Watchmen - written by Alan Moore, illustrated by Dave Gibbons
Wow! This is NOT my Uncle’s comic book. (inside
joke there only my brothers will appreciate). Regular readers of this blog will
recognize this is not my normal reading genre. I’ve wanted to read this for
years, ever since I heard it won a Hugo Award, so upsetting in Sci-Fi circles that
they changed the rules. A comic can no longer win. If you do something that
makes em change the rules…you’ve done something extraordinary.
Furthermore, in most circles it is not considered a
comic book, but rather a graphic novel. What’s the difference? Length mostly - it's like a 400 page comic book. Graphic Novelist Neil Gaiman offers this pithy distinction when responding
to a claim that he does not write comic books but graphic novels, Gaiman said
the commenter:
meant it as a compliment, I suppose. But all of a sudden I felt like someone who'd been informed that she wasn't actually a hooker; that in fact she was a lady of the evening.
So as the Gold Standard of the Graphic Novels I
wanted to give this a read, and let me now repeat – Wow! I read it in a single
day, but it will be troubling me for some days more I’m certain.
Set in an alternate history of the mid 1980s, with
flashbacks as far back as the 30s. It is a world not terribly different than our
own, with the 80s world on the precarious brink of nuclear holocaust and mutually assured destruction. It is also a world of superheroes, though more commonly
referred to as masked adventurers or vigilantes, most in forced retirement due
to public law. With one exception, the masked adventurers possess no superhuman
abilities – they are simply physically, or mentally, or technologically powerful.
They are also – damaged goods. You think Batman is dark and brooding – you should
meet Rorschach. When ordered to cease and desist by mandate of the Keene Act,
Rorschach’s response was to leave the body of a dead multiple rapist outside police
headquarters with a one word note – NEVER!
Most of the others submit to the law, until one of
their number, The Comedian is murdered in what seems to be a conspiracy to
eliminate the erstwhile crime fighters.
It is a riveting mystery that raised the question
of the ends justifying the means to an epic scale. Besides the written story that I thought was complex and fascinating, I have to say a word about the illustrations. The word “Graphic” is there for a reason. The artwork is fantastic and critical; the story would fail without the illustrations. Many panels with no words or dialogue tell an important part of the tale.
The principals:
The principals:
Hollis Mason (the original Nite Owl)
Daniel Drieberg (Nite Owl II)
Adrian Veidt (Ozymandias)
Edward Blake (The Comedian)
Laurie Juspeczyk (Silk Spectre II)
Walter Kovacs (Rorschach)
Dr. Jon Osterman (Doctor Manhatten) – The one
exception with superhuman abilities due to what else: a laboratory experiment
gone wrong.
This is the first Graphic Novel I’ve read, and
although it isn’t Shakespeare or Tolstoy, I liked it very much. I plan to give
a few more Graphic Novels a read. So what do you think of Graphic Novels: serious literary genre or childish comics?
Excerpts:
…part of
the art of being a hero is knowing when you don’t need to be one anymore… ~ Hollis Mason (Nite Owl)
I am
watching the stars… I am trying to give a name to the force that set them in
motion. ~ Dr. Jon Osterman (Doctor Manhatten)
The only
other active vigilante is called Rorschach, real name unknown. He expresses his
feelings toward compulsory retirement in a note left outside police
headquarters along with dead multiple rapist – NEVER!
Man, when
preparing for bloody war, will orate loudly and most eloquently in the name of
peace.
As they
dragged him away, Rorschach spoke to the other inmates. He said, “I’m not
locked up in here with you. You’re locked up in here with me.”
Adrian Veidt (Ozymandias) to Doctor Manhatten – “Jon, wait, before you leave…I did the right
thing, didn’t I? It all worked out in the end.
Doc Manhatten –
“In the end? NOTHING ends Adrian. Nothing EVER ends.”
.
Haha! Yea, I did a doubletake there when I saw the comic book title up for a review on here. I'm glad that you liked it though because it is one I want to read. Many people seem to love it. I saw the movie once, but was bored by it.
ReplyDeleteIf you didn't like the movie, I'm not sure you'll like the book. But who knows. I thought it was excellent, and a bit troubling. Thanks Zezee :)
DeleteI haven't yet read enough graphic novels to judge them as a group, though I'm guessing some will be more like silly comics and others more like serious fiction. I read this one years ago (maybe in college?), and I remember liking some of the characterizations - especially Rorschach. But one thing that bothered me, from what I remember, Doctor Manhattan's powers were broad and vague enough that they could be twisted around to serve the plot in ways I didn't always buy. But I'd have to re-read it to give specific examples.
ReplyDeleteYes...Rorschach was by far the most fascinating character to me. I'm sure you are correct, some graphic novels are just long comic books, some are a bit more thought provoking. This certainly was. Thanks for the feedback.
DeleteComics are the medium and graphic novel is the format.
ReplyDeleteThe definition is fuzzy, but some people wouldn't actually consider Watchmen a graphic novel, since it's a collection of serialized comic issues and wasn't originally published as a single volume.
But, either way, it's all comics. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you, but you read a comic book.
Hi Rob. I certainly agree the definition is fuzzy, but apart from that, I beg to differ. In a literal sense “comic” is a misnomer. There is nothing comic about Watchmen. It is on the other hand “graphic” (illustrated), and a “novel” – fictional prose of at least 40,000 words.
DeleteMany novels were published serially, so I don’t think that is an issue. It is one story.
However, I’m ambivalent about the label. My real question: is this literature or commercial tripe? In my opinion, it’s legitimate literature. As I said in my journal entry, I’m not equating it to Shakespeare or Tolstoy, but it is an intriguing story, with a challenging conflict, and complex characters. I’ve definitely read works that are indisputably categorized as novels, which did not make me think or feel as strongly as Watchmen did.
Thanks for the feedback Rob.