Why "Watchmen" Is Still Important

Andrei Duţu-Buzura
Nov 4 · 3 min read

"Watchmen" is probably the most important comic book story ever written. Everything we know today about comic books and the huge movie culture built around them is related to the 1987 Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons Story. Even Frank Miller, another great comic book writer, admitted that the second half (last two volumes) of his greatest hit, "The Dark Knight Returns", has been influenced by Moore's and Gibbons' dark fantasy (Superman, working for the government? Batman, a blood thirsty, sadistic vigilante?). Then imitations came flowing, from the constant rehashing of DC heroes, to the "world changing" events of the Marvel universe (remember the original "Civil War" story?). And then, gritty, real world, comic book movies became a thing.

Christopher Nolan and Bryan Singer reinvented comic book movies as down to earth dramas, driven by some well known household heroes. So everybody expected a "Watchmen" movie, which had been in "production hell" since the graphic novel was released. And the Warner Studios (who actually own DC Comics) picked Zack Snyder and his particular aesthetics to make Gibbons' troubled heroes come to life (with Alan Moore refusing to relate in any way to movie adaptations of his works, he's not to be mentioned in this context, or else). And in 2009 the "Watchmen" movie came out, and the world looked up and shouted "what the hell is this thing?". Yes, it was different, yes, it was full of blood and gore and violence. Yes, the main characters where all losers, failures at life, not the glamorous Tony Stark type Robert Downey Jr. introduced on year prior in 2008’s "Iron Man". And yet, even in the studio cut that made it to the theatres (the "director's cut" and the "ultimate cut" soon to follow on home release only), it was true to the comics, 100% in spirit and 90% narratively, as it switched a big plot device with one more acceptable for the main audience. But it worked just as well as the original one, so it didn't actually matter. Rorschach dies at the end, Doctor Manhattan leaves for a more peaceful galaxy and Adrian Veidt is left to cherish his victory amongst ruins.

The "Watchmen" movie was soon forgotten by the audiences over-flooded with Marvel's Avengers stories, only to be mentioned en passant along with Snyder's other box office flops, like "Batman v Superman" or the ill fated "Justice League". The Comedian's plight and Nite Owl II's impotence faded in front of Thor's hammer or Tony and Steve's failed romance. Heroes had once again to be happy, colourful, enthusiastic, and, well… heroic. No time for real drama, no time for the real questions.

Cue 2019; after approx. 20 Marvel movies and several DC half-failures, HBO brings us the "Watchmen" series, a sequel to the original graphic novel, but partially tributary to the 2009 movie's aesthetics. It's too soon to tell if it can actually walk in its predecessor's shoes (only three episodes have aired at the moment I'm writing this) so any valid opinion has to wait. But besides that fact that "Watchmen" didn't actually need a sequel (the dreadful comic "Doomsday Clock" proves it just as well), anything "Watchmen" related has to influence the comic book culture of its age. Now, more than ever, a game changing comic book movie, series, or even actual comic, is more than welcome. And more than this, even necessary.

Back in the day, Alan Moore said that Gibbons and himself jokingly admitted that they wanted their story to make comic books stop being published. Obviously, it didn't happen. It didn't happen either after Snyder's movie; had it been released around 2015, we probably would have been spared from atrocities such as the Marvel cinematic universe. And now, with HBO's series… one can dare to dream, can't he?

Andrei Duţu-Buzura

Written by

Academic, anarchist, professional troublemaker, artist

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