Watchmen

[Ty the Awasome]

I'm shocked there isn't already a thread for this. I'm not a huge comic book (or graphic novel), the most I've read was the early Spider-Man books. But after hearing about the movie, and all the praise for the book, I had to go out and get it. It's... well, I'd put it up there with LOTOR, the best book ever written (in my opinion, of course).

The world is so well explored, and the little things in the background are so cool. One of my favorite examples, the fire hydrant-like recharge stations. If you look at them upside down, the little outlets are smiley-faces. The characters are very well developed. Rorschach creeps me out, yet I still love him. His backstory is incredible, and that scene with the German Sheperds... amazing!

I just got it Tues., and I've been reading it over and over again.. I can't put it down! So tell me? Am I just stupid, or is Watchmen really as good as I (and everyone else, apparently) think it is?

[A_Train]

I haven't read any of it, I'm just waiting on the movie. And even though my first impression was 'this is a poor man's superhero film', I am now actually quite excited about it. It's amazing what a good, well marketed trailer can do for a film.

However, I do regret that one character looks like a bush league Batman. That is an oversight. Maybe he looked that way in the comic, but they should have tried harder in the costume department for the film.

[Ty the Awasome]

Nite Owl? Well, Moore and Gibbons have both said he wasn't based on Batman, rather, Rorschach was their Batman. However, you can see the similarities between the two. His costume and way of crimefighting is very close to Batman. His personality is way different. Where Bruce Wayne is confident, calm, and smooth around the ladies, Daniel Dreiberg is very unsure of himself, freaks out easily, and probably didn't have much contact with the opposite sex before the events of the book.

Still, be happy with his costume in the movie. They made it black, which makes it look more like Batman, ut it was brown and grey in the book. It looks good there, but I can't see it working well in a movie.

[atmospro]

The thread your looking for is Here.

Several other comments. First the graphic novel while praised beyond belief is very good for a superduper book but only average for a graphic novel. There are plenty of far far superior graphic novels out there.

Second the characters are for the most part reinterpretations of old Charlton characters (think only 1 isn't). Nite Owl is direct correlation to the old Charlton character Blue Beetle (not the new DC version). The Batman sigma comes from Dave Gibbons Batmanesque custom not the character motives or actions.

Rorschach is know where near Batman but is a direct version of The Question. This character is more of a relentless pulp detective than crime fighter like Batman.

Whether a 3 hour movie can pull this story off remains to be seen, but I doubt it.

[Ty the Awasome]

Well, I'm not talking about the movie. I already read that thread (though I got off track here a little).

Like I said, I don't read a lot of these. That's why I'm asking: is it really that great?

But if you go read some interviews with Moore (Wikipedia talks about this, but I can't confirm where it came from), Rorshach was indeed based off of the Question, but as the development of his character went on, they started making him into something different. Moore's idea was "What would Batman be like in real life? A complete psychopath". They wanted to imagine what a vigilante like Batman could actually be for real.

[atmospro]

Originally Posted by Ty the Awasome

Like I said, I don't read a lot of these. That's why I'm asking: is it really that great?

Short answer NO.
Moores own incomplete Big Numbers is way better with far superior art from Bill Sienkiewicz.

What else to read? Here's a few
Maus by Art Spiegelman
A Contract with GOD by Wil Eisner (or any of his other graphic novels)
The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot
The Black Order Brigade by by Pierre Christin and illustrated by Enki Bilal
Why I Hate Saturn by Kyle Baker
The Adventures of Luther Arkwright by Bryan Talbot (this ones a tough tough read.)
Breakfast After Noon by Andi Watson
Black Hole by Charles Burns
American Flagg! by Chaykin. Trade collect the first 14 issue is ground breaking series

[wdgrant]

Originally Posted by atmospro

Short answer NO.
Moores own incomplete Big Numbers is way better with far superior art from Bill Sienkiewicz.

What else to read? Here's a few
Maus by Art Spiegelman
A Contract with GOD by Wil Eisner (or any of his other graphic novels)
The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot
The Black Order Brigade by by Pierre Christin and illustrated by Enki Bilal
Why I Hate Saturn by Kyle Baker
The Adventures of Luther Arkwright by Bryan Talbot (this ones a tough tough read.)
Breakfast After Noon by Andi Watson
Black Hole by Charles Burns
American Flagg! by Chaykin. Trade collect the first 14 issue is ground breaking series

I would like to respectfully disagree with your short answer. I have read and loved many of the books you list, yet many do not offer the texture and depth that is included in Watchmen.

I studied Watchmen (as well as Maus and others) in one of my college literature classes, and it has more depth than any other superhero book, as well as more than many non-superhero books. It is a great graphic novel, not just superhero story.

Believe me, I read Black Hole for years and loved it as it was coming out, but Watchmen is still better. Charles Burns' art is awesome, but he still isn't as good as Alan Moore.

Hope I didn't come off too brusk atmospro; I love that people have different opinions, and I wanted Ty to get another side of the story. In my opinion Watchmen is a book worth reading multiple times to find all the little things that can be easily overlooked.

As always, keep reading and supporting the comics industry.

[Cheesy Poofs]

This movie looks really good I am reading the comic right now and it is a blast. My Chemical Romance has come out with a single for the movie called Desolation Row.

[Oyhedwig]

Watchmen is indeed awesome, and the movie looks great. I rarely go out to the movies, but I'll be hitting the theater on opening day for this one. Also, the My Chemical Romance song is a cover of a classic Bob Dylan tune, and a great one at that. The new video is pretty cool, and it's a decent cover. The song is actually quoted in the graphic novel, if I remember correctly, along with some lines from "All Along the Watchtower."

[Ty the Awasome]

So: Who's your favorite character? (from the novel, obviously) Mine's probably Rorshach (very original, I know). He's just so easy to love and hate at the same time. He does horrible things, for the wrong reasons, yet he's just trying to do some good. He's a perfect example of why moral absolutism is a flawed philosophy.

Plus, his outfit's incredible.

[Antifascist]

Originally Posted by Ty the Awasome

So: Who's your favorite character? (from the novel, obviously)

Nite Owl is my favorite. He is awkward and is not sure what he really wants to do. He is torn between two "rights" constantly. Is it right for him to help his friend or is it right for him to uphold the law? Is it right for him to court the Silk Spectre and give in to his indulgences, or is it right to honor the relationship his friend Dr. Manahattan had with Spectre?
Archie is just too awesome to keep out of the conversation as well.
All of the characters are really great though, so you cannot go wrong with this regardless. This is my favorite story of all time. I would rather read Watchmen than watch any movie, read any book, or play any video game. To me, nothing compares.

[Aquaryan]

Actually, I am really looking forward to the movie, next week. I will probably get the comics (we do need a new word for this), afterwards. Some people that I know had opened a comic book store near my place, so I am probably going to be doing a lot more comic book shopping.