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 enlarge | Author: Alan Moore
Creator: Dave Gibbons
Publisher: DC Comics
Category: Book
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $11.33
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New (75) Used (44) Collectible (1) from $11.33
Rating:  655 reviews
Sales Rank: 36
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 416
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 10.1 x 6.6 x 0.9
ISBN: 0930289234
Dewey Decimal Number: 741.5941
EAN: 9780930289232
ASIN: 0930289234
Publication Date: April 1, 1995
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand New, Perfect Condition, Please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. 100% Money Back Guarantee, Over 1,000,000 customers served.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Flaws & All December 10, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
What I really liked about this story was that a majority of the characters don't have any "super powers" beyond their own will. They're a group of very flawed people forcing their interpretation of the law on others for various reasons beyond simple "justice".
The twist at the end was pretty nice and reminded me of an old science fiction short story I read years ago about an astronaut stranded in orbit. I won't say anymore otherwise I might give away the twist for those who've not read it.
I'm really looking forward the movie now. ;)
 classic comic from a new perspective December 9, 2008
I am almost embarrassed that it has taken me this long to get around to this classic comic series. I had of course heard about it for years, but it took the amazing trailer for the upcoming movie adaptation to prompt me to pick it up. For those of you unfamiliar with it, the Watchmen is a self contained superhero comic series that came out in 1986. Along with Maus and the Dark Knight Returns, it revolutionized the comic book industry of the 1980's and paved the way for the darker, more adult graphic novels we have today.
Watchmen takes place in an alternate 1985. The superheroes are very down to earth, in fact only one can claim what we would consider `real' superpowers. The rest are the second generation of masked vigilantes. When we join the story, few are still actively fighting crime largely due to an anti-vigilante law passed in 1977. The plot moves effortlessly between the past and present. Minor details in the panels hint at the differences between our world and theirs such as America winning in Vietnam and Nixon running for three terms. Moore is examining what effect superheroes would have had on things like the cold war. Technology is more advanced than in our world largely due to the one real superhero, Dr. Manhattan who can manipulate matter and energy on an atomic scale.
This is a much grittier world than what we normally find in superhero comics and the frank sexuality and violence is not for the squeamish. Think more Miller's Sin City than Iron Man. Check this out as a groundbreaking adult comic with a labyrinthine plot and amazing artwork packed full of hidden gems and detail. For example in chapter 5, Fearful Symmetry, each page mirrors one later in the chapter in both layout and content, when you reach the middle the mirror images intersect. Mirrored image motifs are hidden in many of the panels, for example the half visible Aoxomoxoa Grateful Dead poster in two different panels. Each chapter has a similar motif that can be found in many of the panels and each tie into the larger story and mystery.
The movie comes out in March 2008.
 Very impressive December 8, 2008
Powerful story, fine art, an intriguing mix of stories within stories. Basically we have a set of back stories illuminating the lives of the heroes, mixed with intercut 'documents' and an overarching narrative concerning a putative plot to eliminate the heroes so that some grand, dark event can occur without their interference. To summarize would be to spoil. Suffice to say, that all of the narrative lines converge, an event occurs and the aftermath becomes the subject of controversial reflection. As the main narrative proceeds, a second narrative parallels it (from a comic book read by a young bystander within the principal narrative). The interplay between these two narratives is central to the final resolution, in my opinion, but I can't describe it without spoiling the principal narrative. The architectonics of the plots are very impressive and engaging, though the greatest amount of attention is likely to be focused upon the aftermath of the 'event' and the degree to which one 'agrees' with it. Highly recommended. This is the graphic novel as true art.
retrospective questions about real wars December 8, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I come to this review as someone who is not a die-hard fan of graphic novels. I also come to this review in the post Dark Knight era, an era in which complex troubled superheros is not as new or intriguing as it probably was when Watchmen first arrived. I also come to this book a generation after the Cold War ended. In that context, Watchmen risks being an important historical landmark for what it did for the genre in the mid-80s, but of little relevance today.
So, what does a book of this nature have to offer? It's still an incredibly well crafted story. The first time through, though, I struggled. I was counting pages until the end. It seemed to labor on discordant aspects that didn't make sense until I knew the bigger picture. The second time through, knowing where things were going, I could appreciate the various parts a whole lot more. I still didn't like the fact that they took the easy way out and did the "villain monologue" at the end. I was waiting for The Incredibles line, "You caught me monologuing!" to come up. For such a long and complex story, there was plenty of opportunity to convey this sinister plot more effectively.
But what this book in its historical context does is shed light on a sliver of time and human nature in ways probably never intended by the authors. When this book first came out, the fears expressed by the characters about the Cold War going very hot were palpable. The world was at risk of imminent destruction. A lot of what people were feeling within was probably reflected in these pages. I found it all rather excessively alarmist and reminded me how often throughout history we've thought the world would end.
Yet, this very context provides an interesting insight into human nature. The actions taken in the end were horrific but justified by the major characters.
What is intriguing is juxtaposing this story's ending with how it played out in the real world. For all the doom-and-gloom about human nature in this book, the humans involved in the REAL Cold War that were targets of this rage proved ending it without a single shot fired. Who could have seen that coming in 1985? Such a graphic novel would have been seen as too idealistic at the time.
So, yes, this book is dated. Its impact today is far less than when it first came out both as a breakthrough in genre and a reflection of the national mood. But this novel's brilliance lies in the fact that, as the perpetrator of the final sequence asked for reassurance that he did the right thing, so too did I begin to wonder whether the atomic bombs on Japan were a "necessary evil". We did it, so we all assume it was necessary just as these characters did. Yet, seeing this violent fantasy ending juxtaposed with the real peaceful ending made me wonder.
If a graphic novel can compel such questions, then surely it is worthy of a read, even if its impact is not what it once probably was.
 Rather Unremarkable December 7, 2008
5 out of 12 found this review helpful
You didn't like Watchmen? You must be unintelligent, a graphic novel noob, or you just don't understand the history of comics.
Say whatever you wish because I did not enjoy Watchmen.
Since college I had a friend constantly try to get me to read the graphic novel. He knew that I liked stories told through any medium and that I would give it an open-minded reading. Eventually I decided to take the plunge, after all, if Time Magazine has it listed as one of the 100 best novels then it must contain some merit.
Let me first say that I understand how important this piece is for modern comics. Watchmen was the first story to really dive into the deeper side of being a good guy hero and the not so much black and white but gray area in which the real world operates.
Historically it is very important, but simply being historical does not warrant the intense praise that it is receiving today. I'm afraid it doesn't have the impact now that it did in the 80's. The story type has been improved upon and stories like "The Dark Knight" will be compared to it unfairly, but compared nonetheless because it's fresh in people's minds.
The majority of the graphic novel is character development, which in and of itself is not a bad thing, but the story just falls flat in the end. The mad scientist has the good guys in his lair where he reveals his evil plan for influential control of the world's future. Even then you don't really feel a connection to any of the heroes which causes a further disconnect between the reader and the story.
There are plenty of positive reviews touting the stronger sides of the comic. I feel many of those are overly upbeat. And I'm sure I'll be trashed and left negative helpfuls from fanboys but that doesn't matter. Someone needs to point out this overhyped story for what it really is... rather unremarkable.
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