“Who Watches the Watchmen”

WE DO!

The most highly anticipated movie of 2009 (at least for us) is finally out in theaters, and of course we both went on opening night. So…what did we think? Was it everything we hoped for and more? Read on, friends, as we present you with our review of Watchmen.

Out of consideration for folks that have not read the graphic novel or do not wish to be spoiled, we are breaking the review into two parts. We’ll write our own spoiler-free review first, and then after the break we’ll include a spoilery discussion of the movie.

First Impressions

Ana’s Take: I haven’t been this excited for a movie for ages – if I have to pinpoint, I would say at least ever since The Return of the King premiered. I was giddy the entire day, I arrived early at the cinema to get a good place, something I haven’t done since the last Harry Potter. Popcorn and chocolate purchased I sat down and tensely awaited for the screening to begin. I could FEEL the tension in the audience – geek world, how I love thee. I could tell Dear Partner who never read the novel, was completely out of place.

The movie started and right then, I knew it was going to be awesome – the initial sequence with the Comedian and the opening credits were all kinds of awesome. The three hours flew by, I did not even feel it. I was completely enraptured by the movie, amazed at how they were able to capture the best of the novel, to be so loyal to the source material to a point where I say to myself “if all the books to movie adaptations were this faithful I would be a happier moviegoer” . Yes, there were a few points that were different, most notably the ending (ARGH. NO. I HATED IT.) and the character of Ozymandias was completely butchered by an actor who should go back to acting school or quit the profession altogether. But those weaker points are balanced by its strongest points: the atmospheric feel of the story, the almost frame-by-frame transposition from the book to the screen (it was so cool to see the images and recognize them from memory) and the most important: the spot on performance by some of the actors: Rorschach, The Comedian, Dr Manhattan and Nite Owl came to life in a way I did not expect. I loved it. I think the fans of the novel will like it (except maybe the die-hard ones that see it as holier than the Bible) but I also think the non-initiated will enjoy the movie. I know Dear Partner did (although he thought Dr Manhattan was sort of emo). Now all I wish is to watch it again!

Thea’s Take: Like Ana, I too was so very excited for this film, ever since seeing the first preview for it before last summer’s The Dark Knight. I have to admit, along with the rest of the Watchmen fanbase, I found myself incredibly excited but simultaneously terrified – inherently this is a complex work of literature and no matter how faithful an adaptation, there are some things that simply cannot be translated from the page to the screen. That said, the previews looked awesome and I was relieved to have someone who understood and appreciated the depth of the comic as director (Zach Snyder). So, I entered the theater, coffee and popcorn in hand, feeling the same palpable geek tension that Ana mentions (long live the geekdom!).

And…three hours later, I can safely say, that the film does the book justice.

It is incredibly loyal to the source material to the point where it is less a movie for the casual moviegoer and more a labor of love addressed to the fans. The movie’s highest notes were when the script stuck with the nearly frame-by-frame, word-for-word images and dialogue from the book; conversely, the weakest points were with some of the highly stylized sequences, and most notably, the changes to the ending. Because the film is so unwaveringly loyal to the book (for about 95% of the film), it’s hard to judge the movie on its own. The best gauge I have is the dear boyfriend — he refuses to read the book, and went into the theater a Watchmen virgin. While I was drooling over the awesomeness that was Rorschach and the Comedian, he wasn’t quite as into it. Leaving the theater, I overheard two girls talking about how they thought “the whole Mars thing was weird”. Once I got over my initial (ok, I’ll admit somewhat unfair) reaction (which was to punch said girls in the face, Rorschach-style, and snarl “The ‘whole Mars thing’?!?! READ THE F****** BOOK!”), I realized that this is probably a movie that will be loved by those who have read the book, and less by the unknowing moviegoer who saw cool previews and was expecting a reprise of Iron Man. As an homage to arguably the greatest comic ever written, Watchmen rocks. On its own as a film, in a Mars-like vacuum if you will, it’s not quite as good. What I will say for it, at nearly 3 hours long, the movie never feels tiresome, and I’m writing this review at 3 am having just returned home! That’s gotta stand for something.

More Specifics, If You Please!

Here’s the part where spoilers will be involved. If you don’t want to know, LOOK AWAY!

(more…)

Our wonderful, pimptastic, official Honorary Smuggler Karen Mahoney strikes again! When we decided to have this Watchmen Weekend, Karen mentioned that two of her fellow writers, fellow Deadline Dame Jackie Kessler and way-popular Urban Fantasy author Caitlin Kittredge, have an upcoming book about superheroes called Black and White and that they would most likely be down with doing a guest blog.

Naturally, we jumped at the opportunity and were ecstatic when both Jackie and Caitlin agreed! Since the book is written from two different characters’ points of view (with Jackie writing the superhero character and Caitlin writing the supervillain), for their guest post we Smugglers decided to ask the two main characters of Black and White a few questions.

What’s more is, Jackie and Caitlin have graciously offered to give away an ARC for Black and White! Details follow at the end of the post.

Ladies and gents, we proudly give you…

She Said/She Said, Superhero-Style
By Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge

In June 2009, a new book hits the shelves: BLACK AND WHITE. Once best friends at an elite superhero training academy, Iridium and Jet are now mortal enemies. Jet is a by-the-book hero, using her Shadow power to protect the citizens of New Chicago. Iridium, with her mastery of Light, runs the city’s underworld. For years the two have played a dangerous game of cat and mouse. But now playtime’s over. A looming evil threatens both them and the world they share. As Jet works with a “normal” man who has an extraordinary ability to make her weak in the knees, Iridium teams with a mysterious vigilante called Taser. Both Jet and Iridium are convinced that the other woman is the key to a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions. And one of them is right.

Forget the old formula of hero versus villain, because in a world where both the bad guys and the good guys are cloaked in shades of gray, nothing is as simple as…BLACK AND WHITE.

Jackie Kessler writes in the POV of Jet; Caitlin Kittredge writes in the POV of Iridium. Yes, Jackie is the tortured hero, and Caitlin is the evil genius. Guess who gets all the great lines?

And now, Jet and Iridium answer your burning questions.

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: What makes a Villain or a Hero – Why do you do the things you do?

JET: All extrahumans train diligently at the Academy from the time they are twelve. And that’s after receiving an excellent Corp-sponsored education that provides the basics on heroing, right and wrong, the ethics of power, and branding. Not everyone is cut out to become a Squadron soldier, of course. But all extrahumans give their best to protect the citizens of New Chicago and the world. Duty first. Always.

IRIDIUM: Yes, she really speaks like that in public. Sad, isn’t it?

JET: [SNIFFS] Instead of criticizing me, why don’t you answer the question? Why are you a villain, Iri?

IRIDIUM: Listen, the world isn’t going to do you any favors. People don’t want heroes, not really. They only have extrahumans to look up to so that they have someone to tear down later on. My father taught me that.

JET: Along with how to pick locks.

IRIDIUM: And he also taught me that sometimes the world doesn’t need heroes at all. It needs villains.

JET: [SIGHS] I wouldn’t expect anything else from someone who cheated in the ethics classes.

IRIDIUM: [GRINS] The ones I didn’t ditch, anyway. Advanced Weaponry was my class.

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: Vigilantes – Use ‘em or lose ‘em?

JET: Lose them. Any extrahuman who doesn’t follow the strict codes of Corp-Co doesn’t deserve the mask she wears. Operating outside of the law means breaking the law. And that’s inexcusable.

IRIDIUM: Some people don’t sleep with a code of conduct under their pillow, Jetster.

JET: The law is the law for a reason, Iri. Without it, we’d have anarchy.

IRIDIUM: A little anarchy is healthy. And fun!

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: Values – The Greater Good vs. Moral Righteousness: which prevails?

JET: I don’t understand the question.

IRIDIUM: [ROLLS EYES] That’s because you’re a hard-wired do-gooder. The question is, do you kill a few, even innocents, to make the world a better place?

JET: Of course not! You can’t kill people — innocent or guilty! What sort of question is that?

IRIDIUM: One that a puppet like you couldn’t begin to understand. Sometimes, the ends justifies the means.

JET: Don’t go quoting Machiavelli at me. It’s not about ends and means. It’s about right and wrong. Killing is wrong.

IRIDIUM: You never could see the big picture. But then considering you’re not trained to think for yourself, I’m not surprised.

JET: You should hear what I’m thinking right now.

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: Costumes – Who has the better wardrobe? Villains or Heroes?

JET: In terms of style? Villains. In terms of practicality? Heroes.

IRIDIUM: I’ve got a one-word answer for this one: me. I mean, look at me.

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: The Love Life – Who gets more action? Villains or Heroes?

JET: [SIGHS] Who has time for a love life?

IRIDIUM: [SIGHS] Who has time for a love life?

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: What do super villains and heroes do when they’re not destroying/saving the world?

JET: When I have down time, I like to curl up in my favorite rocking chair and read romance novels. It’s nice to read stories where love conquers all and there’s always a happily ever after. Real life so rarely ends well.

IRIDIUM: I catch up on my favorite cryptozoology reality show, Mysterious Chicago. Sewer mutants and monsters in Lake Michigan. Can you stand it?

JET: Sewer mutants? Really, Iri.

IRIDIUM: Hey, you never know.

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS: Jet, would you date a villain? Iridium, would you date a hero?

JET: Light, no. The whole “attracted to the bad boys” thing? Ludicrous.

IRIDIUM: Would, and did. Been there, done that.

JET: Seriously? Who?

IRIDIUM: [GRINS] I don’t kiss and tell.

JET: Not unless there’s a profit in it…

Jackie Kessler is the paranormal author of the Hell on Earth series. You can visit Jackie online at the Deadline Dames or at her website and blog.

Caitlin Kittredge is the dark fantasy author of the Nocturne City series and the upcoming Black London Adventures. You can visit Caitlin online at Fangs, Fur and Fey, The League of Reluctant Adults, or at her website.

A big THANK YOU again to Jet and Iri (and Jackie and Caitlin)! We cannot wait for Black and White, out this June.

Giveaway Details

Jackie and Caitlin have generously offered ONE ARC – Advanced Reading Copy – of their upcoming book, Black and White! In order to enter, all you need do is leave a comment here answering this question: Superhero or Supervillain — which would YOU rather be?

The contest will run until Sunday March 8 at 12 noon PST. We will randomly select and announce the lucky winner then. Good luck!

As part of our Watchmen Special (one more day till the we watch the movie and counting!) we decided to answer once and for all the question that is on everyone’s minds (we know you spend a lot of time thinking about this…) : what would happen if your favorite blogger became a super-hero?

So, we contacted a few people and posed the following question:

“You’ve had enough of all the villainy around. You decide to take a stance as a Vigilante. You do not have a super-power, but to make things more interesting you are a rich person. What would you call yourself and how would you go about serving justice? What kind of vigilante would you be: the kind that turns the villains over to the police (i.e. Batman) or the kind that tortures or kills those that you apprehend (i.e. Rorschach from the Watchmen)?”

This is what they came up with:

Carolyn Jean from The Thrillionth Page:

DUO:
DUNGEONMOGUL and SORRYMAKER
Carolyn Jean’s husband, Mark

I ran this question by my husband Mark, boyhood comic fanatic and proud owner of FOURTEEN giant boxes of comic books. I asked if, in his boyhood he ever fantasized about such a thing as being rich and going into crime fighting, but without superpowers. He was like, NO WAY, no boy ever imagines being rich and having NO powers. All you care about is the powers. Upon some prodding, though, he thought it might be cool to build an underground system of dungeons equipped with holographic technology and the holographs trick the criminals into giving up lots of information, and you would also imprison them there, because letting criminals into the current pathetic system would not be the way of DUNGEONMOGUL.

Carolyn Jean

Okay, you know how in Dickens’s Christmas Carol, the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future make Scrooge feel sorry for how he has acted? My vigilante would do that, but with, oh, a harsher twist. Did you shoot somebody? With my special immobilization poison, I would render you totally helpless, but you can still see and hear, and I will place you in a Plexiglas box in your victim’s house so you could see how much pain you put them in, and you have to hear them complaining but you can do nothing about it. Did you pollute a river? I’ll make you see all the animals you killed, maybe even make you watch some of them die, and possibly make you drink the poisoned water, or maybe I’ll even use DUNGEONMOGUL’S facilities (because we’re married therefore a DUO) to see the future horrors you created. Or, say you an evil world leader/despot who has wrongfully attacked another country? I am going to immobilize and place you in a bombed out city with kids with their limbs blown off and people whose lives you destroyed, and I will leave you there for days so that you see what you’ve done. I do not need prisons or torture because I want my victims to torture themselves!! Because I am SORRYMAKER.

KatieBabs from Babbling About Books and More

I was born into privilege. I have the best of everything. But my father was a former Army general and made sure I wasn’t too spoiled. He taught me the importance of discipline and made sure I could defend myself. I am daddy’s little girl because my mother died in labor while giving birth to me.

I have an IQ that is through the roof, but downplay my intelligence. I pull off the dumb blond act really well. Only my father knows what I am capable of. I also have quite the skill at writing and by the time I was twenty-one I published my first etiquette book. I am a freelance writer and have my own popular gossip columnists at one of the biggest and best newspapers in the city.

But my city has fallen into chaos and the police and government officials are being bribed from a very powerful madman who hides in the darkness. No one knows who he is or has ever seen hi face. I have decided to take on this evildoer and his band of criminals. My father doesn’t have any idea that I have become a vigilante of justice. At night I dress all in black and wear a red wig. I use tranquilizers as my weapons. One prick and I can paralyze a person. My black belt in karate and my self- defense moves make me unstoppable. I won’t give up until I unmask the man who has become my enemy.

I am known as the Babbinator for the long babbling messages I write and send to the newspapers where I mock the criminals.

Kmont from Lurv a La Mode

Towel* Girl Plans a Shopping Trip

6:30 a.m.

Most people wake up wondering how quick they can coax the percolator to spew the coffee. With my job, I’m always waking up looking for the next big sale.

I stagger from my full-sized bed and down the murky hallway to a devilishly cheerful kitchen. Trust me, yellow trimmed in brown flowers is overrated. Some days the seventies reverb is astounding. Still, I can’t spare the cash for a remodel and the landlord hates impromptu design-on-a-dime anyway. I sink into a retro diner chair and pick up the local paper that’d been delivered as I made my way to bed this morning. A few scanned pages and I know where I’m headed as soon as I get around to schlepping last night’s, or should I say early morning’s, coffee dregs. Wal-Mart’s priced it as low as it can go – and I need some new towels. I’ll find a way to stay out of Home Décor.

Being a superhero doesn’t leave much room for sleep and I’ve gotten quite good at fooling my body into thinking it’d gotten a full eight. I lurch, er, move across to the single, long counter and swipe a mug of the mug tree, avoid the sugar and proceed to pour a cold cup. It’s a testament to my strength of will that I neither wince nor choke.

See, there’s this new vigilante in town – my town – and he’ not looking to help. The police are knocking on my door day and night, the phone’s shouting for a pick up. With three lifeless bodies so far, who can blame them? I aim to keep that count from climbing any higher.

But this bastard, he’s fighting dirty and no villain deserves the softest, plushest towel life has to offer. It’s the nubby towel for him; the kind dodgy hotels stock like the Easter Bunny hoards candy for kids. I grip my mug a bit tighter as I sip it all in, both the bitter coffee and the scene that’ll play out later today. Captain Kill, as the papers were now calling him, is going to learn what vengeance feels like when my sandpaper grade towel coils his neck, the thick, sewn corner whipping around to bite his cheek. He’s going down.

And I smile.

*Because a towel is the most useful item in the whole universe as we all know…

Kristen from Fantasy Cafe

Since I turn green at the sight of most physical injuries, there’s no way I could ever serve justice Rorschach-style. Even if I had a henchman to do it for me, I’d still wince if present and get a reputation as the supreme wuss of the vigilantes. Then villains would laugh at me so torturing and killing is definitely out of the question.

Psychological torture would be far more interesting anyway. Since I’m filthy rich, I’d find and hire charismatic actors to befriend the fiends I decide need to be taught a lesson. These employees would acquaint themselves with the villain, then find out all their deepest secrets and worst fears. This could take a while, but the wait would be worth it because when they least expect it, I’ll use everything I know against them. Kind of like the Mafia meets the CIA, only without Oliver Stone.

But psychological terror doesn’t have to mean Stephen King on a bad day, there can be a level of everyday torture that’s just as fun. My contacts and hired hackers would make sure villains could never get a loan for a new car or outfit their luxury yacht/secret headquarters with their credit cards. In between identity thefts my hackers would spend their time writing new, targeted viruses that corrupt files and crash systems. No villain in the city could park for more than ten minutes without my friends in the police department leaving a ticket on their windshield, and if they stayed for an hour they’d get the boot. And of course, they’d be signed up for every bad magazine and spam mailing list the second they even thought about committing a crime.

Though many of my actions would not garner attention, among those who knew what I was doing I’d be known as Atropos. My foes would just call me “that biotch!”

Tia from Fantasy Debut

My vigilante name: Cyberwitch

Profile: Cyberwitch is a technical wizard who specializes in disrupting enemy communications. Terrorist plans get hacked and disrupted. Rogue regimes suffers communications breakdowns. Highly coordinated attacks are discoordinated. And even more insidiously, she infiltrates such groups with cyber-identities and causes chaos from within.

She doesn’t kill her enemies or even turn them over to the police. Instead, Cyberwitch makes it impossible for them to fulfill their sinister objectives.

Since she is super-rich, she has access to all the latest technology, both legal and illegal, and both human and alien. She operates offshore on a luxury yacht crammed full of all the latest innovations and satellite communication dishes. For exercise, she swims laps around the boat and occasionally evades sharks. She keeps her fingers in fighting form by playing a wicked piano.

Symbol: stylized witch’s broom that looks like it was made from elements of a circuit board

Trin from Realms of Speculative Fiction

The problem is that I’m not really Vigilante material – if I were a rich person, I probably wouldn’t care much about villainy because I’d be too busy building my dreamhouse /creating a giant library/buying and reading books etc., and even if not, a Vigilante who doesn’t know how to fight and is secretly afraid that there are monsters hiding in the dark is pretty much a hopeless case. If I were to create a Vigilante character, however, I’d name her Vengeance, and her way of treating villains would be the way those villains treat their victims, just to put an emphasis on the saying ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’. Also, she’d probably turn out to be just a spoiled rich girl who has a very limited understanding of who the actual villain is – and I’d make her of Russian origin, so she’d be able to make ‘In Soviet Russia …’ jokes all the time. ^^

And of course there’s also Thea and Ana who together form this fantastic duo that are ….are you ready for this?

THE BOOK SMUGGLERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*Ana and Thea duck flying objects*

No wait, we are not cheating. For starters the Book Smugglers is a fantastic title for a super-hero duo.( Ok, we may be a little bit biased here but bear with us). Then, we already have the costumes (*Ana and Thea point to blog header*) minus the high heels because we can’t fight crime in them, obviously. And no one can deny that saving books is a worthy cause! Because you see, we wouldn’t simply be smuggling books into our houses. Nooooooooo. Because we would be filthy rich, we would build a time machine and then we would go back in time and we would stop all the Book-burning that has ever happened in History! We could save the Library of Alexandria from burning to the ground! We could find any book to have ever been lost – works of poets, philosophers, doctors. We could find out who wrote the Bible! We could stop crimes AGAINST LITERATURE FROM OCURRING. WE CAN MAKE MARGARET MITCHELL –REWRITE THE END OF GONE WITH THE END AND HAVE RHETT STAY WITH SCARLET MUWAHAHAHAHA. Oh the power! The power!
WE CAN. NO.

That’s too much power. Maybe we ought to pass. You know, diminish and remain Ana and Thea. We could use the money to build a HQ – an installation for all the other vigilantes to congregate and train! We could be A and T!

So there you have it: 8 vigilantes with various ways to fight crime (it’s ok Trin, you can sit back at the HQ with Thea and Ana and come up with hilarious jokes for our down time!)

Now all we need to come up with a good name for the group. Will you help? We think that The Amazing Book Bloggers That Fight Against Crime And Assorted Villains (or T.A.B.B.T.F.A.C.A.A.V.) is too long!

As we discussed yesterday, Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons’s masterpiece Watchmen is a revolutionary work of literature. One of the most beloved aspects of the use of metafiction, the-story-within-the-story of Tales of the Black Freighter.

In a world where superheroes are real and public opinion has soured toward them, what would comic books be about? In Moore’s Watchmen, the subject is Pirates. Throughout the book, a young man reads a comic called Tales of the Black Freighter, with a two issue story entitled “Marooned”. A sailor has been marooned on a desert island after his ship was attacked by the titled Black Freighter. As all his shipmates wash ashore, the mariner realizes that he is not in hell, but the only man to survive the attack. He shacks together a raft made of his dead companions’ gas bloated bodies, and desperately makes for his home to warn (or avenge, if he is too late) his family about the terror of the black freighter, eating the gulls that fly close enough to his raft, surviving attacking sharks drawn to the human carrion he floats on, and consumes salt water in order to survive the journey. The mariner loses his sanity, and chooses madness only to discover he has made it home, and immediately goes on a rampage, killing two riders that stumble across his raft on the beach. When he reaches his old home — which he knows now has been commandeered by the Black Freighter pirates — he kills the first person he sees…only to discover it is his wife. Truly alone now, the mariner flees his home in shock and horror, and swims out to sea where the Black Freighter is waiting.

A truly horrific story, Tales of the Black Freighter like so many other components in Watchmen mimics and enhances the overall story in which it is inlaid. And this is just one of the many things I adore about this graphic novel.

For example, the two riders the mariner kills once he reaches the shore occurs in Chapter X of Watchmen, “Two Riders Were Approaching…” in which Rorschach and Nite Owl search to understand who was behind Doctor Manhattan’s outburst and disappearance from Earth.

“Outside in the distance a wild cat did growl, two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.” – All Along the Watchtower by Bob Dylan.

According to Alan Moore, Tales of the Black Freighter is reflective of Ozymandias/Adrian Veidt’s story — his horror at being the only man capable of bringing change to the world and stop chaos and destruction, his slow slide into madness by sacrificing the bodies of his men to achieve his ultimate goal.

And for all of Veidt’s scheming…it doesn’t seem to matter ultimately, just as the mariner’s harrowing tale ends.

Though I’m saddened that Tales of the Black Freighter will not be featured in the film adaptation of Watchmen, that doesn’t mean Zack Snyder et al have neglected this beautiful subplot. Oh no, dear sailors!

Instead of trying to truncate and cram this into an already long (3 hours long!) film, instead Tales of the Black Freighter will be released separately on DVD March 24, 2009. This animated film will be narrated by Gerard Butler (bonus, the DVD also comes with another feature Under the Hood, in which Nite Owl explains how costumed heroes came into existence). Check it out.

The official trailer:

A longer clip and insight into Tales of the Black Freighter:

Any other Black Freighter fans in the house? Are you bummed about this comic within a comic being left out of the movie, or are you excited for the animated feature? Any other thoughts?

*Please note that all Black Freighter scans are from the incredibly hard working efforts of Boredom Festival. Major kudos to this effort to see what Tales would be liked on its own, without Watchmen art or writing in the panels.*

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

Roman poet Juvenal wrote these words in his Satires, translating to the eponymous quandary:

“Who watches the watchmen?”

In the mid 1980s, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons created the twelve book series Watchmen, changing not only the face of the superhero, but revolutionizing comics. Both of us (along with countless other people around the world) love Watchmen, and gearing up for the movie release on Friday we’ve decided to pay homage to this breathtaking book.

Instead of writing a review proper (do you really want to give us that kind of free reign to write a dissertation on this landmark work of literature?!), we’re doing something different. We’ll talk about the main characters, and then answer some discussion questions – and we invite everyone to participate as well! Fellow longtime fans, new fans, or even folks who have not yet read the book but think the previews look awesome – please feel free to share your own insights!

For those that have not read the comics, here is the brief synopsis:

It all begins with the paranoid delusions of a half-insane hero called Rorschach. But is Rorschach really insane or has he in fact uncovered a plot to murder super-heroes and, even worse, millions of innocent civilians? On the run from the law, Rorschach reunites with his former teammates in a desperate attempt to save the world and their lives, but what they uncover will shock them to their very core and change the face of the planet! Following two generations of masked superheroes from the close of World War II to the icy shadow of the Cold War comes this groundbreaking comic story — the story of The Watchmen.

The Characters

Moniker: Rorschach
Real Name: Walter Kovacs
Modus Operandi: The only masked vigilante to refuse to give up the mantle after the passing of the Keene Act outlawing them, Rorschach prowls the rooftops of the city and metes out justice as he sees fit. He hates the sniveling people that make up his city, but despises the amount of crime more. Like all the other characters besides Doctor Manhattan, Rorschach has no super-powers. He’s brilliant, quick witted, but completely paranoid and unstable.

Rorschach believes in absolutes: good and evil, right and wrong, communist and partiotist. His refusal to give up his pursuit of these ideals, even in the face of apocalypse, reflects this iron clad belief system.

I got Issues: Stemming from his childhood, his mother was a prostitute who frequently told Walter that he was ugly, worthless and she wished she had aborted him. Suffering from an almost Oedipal complex, Walter hated and desired his mother, eventually being taken from his home at a young age after brutally beating two boys in school. Rorschach would grow up to work as a tailor for women’s clothes (though from his narrative it is clear his loathing of women and repressed sexuality is a part of him), and it is here that he comes across the always shifting, beautiful white and black fabric that will become his true face.

Moniker: The Comedian
Real Name: Edward Blake
Modus Operandi: Brutal, cynical, and ruthless, Blake is murdered by an unnamed intruder as the book begins. Through flashbacks from each of the other main characters, we learn that Blake was a soldier, a fighter, and perhaps of all his colleagues best understood the nature of mankind and what would be needed to stop humanity from rushing to the brink of extinction. When the Keene Act was passed, Blake and Doctor Manhattan remained as the only two government sanctioned heroes, fighting together in the Vietnam War. A right wing extremist and a man who loved to fight for the hell of it, Blake agreed to become under the governments employ in part because it allowed him to thrive in his natural habitat: war.

Perhaps the most unrepentant, unlikable character of the bunch, the Comedian is killed because he sees something more terrifying and worse than any of the evils has has inflicted on others (murder, rape, etc). He breaks down and is prepared to stop this apocalyptic plot and has some humanity restored to his bleak character. Rorschach says it best in his journal…

Blake understood. Treated it like a joke, but he understood. He saw the cracks in society, saw the little men in masks trying to hold it together. He saw the true face of the twentieth century and chose to become a reflection, a parody of it. None else saw the joke. That’s why he was lonely. Heard a joke once: Man goes to doctor, says he’s depressed. Says life seems harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a world where what lies ahead is vague and uncertain. Doctor says “Treatment is simple. Great clown Pagliacci is in town tonight. Go and see him. That should pick you up.” Man bursts into tears. Says “But doctor…I am Pagliacci.”

I got Issues: With brutality, with women. His attempted rape of Sally Jupiter, the original Silk Spectre, leads to complications with Laurie; he also kills for sport in Vietnam, rapes and impregnates – then disfigures – local women. He doesn’t play well with others either.

Moniker: Doctor Manhattan
Real Name: Jon Osterman
Modus Operandi: Dr Manhattan is the only real super-hero of the group. In true comic book fashion, Jon suffered an accident when he got trapped inside an “Intrinsic Field subtractor” an his body dissolved and everybody thought he died. He reassembles himself up particle by particle thus becoming the most powerful being in existence, capable of shaping and rearranging quantum particles. He can travel anywhere in the universe and he can create life. After the 1977 Act he becomes a contracted Super-hero for the US government, working as both weapon and scientist.

I got Issues: Well, for starters, he is blue. And he walks around naked. After reassembling himself, Jon has become something other than human – colder and perhaps even emotionless to outsiders, he still tries to keep a grasp of humanity by keeping friends and relationships with women. But at the end of the day, Dr. Manhattan does not perceive time or space as normal human beings do – which influences his detachment from humanity. He is quite probably bored with life and the universe since he can do anything and predict anything. He is pretty much, a God.

Moniker: Silk Spectre II
Real Name: Laurie Juspeczyk
Modus Operandi: Daughter of the first Silk Spectre, Sally Jupiter, Laurie assumes the Silk Spectre moniker after being pressured into the costumed hero career by Sally. The only female member of the Crimebusters, when she was younger she found the career sexy and exciting but grew to resent her role as a Crimebuster and her mother’s pushiness. Laurie enters a romantic relationship with Doctor Manhattan and lives with him on retainer as he works for the US government, until he leaves Earth and she turns to Dan Dreiberg (Nite Owl) for help and comfort. Laurie still enjoys the thrill of crime fighting, and along with Dan believes in Rorschach’s cause and stands with him.

I got Issues: Of the mommy & daddy variety. Laurie resents her mother’s focus on being a famous icon and sex symbol and her pressuring Laurie to be exactly the same, substituting a childhood with combat and gymnastics lessons, a prom dress with a spandex crime fighting costume.

Don’t even get started on the daddy revelation.

Moniker: Nite Owl II
Real Name: Dan Dreiberg
Modus Operandi: Dan Dreiberg is the second person to assume the moniker of Nite Owl. Out of all the Watchmen he seems to be the one that truly believes in the heroics of crime fighting. In other words: Nite Owl is the romantic of the group. He became rich after inheriting his father’s fortune and uses the money to build gadgets – an exo-skeleton, the Owlship etc – very much like Batman. He can fight and he is intelligent. And when he wants to, he can be quite dashing and smoldering (according to Silk Specter). Another interesting fact of Dan’s life is that he used to be partner with Rorschach who never forgave Dan for quitting too easily when the 1977 Act passed.

I got Issues: Dan has a keen interest in ornithology (ie birds and flying) and you wouldn’t be too far off in thinking that his Nite Owl identity is a way of connecting with the animals. After retiring in 1977 Dan becomes increasingly depressed and the perfect image of a dispirited, impotent (figuratively and literally) middle-aged man. It is only when he dons the Nite Owl costume that he gains self-confidence, passion and feels complete.

Moniker: Ozymandias
Real Name: Adrian Veidt
Modus Operandi: His hero is Alexander the Great who he sees as a visionary. Born to rich parents who left him their fortune when they died, Adrian gave it all away so that he could make his own fortune by his own merits. He becomes a self-made millionaire after retiring from the Watchmen. His moniker Ozymandias is another name for Ramses II the famous Egyptian pharaoh. Veidt is considered to be one of the most, if not THE most intelligent man on the planet . He is an expert in martial arts and has full physical capacity and control – he can even stop bullets with his own hands.

I got Issues: He sees himself as a mix of Alexander the Great and Ramses II and the saviour of the world. God complex much?

The Questions

1. Should the government sponsor or work with “superheroes” (as with Blake and Doctor Manhattan)? Should they exist beyond and above the law?

Thea: There are two outcomes to government sponsorship in Watchmen: Eddie Blake (the Comedian) and Doctor Manhattan. In the case of Blake, he uses government sponsorship to his heart’s content, fighting, killing, burning — thriving on chaos in something of a nihilistic attitude. He’s embraced as a war hero, a patriot, and by his bleaker costumed counterparts as a man who knew what the world was. Blake is the prime example why giving a blank check to anyone, costumed hero or not, is a dangerous thing. Conversely, Doctor Manhattan does his duty for his country though concepts like patriotism, world destruction, justice or freedom are lost on this omniscient creature.

I tend to be of the mindset that “superheroes” (yes, I’m using the term even though all of these costumed heroes do not have super powers with the exception of Doc Manhattan) should not be government tools. It is easy to become what Blake becomes, or even just a tool not necessarily serving justice but what is in the best interest of the government (heck, in Watchmen, Nixon is implicated in the death of Kennedy — as is Eddie Blake). Furthermore, Doctor Manhattan’s involvement in the Vietnam War drastically changes the outcome, and his being on retainer for the US Government as a walking “God” (“God Exists, and He’s American!” as the comics proclaim) skews and changes the political landscape of the world, heightening tensions between the US and the Soviet Union. Should any one country assume control of such a creature (considering the superhuman in question allowed to be claimed by a specific country, like Doctor Manhattan does)? In my opinion: no. As seen in Watchmen, even with the American advantage of “having” Doctor Manhattan, tensions are incredibly high internationally, and that doomsday clock is still ticks away. On both a micro and macro level, government agent superheroes (whether super or not) is dangerous and defeats the purpose of these costumed heroes — who should preserve justice for those without voices, not as puppets of any government.

Ana: This is an easy one: I agree with Thea. Bearing in mind the two examples from the Watchmen – The Comedian and Dr Manhattan – the use of superheroes by Government, any Government is dubious at the very least. Not only because one can never be sure on how they are going to be used by the Government but how exactly are they recruited? Who makes the rules and sets the limits – are there any limits at all (refer to Blake’s free reign of terror)?

The question of Government sponsorship also taps on the issue of secret identities and double life ie. The basic right for Privacy. Many of the super-heroes cover their faces for different reasons – for example, self-protection and of their relatives against vengeful villains. Super-heroes should have the right to conceal their identities if they so wish and a Government-sponsored cooperation can open up a can of worms and a witch hunt in which super-heroes and vigilantes may be one day required to register their secret identities or else. That is a dangerous precedent.

(Thea: A whole new can of worms. Hello, Civil War, Mutant Registration Act, etc!)

2. Who makes the decision to be a superhero? In Watchmen, regular people with regular people baggage and issues don costumes and fight crime, but should they be allowed to do so? If our heroes are as fallible as regular people, are they really heroes?

Thea: Alan Moore literally changed the genre with Watchmen, deconstructing the infallible “superhero” and making them humans with human neuroses and issues, and then exploring these issues. Should Rorschach, the Comedian and Ozymandias be allowed as costumed heroes fighting for mankind given their intense psychological baggage and very human frailty?

I say…yes. Though there are a number of these costumed heroes that don a cape and colorful costume because it’s fun and sexy and dangerous, there are those, like Rorschach, who truly believe in what they are doing — and for better or for worse, they will do what that which they believe in. Sometimes the law fails, or extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary solutions — which these so called superheroes can provide. As for whether or not regular people can be heroes, what’s to say that those with superpowers are not just as troubled psychologically?

Do we not already have crazy police officers, corrupt politicians, blood-driven soldiers and power-crazed mob bosses? Like any other profession, masked heroes are composed of real human people — and for every crazed loon (or Rorschach, Ozymandias, Comedian), there is an orignal Nite Owl, the new Nite Owl, or a Batman for that matter.

Ana:I say…no. Listen, Rorschach, the Comedian and Ozymandias are all batshit INSANE and I would NOT want them to fight for my life. The prospect of having a hooded avenger fighting crime because he gets off out the violence is utterly terrifying. If vigilantes are only regular people, with regular baggage, and regular neuroses and they want to fight crime what’s stopping them from joining the police? Or the marines? Or becoming lawyers or judges? OK, you can argue that there is corruption and the law fails and policemen are fallible too. Fair enough. It’s frustrating, I get it. But it has been proven over and over again that vigilantism/Superheroism is not the solution. Vide: the Watchmen and the Batman.

And yes, real superheroes with real superpowers can be troubled psychologically too but they are super. They ARE different. They cannot join the marines, as they are something else entirely. There is no choice for them other than to become super-heroes (or super-villains).

(Thea: Under certain legislation, superheroes DO join civilian type of jobs — i.e. The Initiative, S.H.I.E.L.D., etc. And I would rather have humans with human neuroses than say, a Doctor Manhattan character with his absolute power corrupted absolutely!)

3. If, as in Watchmen, public opinion turns against superheroes and outlaws them, is there a need for vigilantes to keep justice?

Thea: There’s a precedent for vigilantism throughout history, from Rome to the American West to present day. In a cracking society where good hardly ever triumphs over evil, vigilantes serve to restore order and help a society inept to deal with crime.

Of course, it could also be argued that hate groups such as the KKK are vigilantes, so there is a problem of morals and ethics, especially in the definition of what makes a vigilante. Who is allowed to be a vigilante and for what cause? Which morals are “better” than others? It’s not a question with easy or clean cut answers, but I think people just have to do the best they can. Including vigilantes.

Ana: But what is exactly “the best they can”? Morals and ethics are not Absolute principles – they are relative: in time, space, culture. I think this is one of the most complicated questions – and I think even if there WAS the need for vigilantes, they shouldn’t exist.

There is certainly an allure to the figure of the vigilante – the lone figure that rises to help. But that points to society’s problems in dealing with its own shortcomings. It’s like people need to be saved – instead of making changes and effectively progressing towards an (utopic?) society that will have no need for superheroes they prefer to rely on the masked ones. It’s like society is divided in two kinds of people: the ones with inferiority complex that need to be saved and the ones with enough superiority complex to save them.

(Thea: But there ARE vigilantes and have been throughout history, not just in comic books (or literature like Robin Hood for example). The bounty hunter, the gunslinger, samurai, knights, etc. In extreme situations where society will not or cannot do anything to help its citizens, vigilantes seem to emerge, for better or for worse. As for people with inferiority versus superiority complexes, I don’t think this is true at all. There are people that simply cannot defend themselves. For all that I can perform some mean statistical analysis, if I was caught in a dark alleyway and cornered by a bigger, stronger dude, I would most likely come out of that confrontation on the losing end — and this is a micro-application of a much larger problem. That’s the beauty of Watchmen, taking these larger world issues and instead of condensing it to a woman in a dark alley scenario, it keeps it on that larger level with rising cold war tensions and the world on the brink of mutual destruction. I don’t think this has anything to do with people needing to be saved or people needing to save others — that’s a psychological simplification of a much deeper, less clean cut question.)

(Ana: but dude, at the end of the day our discussion here is a simplified one isn’t it?: “Is there a need for vigilantes to keep justice”: the key word for me here being “need” and the people that simply cannot defend themselves need salvation. If everyone would fight for their rights there would be no need for Robin Hood to feed them, for the gunslinger to protect them, for the samurai to fight their fights. Get your stones, your balls , your voice and do it yourself. The power of the people dude. Again, probably very utopic but my point here is: no, there should be no need for Vigilantes. People should instead fight for a fair society and for a system that is not corrupt and not expect for someone to come and save them.)

(Thea: In such a uptopic society, you’re right, there would be no need for Vigilantes…but I live in the real world and there are no utopias. Come down to Earth here with me, you Ozymandias! Like Doctor Manhattan says, nothing is final. Hence, why we have had and continue to have vigilantes, throughout our troubled history as a brutal species.)

(Ana: Step away from me Rorschach you are one crazy mofo.)

4. What is the difference between a “hero” and a “vigilante”? Or for that matter, what is the difference between a vigilante and a villain?

Thea: To me, a “hero” exists within the context of the law, whereas a “vigilante” by definition is an outsider who breaks the law in order to serve justice. The line between vigilantes and villains is much blurrier — vigilantes are criminals by definitions and villains are by definition criminals. However, a vigilante believes what they do is for the good of society, whereas villains need not this distinction. Vigilantes can be villains, however — arguably Rorschach is a villain because of his brutal and unyielding beliefs. Rorschach could be a heroic character too, however despite his cold detached relentlessness. It’s another tough call.

And, to be fair, I don’t believe that “heroes” — free of ego and personal gain, these golden men and women who are too good to be true — truly exist. They are fictional superheroes, like Superman or Wonder Woman. Even those human characters with the best of intentions, i.e. oh…Jack Shephard a la LOST is more driven by his God-complex and need to “fix things”. That’s again the beauty of Watchmen! These simple, black and white views of superheroes, with heroes being infallibly good and better than life are cast asunder in this book. The superhero is completely deconstructed, to something much more gray and malleable instead.

Ana:Call me cynical but the way I see it, more often than not a vigilante rises out of an extreme situation impelled by personal feelings. What tips them to finally take a stance and serve justice is usually something very personal as opposed to a true hero who is motivated by a less egoistic drive. There is certainly the issue of law x justice and way a vigilant and a hero deal with each. I think Thea is spot on what is the difference between a vigilante and a villain: their belief in what they do for the greater good of society or not.

It should be noted though that when it comes to reading or watching, I much prefer to read about the dark, troubled vigilante (Batman or Rorschach) and the Villain (Joker) than the boring noble hero (like Superman).

5. Is it better to repeatedly capture a villain and turn him over to the authorities for incarceration even though he keeps escaping and killing more people as a result (i.e. The Joker), or does it just make more sense to kill the bad guys before they strike again–especially if the law and prisons continue to fail (i.e. The Punisher)?

Thea: Oooooh, here’s where things can get interesting. Honestly, after reading many Batman stories and seeing as the Joker continues to be unleashed and allowed his reign of death and terror, it begs the question: WHY? Yes, I know the argument is that killing the Joker makes Batman no better than the criminals he apprehends, this is the line he must not cross. On the flip side, there are the characters of Ozymandias and Rorschach (or The Punisher, or Manhunter) that kill as a means to an end. In all honesty, I don’t believe in an eye for an eye (I’m against capital punishment). I can understand why this is appealing and I like reading about different brands of vigilante heroes and villains that cross this line…but I tend to still side with the Batman.

Ana: I’m against capital punishment as well. I know it can be frustrating and infuriating sometimes. Of course, this coming from a strictly cold and detached point of view. I don’t know what I would think if I was to be locked inside a room with someone that had killed an innocent baby for fun and I had a gun. I’d like to think I would still not cross the line. So yeah, siding with Thea and the Batman on this one as well.

Want More Watchmen?

Check out these sites.

http://watchmenmovie.warnerbros.com/

http://www.thenewfrontiersman.net/

http://www.i-watch-the-watchmen.com/ww/

And, just for kicks…here’s all 10 video spots for Watchmen:

NEXT ON WATCHMEN WEEKEND: EVER WONDERED WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF YOUR FAVORITE BLOGGER DECIDED TO FIGHT CRIME? FIND OUT TOMORROW.