the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dark And Magnificently ominous, 11 Nov 2008
I bought this beacause i loved to tower series and thankfully was not let down. The comics storyline is from dark tower 4 wizard and glass when the main character is a teenager, he is sent from his home and finds love loss and hurt. As a comic it give you an imaginative and amazing take on how it could have looked from Kings point of view, drawn by the great Jae Lee and Richard Isanove and adapted by king himself makes in whole a great piece of art and fiction. you dont even need to be a fan to enjoy this comic.

Unputdownable!, 26 Aug 2008
This is brilliant. Speaking as someone who doesn't read Graphic Novels and who has never read the Dark Tower books - I loved this and I read it over two nights and was sorry when I came to the end. The artwork is beautiful and the tale gripping. The only minor complaint is that this is set in a very macho world and there is at times the vaguest suggestion that it was written by someone who hates women. However, if you can put that aside this is a wonderful read.

Wizard and Glass, the illustrated cliffnotes editition, 27 Mar 2008
If you've read/are reading the dark tower series do not expect anything new. Having just finished volume 4 i picked up the graphic novel which was basically an illustrated version of the events of 4. Don't get me wrong the artwork is supreme (as one would expect from marvel) and comic isn't bad. BUT it's like reading the book i just finished again. Ultimatly i didnt finish the graphic novel as i didnt feel the need to. The story is good though so perhaps after a while i'll be able to read it. For the moment it remains on my shelf.

great comic book adaption of wizard and glass, 24 Mar 2008
ive read all of stephen kings dark tower books and i was impressed by marvels first graphic novel of the saga. the artwork is amazing and im suprised how true this book is to the original novel. for those of you who have read the dark tower books before and wonder wether you shud check this out i say go for it, there is some great artwork put to kings story and i cant wait for the next part. for those of you who are unfamiliar with kings dark tower check it out if you like dark, gothic, fantasy, horror. say thankeer sai :)

A stunning venture into the world of the Dark Tower, 16 Jan 2008
Stephen King's The Dark Tower is a seven book epic following the journey of gunslinger Roland Deschian on his quest to the Dark Tower. In book 4, Wizard and Glass, Roland tells of his youth and the time he became a true gunslinger. It is this story that we follow in The Gunslinger Born, a comic adaption of The Dark Tower overseen by Stephen King, drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. The Gunslinger Born collects all seven of the comics that were released individually in one stunning hardback.

We join a fourteen year old Roland as he discovers his mother's adultery with Marten, his reaction to this is anger and he challenges Cort, the one that trains the young gunslingers. If he fails he must leave Gilead in shame. Should he win, he will be the youngest gunslinger, pushing his father into second place by two years. Roland triumphs and becomes a gunslinger, although not yet able to take on the sandalwood grip guns of his father, he has his own first set.

His father returns to Gilead, aware of his wife's affair and disappointed in Roland for reacting the way he did. To protect Roland, his father send him and his two closest friends, Alain and Cuthbert, to Mejis in order to gather information on the activities there and to see if Farson, the one leading an attack on Gilead and its surroundings, has influenced the inhabitants and using resources that are needed for the alliance. It is in Mejis that Roland meets Susan, and in doing so changes his destiny forever.

The graphical style of the comics are truly impressive, with both artists doing a superb job on them. For myself, a long time fan of The Dark Tower books, the collection is a great new experince on some of my favourite stories from them. Even for a first time reader, this is a great introduction to Roland's world. As I said before, as it is basically a shortened version of the events we are told in Wizard and Glass, but it is still an amazing story and Robin Furth and Peter David have done a great job in adapting and scripting the events to suit comic book format.

All I can add is that I hope further comic books are done on Roland's life, and if we could get some new stories that between the time of these events and those in The Gunslinger (the first Dark Tower book) it would be even better. Whatever happens, I'll buy more of these if they are ever made and thoroughly enjoyed my first venture into Gilead and Mejis in this form.

the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dark And Magnificently ominous, 11 Nov 2008
I bought this beacause i loved to tower series and thankfully was not let down. The comics storyline is from dark tower 4 wizard and glass when the main character is a teenager, he is sent from his home and finds love loss and hurt. As a comic it give you an imaginative and amazing take on how it could have looked from Kings point of view, drawn by the great Jae Lee and Richard Isanove and adapted by king himself makes in whole a great piece of art and fiction. you dont even need to be a fan to enjoy this comic.

Unputdownable!, 26 Aug 2008
This is brilliant. Speaking as someone who doesn't read Graphic Novels and who has never read the Dark Tower books - I loved this and I read it over two nights and was sorry when I came to the end. The artwork is beautiful and the tale gripping. The only minor complaint is that this is set in a very macho world and there is at times the vaguest suggestion that it was written by someone who hates women. However, if you can put that aside this is a wonderful read.

Wizard and Glass, the illustrated cliffnotes editition, 27 Mar 2008
If you've read/are reading the dark tower series do not expect anything new. Having just finished volume 4 i picked up the graphic novel which was basically an illustrated version of the events of 4. Don't get me wrong the artwork is supreme (as one would expect from marvel) and comic isn't bad. BUT it's like reading the book i just finished again. Ultimatly i didnt finish the graphic novel as i didnt feel the need to. The story is good though so perhaps after a while i'll be able to read it. For the moment it remains on my shelf.

great comic book adaption of wizard and glass, 24 Mar 2008
ive read all of stephen kings dark tower books and i was impressed by marvels first graphic novel of the saga. the artwork is amazing and im suprised how true this book is to the original novel. for those of you who have read the dark tower books before and wonder wether you shud check this out i say go for it, there is some great artwork put to kings story and i cant wait for the next part. for those of you who are unfamiliar with kings dark tower check it out if you like dark, gothic, fantasy, horror. say thankeer sai :)

A stunning venture into the world of the Dark Tower, 16 Jan 2008
Stephen King's The Dark Tower is a seven book epic following the journey of gunslinger Roland Deschian on his quest to the Dark Tower. In book 4, Wizard and Glass, Roland tells of his youth and the time he became a true gunslinger. It is this story that we follow in The Gunslinger Born, a comic adaption of The Dark Tower overseen by Stephen King, drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. The Gunslinger Born collects all seven of the comics that were released individually in one stunning hardback.

We join a fourteen year old Roland as he discovers his mother's adultery with Marten, his reaction to this is anger and he challenges Cort, the one that trains the young gunslingers. If he fails he must leave Gilead in shame. Should he win, he will be the youngest gunslinger, pushing his father into second place by two years. Roland triumphs and becomes a gunslinger, although not yet able to take on the sandalwood grip guns of his father, he has his own first set.

His father returns to Gilead, aware of his wife's affair and disappointed in Roland for reacting the way he did. To protect Roland, his father send him and his two closest friends, Alain and Cuthbert, to Mejis in order to gather information on the activities there and to see if Farson, the one leading an attack on Gilead and its surroundings, has influenced the inhabitants and using resources that are needed for the alliance. It is in Mejis that Roland meets Susan, and in doing so changes his destiny forever.

The graphical style of the comics are truly impressive, with both artists doing a superb job on them. For myself, a long time fan of The Dark Tower books, the collection is a great new experince on some of my favourite stories from them. Even for a first time reader, this is a great introduction to Roland's world. As I said before, as it is basically a shortened version of the events we are told in Wizard and Glass, but it is still an amazing story and Robin Furth and Peter David have done a great job in adapting and scripting the events to suit comic book format.

All I can add is that I hope further comic books are done on Roland's life, and if we could get some new stories that between the time of these events and those in The Gunslinger (the first Dark Tower book) it would be even better. Whatever happens, I'll buy more of these if they are ever made and thoroughly enjoyed my first venture into Gilead and Mejis in this form.

The Rebirth of the X-men, 20 Nov 2008
If you are a fan of the X-men comic book then this is truly required reading. First off, make sure you are reasonably up to date with the main X story arcs of the last few years, namely House of M, Decimation, Deadly Genesis and Endangered Species otherwise you are going to have a real problem in following most of the action. While I readily admit that Messiah Complex is by no means perfect, it is most definately the best Marvel crossover in a long time, with most story arcs fitting together quite neatly. This book is also important as it marks the moment when the X-groups are no longer Xaviers responsibility and become Cyclop's X-men.

the AWESOME compleX, 08 Aug 2008
i decided to read this on th basis tht it shud be quite gd!
hwever this is probably one of the best comic collections ive ever read!
fantastic, great artwork and a great story!!

this story really tied up a lot of loose ends and opened a hell of a lot more too!

this is an essential read for ne, xmen, marvel, comic fan...but this is such an exciting read that it allows even a general reader into the world of the xmen!

the truly gr8 story and def the best since M-Day! in my opinion!

The Best of the Best, 06 Aug 2008
This is the best X-men story in a long time am not going to give anything away but with all the x-men teams X-Factor and various villains and certain betrayal's within the teams this is well worth the read. I recomend this to any new fan or old. Messiah Complex rules.

First big X-men crossover in ages and it's great., 11 Jul 2008
What can I say about this, the art is a mixed bag aside from a few chapters it is pretty consistant in style. It ties up many loose ends from the various x-men comics it also sets about changing everything. Which is good as there have been a number of long term problems with the x-men books. It is a pretty epic story and in someways could have been longer to fully show the scale of events. A minor niggle.

As a big sceptic when it comes to "epic" events, this has brought my hope back, 16 Jun 2008
Okay, I collected house of M and every other title with it, I bought Civil was and every other title with it and these two really made me sceptical about marvel's epic stories, I read World War Hulk which I wasnt expecting much from anyway but this story right here is brilliant. Firstly, when I was reading it, I didnt have to wait a month for the next story but more importantly secondly, it was a great story, some good twists and some great battles. Okay, People do die, though they arn't significant (and some have died before, lol).

I would definitly advise people to read it as it threads loads of different stories together to create an epic tale.

the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dark And Magnificently ominous, 11 Nov 2008
I bought this beacause i loved to tower series and thankfully was not let down. The comics storyline is from dark tower 4 wizard and glass when the main character is a teenager, he is sent from his home and finds love loss and hurt. As a comic it give you an imaginative and amazing take on how it could have looked from Kings point of view, drawn by the great Jae Lee and Richard Isanove and adapted by king himself makes in whole a great piece of art and fiction. you dont even need to be a fan to enjoy this comic.

Unputdownable!, 26 Aug 2008
This is brilliant. Speaking as someone who doesn't read Graphic Novels and who has never read the Dark Tower books - I loved this and I read it over two nights and was sorry when I came to the end. The artwork is beautiful and the tale gripping. The only minor complaint is that this is set in a very macho world and there is at times the vaguest suggestion that it was written by someone who hates women. However, if you can put that aside this is a wonderful read.

Wizard and Glass, the illustrated cliffnotes editition, 27 Mar 2008
If you've read/are reading the dark tower series do not expect anything new. Having just finished volume 4 i picked up the graphic novel which was basically an illustrated version of the events of 4. Don't get me wrong the artwork is supreme (as one would expect from marvel) and comic isn't bad. BUT it's like reading the book i just finished again. Ultimatly i didnt finish the graphic novel as i didnt feel the need to. The story is good though so perhaps after a while i'll be able to read it. For the moment it remains on my shelf.

great comic book adaption of wizard and glass, 24 Mar 2008
ive read all of stephen kings dark tower books and i was impressed by marvels first graphic novel of the saga. the artwork is amazing and im suprised how true this book is to the original novel. for those of you who have read the dark tower books before and wonder wether you shud check this out i say go for it, there is some great artwork put to kings story and i cant wait for the next part. for those of you who are unfamiliar with kings dark tower check it out if you like dark, gothic, fantasy, horror. say thankeer sai :)

A stunning venture into the world of the Dark Tower, 16 Jan 2008
Stephen King's The Dark Tower is a seven book epic following the journey of gunslinger Roland Deschian on his quest to the Dark Tower. In book 4, Wizard and Glass, Roland tells of his youth and the time he became a true gunslinger. It is this story that we follow in The Gunslinger Born, a comic adaption of The Dark Tower overseen by Stephen King, drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. The Gunslinger Born collects all seven of the comics that were released individually in one stunning hardback.

We join a fourteen year old Roland as he discovers his mother's adultery with Marten, his reaction to this is anger and he challenges Cort, the one that trains the young gunslingers. If he fails he must leave Gilead in shame. Should he win, he will be the youngest gunslinger, pushing his father into second place by two years. Roland triumphs and becomes a gunslinger, although not yet able to take on the sandalwood grip guns of his father, he has his own first set.

His father returns to Gilead, aware of his wife's affair and disappointed in Roland for reacting the way he did. To protect Roland, his father send him and his two closest friends, Alain and Cuthbert, to Mejis in order to gather information on the activities there and to see if Farson, the one leading an attack on Gilead and its surroundings, has influenced the inhabitants and using resources that are needed for the alliance. It is in Mejis that Roland meets Susan, and in doing so changes his destiny forever.

The graphical style of the comics are truly impressive, with both artists doing a superb job on them. For myself, a long time fan of The Dark Tower books, the collection is a great new experince on some of my favourite stories from them. Even for a first time reader, this is a great introduction to Roland's world. As I said before, as it is basically a shortened version of the events we are told in Wizard and Glass, but it is still an amazing story and Robin Furth and Peter David have done a great job in adapting and scripting the events to suit comic book format.

All I can add is that I hope further comic books are done on Roland's life, and if we could get some new stories that between the time of these events and those in The Gunslinger (the first Dark Tower book) it would be even better. Whatever happens, I'll buy more of these if they are ever made and thoroughly enjoyed my first venture into Gilead and Mejis in this form.

The Rebirth of the X-men, 20 Nov 2008
If you are a fan of the X-men comic book then this is truly required reading. First off, make sure you are reasonably up to date with the main X story arcs of the last few years, namely House of M, Decimation, Deadly Genesis and Endangered Species otherwise you are going to have a real problem in following most of the action. While I readily admit that Messiah Complex is by no means perfect, it is most definately the best Marvel crossover in a long time, with most story arcs fitting together quite neatly. This book is also important as it marks the moment when the X-groups are no longer Xaviers responsibility and become Cyclop's X-men.

the AWESOME compleX, 08 Aug 2008
i decided to read this on th basis tht it shud be quite gd!
hwever this is probably one of the best comic collections ive ever read!
fantastic, great artwork and a great story!!

this story really tied up a lot of loose ends and opened a hell of a lot more too!

this is an essential read for ne, xmen, marvel, comic fan...but this is such an exciting read that it allows even a general reader into the world of the xmen!

the truly gr8 story and def the best since M-Day! in my opinion!

The Best of the Best, 06 Aug 2008
This is the best X-men story in a long time am not going to give anything away but with all the x-men teams X-Factor and various villains and certain betrayal's within the teams this is well worth the read. I recomend this to any new fan or old. Messiah Complex rules.

First big X-men crossover in ages and it's great., 11 Jul 2008
What can I say about this, the art is a mixed bag aside from a few chapters it is pretty consistant in style. It ties up many loose ends from the various x-men comics it also sets about changing everything. Which is good as there have been a number of long term problems with the x-men books. It is a pretty epic story and in someways could have been longer to fully show the scale of events. A minor niggle.

As a big sceptic when it comes to "epic" events, this has brought my hope back, 16 Jun 2008
Okay, I collected house of M and every other title with it, I bought Civil was and every other title with it and these two really made me sceptical about marvel's epic stories, I read World War Hulk which I wasnt expecting much from anyway but this story right here is brilliant. Firstly, when I was reading it, I didnt have to wait a month for the next story but more importantly secondly, it was a great story, some good twists and some great battles. Okay, People do die, though they arn't significant (and some have died before, lol).

I would definitly advise people to read it as it threads loads of different stories together to create an epic tale.

Poor and disappointing, 28 Jun 2008
Having been collecting comics for 25 years and owning thousands I consider myself to have a wide variety of examples of what makes a good strip. This book does not constitute one of these examples, as although the art is good it is the poor content that brings me to this conclusion.

The most annoying thing for me was the style of the letterer for the whole book, everything is in caps SO IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYONE IS SHOUTING ALL THE TIME. Poor choice not to use lowercase at all and just think of an annoying board post or email you have ever received from someone who types in caps. Large sections of Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor and Breaking Quarantine don't have any dialogue anyway, so that doesn't apply there.

Last Voyage is the longest story and I was confused by the art and it just passed me by. Armor Testing ended before it began and Breaking Quarantine is irritating by its complete lack of dialogue, just consisting of strip and despite saying it fills in the blank of Johnson's escape from the Flood, it doesn't. It looks like it got printed before the SHOUTING LETTERER got a chance to mangle it and as non-dialogue strip is uncommon it always looks strange anyway. The only story I did enjoy was Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa, but as with three of the four strips it is far too short and rushed.

That is the major flaw with this `collection', they seem to be rushed, short filler stories where it could have worked so much better as one full length novel especially as it is padded out at the end with 26 pages of gallery pictures, nearly twice as many pages as three of the four strips occupy. Of 128 pages only 85 pages are strip.

If you're a Halo extremist then I suppose it would be part of owning a collection, but even with my love of the games and extended universe I could have lived without ever reading or owning this which is a shame as I was looking forward to getting it. Ultimately it is an attempt at a pretentious coffee table book complete with pompous and arty explanations of what the creators were trying to convey. Again, shame they didn't invest the pages used for that in strip but I suppose it saved on printing costs.

If you have £10.99 to spend on Halo books then I would suggest you forget this and buy the text novels, the first three give an infinitely more enjoyable background story to the fall of Reach, what happened on Halo outside of the game storyline and the Human fight back of First Strike than this ever could. They should have left it to the academics to write theses on the cultural impact of Halo and kept the graphic novel for reading enjoyment.


nice but shallow., 06 Mar 2008
At the price you can get it here, there is no excuse not to own this book if you're even remotely interested in Halo, Comics or interesting artwork.

All of the comics are densely illustrated with strong plots and good readability. The extra stand alone artworks in the back are also excellent.

But its by no means perfect. None of the main comics are particularly long and they all end rather abruptly.
Even the longest, Last voyage of the Infinite Soccur, feels as though its was heavily cut down. The ending is very anti climactic. There is very little effort to explore the character of Half Jaw and his unit. Nor is there much development of the flood, which is supposed to be the point of the whole story.

Similarly the explanations of each story is quite brief. The entire book feels very much like it was rushed.

But what is there is all excellent.

Brilliant!, 14 Dec 2007
A brilliant book to own if you love or are interested in the Halo Trilogy!

Marvel publishings dida great job on this book! They got some great artists and some great writters to work on the various stories within this book!
Some superb artwork, which is different in each story, as each story is different and has a different artist and writter!

Plus, at the back, there is a fantastic picture gallery with some top notch Halo still life action pictures!

Well worth picking up, a must have for Halo fanatics!

Rob

Diverse stories of a large galaxy, 19 Apr 2007
At first when I picked this up it was in a sealed packet and the cover has the Master Chief on the front, I was expecting stories of him and his adventures. But when I started it I realised it wasn't.

The book is essentially four different comics, of different stories by different artists and writers. I enjoyed it, both from the stories and the art.

Each tale is of someone in the setting of Halo. The stories fill in some background that we never knew from the games, this was a positive thing for me. The art styles all are very different, I had a big happiness at the Slaine-esque art that reminded me of being 10.

After the comics is a short discussion from the art team member incharge of making the graphic novel. She describes her passions and the processes in making the graphic novel. It goes into some depth and gives the making of problems and solutions.

If you are into finding out about how others have designed and developed ideas, I reccomend the graphic novel purely for this. If you have an interest in the Halo story it is also a big plus.

REALLY REALLY S**T!, 01 Aug 2006
Lets get one thing clear, i LOVE HALO. i love the game, i love the books (buy them their better) and i love the whole storyline. BUT when i brought this book or graphic novel as they like to call it, i was so ticked off about how much i spent on so little. the layouts good and feels nice and solid it felt but that was the only good thing, and lets be honest that sucked. I had waited for this book since the beginning of the year and man was i disapponited. There are 4 storys, 1 of them if pretty good and is actually like a comic, the second is just about the suit that master chief wears (yey), teh third is about how johnson escaped the flood but only in the 'weapon cache' part not the rest of the story and the fourth which i thought would be amazing was the worst. that layout of it sucked, the colours used sucked and the storyline for it, guess what, it sucked too!
when i brought this to be honest i did have to higher hopes of it being good and about Master Chief's fight against the convenent, but you only see the big man once and thats at the very beginning. i seriously think that if your going to buy this try to get it cheap, like here or ebay.

the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dark And Magnificently ominous, 11 Nov 2008
I bought this beacause i loved to tower series and thankfully was not let down. The comics storyline is from dark tower 4 wizard and glass when the main character is a teenager, he is sent from his home and finds love loss and hurt. As a comic it give you an imaginative and amazing take on how it could have looked from Kings point of view, drawn by the great Jae Lee and Richard Isanove and adapted by king himself makes in whole a great piece of art and fiction. you dont even need to be a fan to enjoy this comic.

Unputdownable!, 26 Aug 2008
This is brilliant. Speaking as someone who doesn't read Graphic Novels and who has never read the Dark Tower books - I loved this and I read it over two nights and was sorry when I came to the end. The artwork is beautiful and the tale gripping. The only minor complaint is that this is set in a very macho world and there is at times the vaguest suggestion that it was written by someone who hates women. However, if you can put that aside this is a wonderful read.

Wizard and Glass, the illustrated cliffnotes editition, 27 Mar 2008
If you've read/are reading the dark tower series do not expect anything new. Having just finished volume 4 i picked up the graphic novel which was basically an illustrated version of the events of 4. Don't get me wrong the artwork is supreme (as one would expect from marvel) and comic isn't bad. BUT it's like reading the book i just finished again. Ultimatly i didnt finish the graphic novel as i didnt feel the need to. The story is good though so perhaps after a while i'll be able to read it. For the moment it remains on my shelf.

great comic book adaption of wizard and glass, 24 Mar 2008
ive read all of stephen kings dark tower books and i was impressed by marvels first graphic novel of the saga. the artwork is amazing and im suprised how true this book is to the original novel. for those of you who have read the dark tower books before and wonder wether you shud check this out i say go for it, there is some great artwork put to kings story and i cant wait for the next part. for those of you who are unfamiliar with kings dark tower check it out if you like dark, gothic, fantasy, horror. say thankeer sai :)

A stunning venture into the world of the Dark Tower, 16 Jan 2008
Stephen King's The Dark Tower is a seven book epic following the journey of gunslinger Roland Deschian on his quest to the Dark Tower. In book 4, Wizard and Glass, Roland tells of his youth and the time he became a true gunslinger. It is this story that we follow in The Gunslinger Born, a comic adaption of The Dark Tower overseen by Stephen King, drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. The Gunslinger Born collects all seven of the comics that were released individually in one stunning hardback.

We join a fourteen year old Roland as he discovers his mother's adultery with Marten, his reaction to this is anger and he challenges Cort, the one that trains the young gunslingers. If he fails he must leave Gilead in shame. Should he win, he will be the youngest gunslinger, pushing his father into second place by two years. Roland triumphs and becomes a gunslinger, although not yet able to take on the sandalwood grip guns of his father, he has his own first set.

His father returns to Gilead, aware of his wife's affair and disappointed in Roland for reacting the way he did. To protect Roland, his father send him and his two closest friends, Alain and Cuthbert, to Mejis in order to gather information on the activities there and to see if Farson, the one leading an attack on Gilead and its surroundings, has influenced the inhabitants and using resources that are needed for the alliance. It is in Mejis that Roland meets Susan, and in doing so changes his destiny forever.

The graphical style of the comics are truly impressive, with both artists doing a superb job on them. For myself, a long time fan of The Dark Tower books, the collection is a great new experince on some of my favourite stories from them. Even for a first time reader, this is a great introduction to Roland's world. As I said before, as it is basically a shortened version of the events we are told in Wizard and Glass, but it is still an amazing story and Robin Furth and Peter David have done a great job in adapting and scripting the events to suit comic book format.

All I can add is that I hope further comic books are done on Roland's life, and if we could get some new stories that between the time of these events and those in The Gunslinger (the first Dark Tower book) it would be even better. Whatever happens, I'll buy more of these if they are ever made and thoroughly enjoyed my first venture into Gilead and Mejis in this form.

The Rebirth of the X-men, 20 Nov 2008
If you are a fan of the X-men comic book then this is truly required reading. First off, make sure you are reasonably up to date with the main X story arcs of the last few years, namely House of M, Decimation, Deadly Genesis and Endangered Species otherwise you are going to have a real problem in following most of the action. While I readily admit that Messiah Complex is by no means perfect, it is most definately the best Marvel crossover in a long time, with most story arcs fitting together quite neatly. This book is also important as it marks the moment when the X-groups are no longer Xaviers responsibility and become Cyclop's X-men.

the AWESOME compleX, 08 Aug 2008
i decided to read this on th basis tht it shud be quite gd!
hwever this is probably one of the best comic collections ive ever read!
fantastic, great artwork and a great story!!

this story really tied up a lot of loose ends and opened a hell of a lot more too!

this is an essential read for ne, xmen, marvel, comic fan...but this is such an exciting read that it allows even a general reader into the world of the xmen!

the truly gr8 story and def the best since M-Day! in my opinion!

The Best of the Best, 06 Aug 2008
This is the best X-men story in a long time am not going to give anything away but with all the x-men teams X-Factor and various villains and certain betrayal's within the teams this is well worth the read. I recomend this to any new fan or old. Messiah Complex rules.

First big X-men crossover in ages and it's great., 11 Jul 2008
What can I say about this, the art is a mixed bag aside from a few chapters it is pretty consistant in style. It ties up many loose ends from the various x-men comics it also sets about changing everything. Which is good as there have been a number of long term problems with the x-men books. It is a pretty epic story and in someways could have been longer to fully show the scale of events. A minor niggle.

As a big sceptic when it comes to "epic" events, this has brought my hope back, 16 Jun 2008
Okay, I collected house of M and every other title with it, I bought Civil was and every other title with it and these two really made me sceptical about marvel's epic stories, I read World War Hulk which I wasnt expecting much from anyway but this story right here is brilliant. Firstly, when I was reading it, I didnt have to wait a month for the next story but more importantly secondly, it was a great story, some good twists and some great battles. Okay, People do die, though they arn't significant (and some have died before, lol).

I would definitly advise people to read it as it threads loads of different stories together to create an epic tale.

Poor and disappointing, 28 Jun 2008
Having been collecting comics for 25 years and owning thousands I consider myself to have a wide variety of examples of what makes a good strip. This book does not constitute one of these examples, as although the art is good it is the poor content that brings me to this conclusion.

The most annoying thing for me was the style of the letterer for the whole book, everything is in caps SO IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYONE IS SHOUTING ALL THE TIME. Poor choice not to use lowercase at all and just think of an annoying board post or email you have ever received from someone who types in caps. Large sections of Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor and Breaking Quarantine don't have any dialogue anyway, so that doesn't apply there.

Last Voyage is the longest story and I was confused by the art and it just passed me by. Armor Testing ended before it began and Breaking Quarantine is irritating by its complete lack of dialogue, just consisting of strip and despite saying it fills in the blank of Johnson's escape from the Flood, it doesn't. It looks like it got printed before the SHOUTING LETTERER got a chance to mangle it and as non-dialogue strip is uncommon it always looks strange anyway. The only story I did enjoy was Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa, but as with three of the four strips it is far too short and rushed.

That is the major flaw with this `collection', they seem to be rushed, short filler stories where it could have worked so much better as one full length novel especially as it is padded out at the end with 26 pages of gallery pictures, nearly twice as many pages as three of the four strips occupy. Of 128 pages only 85 pages are strip.

If you're a Halo extremist then I suppose it would be part of owning a collection, but even with my love of the games and extended universe I could have lived without ever reading or owning this which is a shame as I was looking forward to getting it. Ultimately it is an attempt at a pretentious coffee table book complete with pompous and arty explanations of what the creators were trying to convey. Again, shame they didn't invest the pages used for that in strip but I suppose it saved on printing costs.

If you have £10.99 to spend on Halo books then I would suggest you forget this and buy the text novels, the first three give an infinitely more enjoyable background story to the fall of Reach, what happened on Halo outside of the game storyline and the Human fight back of First Strike than this ever could. They should have left it to the academics to write theses on the cultural impact of Halo and kept the graphic novel for reading enjoyment.


nice but shallow., 06 Mar 2008
At the price you can get it here, there is no excuse not to own this book if you're even remotely interested in Halo, Comics or interesting artwork.

All of the comics are densely illustrated with strong plots and good readability. The extra stand alone artworks in the back are also excellent.

But its by no means perfect. None of the main comics are particularly long and they all end rather abruptly.
Even the longest, Last voyage of the Infinite Soccur, feels as though its was heavily cut down. The ending is very anti climactic. There is very little effort to explore the character of Half Jaw and his unit. Nor is there much development of the flood, which is supposed to be the point of the whole story.

Similarly the explanations of each story is quite brief. The entire book feels very much like it was rushed.

But what is there is all excellent.

Brilliant!, 14 Dec 2007
A brilliant book to own if you love or are interested in the Halo Trilogy!

Marvel publishings dida great job on this book! They got some great artists and some great writters to work on the various stories within this book!
Some superb artwork, which is different in each story, as each story is different and has a different artist and writter!

Plus, at the back, there is a fantastic picture gallery with some top notch Halo still life action pictures!

Well worth picking up, a must have for Halo fanatics!

Rob

Diverse stories of a large galaxy, 19 Apr 2007
At first when I picked this up it was in a sealed packet and the cover has the Master Chief on the front, I was expecting stories of him and his adventures. But when I started it I realised it wasn't.

The book is essentially four different comics, of different stories by different artists and writers. I enjoyed it, both from the stories and the art.

Each tale is of someone in the setting of Halo. The stories fill in some background that we never knew from the games, this was a positive thing for me. The art styles all are very different, I had a big happiness at the Slaine-esque art that reminded me of being 10.

After the comics is a short discussion from the art team member incharge of making the graphic novel. She describes her passions and the processes in making the graphic novel. It goes into some depth and gives the making of problems and solutions.

If you are into finding out about how others have designed and developed ideas, I reccomend the graphic novel purely for this. If you have an interest in the Halo story it is also a big plus.

REALLY REALLY S**T!, 01 Aug 2006
Lets get one thing clear, i LOVE HALO. i love the game, i love the books (buy them their better) and i love the whole storyline. BUT when i brought this book or graphic novel as they like to call it, i was so ticked off about how much i spent on so little. the layouts good and feels nice and solid it felt but that was the only good thing, and lets be honest that sucked. I had waited for this book since the beginning of the year and man was i disapponited. There are 4 storys, 1 of them if pretty good and is actually like a comic, the second is just about the suit that master chief wears (yey), teh third is about how johnson escaped the flood but only in the 'weapon cache' part not the rest of the story and the fourth which i thought would be amazing was the worst. that layout of it sucked, the colours used sucked and the storyline for it, guess what, it sucked too!
when i brought this to be honest i did have to higher hopes of it being good and about Master Chief's fight against the convenent, but you only see the big man once and thats at the very beginning. i seriously think that if your going to buy this try to get it cheap, like here or ebay.

In retrospect, the logical evolution of Tony Stark/ironman , 30 Nov 2008
In Iron man's extremis, Tony Stark is hellishly injured, while trying to take down some thugs. Facing death, Stark makes a choice that completely heals him... but has various ramifications down the road. On one hand, Tony is a better Iron man, functioning at capacities all together unheard of. On the other hand...Tony might have just put his humanity on hold in ways that don't really hit him until a friend's death in Civil War.

This graphic novel is more an exploration of Tony's intimate dealings with technology, and how it changes his world view (as well as what he can do). This can be read as a one shot, as well as laying ground for the even better Extremis execute.

The pencils are great, in that Granov does an excellent IM armour. If nothing else, in these books running up to the Civil war, the new designs for IM armour is really sleek, no where like the blocky designs of the eighties/nineties. The naugties armour is sweet. But I must say, I'm not a fan of digital shading, in that it makes the faces look odd, and at times, the art has a rather muddy cast to it.

Good graphic novel to pick up if you want to dip your feet back into comics again.



Just stunning, 03 Feb 2008
Warren Ellis tales this tale of the reinvention of Tony Stark as Iron Man in preperation for the Civil War. The story is gripping, with all the characterisations done perfectly. The characters feel like real people, with flaws and emotions rather than just wise-cracking bad guys, heroes and side-kicks, which is really where Ellis comes into his own in my opinion.
Next, the artwork. Adi Granov is truly a master of comic art. Every page is so amazingly done, some of the images I had to flick back to once I'd turned the page just to look at them again. The lack of typical comic sound effects also works with the ultra-realistic artwork to make this story about such a larger than life character feel deeply routed in the real world.

If you like comics at all, even if you're not a Marvel fan, buy this. I started collecting Iron Man from here and it has instantly become one of the best runs I own, even standing proudly next to Captain America.

An absolute MUST HAVE.

A good introduction to the Iron Man World, 12 Mar 2007
This is one of the best Iron Man stories to date, in my opinion. The Writing is excellent and the images are just beautiful. This book will give you a good foundation and will allow you to read any iron man story and know the basics.

It covers the origin story of Iron Man in a clear precise way, yet is still interesting if you already know it. The book brings up various issues with Tony Stark, and his guilt of being an arms dealer.

A must buy for anyone who likes Iron Man or wants ti get involved.

Beautiful art, engaging and self-contained story, 09 Sep 2006
Adi Granov's art is worth the money alone. It is extraordinarily beautiful and the storytelling is concise and a pleasure to read.

Ellis' story is thoroughly absorbing and the characterisation is, to me, faultless. Also, the reader does not need a background in the Marvel Universe to enjoy this book; a rare pleasure.

This book was a highlight of my reading this year and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

the tale continues, 04 Nov 2008
Its been about a year since i read the gunslinger born. In the time between reading that ad this, the long road home i have read 5 stephen king novels, and a multitude of marvel graphic novels. They were good, but the are all just a pillar for this.

In my own opinion, surely not everyones, but if your reading this you might agree, that the dark tower series is one of the best fantasy series of all time. The question is what does the long road home add to that?

Without ruining the story, ill say that it adds a considerable amount of knowledge we previously never had about the crimson king, as well as doing what it says on the cover, adding to the gap years between the barony of mejis and jericho hill.

I do have to say the artwork is once again brilliant, with a lot of effort being put into the book. Once again hard bound in leather straight away you are getting value for money. The writing is good, but recognisably comic dialogue rather than novel dialogue. Its snappish, witty, and not a word is ever wasted.

There are 2 bad points about this book though, as happy as i am with it. The first is that the plotline is very thin. not a lot really happens, i can see this being a set-up for another book down the line. The other thing is i dont see it being instantly accessible to those who have never read the novels. There are references to other books than the wizard and glass in here.

One final thing, at the back is a map, which shows the path roland took on his journey in wolves of calla, song of susannah and the dark tower.

Even if you arent a fan of graphic novels in the slightest if you want the dark tower you will enjoy this.

A long road ahead, 10 Oct 2008

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dark And Magnificently ominous, 11 Nov 2008
I bought this beacause i loved to tower series and thankfully was not let down. The comics storyline is from dark tower 4 wizard and glass when the main character is a teenager, he is sent from his home and finds love loss and hurt. As a comic it give you an imaginative and amazing take on how it could have looked from Kings point of view, drawn by the great Jae Lee and Richard Isanove and adapted by king himself makes in whole a great piece of art and fiction. you dont even need to be a fan to enjoy this comic.

Unputdownable!, 26 Aug 2008
This is brilliant. Speaking as someone who doesn't read Graphic Novels and who has never read the Dark Tower books - I loved this and I read it over two nights and was sorry when I came to the end. The artwork is beautiful and the tale gripping. The only minor complaint is that this is set in a very macho world and there is at times the vaguest suggestion that it was written by someone who hates women. However, if you can put that aside this is a wonderful read.

Wizard and Glass, the illustrated cliffnotes editition, 27 Mar 2008
If you've read/are reading the dark tower series do not expect anything new. Having just finished volume 4 i picked up the graphic novel which was basically an illustrated version of the events of 4. Don't get me wrong the artwork is supreme (as one would expect from marvel) and comic isn't bad. BUT it's like reading the book i just finished again. Ultimatly i didnt finish the graphic novel as i didnt feel the need to. The story is good though so perhaps after a while i'll be able to read it. For the moment it remains on my shelf.

great comic book adaption of wizard and glass, 24 Mar 2008
ive read all of stephen kings dark tower books and i was impressed by marvels first graphic novel of the saga. the artwork is amazing and im suprised how true this book is to the original novel. for those of you who have read the dark tower books before and wonder wether you shud check this out i say go for it, there is some great artwork put to kings story and i cant wait for the next part. for those of you who are unfamiliar with kings dark tower check it out if you like dark, gothic, fantasy, horror. say thankeer sai :)

A stunning venture into the world of the Dark Tower, 16 Jan 2008
Stephen King's The Dark Tower is a seven book epic following the journey of gunslinger Roland Deschian on his quest to the Dark Tower. In book 4, Wizard and Glass, Roland tells of his youth and the time he became a true gunslinger. It is this story that we follow in The Gunslinger Born, a comic adaption of The Dark Tower overseen by Stephen King, drawn by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, adapted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. The Gunslinger Born collects all seven of the comics that were released individually in one stunning hardback.

We join a fourteen year old Roland as he discovers his mother's adultery with Marten, his reaction to this is anger and he challenges Cort, the one that trains the young gunslingers. If he fails he must leave Gilead in shame. Should he win, he will be the youngest gunslinger, pushing his father into second place by two years. Roland triumphs and becomes a gunslinger, although not yet able to take on the sandalwood grip guns of his father, he has his own first set.

His father returns to Gilead, aware of his wife's affair and disappointed in Roland for reacting the way he did. To protect Roland, his father send him and his two closest friends, Alain and Cuthbert, to Mejis in order to gather information on the activities there and to see if Farson, the one leading an attack on Gilead and its surroundings, has influenced the inhabitants and using resources that are needed for the alliance. It is in Mejis that Roland meets Susan, and in doing so changes his destiny forever.

The graphical style of the comics are truly impressive, with both artists doing a superb job on them. For myself, a long time fan of The Dark Tower books, the collection is a great new experince on some of my favourite stories from them. Even for a first time reader, this is a great introduction to Roland's world. As I said before, as it is basically a shortened version of the events we are told in Wizard and Glass, but it is still an amazing story and Robin Furth and Peter David have done a great job in adapting and scripting the events to suit comic book format.

All I can add is that I hope further comic books are done on Roland's life, and if we could get some new stories that between the time of these events and those in The Gunslinger (the first Dark Tower book) it would be even better. Whatever happens, I'll buy more of these if they are ever made and thoroughly enjoyed my first venture into Gilead and Mejis in this form.

The Rebirth of the X-men, 20 Nov 2008
If you are a fan of the X-men comic book then this is truly required reading. First off, make sure you are reasonably up to date with the main X story arcs of the last few years, namely House of M, Decimation, Deadly Genesis and Endangered Species otherwise you are going to have a real problem in following most of the action. While I readily admit that Messiah Complex is by no means perfect, it is most definately the best Marvel crossover in a long time, with most story arcs fitting together quite neatly. This book is also important as it marks the moment when the X-groups are no longer Xaviers responsibility and become Cyclop's X-men.

the AWESOME compleX, 08 Aug 2008
i decided to read this on th basis tht it shud be quite gd!
hwever this is probably one of the best comic collections ive ever read!
fantastic, great artwork and a great story!!

this story really tied up a lot of loose ends and opened a hell of a lot more too!

this is an essential read for ne, xmen, marvel, comic fan...but this is such an exciting read that it allows even a general reader into the world of the xmen!

the truly gr8 story and def the best since M-Day! in my opinion!

The Best of the Best, 06 Aug 2008
This is the best X-men story in a long time am not going to give anything away but with all the x-men teams X-Factor and various villains and certain betrayal's within the teams this is well worth the read. I recomend this to any new fan or old. Messiah Complex rules.

First big X-men crossover in ages and it's great., 11 Jul 2008
What can I say about this, the art is a mixed bag aside from a few chapters it is pretty consistant in style. It ties up many loose ends from the various x-men comics it also sets about changing everything. Which is good as there have been a number of long term problems with the x-men books. It is a pretty epic story and in someways could have been longer to fully show the scale of events. A minor niggle.

As a big sceptic when it comes to "epic" events, this has brought my hope back, 16 Jun 2008
Okay, I collected house of M and every other title with it, I bought Civil was and every other title with it and these two really made me sceptical about marvel's epic stories, I read World War Hulk which I wasnt expecting much from anyway but this story right here is brilliant. Firstly, when I was reading it, I didnt have to wait a month for the next story but more importantly secondly, it was a great story, some good twists and some great battles. Okay, People do die, though they arn't significant (and some have died before, lol).

I would definitly advise people to read it as it threads loads of different stories together to create an epic tale.

Poor and disappointing, 28 Jun 2008
Having been collecting comics for 25 years and owning thousands I consider myself to have a wide variety of examples of what makes a good strip. This book does not constitute one of these examples, as although the art is good it is the poor content that brings me to this conclusion.

The most annoying thing for me was the style of the letterer for the whole book, everything is in caps SO IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYONE IS SHOUTING ALL THE TIME. Poor choice not to use lowercase at all and just think of an annoying board post or email you have ever received from someone who types in caps. Large sections of Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor and Breaking Quarantine don't have any dialogue anyway, so that doesn't apply there.

Last Voyage is the longest story and I was confused by the art and it just passed me by. Armor Testing ended before it began and Breaking Quarantine is irritating by its complete lack of dialogue, just consisting of strip and despite saying it fills in the blank of Johnson's escape from the Flood, it doesn't. It looks like it got printed before the SHOUTING LETTERER got a chance to mangle it and as non-dialogue strip is uncommon it always looks strange anyway. The only story I did enjoy was Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa, but as with three of the four strips it is far too short and rushed.

That is the major flaw with this `collection', they seem to be rushed, short filler stories where it could have worked so much better as one full length novel especially as it is padded out at the end with 26 pages of gallery pictures, nearly twice as many pages as three of the four strips occupy. Of 128 pages only 85 pages are strip.

If you're a Halo extremist then I suppose it would be part of owning a collection, but even with my love of the games and extended universe I could have lived without ever reading or owning this which is a shame as I was looking forward to getting it. Ultimately it is an attempt at a pretentious coffee table book complete with pompous and arty explanations of what the creators were trying to convey. Again, shame they didn't invest the pages used for that in strip but I suppose it saved on printing costs.

If you have £10.99 to spend on Halo books then I would suggest you forget this and buy the text novels, the first three give an infinitely more enjoyable background story to the fall of Reach, what happened on Halo outside of the game storyline and the Human fight back of First Strike than this ever could. They should have left it to the academics to write theses on the cultural impact of Halo and kept the graphic novel for reading enjoyment.


nice but shallow., 06 Mar 2008
At the price you can get it here, there is no excuse not to own this book if you're even remotely interested in Halo, Comics or interesting artwork.

All of the comics are densely illustrated with strong plots and good readability. The extra stand alone artworks in the back are also excellent.

But its by no means perfect. None of the main comics are particularly long and they all end rather abruptly.
Even the longest, Last voyage of the Infinite Soccur, feels as though its was heavily cut down. The ending is very anti climactic. There is very little effort to explore the character of Half Jaw and his unit. Nor is there much development of the flood, which is supposed to be the point of the whole story.

Similarly the explanations of each story is quite brief. The entire book feels very much like it was rushed.

But what is there is all excellent.

Brilliant!, 14 Dec 2007
A brilliant book to own if you love or are interested in the Halo Trilogy!

Marvel publishings dida great job on this book! They got some great artists and some great writters to work on the various stories within this book!
Some superb artwork, which is different in each story, as each story is different and has a different artist and writter!

Plus, at the back, there is a fantastic picture gallery with some top notch Halo still life action pictures!

Well worth picking up, a must have for Halo fanatics!

Rob

Diverse stories of a large galaxy, 19 Apr 2007
At first when I picked this up it was in a sealed packet and the cover has the Master Chief on the front, I was expecting stories of him and his adventures. But when I started it I realised it wasn't.

The book is essentially four different comics, of different stories by different artists and writers. I enjoyed it, both from the stories and the art.

Each tale is of someone in the setting of Halo. The stories fill in some background that we never knew from the games, this was a positive thing for me. The art styles all are very different, I had a big happiness at the Slaine-esque art that reminded me of being 10.

After the comics is a short discussion from the art team member incharge of making the graphic novel. She describes her passions and the processes in making the graphic novel. It goes into some depth and gives the making of problems and solutions.

If you are into finding out about how others have designed and developed ideas, I reccomend the graphic novel purely for this. If you have an interest in the Halo story it is also a big plus.

REALLY REALLY S**T!, 01 Aug 2006
Lets get one thing clear, i LOVE HALO. i love the game, i love the books (buy them their better) and i love the whole storyline. BUT when i brought this book or graphic novel as they like to call it, i was so ticked off about how much i spent on so little. the layouts good and feels nice and solid it felt but that was the only good thing, and lets be honest that sucked. I had waited for this book since the beginning of the year and man was i disapponited. There are 4 storys, 1 of them if pretty good and is actually like a comic, the second is just about the suit that master chief wears (yey), teh third is about how johnson escaped the flood but only in the 'weapon cache' part not the rest of the story and the fourth which i thought would be amazing was the worst. that layout of it sucked, the colours used sucked and the storyline for it, guess what, it sucked too!
when i brought this to be honest i did have to higher hopes of it being good and about Master Chief's fight against the convenent, but you only see the big man once and thats at the very beginning. i seriously think that if your going to buy this try to get it cheap, like here or ebay.

In retrospect, the logical evolution of Tony Stark/ironman , 30 Nov 2008
In Iron man's extremis, Tony Stark is hellishly injured, while trying to take down some thugs. Facing death, Stark makes a choice that completely heals him... but has various ramifications down the road. On one hand, Tony is a better Iron man, functioning at capacities all together unheard of. On the other hand...Tony might have just put his humanity on hold in ways that don't really hit him until a friend's death in Civil War.

This graphic novel is more an exploration of Tony's intimate dealings