Graphic Novel Review: Watchmen

I can't believe I never read this before. It's won a Hugo award for a category that was created so that it can win a Hugo award. It was up for a Pulitzer, and is the only graphic novel to make Time Magazine's 100 Greatest Literary Works of the 20th Century.

Honestly, as a self professed Geek, I should have done this long ago. It's not like I have any aversion to the Graphic Novel form. Occasionally a comic will pass before my eyes if the story is promising enough.

But with the recent trend to adapting some of these higher end stories into film, I decided I would take the drastic step of actually reading one before the film came out this time.

And let me tell you something, if you had your choice of only reading one Graphic Novel in your life, you would most undoubtedly read Watchmen.

For the uninitiated, Watchmen is the story of an alternate 1985, where the existence of super heroes has lead to an American dominance in the Cold War. However this has lead to an increasingly desperate Soviet Union coming closer and closer to causing nuclear Armageddon. The tone of the people on the street is an increasing feeling of despair as the doomsday clock sits permanently at 5 minutes to midnight. Amiss all this, a seemingly random person is murdered. The character Rorschach, one of the last costumed vigilantes after their outlaw, decides to investigate, an investigation that has farther more terrifying consequences then he could have ever suspected.

Structurally speaking, the story is written very much like a season of the show Lost (and it has been cited as an influence on that show), in that as the main plot moves along through the story we are given flashbacks and details about the main characters past. However, unlike the aforementioned show, it never feels like filler and you come to appreciate it as you understand the characters actions and motives.

The first and foremost thing about this work is the great pain writer Alan Moore went to make the characters as human as possible. Each character is unique in its own way, but is oddly understandable. You can actually imagine meeting some of these characters, not as great figures, but as a normal person you may find in everyday travels. As you read this, you see and understand their struggles and can emphasize with their decisions.

The setting of the nature of the world around them translates well into our own time, not just the time it was publish. Fear and uncertainty plague the characters, with many of them asking whether or not humanity is even worth fighting for, a quintessential question of our existence being debated by people who have the power to change the world.

And essentially, that is the fundamental commentary of this book, Power. How it effects you, how you use it wisely, or how you can misuse it, and what happens when human flaws are entered into the equation.

Another thing to note is the sheer density of this book and the creative touches used to pack the pages full of extra content and reading that more then rewards those who wish to take a second or even third pass at it.

It isn't for the squeamish. It is pretty much the comic book equivalent of an R rated movie. It is a very mature story, and I wouldn't recommend it to any children anytime soon. Chances are they wouldn't get any enjoyment out of it anyways.

But, if you can, whatever you do, buy a copy of this book and read it. You will be rewarded.

Now I leave you with the trailer to the upcoming film adaptation to give you a little taste into the Watchmen world: