I often find it difficult to explain the undying popularity of Watchmen to people who haven’t read the graphic novel.
“It’s the single greatest story ever told!” I proclaim. “It’s wicked smart and super political and it enlightens the human condition and the ending always makes me cry.” Surprisingly, people rarely take me seriously.
In more objective terms, Watchmen won the Hugo Award, was the only graphic novel to make Time’s 100 Greatest Novels list, and has been a source of inspiration to countless artists across countless mediums.
I could continue to sing its praises, but I think the following customer review on amazon.com says it best…
“This novel single-handedly rejuvenated my interest in reading and learning.”
Yes, Watchmen is indeed “the most celebrated graphic novel of all time.” But to really understand its rabid cult following, you need to know a little bit about its history…
So in 1939 Superman straps on his tights, saves the day, and the whole world falls in love with superheroes and comic books. And then for the next fifty years not much changes. New characters pop up here and there, the villains become a little more topical, but the story stays the same: bad guys do bad things and the good guys stop them.
And then Watchmen comes around and changes everything.
It changes the kinds of stories that are told, it changes how those stories are told, and it changes the way people think about comic books. Suddenly intellectuals start using terms like “graphic novel” and “burgeoning art form” and overnight everyone becomes very interested in masked avengers.
You see, Watchmen was the first comic book to really treat the issue of superheroes seriously. Prolific writer Alan Moore sat down and tried to answer one simple question: What would the world look like if men and women actually started putting on costumes and fighting crime? The answer turns out to be a terrifyingly dark look at a society struggling with the conflict between nostalgic heroism and new-world threats. Rape, murder, war, and good-old-fashioned heartbreak suddenly become a big part of the superhero world. If you’ve ever wondered how you get from the happy-go-lucky Batman of the 60s TV show to the gritty, dark Batman of Tim Burton and Christopher Nolan, the answer is Watchmen. This was the book that proved that comics weren’t just for kids.
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I was intrigued when I first heard that Malin Akerman would be playing the role of Laurie Juspeczyk, a.k.a The Silk Spectre, in Watchmen.