Watchmen

Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary.
Review: I started this book three times before I could penetrate its dense style. Once I got going, I found it to be a work of extraordinary literature. The artwork isn't my style, but the story combined with the unique narrative structure, finely-crafted characters and complex views of good and evil and time make for a remarkable book. You don't have to be a comic book or graphic novel fan to appreciate this book. This is great work.

Rating:
Summary: A great epic story
Review: Is Alan Moore's "Watchmen" the greatest comic book ever written? Quite possibly so. "Watchmen" is a self-contained story that follows two generations of costumed superheroes over several decades of their history (the story spans from the 1930s to the 1980s). Moore's characters are truly unforgettable: the violent Comedian, the Batman-like Nite Owl, the disturbed Rorschach, the dazzling Ozymandias (known as "the world's smartest man"), the sexy female crimefighter known as the Silk Spectre, the godlike Dr. Manhattan, and more. Much of these characters' lives are lived in the shadow of the Cold War and possible nuclear armageddon (a particularly resonant theme for those of us who remember that era).

Moore's complex story moves back and forth in time, and shifts in perspective among the main characters. As he skillfully deconstructs the concept of the costumed superhero, Moore deals with a host of potentially explosive issues: sexual violence, politics, mental illness, etc. This is very much an adult story.

One of the book's most intelligent devices is the alternation of the comic book format with excerpts of the story told in other media: a newspaper clipping, personal correspondence, a psychiatric report, chapters from one character's autobiography, etc. This gives the book as a whole a richer texture and a powerful satiric thrust. Along the way Moore also riffs on classic superhero story elements: the origin story, the superhero teamup story, etc.

The visuals in "Watchmen" are amazing: some scenes are graphically violent and horrific; some magical and hauntingly beautiful. This world is populated with rich, fully developed characters who have complex emotional and moral lives. To sum up, "Watchmen" is a truly epic story that is told with consummate skill and power. It's a book that should, I believe, be read by both comic book fans and by those who don't normally read that medium.

Rating:
Summary: masterpiece....
Review: Lets make it short...Buy this book. Cherish it. A story featuring characters you will never forget. Fill in the next ten or so lines with all your cliches. I'm OUt

Rating:
Summary: The second five star I've ever given out
Review: Alan Moore gives us his very best in this thought-out comic book series collected here in this volume. His words, over a decade and a half old, ring truer than ever in this day and age.
Dave Gibbons is the perfect man for the job as artist. His detailed, no-flash and gimmicks style renders the characters with remarkable authenticity.
Get this book.

Rating:
Summary: For everyone who loves or hates superheroes
Review: Alan Moore plays with archtypes so cleverly here that whether you love or loathe the superhero genre, you should find something here. The book is visually brilliant as well, the chapters often work as palindromes, with repeated patterns and themes. Even after a dozen readings, there's always something new to find here, the book is just that dense.

Rating:
Summary: <Shiver>
Review: This story takes on a much more chilling aspect after the events of Sept. 11. This story held up amazingly before that day, reading it again afterwards... <shiver>.

This is a story with depth. Often the panels reflect the same scene from different perspective, with the focus shifting between the concurrent threads of the character's lives.

Look for the recurrent use of the blood spatter symbolism. The art work adds a dimension to the story telling that was unique for it's time.

Over the years I've heard rumors that a Watchman movie was in the works. There seems to be something fundamentally wrong when Mystery Men can make it to the big screen and not The Watchmen. Perhaps its echos of the events of Sept 11, and the aftermath of the events of that day, will bring this story back into the light.

Rating:
Summary: Faded Shadows on the Wall
Review: Simply Moore's best work that I have seen. From the very first panel to the stunning opening pages of the final chapter, this work touched me deeply. Read it, then read it again, then read it again. By the fifth or sixth time you read it, you may have caught on to all the referencing involved. If there is one graphic novel you are to be buried with when you die, rest your head on this. Some may not appreciate the artwork, in that it is a little dated (being published in the mid-eighties), but the subtle nuances of the artist wholly capture the tense mood of the characters involved. Please, do yourself the ultimate favour and purchase this, and just remember that we're all in this together. Take something positive away from the experience of reading this beautiful piece of art.

Rating:
Summary: Well-Written, not Perfect
Review: I was prepped for this by having my comic store guy call it 'the best book ever written', someone else commented, 'getting Watchmen? ...', maybe the mystery and hype surrounding this wasn't the best way to get into it. The characters are so realistic it is literally funny for awhile as every character has such a dark, gritty life. I think the way the comic book synced with the what was happening in 'real life' was smart, as was Dr.Manhattan's memory and prediction. I didn't find myself caring about simple-minded sub-plots like Comedian attempting to rape one young superheroine, that seemed needless to me, though the almost-rape-victim was nearly interesting for her realism towards the end it never comes full circle or feels necessary. It ends on the note that some things are too complicated for superheroes and that was really interesting. I didn't think NiteOwl's relationship was intriguing enough to warrant as many pages as it got, many parts are too long, like the paragraphs about the old man who collected odd novelty items. Rorshach was a great character, who does interesting things. It centers around the end of the world and it has a palpably eerie aspect to that. I liked the interviews/journals/newspapers that really serve to put you in this world even if they aren't altogether necessary or informational. Comedian seemed like an untapped character, though he served a purpose when he burnt a list of crimes. SPOILER: I liked the ending, but not being able to blame the villain didn't seem like it had a very realistic reason outside of the spectacular idea of not being able to blame the villain.

Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: This graphic novel is a classic. While someone new to comic may find it a hard read, no true comic reader should go without spending the time to go through this Master Piece.

Rating:
Summary: The greatest comic ever produced, period.
Review: In my opinion, if you haven't read Wacthmen you're not a fan of comics; because you haven't read what defines the comic book genre. Watchmen is not a story about super heroes, it's a story about very human people. I think that if we did live in a world with superheroes, this would be it. People don't worship them, like they do Superman, they don't trust them like they do the JLA, in fact they don't even like them. It's the most realistic comic book I've ever read, and it gets better every time.

Now, some people don't like Watchmen because they feel that it's past it's prime, but that's simply not the case. Watchmen is still a breathtaking read; not becuase of the dialogue, not because of the characters, not even becuase of the story. It's because of the way Alan Moore TELLS the story.

In a recent issue of Wizard, Alan Moore stated "I'm talking about the stuff that was actually important about Watchmen, which was not the superheroes at all-- it was the way the story was told." That is the best way to describe what makes Watchmen so outstanding. Watchmen is considered by many the greatest comic ever produced, and I suggest whole-heatedly to pick it up, especially through TPB form. If you are looking for a comic with hard hitting action, go buy The Authority. But if you're looking to buy the finest depiction of the superhero lifestyle to ever be portrayed in comics, buy Watchmen; end of story.