The final issue of the Dark Tower: Fall of Gilead series is upon us and with it comes carnage and bloodshed of epic proportions. With his father dead and a good portion of the gunslingers either dead or turned traitor, Roland Deschain finds himself thrust in the role of Dinh far earlier than he ever expected. Leading a group of inexperienced and newly-minted gunslingers, Roland concocts a plan to utilize the kingdom’s ancient defenses, dormant since before the days of his great-grandfather, against the armies of John Farson. Insanely outnumbered and outgunned, things aren’t exactly looking good for Roland & Co. But I guess the title of the book sort of suggested that, didn’t it?
And all I’ve really got to say is “Damn!” The creative team of Furth, David and Isanove has got it down to a science by now. Filling in the gaps and fleshing out ideas only suggested by Stephen King in his Dark Tower series and making it fit seamlessly with the larger story of the novels.
This issue tells the story of the battle in which the greatest kingdom of Mid-World was lost in the days before the world moved on and there is a very real sense of danger throughout. The majority of the issue is told in “real time” during the height of the battle, with flashback scenes intercut throughout. Isanove uses color to great advantage here, as the days leading up to the siege are filled with bright colors of hope that serve to underscore the danger and sadness of the battle.
DARK TOWER: THE FALL OF GILEAD #6
And the battle itself is beyond amazing. Shades of the Lord of the Rings films and Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards can be seen throughout and one can imagine Frank Frazetta smiling proudly if he read this book, as his influence is quite obvious. Farson’s General Grissom looks as though he’d be right at home on the battlefield next to Frazetta’s Death Dealer or Tolkien’s Ringwraiths: which is exactly as it should be. The Dark Tower series borrows heavily from basically every other fantasy epic that has come before it, so it’s only fitting that the art in the comic book seems reminds us of them as well.
I haven’t had too many bad things to say about this mini-series or the Dark Tower series as a whole, and that isn’t going to change with this issue. It was everything I’d hoped for and more and it leaves me salivating for the next installment of the series, the Battle of Jericho Hill. This was the issue fans have been waiting for and the payoff was awesome! After many long issues filled with treachery, deceit and political maneuvering, it was great to finally get a big ol’ clash of titans. Not to mention the backup material featuring Richard Isanove’s black and white artwork, a couple of sketches and some insight from Robin Furth that actually make the book worth the $3.99 price tag.
Well done: I’m actually going to go ahead and give it an A+.
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