, Oy, Susannah, Jake, and even Patrick weren't allowed to go into the Tower with Roland. I think our membership in the ka-tet prohibits us from really knowing how the tale truly ends. It is Roland's quest to find out what is at the top of the tower and to do it alone. Not even we athe readers are allowed to go with him there, no matter how much we want to. And as King said, we should stop with that beautiful scene in Central Park, and maybe let each of us in our imaginations come up with what Roland finds when he climbs those stairs. But King knows us all too well, knowing we would never be content with such a mysterious ending after seven volumes. So he puts this ending on, that is not really an ending, but another beginning. And so, once again we are left to wonder and come up with how the ending finally plays out to ourselves. Our greatest gift as readers is our imagination. We have used it on every page in the tale, so why shouldn't that be the ultimate ending to his greatest work?

And regarding Roland again. He has caused enough Hell to deserve this fate. He can slowly work his way back, but it is up to him to change and to earn his redemption. I think we can see that in the tale, and know that he really does have a chance at finally ending his quest. As for myself and how I came to accept the ending? I just remembered that the joy is in the redaing, the journeying, and the sharing in the ka-tet. Like King said, then ending is just another way of saying good-bye.

Excellent post Blane :smile2:!

[Cowboy]

At first, I was not fond of the ending but when you think of it, how else could it have ended??? I think it was a great ending.

[amandacolene]

Blane's post gave me actual chills (geek, I totally know). It was exactly right, imo anyway.

[HorrorHero]

Did he not also put a little comment in there about closing the book and letting it end? Maybe his own quest for the Tower isn't over yet and that is why he could not put a pretty little bow on it for the rest of us?

[staropeace]

I wasnt too happy with it....although I still love Roland's world...:biggrin2:

I found the ending to be sorta lazy....almost like using a deux machina thingy to save characters for a hopeless situation.....almost like saying at the end of a novel or tv show.....it was all a bad dream ....a sorta cop out...
I didnt like Stephen putting himself in the story either....I didnt think this worked very well....I couldnt suspend my disbelief for long periods of time...the versmillitude suffered..

[Matticus]

Roland's world was basically SK--I can see him dying having a HUGE affect on it so it seemed appropriate that they would need to save him for the "world" to continue.

Ka is a wheel so the ending fit to a tee imo.

[abominae1]

I think there is no ending to the Dark Tower series that would've made us all happy. I didn't hate the ending , I found that as time has gone by I like the ending more than I did when I first read it. I'm not sure why that is , there is just something about it that just fits the story.

[Goodlovin]

I wasnt too happy with it....although I still love Roland's world...:biggrin2:

I found the ending to be sorta lazy....almost like using a deux machina thingy to save characters for a hopeless situation.....almost like saying at the end of a novel or tv show.....it was all a bad dream ....a sorta cop out...
I didnt like Stephen putting himself in the story either....I didnt think this worked very well....I couldnt suspend my disbelief for long periods of time...the versmillitude suffered..


You said everything I would have liked to say about the final book.

I haven't attempted to reread the whole thing in order though so maybe that will change on the final book though I doubt it.


It will be fun revisiting the rest of the books which I loved.

[nsharonew]

Hated it? No, not now and not ever. In fact, it brought be such joy that I read the whole thing again, along with some other of King's works, and enjoyed it profoundly and without reservation.

It had to end. He could have just not written any ending, and then you would be unhappy too, or, he could have given it a happier ending, and that would have upset others in the same regard. It had to end. I was very sad when it ended, still own all the books, and still cry at the end.

If you were married for 23 years, and the marriage finally ended in divorce, you would be distraught, and you would want for more, perhaps, or perhaps you wouldn't, but, after 23 years, if the marriage ended, that was the only thing that could have happened, no?

Stephen King started something he never intended on finishing, and it was an Event, yes, with a capital E. It was so powerful, even with a weak and confusing story line to complete it, that he was compelled, no, obligated, to complete the task. I would say the part of the story I liked LEAST was the beginning, and it was so good, I have read it again and again, always finding a new thing to latch to, and to smile about.

I personally commend Mr. King for his effort in finishing this massive committment, and thank him for the immense joy it brought me and still brings me. After I finished the series, I didn't pick up a book for an entire year, and the next one I did pick up was about Roland, Sussanah, Jake, Eddie, Oy and all the others.

Let's face it, it was a fine story, better than fine, and no matter how it ended, it had to end. I loved the ending. I loved the story. And, I am getting ready to read more of his work right now!

[staropeace]

I am not sorry to have been given the opportunity of reading this wonderful saga.The man has the patience of Job to write a story for so long.....OUCH. Thing is,though,the last book sorta hurt me. I just wish he had spared us a little bit,especially with Oy's fate. I dont know if he realized just what these characters meant to us. This isnt like just reading a novel and feeling an empathy for the characters. This story spanned a good many years in our lives....and I think that is why we could be affected so strongly.

Now that I have whined a bit,I want to say this........nobody has this kind of power to move with the written word that Stephen King has. He is the Master.

[Luli]

Today I finished the last DT book. I sat for about five minutes just staring at nothing and thinking what the hell just happened? It will take me some time to figure out how I feel about the ending, but I don't hate it, that much I know. I'm sad that Roland has to do it all over again and that he's alone once more. But the ending also gives me hope that it might be different this time around because now he has the horn and because (as he said himself) he learned to love again and doesn't regret it.

What a journey! YAY now I can finally check out the DT threads!:smile2:

[JohnDalglish]

Today I finished the last DT book. I sat for about five minutes just staring at nothing and thinking what the hell just happened? It will take me some time to figure out how I feel about the ending, but I don't hate it, that much I know. I'm sad that Roland has to do it all over again and that he's alone once more. But the ending also gives me hope that it might be different this time around because now he has the horn and because (as he said himself) he learned to love again and doesn't regret it.

What a journey! YAY now I can finally check out the DT threads!:smile2:

Hi,

It was Dark Tower that drove me to finding the SKMB in the first place, Luli.

After almost thirty years reading it the first time, I took a hysterical laughing fit on finishing DT7 (not because it was funny, obviously and my son thought there was something wrong with me. I immediately decided to read it all again, stocked up on convenience food etc and read it all in twenty days, only stopping to eat and, well, you know.

And then I just had to discuss it with someone, and eventually I found the MB.

I can honestly say that there is no book ever written, including the Bible, Koran and Torah etc., ever affected me so much.

And much for the better IMO.

The realisation that it's all about the journey, and not the destination, changed my outlook on life considerably for the better IMO and, as you said, 'There will be water if God wills it'. And some expressions, like 'thankee' have become part of my normal speech patterns (to the consternation of strangers sometimes LOL).

To say nothing of the concept of Ka.

And one thing you have to look forward to, Luli, is that it only improves on subsequent re-reads and at the moment, reading along with Pat and Kim, I'm halfway through W&G on my 4th (although I've actually read W&G itself far more than that, as with Waste Lands, as I waited the years in between)

Looking forward to your posts in the DT threads with interest.

Long days and pleasant nights (see what I mean?)

[whoopsipoppedaplatypus]

When i first finished and read the wordsThe man in black fled across the desert I must admit, i was a bit dissapointed and maybe even felt a little cheated, but upon reflection the more i liked it, and having read other peoples thoughts on it, i personally couldn't think of a better ending. Like John said, It's the journey, not the destination.

Its definately on my list of things to read again very soon and i'm really looking forward to it as many people have said it's better 2nd time round although i admit i think i'll probably skip the gunslinger and go straight onto the drawing of the 3.

Unfortunately i have another 3 or 4 other books that come first in line.

[Luli]

Hi,

It was Dark Tower that drove me to finding the SKMB in the first place, Luli.

After almost thirty years reading it the first time, I took a hysterical laughing fit on finishing DT7 (not because it was funny, obviously and my son thought there was something wrong with me. I immediately decided to read it all again, stocked up on convenience food etc and read it all in twenty days, only stopping to eat and, well, you know.

And then I just had to discuss it with someone, and eventually I found the MB.

I can honestly say that there is no book ever written, including the Bible, Koran and Torah etc., ever affected me so much.

And much for the better IMO.

The realisation that it's all about the journey, and not the destination, changed my outlook on life considerably for the better IMO and, as you said, 'There will be water if God wills it'. And some expressions, like 'thankee' have become part of my normal speech patterns (to the consternation of strangers sometimes LOL).

To say nothing of the concept of Ka.

And one thing you have to look forward to, Luli, is that it only improves on subsequent re-reads and at the moment, reading along with Pat and Kim, I'm halfway through W&G on my 4th (although I've actually read W&G itself far more than that, as with Waste Lands, as I waited the years in between)

Looking forward to your posts in the DT threads with interest.

Long days and pleasant nights (see what I mean?)

Isn't it awesome how we're all united by SK's work. When I signed up to the board I never heard of DT before, but I saw how much appreciation there is for this series. I just had to find out what it is all about. Now that I have read the DT books I can also share and understand why it's very much loved. It's a shame that Sai King himself says that many fans don't know about it or have never read it.

I can't wait to re-read the books, but I need to take a small break. I have put so much time and energy (not to forget a rollercoaster of emotions) into reading them one after the other that I feel drained.

It's a shame I can't access the DT threads on the old sk message boards anymore. But there's plenty to read on the new board!:love:

[rockfarmer70]

Y'know, I was pretty disappointed too. At first. But it's like the neverending story. Roland and his tribe go on, and on, and on...

[Vegetable in Glasses]

I loved it. I actually hugged the book to my chest and sobbed. My husband, who was pretty worried about how I would react after he saw me melt-down at the end of Insomnia, came in very quietly and asked how it was. I told him, "Perfect. Surprising, but perfect." He said, "Thank God. I didn't want to have to drive that far just to yell at someone. But, if it was perfect, why are you crying?"
Now how could I explain that to someone who has never read the books, I ask you? The part that surprised me was the optimism. Eddie and the gang got to be together in a place that seemed to make them happy, with their memories intact. Once I accepted the repeating nature of the thing, my next thought was that if I had been gifted enough to write it, there would never have been a horn. Never. And so it made me like Sai King even more.

[goosemanzep]

in my opinion it was the perfect ending to the entire series leaving you guessing and i cant really imagine it ending any other way

[Sweet One]

It's my opinion that Stephen King has cheated his fans.

I am not often one to praise King for his (generally downbeat) endings, but King does not cheat his fans. Why? Because he doesn't write for his fans and never has. He writes for himself, and from the viewpoint of an artist. He writes endings in whatever way he feels "work" best for the story he's writing. King has said he works are "The equivolent of Big Mac and fries." But like some of his other comments, I don't take that seriously. He does not write for profit or mass comsumption.

About the DT7 ending, my opinion is that, as I've said before, it was rushed, and this was the best he could come up with. I alos thought the duel with the crimson King and the time loop thing were letdowns. But KIng said he wanted to get the whole DT series finished following his accident. He roiginally had planned to go on writing them several years apart. So what can you expect , his writing one of the greatest fantasy epics ever, on such short notice, even from King?

So I don't really think this was the "real" ending at all. THe real climax to Roland's saga will end, as many others have pointed, next time around, after he has picked up the horn of Eld. The quesion, though, is whether sai King will ever write it. I remember reading something King wrote very early in the saga, maybe the first book, saying that Roland would come to the tower "wending the Horn of Eld, to fight some unimaginable battle." If that battle proves unimaginable LITERALLY, then even sai King will never write it. But if he DOES happen to decide how it ends, then he will surely write it, as he should.

[Sweet One]

One other thing--lots of fans had problems with the ending to Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. This was becasue the hero and heroine, Will and Lyra, are forced to return to their separate worlds, even after they'd discovered their love for one another. And since there is no afterlife in Pullman's universe (Pullman is strict atheist), they must remain eternally apart. That really sucks for Will and Lyra! Pullman said he's tried reworking the ending to keep them togather, but this was the only ending that "worked." And that might be true, at least in Pullman's view.

But I believe that with the DT ending, inspite of what King said about it being the "right" end, it was merely the best he could come up with.

[Samuel71]

It kind of makes your gut feel a little sick, doesn't it? I thought it was a suitable ending, though. The whole final book was amazing.

[Luli]

I read an interview at which Sai King was present and he answered a question about the ending of the DT series. He said we have to think about evolution as a theme for this series, you don't always get what you want immediately. Sometimes you have to try more than once before you reach your goal.

The prophecy says that Roland is the last champion of the Dark Tower and that he'll rule forever, so we know it's going to happen, we just don't know when.

I believe that after you take the time to think about the ending and when you get more information about it, you can truly understand why it had to be that way. I now believe the ending is perfect!

[JohnDalglish]

But I believe that with the DT ending, inspite of what King said about it being the "right" end, it was merely the best he could come up with.

Hi,

'Merely'?

Long days and pleasant nights

[psj77]

I loved it. It has to do with what a lot of people have already said. It's the journey not the end, but I'll explain why. King said book 7 was the last, but I don't believe that. I believe It was just the end of the beginning. Things changed for Roland this time. He now has the horn. Eddie, Susannah & Jake are all together now. Things will be different. It wasn't a bad ending it was a great beginning.

[JohnDalglish]

Hi,

Personally I believe that the Dark Tower cycle should properly be considered as 8 books instead of 7, with The Gunslinger being volume 1 and The Gunslinger Revised being volume 8.

Long days and pleasant nights

[MrsSmeej]

Hi,

'Merely'?

Long days and pleasant nights

AWJDS

:eek2: I didn't think you guys were serious about hating the ending. I figured this for one of those joke threads. You really hated it? Really? :eek2:

I thought it was brilliant... Absolutely brilliant. It elevated the series from a really great story to an epic masterpiece. Sai King told us all along that ka was a wheel. How can we blame him for writing it that way?

And what's this about a revised version of The Gunslinger? I'm still reading my old, beat up copy. Are we talking major revisions here? :oh:

[kisun]

Hi,

'Merely'?

Long days and pleasant nights

Different folks-different strokes, John. We just have to deal with the damn things called "opinions". :biggrin2:.

[devious1]

i truly think anyone who was surprised or disappointed with the ending of the series should re-read the books with the ending in mind, and i think you'll find that the ending was quite obvious, and that it is the right ending, the only ending there could have been. you will be enlightened upon an encore reading.

[Sweet One]

Personally I believe that the Dark Tower cycle should properly be considered as 8 books instead of 7, with The Gunslinger being volume 1 and The Gunslinger Revised being volume 8

There'd be more than that if you count The Long Road Home and Treachery.

[kisun]

There'd be more than that if you count The Long Road Home and Treachery.

No, you mistook him for saying The Gunslinger Born, when he said The Gunslinger Revised. There are two versions of the Gunslinger; the original, which has a few continuity errors and the Revised, which is fixed of these and has about 30 more pages to it.

[Drawn to Ka-tet]

i truly think anyone who was surprised or disappointed with the ending of the series should re-read the books with the ending in mind, and i think you'll find that the ending was quite obvious, and that it is the right ending, the only ending there could have been. you will be enlightened upon an encore reading.

You, dear devious 1, have hit the NAIL ON THE HEAD!
IMHO
Long days and pleasant nights, Sai.

[mal]

This life as you now live it and have lived it, you will have to live once more and innumerable times more; and there will be nothing new in it, but every pain and every joy and every thought and sigh and everything immeasurably small or great in your life must return to you-all in the same succession and sequence-even this spider and this moonlight between the trees, and even this moment and I myself. The eternal hourglass of existence is turned over and over, and you with it, a grain of dust.


-Nietzsche

[Mistressoftheundead]

All things serve the beam that def sums it up. That beam is screwy you can wind up were you began. But it def was not the same point because he had a horn with him there that he did not have before. What exactly does that horn of eld do? King should make another book just to tell us where he ends up going. And what he does with that horn.:bat:

[PocketForest]

I loved it and I was so.. proud of Roland. I don't really know why. He is changing and I am sure one day he will get out of the loop.

[MellowLedbetter]

Even though Sai King said that its about the journey its kinda hard to entirely believe that when the book has actually been named after the ending and the climax. Its not called "The Journey To The Dark Tower" its Called the Dark Tower.

I myself had to let the ending sink in for a bit. Im happier with it now, but i think it deserves a re-read very soon.

[eluria]

I thought the ending to the Dark Tower was fantastic. I read each one, one after the other and have read the majority of Stephen King's work. Whilst reading the books he makes reference to Ka being a wheel etc and the ending fitted this perfectly. There could have been no other acceptable way of ending it other than the way he did. I just hope Roland has more luck next time! :smile2:

[JohnDalglish]

I thought the ending to the Dark Tower was fantastic. I read each one, one after the other and have read the majority of Stephen King's work. Whilst reading the books he makes reference to Ka being a wheel etc and the ending fitted this perfectly. There could have been no other acceptable way of ending it other than the way he did. I just hope Roland has more luck next time! :smile2:

Hi,

Welcome to the MB, and keep posting!

Totally agree.

Long days and pleasant nights

[Lencho_of_the_Apes]

Well, I didn't hate the ending, but there's a bunch of things about DT 7 that I was less than thrilled with. Been thinking about it for a week or two without posting anything, so ... here goes.

Needless to say, it's an enormous piece of work, scope & magnitude, breadth, that I can't think of anything to compare it to, so finding flaws in it leaves me feeling like a nitpicking nitpicker... but even so, I feel like Vol. 7 was written in a hurry, as though Sai King just wanted to get the damn thing OVER with so he could start on Jack Sawyer Part Three.

1) The Dandelo episode seemed kinda anti-climactic after all the build-up and foreshadowing he gave it.

2) The final battle with the Crimson King also was disappointing -- how did it happen that a major player like the C.K. , one of the most powerful evil figures in King's universe, someone whose deeds and influences have pervaded so many of Sai King's books... how could His Crimson Majesty be reduced to a helpless old shmuck trapped alone on a balcony? (Someone in the list suggested there was an answer to that in Insomnia; if so, I'll find it soon enough.) The C.K. episode reminded me very strongly of an L Frank Baum book/character, the Gnome King from Dorothy And The Wizard In Oz -- I wonder if I'm imagining it, and I wonder if it was conscious/subconscious on S.K.s part. Gnome King was a blustering old so-and-so who put up a big front but wasn't really dangerous, and his biggest fear was that his enemies would throw eggs at him. I think he even screamed the same way C.K. did... but I haven't been able to find a copy of the book to confirm that.

3) "Or... do we love each other already?" Forgive me, but after having my sentiments kicked and beaten for a couple of hundred pages, that one line of dialogue seemed really false and unconvincing. Too baldly manipulative, more careful writing could have smoothed it over and made it moe moving & believable (says me) ...

4) Unfortunately, I read Duma Key before I read D T 7 , and seeing that Patrick D had the same supernatural ability as Edgar was annoying, like seeing somebody use the same material twice. DT7 was written before DK, so it's really a problem I have with Duma, but... you know...

5) I think I'm forgetting one. Maybe I wished [spoiler] Randall Flagg had died more dramatically?

6) One big huge major plot thread that was left dangling. WHAT HAPPENED TO BANGO SKANK? Not knowing the answer to that question really leaves me feeling un-closured, incomplete somehow. Maybe the answer will turn up somewhere further along the road, in a book yet to be written.

I guess this'll spark up a lot more discussion, look forward to seeing what the adepts have to say...

Blaine's a pain and I'm the same --

Lencho

[belynne333]

How else could the story have ended? Although I didn't see it coming, I don't think I could have accepted any other ending. Somewhere SK (or one of his many characters) says something to the effect of "hell has to do with repetition." Ka is a wheel. It had to return to where the story began. The fact that when he begins again this time he still has the horn shows that there still is hope, the small changes made today can still make a difference.

Besides, I can't think of any other ending that wouldn't have been a let down. At least this way, the story will go on. . .

[JohnDalglish]

How else could the story have ended? Although I didn't see it coming, I don't think I could have accepted any other ending. Somewhere SK (or one of his many characters) says something to the effect of "hell has to do with repetition." Ka is a wheel. It had to return to where the story began. The fact that when he begins again this time he still has the horn shows that there still is hope, the small changes made today can still make a difference.

Besides, I can't think of any other ending that wouldn't have been a let down. At least this way, the story will go on. . .

Hi,

Welcome to the MB, and keep posting!

I agree.

Long days and pleasant nights

[belynne333]

Hi,

Personally I believe that the Dark Tower cycle should properly be considered as 8 books instead of 7, with The Gunslinger being volume 1 and The Gunslinger Revised being volume 8.

Long days and pleasant nights
Great thinking... I knew something did not feel right about the gunslinger rewrite. Putting it as the first in the series left a bad taste in my mouth, it cheated, it got too big for its britches...(hope that makes some kind of sense!) But as an 8th book it's perfect

[Roland Of Gilead 420]

I think the series was masterful, and the ending was great. If you think you could write it better, maybe you should pick up the pen and show sai King what you're made of may it do ya fine.

[GravemakersAndGunslingers]

Some interesting points Lencho; He's my take on them.


1) The Dandelo episode seemed kinda anti-climactic after all the build-up and foreshadowing he gave it.
I didn't have a problem with the 'Dandelo episode' I think it was just another unique obstacle for Roland to get through.


2) The final battle with the Crimson King also was disappointing -- how did it happen that a major player like the C.K. , one of the most powerful evil figures in King's universe, someone whose deeds and influences have pervaded so many of Sai King's books... how could His Crimson Majesty be reduced to a helpless old shmuck trapped alone on a balcony?
A lot of people say they found this part disapointing, but for me I would say that we all knew C.K was trapped on a balcony at that point. The thing is, in my view, the confontation with C.K wasn't the climax of the book or even the final hurdle - it was the tower. The tower served as the climax and in it's own way as the final hurdle/antagonist.


3) "Or... do we love each other already?" Forgive me, but after having my sentiments kicked and beaten for a couple of hundred pages, that one line of dialogue seemed really false and unconvincing. Too baldly manipulative, more careful writing could have smoothed it over and made it moe moving & believable (says me) ...
It was seemless enough to me.


4) Unfortunately, I read Duma Key before I read D T 7 , and seeing that [spoiler] Patrick D had the same supernatural ability as Edgar was annoying, like seeing somebody use the same material twice. DT7 was written before DK, so it's really a problem I have with Duma, but... you know...
I haven't read Duma Key yet but I was under the impression that edgar painted the future - whereas Patrick created things and made things disapear - but I'm sure someone can set me right on this point.


5) I think I'm forgetting one. Maybe I wished Randall Flagg had died more dramatically?
I thought he had! Whether you think it dramatic or not it was a pretty f****d up way to die! A lot of people thought he would die at the hands of Roland and maybe that would have been better for some.


6) One big huge major plot thread that was left dangling. WHAT HAPPENED TO BANGO SKANK? Not knowing the answer to that question really leaves me feeling un-closured, incomplete somehow. Maybe the answer will turn up somewhere further along the road, in a book yet to be written.
Bango Skank was a Peter Straub creation and therefore I think it's more like a shout out - it wasn't important to the plot in any way.

The thing I loved about the Dark Tower (and most of sai King's books) is that you never knew what you were going to get. He has said himself that even he doesn't know exactly where his books are going to go and going to end - they kind of take on a life of there own. It gives the writing a far more unique feel to it than it you were to read a book that has been mapped out and plotted every step of the way - that can be formulaic and predictable. The Dark Tower is a cycle - maybe it turned out the way you or I think it should have in a previous cycle - we can a least think that!

[Lencho_of_the_Apes]

Oh, Bango Skank was from Straub? Cool, I didn't know that -- which book? I'll go and pick up a copy. I haven't read many of the recent Straubs. (Complaint #6 was a joke, by the way...)

Blaine's a pain & I'm the same --

L.

[Daghain]

I personally loved the ending. Of course, I was speechless for a good long time, but after considering it...yeah, it was BRILLIANT.

I too would have like to seea better death for Walter - that seemed too easy and the whole thing with Dandelo was hasty IMHO but if you'd been hit by a van and been so vividly reminded of your own mortality you too might have been in a bit of a hurry to finish your life's work. So, a bit disappointing, but not fatal, IMHO.

But the ending...yeah, I really thought that was inspired. It makes perfect sense to me. :)

[GravemakersAndGunslingers]

Oh, Bango Skank was from Straub? Cool, I didn't know that -- which book? I'll go and pick up a copy. I haven't read many of the recent Straubs.

I think Bango Skank first appeared in a short story collection of Straub's, don't know what its called.

[RonGee]

Like Lencho, I liked the ending, hated everything before. The whole book had a rushed feel to it, like "how fast can I finish writing this thing and wrap up the whole darned mess so I can go on to something else."

[phidgt]

I remember being a bit stunned about the ending and not being able to really understand what I was feeling. I was also in such a hurry to get to the ending that I simply didn't properly digest the last book. Luckily for me the winters are long here, so I plan on taking my time and doing a complete re-do with the entire series.

[1milvies]

What ending?

It felt like he didn't know how to finish it, so he didn't.

I read the series years ago. All I remember is that the ending was a disappointment.

(For someone who mentioned Pullman's Dark Matter series--that one actually had an ending. Painful, heart-wrenching, but an ending, a resolution. The DT keeps on going).

[PhillyBat]

See Post #5 by GravesmakersandGunslingers. Please. Read the spoiler, especially. I'm new to posting here, so I'm not sure how to do that yet. But what that said reflects my feelings.

I thought it ended perfectly. The only way it could end at this time. I don't think King cheated us at all. To have had it end happily now would have been the cheat, IMHO. I remember reading in a non fiction book, or maybe it was an interview? King said something about not writing to please the reader, but writing to please himself. I think he was giving advice to hopeful authors. And something about 'being true to the story'. In this series, he was true to the story.

[Terry B]

The ending was the only one that fit. It was perfect. To me, it was karma--Roland was doomed to continue his quest until he could learn the lessons of this life. I think the lesson was that he was always putting his relationships with those who loved him second to the single-minded pursuit of the Tower.

I thought there was hope in this ending because Roland had finally taken the time to retrieve the horn, which he had failed to do perhaps many times before. So, in my mind, this would be the final quest, and Roland would finally be able to rest both his tortured body and mind.

Exactly! I finally finished the series just today. I wasn't mad about it at all. I thought it was brilliant. The entire last book made me cry a lot since I tend to get so wrapped up in the characters.. After suffering through the last couple of hundred pages I put the book away with a smile on my face. Classic King! I wouldn't have it any other way.

[Sweet One]

What ending?

It felt like he didn't know how to finish it, so he didn't.

I read the series years ago. All I remember is that the ending was a disappointment.

(For someone who mentioned Pullman's Dark Matter series--that one actually had an ending. Painful, heart-wrenching, but an ending, a resolution. The DT keeps on going).


I mentioned it. And I agree completely.

[ghengis Khat]

Personally I believe that after having followed King and his characters through so many worlds in so many books its unfair not to end the story! I don't think it comes down to giving the readers a choice, because that's a cop-out if there ever was one. I feel cheated in book 7 because i didn't follow the story to see what almost happened this time, just to find out he's going to get it right next time. Roland reaches back to his belt and has the horn, which means hes heading to finish the job for good....thats the story that I want to hear, i have not interest in the infinite times he almost gets there and has to suffer over and over again. You cant create a pandoras box and end it all in a paradox...not to mention the paradoxes in the character actual fates vs. the fates described by the author. For example, susanah and eddie may not have lived oh so happy, they had their ups and downs etc etc... but it wasn't eddie her fate brought her too...IT WAS HIS TWINNER! Shimi saw the future of the bumbler romping with the old man...not super deadified no matter how it happened. The other paradox is that if roland and time itself are stuck in a loop....King's entire world tied to the tower resets with roland every time because as long as the last beam stands and existence is still around time will never move foreward in ANY world because the man who can keep time moving foreward by ending the journy is STUCK IN A TEMPORAL LOOP, like a record skipping for eternity. The story MUST end for the sake of King's entire universe.

[JohnDalglish]

What ending?

It felt like he didn't know how to finish it, so he didn't.

I read the series years ago. All I remember is that the ending was a disappointment.

(For someone who mentioned Pullman's Dark Matter series--that one actually had an ending. Painful, heart-wrenching, but an ending, a resolution. The DT keeps on going).

Hi,

Welcome to the MB, and keep posting!

But I totally disagree with you about DT; try re-reading it.

Long days and pleasant nights

[candybait]

He let himself become obsessed with the tower and nothing else was important. So I agree, the ending is fitting- go back and do it all again until he learns the real lessons of life.

[JohnDalglish]

The story MUST end for the sake of King's entire universe.

Hi,

Why?

Welcome to the MB, and keep posting!

Long days and pleasant nights

[JRLauer]

Honestly, and I'm not kidding, I read the entire series, but never read the ending.

I read the last part about what happens to Susannah and got to the part where Roland enters the Tower. At that moment, my wife came home and wanted help with the groceries. So I put down the book and as I was putting away the groceries I thought to myself that the book had a good ending where I left it. And I even thought that what happens to Roland is most certainly not good.

So after I was done with the groceries, I picked the book up again, and read the first paragraph in the last chapter where Mr. King warns us that we may not want to know what happens to Roland. I instantly snapped the book shut, put it on my shelf and I have not picked it up since. This was over three years ago.

I didn't even read any comments in this forum for fear I would find out what happened. I guess I was one of the few who took Mr. King's advice.

[Sweet One]

I didn't even read any comments in this forum for fear I would find out what happened. I guess I was one of the few who took Mr. King's advice.


Don't worry. you didn't miss much. My problem with the ending was not so much that it was downbeat, then it wasn't really anything at all. So in way it's true: this is like opening a package to find out it's essentially empty. But like I said, this is NOT the ending King didn't write, where Roland is possession of Eld's horn.

[scotttyx]

I personally didnt care for the ending either, at least at first. maybe it was simply because it was actually the end of a very long road. but it did finally sink in and i have accepted it. After all this is all playing out again, now, and things can still go wrong, mistakes might happen this time around. I think I would have been more dissapointed with " with the tower fixed they lived happily ever after".

[mogget3]

I was relieved when I read the end,because it didn't!! All the while I was crying my eyes out because it would be the end,and then it wasn't!

Is this too spoilery?

[JohnDalglish]

I was relieved when I read the end,because it didn't!! All the while I was crying my eyes out because it would be the end,and then it wasn't!

Is this too spoilery?

Hi,

Frankly, I think if anyone unspoiled opens this thread they deserve all they get LOL

Long days and pleasant nights

[Countrygirl_sass]

I was completely entranced by this story when I first picked it up and read through the series in a months time. Well minus Song of Susannah which I couldn't locate and had to wait a weak for it to arrive at my library from her sister library across the parish. So I went ahead and read the last book, I just had to. It was in my house and I was going to read it or bust.


I think the author didn't want it to end, and in a way Roland didn't want his quest to end either. Thats all he new, searching for the Dark Tower. So it is what it is. Was I dissapointed, well let down is more like it? At first yes, and then it dawned on me that there could be no other ending for Roland the last Gunslinger or Stephen King.

Everything in between makes up for any lingering feelings of wanting a more......common ending. I loved the story and even the end. I guess if we were to all have a chance at a climbing to the top of the dark tower we'd all find something different anyway.

[The Uncool]

I wasn't a big fan of the ending either when I first read it, but it has grown on me with the second reading.

[Wylde06]

I actually thought the ending fit perfectly.

All Roland was about was finding the Dark Tower, no matter the consequences, and I feel the Tower knew this. I see it as the Tower is making him relive what he had to go through as a way to try to get Roland to change his ways from the beginning.

[Black Flagg]

I was shocked by the ending, but I loved it.
I also absolutely love the implication that Roland is forever journeying though the multiverse serving as time & reality's protector in his quest to reach & preserve the tower.

[Drawn to Ka-tet]

Ka is a Wheel.
Don't forget it!

Long days and pleasant nights.

[jamesabsolum]

As of October 02/08 I will now envy those who have yet to read the words "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed".

The journey for me was better then I could have ever hoped for. As for the last page (can it really be called "The End?") I am glad to see that Stephen left a positive message (although proberly unintended) behind.

This is what I took from it.

Not all good things, come to an end. Cheesy but true.

If you were disappointed in this versions ending, fret not, there are other worlds then these :grinning:

[the minor prophet]

Sorry if this has been talked about already...I'm new to the message board, and didn't want to read ALL 12 pages of this thread. lol.

I didn't have a problem with the ending of the story, as much as I thought much of the last 2 books felt [I]rushed[I] to me, like you could tell he just wanted to finish the books. I'm not saying they were bad, but they didn't have the same pacing as the others, and the events came too fast and hard for how it seemed like they should. Anyone else have a similar feeling? Or am I just crazy? Maybe I'm just crazy.

[Moderator]

Unlike the first four books which were written over a period of many years, Steve wrote the final 3 books all at the same time but they were by no means rushed.

[vivazebool]

Sorry if this has been talked about already...I'm new to the message board, and didn't want to read ALL 12 pages of this thread. lol.

I didn't have a problem with the ending of the story, as much as I thought much of the last 2 books felt [I]rushed[I] to me, like you could tell he just wanted to finish the books. I'm not saying they were bad, but they didn't have the same pacing as the others, and the events came too fast and hard for how it seemed like they should. Anyone else have a similar feeling? Or am I just crazy? Maybe I'm just crazy.

I think of the Dark Tower series as one long novel. The pace slows down around the middle (Wizard and Glass) then picks up at the end (SoS, DT7). We are getting close to the climax so the last couple of books were written faster paced it seems. I liked it that way. SK's slow-pace-big-build style is great, but in a 7 book series, it could wear the reader down. I'm glad he picked up the speed towards the end.

[JohnDalglish]

I think of the Dark Tower series as one long novel. The pace slows down around the middle (Wizard and Glass) then picks up at the end (SoS, DT7). We are getting close to the climax so the last couple of books were written faster paced it seems. I liked it that way. SK's slow-pace-big-build style is great, but in a 7 book series, it could wear the reader down. I'm glad he picked up the speed towards the end.

Hi,

AWVS, I agree completely, and it still left me breathless after the fourth time.

Long days and pleasant nights

[bookworm101]

I was shocked and saddened at the ending, but then understood Ka is a wheel never ending. Let it sink in and you might come to understand.

[roland.19]

Im sure someone has already mentioned this, but I couldnt read 12 pages of response, so I figured I would add my thoughts at the end.

Whoever made this post: Did you not read the poem at the end by Robert Browning that the story was mostly based on? The point of the poem is that it takes place the next cycle around, and this time Roland takes the horn from the battle of Jericho Hill.

This is obvious that there is a change made in his cycle. By grabbing the horn, he has set off a change in his mindset. Not to mention that every time he repeats the cycle he remembers a bit about the last time. The next time around, he will realize that he is not destined to see everything that he loves perish.

In the cycle before that of the one we read, I am almost positive that he had let Susannah die, which was a change he had made. I think that over the time of repetition, he keeps fixing these mistakes, and gets closer to the true tower each time.

In addition, as with most of his books, and about life in general, it is not about the end. It is about the journey that we take to reach it. The things we do, the people we meet, the effect we have on our world. That is what is important about The Dark Tower.

[all dead rock band]

Sorry if this has been talked about already...I'm new to the message board, and didn't want to read ALL 12 pages of this thread. lol.


Ditto on that.

I pretty much loved the whole Dark Tower conclusion thing, happy endings just don't seem to be SK's style. What I personally found distasteful was Flagg's ending. This legendary character woven through so much of the King universe, the greatest of antagonists, THE dark man ffs, taken out by a brat. Yeah a powerful brat I know, but still... sigh.

[the minor prophet]

I think of the Dark Tower series as one long novel. The pace slows down around the middle (Wizard and Glass) then picks up at the end (SoS, DT7). We are getting close to the climax so the last couple of books were written faster paced it seems. I liked it that way. SK's slow-pace-big-build style is great, but in a 7 book series, it could wear the reader down. I'm glad he picked up the speed towards the end.

I guess I didn't think of it that way, but it seemed in the final book to be too much going on too quickly, for me. Maybe it will change when I read them again, which I'd like to do sometime soon.

I guess for all the other things I've read from S.K., the last two felt like a final exhalation of breath that he needed to get out of his head--like he just HAD to get them out quickly because he wanted to see the story come to it's logical "conclusion"...I guess I just wasn't a fan of that. I would have liked a slower pace with 1 more book, at least, to keep the feel of the whole thing going. But again, when I read it another time, maybe I'll change my mind.

[kisun]

Ditto on that.

I pretty much loved the whole Dark Tower conclusion thing, happy endings just don't seem to be SK's style. What I personally found distasteful was Flagg's ending. This legendary character woven through so much of the King universe, the greatest of antagonists, THE dark man ffs, taken out by a brat. Yeah a powerful brat I know, but still... sigh.

Exactly. Flagg was able to be destroyed by a baby. His own self-delusion caused his downfall. Were you really expecting Walter's demise to be glorious?

[Mrking2012]

I am sorry you could not or did not like the ending. Personnaly i loved it, i predicted it.
This is a juorney of the soul, and as such a " reincarnation" story we all paticipate in, until we get it roght.
As the story ended bittersweet, life and death i began to look forward to reading it again, for like you i was not ready to end my ka-tet either. And so i did read them immediately again, but this time i changed it.
You will notice that as he begins again at the end, this time he has the horn of the eld. He obviously took the seconds it would take and retrieved it as cuthbert fell.
Roland will ascend to the next plain this time. Beacause it will be he who blows the endining horn as he enters the tower.

I hope this helps your understanding or at least gives you another opinion and interpertation of events. Just to know all my friends survived and lived together was happy enough for me. Peace

[bopropadop]

Hi!

I'll just interject an opinion here. Great books are talked about for years and years and years. If the ending did nothing else, it did lead to discussions such as this one. This post has been up since July and has been viewed over 5,000 times. Good ending or bad (respecting your opinion either way) we should all be pleased that SK completed his magnum opus, we read it, and now we discuss. Doesn't get any better than this.

All IMHO.

(I liked it by the way...)

[aussiewonder]

The only thing I did not like about the ending was, That it was the end!
I wasn't ready for the journey to end, but then it didnt end really, in so much as ka
is a wheel and I can pick up my books and walk with Roland whenever I choose.......
and I will! LONG live OY!

[Ben E Gas]

Sorry to bring up this thread again, but I just have to say I loved the ending and loved the journey getting there even more. I'm glad I took a chance and read 'the gunslinger'. It made me a Stephen King fan. Best of all, it rekindled my love of reading. I received a bunch of King books for christmas and I cannot wait to read them. Unfortunately, I went out and bought guitar hero also, but I'll make sure I put that down to read each day.

Someone had commented in an early post in this thread that they didn't like the scene with Dandelo, I loved that scene. I also liked the way walter was killed, he deserved it, I thought. I also thought it fitting that the Crimson King's eyes were left on the balcony. He was not meant to reach the top. Who knows what Roland will find when some day he finally reaches the top and is not sent back to the desert. In my opinion, he is never meant to go to the top either. His destiny was to save the beam, which he did. If he just had stopped there, all would be well and he could reach the clearing at the end of the path, maybe even with his new friends. The Crimson King would still be stuck up there on the balcony never causing anyone any more harm and the world could move on.

[S Mcleod]

Oh boy.
Yes yes agine Yes.I agree with you 110%!That last DK had every possible Bad and Very wimpy conclusion all wrapped up in one!!Stephen really pulled That off.But all the "let downs"aside for me..I read for the villians.Always have always will..Except pervert villians
I can't hack a sicko.But in all other cases it's the villian that draws me.
The "ka-tet" gosh they were very boreing indeed.especially the smart mouth,drug addict.
Eddie.If king HAD to kill his most famous villian of all time "Randall Flagg" he should have had him and ol quick draw roland duke it out. After he wiped out a ka-tet member or two First of course.But nope .no can do.A quick retarded no thought or dignity whatsover death was Much better?By the way..what was first the Stand or the dark tower?
Because I noticed king went from "this man Flagg,who is not a man at all but a supernatural being."-There from mother abagail's lips to your ears.
So how does he go from That..to rembering being a runaway who was raped at 13..then
killed wham-bam by that fresh from the womb baby spider boy???
Stephen screwed that up as bad as you want.End of story no doubt at all.
And the Crimson King..couldn't this great "bad guy" have gotten a fight with roland?
His death was something you see in a kids cartoon!haha it's nuts erased away.
And how about a few last words? I guess EEEEEEEEEE!!! was good enough to rap up such a great(haha) villian as him?From all I have read in the Dark Tower books.....I came to a conclusion.
Flagg could have wiped every last character out of his way and "danced like fred astaire"
right up the steps and rulled it all!I only came to this theory from the written word of SK.
And from what I saw.First send out the eye.Find the ka-tet.Send a bunch of moronish gunmen to distract them.Split them up burn out there minds or how about the electric ball from the finger tips?The stroll on out turn into a crow fly to the CK's place.Kill him off (he didn't do much but set on that stupid throne anyway).etc,etc if not exact something to that effect.
Haha wow..went to far agine Sorry folks no offense (yes misspellings all over the place.)
I do apologise.But I stand by my feelings.
Your pal
-S Mcleod

[JohnDalglish]

.But I stand by my feelings.


Hi,

And you're totally entitled to stand by you feelings

Just as I'm totally entitled to completely disagree with you.

Long days and pleasant nights

[rjt65]

Achmeds book over there ... about 150 pages left ... in the 4th journey through......

still loving it!!! so much i am thinking when will i go for my 5th detour through mid world?

Cannot all be happy with all books but find what does ya than...and enjoy!

[abominae1]

The part of Dark Tower 7 that I disliked the most was that there was no confrontation between Flagg and Roland at some point in the story. I felt robbed at the time, because it seemed the story was building up to that ... but as a fan I also understand that the story doesn't always go the way I want it to. A few days after I read the story I got to thinking that maybe that battle was too predictable, we all know Roland would've owned Flagg anyway.

I actually enjoyed the battle between Roland and The Crimson King [the highlight of the book IMO] , and thought Steve's end to the Crimson King was, in a way , fitting.

[Goodlovin]

Wow one of these threads popping up again?

I agree that the ending was bad sort of soap opera ish where someone dies and it ends up being a dream.

That being said when I think about the DT series all I can think of is that it was a hell of a fun journey leading up to that bad ending.

[Bluey Lunger]

I take it from your profile picture that you're still a fan. I've experienced a range of emotions after reading The Dark Tower, come away with something different each time. I think I'm weird, so I won't tell you what they are, exactly. Besides, someone may round up a posse and come looking for me. I am re-reading it again, probably for the 4th or 5th time.

There's a lot there, in that long journey, and this time through, I've been asking why is so and so is different from the other. Why is so and so's relationship different from so and so's relationship? First time through, I don't think I saw all of Roland's warts--he's the hero, after all, and can do no wrong. But I'm thinking, maybe not. There's a pile of cool things in there, todash, thinnys, doors.

Saw Blazing Saddles the other day on the tube and I had to laugh when those two black guys pumped their little rail car into the quick sand. The big boss man came with his sidekick and they managed to lasso the handle and pull the handcart out, 'whew! almost lost a $400 handcart!" Ka, like a wheel.

Gotta be something about those railroad tracks.

[vivazebool]

King's villians remind me of the Wizard of Oz:Everybody is terrified of him and makes a big deal of him until they discover he is not all he was cracked up to be.

In The Stand, Flagg made lots of foolish errors in judgment that lead to his defeat. In the Tommyknockers, these great and intelligent aliens turned out to be a bunch of bickering pirates that killed each other foolishly. And the "becoming" residents of Haven couldn't even think of using an AC/DC converter to keep the power company from snooping.. In Gingerbread Girl, the killer turns out to be afraid of water.

I read many posts on this MB about how dissapointed the readers are with King's villains. Maybe this is not a stigma on his writing style. Maybe there is an idea he is trying to get across to his readers. Maybe this shows us his insight into human nature and how we make the object of our fears bigger than they really are.

[JohnDalglish]

King's villians remind me of the Wizard of Oz:Everybody is terrified of him and makes a big deal of him until they discover he is not all he was cracked up to be.

In The Stand, Flagg made lots of foolish errors in judgment that lead to his defeat. In the Tommyknockers, these great and intelligent aliens turned out to be a bunch of bickering pirates that killed each other foolishly. And the "becoming" residents of Haven couldn't even think of using an AC/DC converter to keep the power company from snooping.. In Gingerbread Girl, the killer turns out to be afraid of water.

I read many posts on this MB about how dissapointed the readers are with King's villains. Maybe this is not a stigma on his writing style. Maybe there is an idea he is trying to get across to his readers. Maybe this shows us his insight into human nature and how we make the object of our fears bigger than they really are.

Hi,

That's exactly the impression I get - 'There is nothing to fear except fear itself'.

Long days and pleasant nights

[n610s]

Wow from what I've gathered this forum seems biased towards people who loved the ending. I can't tell you how sick I am of reading the posts that say, " How else could it have ended?, Stephen King doesn't do happy endings."

What a copout. It's like this same repeated response has been seeded around the internet in an effort to make people accept that its quote the only way it could have ended.

Plus I find it strange that the moderators will chime in with the people who love the ending and be like yea I agree. The internet thrives on free discussion and neutral moderators can hold their opinion or log on like the rest of us. Im guessing my post will be censored.

[JohnDalglish]

Wow from what I've gathered this forum seems biased towards people who loved the ending. I can't tell you how sick I am of reading the posts that say, " How else could it have ended?, Stephen King doesn't do happy endings."

What a copout. It's like this same repeated response has been seeded around the internet in an effort to make people accept that its quote the only way it could have ended.

Plus I find it strange that the moderators will chime in with the people who love the ending and be like yea I agree. The internet thrives on free discussion and neutral moderators can hold their opinion or log on like the rest of us. Im guessing my post will be censored.

Hi,

Well, you guessed wrong.

But you seem to be quite capable of misinterpretation anyway to imagine a conspiracy about the ending.

You didn't like it, huh? Missed the point somewhat mayhap?

Long days and pleasant nights

[trevchapple]

Is it at all possible that book seven doesn't end it but Talisman III will? Parkus at the end of Black House says that all is bound together in KA and that Jack Sawyer can no longer return to the earth, but has some other work to do... just a thought.

[Goodlovin]

Wow from what I've gathered this forum seems biased towards people who loved the ending. I can't tell you how sick I am of reading the posts that say, " How else could it have ended?, Stephen King doesn't do happy endings."

What a copout. It's like this same repeated response has been seeded around the internet in an effort to make people accept that its quote the only way it could have ended.

Plus I find it strange that the moderators will chime in with the people who love the ending and be like yea I agree. The internet thrives on free discussion and neutral moderators can hold their opinion or log on like the rest of us. Im guessing my post will be censored.

I think your wrong about our Mod here as she is pretty damn neutral and lets most everything get posted here within reason.

That being said I am in agreement that it was a very bad ending which was far too rushed in my opinion. We fortunately have a dozens of other damn good books by Mr King that have damn good endings to reread in the future.

[scratchesass]

It is what it is. I personally would have rather seen Dorothy stuck in OZ, and Alice get bitten (and gone rabid with no hope of recovery) by the Cheshire Cat myself, guess I's just twisted....

[LadyHitchhiker]

When I first read the ending I threw the book across the apartment and cried. I felt betrayed.

But now it's growing on me.

[Roseasharn]

I understand why people don't like the ending, but what I don't understand is this personal outrage about it.
Here's what I think: For one, you didn't write the book. I'm not going to say that books write themselves, but they're headed somewhere when they start (if they amount to something) and that place is the end. I have literally spent hours trying to think up a different ending and they all come out trite or hollow. Or disappointing (roland makes it to the top and dies of a massive heart attack. Or he is turned into a stone statue. Or he gets to the top, opens a door and joins susannah, eddie and jake. or the old stand by, he wakes up from this as a dream and decides not to tell his father about hax...and we never know what happens after **cringe** ick)
KA IS A WHEEL, yah? Criminy.
Honestly, what shocks me most is that so many people were shocked by the ending.

[Door and Demon]

http://www.amazon.com/review/R2XQIACGHZ2WUG/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt#R2XQIACGHZ2WUG

I'm sure most of you have read this, but it's a fantastic explanation on the ending of the The Dark Tower. I subscribe to it readily.

By the way, I'm "NCL" on the "replies".

[brandt813]

For me, I had to re-read the ending a couple of times. I was simply blown away! The more I thought about it though, the more I loved it. It's kind of like "The Lion King" from hell! Circle of Life and all that crap! lol

King often talked about not knowing where it would end, how it would end, he was simply along for the ride. I think he reached the end of the rope and realized that Roland's quest would never be over.

The end simply made sense. I won't go so simply as saying King never writes a happy ending, but he wants to find a way to blow your mind. With the DT, any "final" ending simply wouldn't have sufficed. The end as it was is the only ending I can see to really provoke the "Holy Crap" reaction. In fact, love it or hate it, I have to believe Sai King is pleased with any strong reaction because it simply is a strong reaction to his masterpiece!

[Roseasharn]

Yeah, I think saying King never writes a happy ending is a little too pat an answer.
In life, I've only ever seen one truly happy ending. My great grandfather died suddenly and quietly while sitting on the tailgate of his old pick up truck, right next to his, "pride and joy", wonderful strawberry patch. But even that wasn't a truly happy ending because the rest of us were left. In this regard, I think King deals more in realism than people want to give him credit for. There's always hope, but there is also always it's dark twin, dispair. And of course, can it be a true ending if we don't follow all the characters to death? I don't know, endings are really never that great in my opinion.

[LongWalker]

I agree with alot of the posts that King didn't want to end it and I didn't want it to end either. I think the ending King decided to use was appropriate in that Roland would forever do what we the readers know is his greatest love and that is finding the tower. He has a chance to re-live the quest and to make it better by saving his friends and maybe getting the chance to do things different. What if Roland has done this many times and he just doesn't know it? Has he done it different before? Wow! Whole new world!

[intstar]

I'm sorry that so many of you guys hated the ending. For myself I couldn't think of a better way to end it. I still muse over how the Gunslinger would redo the things he got wrong the first time & if he would remember. Kind of like the Buddhist teaching of the Wheel of Life.

[EngravedinFleshBass]

I had a few observations about the end of the book and want to know what you all think. I thought of making a new post, but since this one is about the end of the series, I figured it would belong in here, and I did read through all 16 pages of posts (or at least I skimmed them), and I only saw one post that seemed to correspond with what I think.

The person said something along the lines of we don't know if Roland draws Eddie, Sussanah, Jake, Oy, or any of the other major characters in his next journey to The Tower with the horn. But I think that he will draw them again, and had drawn them before every time he may have traveled to the Tower. My thinking for this is because at the end it returned with Roland following the Man in Black across the desert once again. But the Man in Black was killed by Mordred. So that either means that Flagg was either brought back in time when Roland was brought back in time to the desert (or was Roland really brought back in time, or did the journey take place, and realty had been altered and Roland's memory wiped? If so that creates a third possibility that time was not reversed to before the death of Flagg, but he was brought back to life by the Tower or Beam or Turtle or Ka who damned Roland to repeat the journey). Or was the man whom Roland was following a twin of Randall? If the last is true then it is a possibility that Roland would not redraw Eddie Dean, Sussanah Dead, and Jake Chambers. He may draw Eddie, Sussanah and Jake Toren, but the two men would be far different than the two that Roland had formed ka-tet with. And since Sussanah lived throught the entire ordeal, once drawn back into the world of Roland, wouldn't all of her faded memories come back, being able to tell Roland every hardship that lay in their path far in advance.

But if time were reversed or reality altered, Jake, Eddie, and Suzzanah would all have been replaced their their respective whens. And then what would have been the point of Sussanah of going to the alternate New York? Was it just to give the readers who did heed King's warning to stop a happy ending? The way the book ended all of them could have been dead, except for the artist, but as long as Roland made his trip to the top of the Tower, they would all be brought back, waiting, but not knowing, for Roland to once again invade their lives?

I went on quite a bit longer than I had planned to, but these questions really had me curious about the ending. Which I must say I finished earlier today. My first reaction was shock and a little bit of anger, but after only an hour or two of thinking about it, I have come around and seen it for the genius that it is. And how much more thought provoking it is, than a would be "happily ever after" ending.

[TBlack]

I was upset that The Crimson Kingdied by eraser I wanted his scalp filletted with his eyeballs popping outta his face
Then I started thinking of what Stephen had said about killing off your heroes in On Writing... after 30 years with Roland on his brain this must have been an extremely difficult thing for him to do.
But now think on this:
If you consider "The Three Faces of Steve"(he threw them in to confuse us all):
#1 Stephen is The Artist (I'm sure none of us here will deny that)
#2 Stephen is The Original Gunslinger--"We deal in Lead"--Think on that---(What's inside a #2 Eberhard Pencil?)
#3 Stephen is in a large part Roland as is Roland, Steve--They created each other through all those years.
You couldn't kill off your main guy! Just as you wouldn't kill off yourself...
You'd say, "We're Damned! BUT.. Maybe we could try again someday... next time maybe I could have a horn?"

[J.P.]

The ending didn't make me feel very good but I agreed with and understood the ending.

[tillyn]

At the moment i'm on 6 so, i'll stop reading these posts because i really don't want to know anymore. I'll jump back in within the next 2 weeks. I've taken the last mth and a half of my reading time and dedicated to finishing this series. Hopefully i won't be to disappointed.

[JoTLoE]

Yeah, don't quit! I have lost track of the amount of times I have been through the book series. It never gets old for me, and in my opinion is one of the best book series ever. The series was ended perfectly, if you want to call it an ending. King is brilliant, and i'll continue the story, and try and convince others to read it...:eyebrow:

[karend3]

If you read the ending, Roland has something to learn or he continue to repeat. Each time he repeats he learns something new but somehow is slower than everyone else.

[Richard_B]

I can appreciate why people would have strong feelings about the ending - and I do wonder how many (if anyone?) stopped at the Coda which warns: "And so, my dear constant reader, I tell you this: You can stop here". and the observation: "I hope you came to hear the tale, and not just munch your way through to the ending."

For me it's a painful ending, but it's a true ending, and the more I think about the ending the more I think it was the only possible finale.

[livaudaisk]

I do not have a problem with Roland repeating his quest. Ka is a wheel, after all. My problem, and it is a big one, is that King cheated. As an English teacher and avid reader, I have followed King's stories for most of my life. I even considered writing my Master's thesis on The Dark Tower series - and this was before the last three were written. I spent many an hour tracing all of his books to the Tower. King was brilliant. He is a modern Dickens or Poe, I do not doubt it. All of that said, I was disappointed and let down with his ending. I never wrote that thesis. And why? Because we knew all along that all Frodo had to do was toss the Ring in the Mount of Doom. Frodo was never supposed to battle Sauron himself. But SK re-created Sauron in the Crimson King, and the CK cannot just be erased. The low men, Walter o the Dim in his many guises, Pennywise (forerunner to Modred, say true), these were scary bad guys who in turn went in fear of CK. It is almost a deaux es machina. Erased and that is all? The CK came off as ludicrous, not scary or evil. No, this ending is not the true end of this story. Roland of Gilead, last gunslinger, may have thought he faced the Crimson King, but he has not yet. I wonder if our wordslinger wil find it within himself to write the true end. Will you, sai King, be true to your charcters? to your CRs?

[JohnDalglish]

Hi,

With the greatest respect, I disagree, livaudaisk.

Ka is a wheel, not a straight line.

Long days and pleasant nights

[Lencho_of_the_Apes]

I agree that CK came off as ludicrous in that confrontation at the Tower. (I think some L Frank Baum leaked its way up to the surface of Sai King's brain; rustle yourself up a copy of Dorothy And The Wizard Of Oz for a possible precedent. EEEEEEEEEEEEE! )

Howver, I strongly suspect that that was NOT the final confrontation with the Gno... I mean the CRIMSON King; consider, if you will:

CK's sigil, since forever, appearing all throughout King's books, has been a pair of red eyes, yes? Seen in The Stand, seen... well, I know not where-all... And when Patrick erased him, he removed everything EXCEPT that pair of glowing red eyes.. Is it not possible that what Patrick did was to help CK attain his final (predestined) form? As a mostly-disembodied spirit, he could still be plenty adversarial.

We all float down here...

[Stockfish]

Hi all, I've just finished reading this wonderful story. It was my long journey through all of its parts. But the ending really amazed me and make me to think. For it is the best kind of ending, the think-maker. So if You dont mind I will share my thoughts about this ending, when Roland took his step from salvation to damnation.
First off all it is not first time Roland is coming to the Dark Tower, Robert Browning wrote this story before (much before)

For me the Dark Tower it is a goal I want to reach in my life. But from DT I know that there are much more important things that my goal, like goal (Susannah choose love and she succeeded). I hope one day Roland will realize, that the DT is not worthy to be reached.

Thanks for reading and sorry for language mistakes

[Mary Strickland]

I love the Dark Tower series and they are my favorite of all the rest of the books. It had to end some way. King explained in print that it is the "journey", not the final page. The ka-tet had a very special bond and I loved they way they interacted.

[Patricia A]

I remember when I finished the last book I just sat and stared at the book with my jaw slack and thought OMG WTF!
I was stunned! I didn't feel as though it was a betrayal of my trust in the author to 'do the right thing' though.
On the second read I saw it coming from a mile away, there were lots of signs along the way that it couldn't have ended any better way.

[wisewitch]

I believe the point of that kind of ending was that there are some other valuable things beside the Tower (such as love, friendship...) and Roland needs to understand that. I liked the ending because it doesn't end Roland's journey, it gives him a new chance to do it right, not to hurt or abandon anyone, not to let Jake fall...

I hope you understood, my English is pretty bad... :blush:

[Patricia A]

I believe the point of that kind of ending was that there are some other valuable things beside the Tower (such as love, friendship...) and Roland needs to understand that. I liked the ending because it doesn't end Roland's journey, it gives him a new chance to do it right, not to hurt or abandon anyone, not to let Jake fall...

I hope you understood, my English is pretty bad... :blush:
Your English is fine. Better than some who speak English as a first language as a matter of fact.
You made a really good point too.
I kind of saw the ending as a new beginning, a second chance in a way.

[yog-sothoth]

Here's why I LOVED the ending:

Roland repeats his quest. Why?

Because we CR's by picking up The Gunslinger for the thousandth time repeats his quest with him. Roland keeps cycling his path because we CR's take him back on his quest every time we reread the sentence

"The man in black fled across the desert, and the Gunslinger followed."

He will forever be on the Path of the Beam. He has no choice. We put him there.

[w111ser]

I like the way you put that. He will be on the path of the beam forever. I think it fits.

Its been a while since I finished the series, but if I remember correctly, King did warn us! He wrapped everything up in a happy ending, then warned us that we may not want to finish the last few pages where we learn of Roland's real fate. I know I couldn't resist! I can honestly say that I liked the ending. I was sad that the series was over. But, I liked the ending.

[michal]

I was fine with the ending - not jumping up and down, but I felt it was typical Mr. King ending - living threads open and letting the reader end it as he or she may.

And as for wanting to give up all your books because you disliked the ending of one of them... Well, my fellow Constant Reader - are you not overreacting?

And let's face it - in the final pages, right before the ending, Mr. King told you that you will probably hate it, told you that you are better off leaving the story untold all the way through and that the ending he thought of will not make you happy.

You chose to continue.

Why are you angry, then?

[Jack Aubrey]

Why do we so insist on closure...

Tonight I finished the Dark Tower series. I can now breathe a *sigh* of relief. The series has dominated my reading time over the last few months. I recently (relatively) started the first book and almost three months later I have completed the series. I’ll be the first to admit that I am no major fan of Sai King. I have read a few of his novels prior to the Dark Tower series. I found him to be an entertaining writer, nothing too taxing and overall a pleasant experience.

The Dark Tower series took me by complete surprise. It was a total unknown to me and now I have to wonder why, at the age of 30, had I not stumbled across this epic series earlier. A wonderful story with a set of characters that I felt I truly knew. Very few series manage this. My forum name is testament to one such collection.

Anyway. Back on topic. My reason for posting is as follows: I enjoyed the ending of the Dark Tower series immensely and I did not feel entitled to have complete closure. However, I feel we should not berate people for wanting a clear conclusion to Roland’s tale. It’s in our nature to seek closure, especially when we have invested so much time in the aforementioned activity. I, for one, believe the story reached a satisfactory conclusion. Yes, there are open questions, but they provide the reader with an opportunity to conceive a version of reality for Roland, Susanna, et al., that befits the readers interpretation of the story.

Perhaps Sai King, through his writing, has truly stumbled across subliminal threads that span time and space. Subconsciously he has spun his web and tales from alternate universes are inexorably caught and documented. Perchance, Roland’s true ending is cognitively closed to us. All our answers exists in the text but they simply cannot be properly conceived by our human minds.

Either way. Thank you Sai King for a wonderful series. ;-)

[GodsOmen]

The Dark Tower series was really a fantastic ride. I enjoyed the journey with Roland and his band of gunslingers truimph and overcome almost insurmountable obstacles.

The ending was symbolic, and was true to the story, but it did leave me wanting. Over the first few books, I questioned why Roland sought the Dark Tower, and as the story progressed it seemed as if his trip would save all worlds and perhaps venture into a Godly type role for Roland favoring the "white". Instead, the ending leaves the journey I enjoyed so much feeling hollow and meaningless.

Maybe Mr. King intended for each of us to draw (no pun intended) our own conclusions on whether his trip was worth it or not. Personally, after putting so much of myself into the story, I was hoping that there was be more ground gained than just a horn.

[GodsOmen]

By the way, what does the Dark Tower want anyway? If it's not the restoration of the beams, and it can control time, what is it after in the end? Seriously, Roland might just be it's "Final Fantasy" game to keep it occupied.

[sköldpadda]

The first time I read it I did feel disappointed with the ending and it left a bit of a sour taste after being so involved with the story. However I have just re-read the whole series again (about 3 years after the first time) and now the ending seems very fitting and right. I love the endless possibilities and questions it opens up, much more interesting/satisfying than a definitive ending IMO.

So I would definitely recomend a re-read for those who are unsatisfied (the ending practically asks you to anyway!)

[dragonflier]

I LOVED EVERY WORD OF THE DARK TOWER TALE!!! Even though I sobbed when Oy ended up in the branches.....
Dear Stephen, please PLEASE do not let any muppet film directors wreck this story, ie the IDIOT who made Dreamcatcher (what WAS that film!!!??? where did he invent it from????) - you can only trust it to someone like the Lord of the Rings chappie Peter Jackson or to Frank Darabont (Shawshank)

[dragonflier]

Hey, call yourself a fan and you waited THIS long just to read it...?! JUST KIDDING! Sorry that you hated the story so much and felt a bit jipped - I felt like that for about a minute, then realised that it is in fact the perfect ending.... gives me an excuse to start all over again (I read DT ubertale once a year!):biggrin2:

[Daddyn505]

He did warn us not to finish the book. But still I think Ole' Roland will get it right eventually. Everythings Eventual.

[GBPack1]

I completely agree with the majority here...this was the perfect and ONLY ending for this great tale. What an emotional ride it is

[B4victorycomestemptation]

I also loved this ending. Finishing the Dark Tower Series was something I never really wanted to do. But the end came. For me the ending allows me to know where the characters are at anytime. Anytime I think of them I can recall a memory and there is the possibility they are there. I love that!!

[soxfan]

I believe it was an amazing ending. My only criticism is that it was spoiled by an explanation from King. It seemed like he knew he would get destroyed by some fans and had to defend it.

I will tell you why it is such an amazing ending. The ending is amazing not because it is "good" or "happy" but because it is just. Roland as he is depicted throughout the seven volumes does not deserve a better fate. I think his ending is a commentary on the protaganist and on life in general.

[jeffk]

I admit the ending of the Dark tower is tough to swallow.
On the other hand, how can you expect it to end, with death and disappointment being a theme from the first book.
Mr. King wrote that it was the only ending that was honest(or something to that effect) and I accept it.
A happily ever after ending would would have been out of step with the series and would have been worse.

[netta]

I understand how some fans have hated the end of this series.

For me, it was profound and it was perfect. One of the things I like so much about Sai King's work is the fact it feels real. I know these people, I relate to them, I love them. It's difficult to see bad things happen to the people we love.

Life is not perfect. Life is not easy. Not everything is tied up in a neat, tidy bow. King doesn't bullsh!t his way around this.

One of the other things I love about King's work is he trusts his readers. I can employ my own imagination, I can think for myself, I can picture things in my own mind.

The end of The Dark Tower was totally unexpected (although in hindsight, how dumb is that?) but even in the extreme sadness (and I cried buckets, so I did), there is a ray of hope that was very satisfying, to me.

It was a perfect ending, and it makes more and more sense with every reading.

[jallred350]

Initially I had the same reaction as many to the ending. After a few weeks it softened and after a few months I went back to re-read the entire series. I am currently about 100 pages into Drawing. There are a few clues in The Gunslinger about the ending. Things that just didn't make sense the first time through, but after having read the ending do make sense. I'm speaking particularly of chapter 5 in the re-written version, when Roland is palavering with the MIB. Noticing these made me even less angry with the ending. It didn't feel like it was so "out of left field." And as others have said, I don't know how else he could have ended the series. It had almost gotten to be too big. Any ending after that big of a build up would feel like a let down, especially after investing so much time in the story.

[fanasyworld]

I also hated the ending in the seventh book. After finding out that Roland has to cross the desert again chasing the man in black when he finally reached the top of the Tower, I think Stephen King should write one more book to his Dark Tower series about things that he could potentially change (like the loss of his adopted son Jake). I have been a fan of Stephen King for 20+ years and I do realize life sometimes does not have happy endings but his books let me forget about life for those moments while I am reading. I guess I just expected more.

The last book of the series should be about Roland's quest...again, meeting his ka-tet, and remembering bits of his previous quest, so different adventures can happen and the whole ka-tet gets rid of the crimson king and then leaves the tower to stand alone.

If you could continue on with the story as the ending stands now, what would your ending be? I am just very curious!

[plgordon]

"Of The Dark Tower And Walter"

"it is in this malicious lair, this dark and powerful magician, who holds the true key to End-World and the Dark Tower for thoes courageous enough to grasp it. And for those who are left.
SK

[plgordon]

He warned you that you might want to stop, you may be dissapointed

[Father Callahan]

I read the first 6 volumes and was about a quarter of the way through the Final volume when i found out what the ending was online ( i dont recall exactly where but not here) and it really upset me cos i thought there was no way it could end with susanah, eddie and espesially Jake dead, so i put it away and i dont think i am ever going to read it now.
I dont regret reading the 1st 6 but the 7th for me is now a big no no.

[EricMint]

Just finished the 7th book last weekend. I bought the last two books when they came out but I've held out on reading them because I just didn't want it to end, but then I started thinking about my own mortality and how my biggest regret in life would be not finishing the books (seriously), but that's besides the point. That ending was possibly the most heartbreaking thing I've ever read. It was 3 am when I finished it and I could hear Roland as clear as life screaming, "Please, not again! Have pity! Have mercy!" God, that just kills me. It destroys me. The toughest man alive, my hero since I read the first book as a scared freshman in highschool, and he's begging for mercy. It was really tough.

But I felt immediately that it was the right ending. It's kind of like what King said about the riddles. Even if you don't have the answers in front of you, once you hear the right answer it's self-evident. I'm not sure there could be any other ending that would feel this right, dare I say perfect. Heh heh, one of my thoughts after finishing the book was just "He did it. He really did it."

The ending actually affected me on a more personal level in that I think like Roland I've been living for just for the end-goal or reading just for the ending. I really stopped and thought about the actual journey I'm on in life and discovered that I could be enjoying it a lot more if I stopped thinking about my Dark Tower.

I'm so sad that the series is over, but it was a hell of a ride. Say thankya indeed

[Brett Johnston]

In the ages that examine our exploitation the writer that can do this is a greater friend than the animator that adds magic dust to a twirling end. Final purpose for an individual has massively been removed by the process of our modern socially devouring control environment. Striking against the foe of an individual has lost meaning! Roland is other time beyond us and is the conclusion of the ultimate errand but it is the intention for him to driven this way repeatedly. Personally Stephen King ranked highly in my regard in 1989 and therefore to me he has also been driven since! He mentions the idea of an artist driven to greater perfection as though he (King) knows it with authority; I beleive he does.

[Bilibramboy]

Well, sorry l can not read all the post but l would like to give my opinion too, as l did before the first thing is apologize my english level... lm a selflearning one.

I didn't like it either, l hate it too... why?

A lot of reasons.
First l must say how bad I feel about his hit accident when it happened, but, l am the only one that think SK is writting different since then?

I love the Dark Tower series but l prefer the pre-accident ones.
But the last one...
[spoiler]
Why SK himself does appear in the book? why is he talking about his accident again? why did l feel like all magic dissapear when Roland speak with Stephen King?
Why the bad guy is out with that weak end, after chasing him during all SK novels?
Why kill the guys, and recover them, and kill them again, to show them alive again in last pages?[spoiler]
I would prefer a no end, not a forced one.
I would love express myself better, is dificult for me in english, but l think you are going to get the meaning.
Anyway, l still love all stephen king's works, l adore the comics of DT, but... this seventh book will be always a knife in my heart.
Bilibramboy.

[Robert Gray]

The Dark Tower series could end no other way. That is the long and the short of it. Roland was damned. He was also wrong. When realization hits him that he must do it all over again, he dreads the starting point in the trackless sands of the desert. He seems to feel this is too late for anything to be changed. This is because he still doesn't understand. The moment he let Jake fall, choosing the Tower, he was doomed to repeat no matter what the outcome. "Stand and be true." It was that betrayal that damned him that time around. No other choice truly mattered. Will the outcome of his next trip around repeat? The answer to that question is beyond me. However, Gan made him a promise that things could be different. The horn symbolized that promise.

[Bluey Lunger]

First l must say how bad I feel about his hit accident when it happened, but, l am the only one that think SK is writting different since then?

probably not. but i don't know. didn't catch on until after '99.



Why SK himself does appear in the book? why is he talking about his accident again? why did l feel like all magic dissapear when Roland speak with Stephen King?

sk appears cause that's the direction the story took. i liked the idea that roland shows up in person. what other direction would we have, this after the dark half, the library policeman, some other stuff. i thought the moment was pretty magical, myself.



Why the bad guy is out with that weak end, after chasing him during all SK novels?
Why kill the guys, and recover them, and kill them again, to show them alive again in last pages?

the bad guy was nothing but puff and smoke in the end. second part. faith hope and love. belief.

i'd be curious to know more about the people, like myself, who enjoyed the ending, just as i'd be curious to know more about those, like youself, who dislike it. i've got a theory on that that i won't articulate here. i guess bottom line is that i see all kinds of magic there and can't for the life of me understand why others don't. :dunno:

[Dark Reader]

The Dark Tower series could end no other way. That is the long and the short of it. Roland was damned. He was also wrong. When realization hits him that he must do it all over again, he dreads the starting point in the trackless sands of the desert. He seems to feel this is too late for anything to be changed. This is because he still doesn't understand. The moment he let Jake fall, choosing the Tower, he was doomed to repeat no matter what the outcome. "Stand and be true." It was that betrayal that damned him that time around. No other choice truly mattered. Will the outcome of his next trip around repeat? The answer to that question is beyond me. However, Gan made him a promise that things could be different. The horn symbolized that promise.

Thanks Robert, i now understand!!! (but now feel stupid for not seeing that :sad:)

Oh and i now like the ending :wink2:

Oh and the reason i didn't like it to start with is because i just didn't get it

[Robb]

First I want to say that I loved DT 7. The hardest thing about the ending was the feeling of lack of closure. I wanted in the end the Ka tet to find success in their quest. Instead we find that Ka is a wheel. I was disappointed after seeing all they had gone through just to see the start again. But I was warned Sai King posted a warning that you may not like what you find at the top of the Tower.

[mrg666]

I had the same feeling, but came to the conclusion that it was really the only way S.K could have done it . It was a ride ill never forget and ill more than likely jump on it again sometime in the future, i would like to see some filler stories come out though ( hint hint ) but not in an editors cut version ( i picked up the stand uncut and never read it :( )

[Sony02]

Strange was the end, but accepted it. So mysterious. I liked.

[matdmill]

The ending was great in the that you had to think about it for a few minutes to get it and appreciate it. I love that the rest of the ka tet reunite. Espicailly Oy's return being foreshadowed.

[nicklove09]

I cried, and cried and cried.

[amcbride]

I thought the ending was great, suprising to say the least, but overall I was happy with how it ended. To everyone that says SK "copped-out" should consider a re-read and really pay attention to the JOURNEY and not get so wrapped up in the ending. Also I think you have to keep in mind, that with a 7 book series, I dont think theres any way to satisfy everyone with the ending.

[All Hail The Crimson King]

My reaction to the ending is elation, sadness, wonder..some more sadness and wonder. It didn't just blow my mind, it blew my soul.