The Stand by Stephen King
I’m just under halfway through this incredibly long and detailed story. I started it just after the 3rd anniversary of the start of the Covid pandemic which somehow seemed like a good idea. Thankfully our outbreak wasn’t as extreme as that in The Stand – almost the entire population of America (possibly the world) wiped out in approximately 2 weeks by a human engineered weaponised flu virus.
The plot develops into a dark fantasy battle between good and evil as the survivors gravitate towards two distinct communities that seem destined to clash.
However, it starts with the story of how the outbreak began and spread, the small group of survivors and how they coped as the world died around them.
Having lived through our own much less virulent pandemic it was a little bit close to the bone. It especially brought back memories of those scary reports from Italy when it seemed like Covid was unstoppable. It was also felt frighteningly realistic when describing how the virus was developed, tested and eventually how it escaped. The real horror though was the attempted cover-up. That also felt too real for comfort.
The other feeling I’m getting from the story and the reason that prompted this post before finishing the book, is that it seems to me to be one of the big inspirations for the storyline of The Walking Dead.
The zombies in The Walking Dead are caused by an unknown virus and the survivors are immune and untouched by some unknown freak of nature or genetics until they are killed and then reanimate. What is less obvious though is the inspiration for some of the characters.
Negan is one of the most evil protagonists in the TV show and so much of his character seems inspired by Randall Flagg who is also known as “The Walking Man“. So many of Negan’s behaviours, speech patterns and characteristics just scream Randall Flagg that it’s almost distracting in the book.
Eugene is one of the complicated characters from The Walking Dead. He is a cowardly and insecure man, highly intelligent and has a peculiarly individual way of speaking in overly complicated language. At one stage he is working for Negan and The Saviors. To me Eugene is directly inspired by Harold Lauder.
There are other similarities but these are the two that stand out the most to me. I wonder has anyone else found anything that I’ve missed?
the idle cyclist 
I respect Stephen King, but I haven’t read much of his work. Horror and Sci Fi always seem to close to the bone for me. Same reason I don’t watch the apocalyptic TV shows. There’s enough horrors in real life for me. But I appreciate the quick window into the comparisons.
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Bizarrely I think that’s why I enjoy King’s type of horror (Dean Koontz is also in a similar vein). It’s the believability of it all that is frightening…
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Not really a fan of his work – not my genre I suppose
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Been years since I read The Stand. Along with It, two of his greatest works. The Walking Dead came after, and though I enjoyed the TV show’s first few episodes, it really ‘jumped the shark’, and became, ironically, something of a zombie show itself. Shame really. It should have ended way sooner than it did. King’s greatest skill is his ability to create reasonably complex characters that you can believe in. The fact that it’s the horror genre often puts people off reading his stuff. But I gather you haven’t finished it yet, so I will say no more!
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IT is another wonderfully complex story. I’ve read The Stand before, about 30 years ago, but I have the benefit of forgetting stories very quickly and therefore being able to read and enjoy them multiple times. I also agree, King is much more than a “horror” writer.
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Did you enjoy the ‘It’ remake recently? Interesting choice to split the book into two films, with the first dealing solely with the children’s experiences, and the adults in the second instalment.
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Really enjoyed the latest version, the older Tim Curry version wasn’t too bad either. It really needed the two instalments to do it justice though
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Since the entire cinema jumped at the end of Carrie, horror hasn’t been my thing. I’m guessing The Stand isn’t a comedy …
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Most definitely not but not horror in the vein of Carrie. This is definitely more like dark fantasy, in fact most of King’s writing is more psychological thriller with a supernatural edge.
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I loved this book reading it qhen it came out! And the TV movie. Haven’t seen the redux.
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