Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born TPB

I'm finally getting around to checking out Marvel's take on one of my favorite series. I was a big fan of Stephen King's Dark Tower series for years, and while the series ended with a whimper, it remains a favorite of mine based on the strength of the better chapters. This series re-tells the flashback from Wizard and Glass, one of my favorite books in the series.

The story picks up with the forces of the Affiliation, led by Stephen Deschain, facing down against the Good Man Farson and his evil hordes. (For the uninitiated, think a gun-wielding knights of th round table vs. the powers of evil.) When Roland (the titular gunslinger) has to leave his home, he heads out to the far out town of Meijs where he is to determine if the locals are supporting Farson. The story is one of youth and passion. Roland falls for local girl Susan Delgado, and while he endangers both his comrades and himself, their inherent skill leads them through. It's an upsetting story and Robin Furth and Peter David do a nice job transplanting the story into comic book form. The dialogue is filled with direct quotes, and the portions I don't remember really maintain the unique tone of the books. I'm eagerly looking forward to the next time I see "Hile gunslinger." I understand the next story is actually original, so that should be a better indicator of how well Marvel is using the property.

Jae Lee does a nice job whenever he has to draw anything creepy. The old witch, mutated animals, even the tentacled being in the thinny; they all look great. His humans look a bit too emo for me, everyone is wearing eyeliner. I think Roland looks good, it is easy to see the angst that awaits him. Cuthbert is also pretty much how he imagined him, but Alain is quite a bit softer than I imagined. All in all, the story is clear, I just prefer less mood and more clarity.

Fair