Ever since DC announced they were bringing Watchmen into the mainstream DC universe, it's felt as though a lot of comic fans were holding their breath. How could DC bring one of the most seminal and beloved takes on superheroes into the DC universe, which was basically the main thing it was taking on in the first place? Of course, some of the anger faded once Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Officer of DC and writer of the event, explained his event would be both a sequel to Watchmen and a critique of it's impact on the comics industry, suggesting the take we're getting will hopefully be more intelligent than initial lead-up suggested.
Previews came out, showcasing a world on the brink of war with a new Rorschach on an unclear mission, complete with elements of social satire and mystery that the original used so well, and many started to go, "Hey, maybe this event will be okay."
And then the first issue came out, followed by two more in subsequent months before an announcement that the miniseries will be going bi-monthly to cover the complexity of the series. Since we're at that point now, I figured I could discuss my general thoughts on the series thus far. So, what do I think of this controversial sequel to Watchmen that threatens tarnish everything good and holy about the original?
It's fine.
Don't get me wrong, it's good, but it's neither amazing nor terrible. My big positives are the art of Gary Frank, which feels a lot like Dave Gibbons work from the original series in the 80s but does it's own thing at several points, and Johns's new additions to the Watchmen universe, particularly Mime and Marionette, a criminal duo that sort of resemble Joker and Harley Quinn, but with an added twist that Mime can't talk. You know, like a mime. The duo, formed as part of a team by Ozymandias to locate Dr. Manhattan, are incredibly entertaining and feel the most fleshed-out of any characters in the series.
As for the negatives, it's, weirdly enough, a lot of the DC universe aspects of the comic. The stuff involving Batman, Superman, and an apparent backlash against superheroes as evidence suggests they were created by the government is interesting, but it almost feels like it's dragging down the story and would've been better suited to it's own comic. The fun of this should come from stuff like confrontation between Batman and Rorscach, where we get to see two iconic characters meet.
My last negative is what the series does with the fate of the Comedian, the antihero whose murder set up the plot of the original series, and how it's an example of negative impact on the canon. (This is where the spoilers come in, by the way.)
After Edward Blake is hurled from his apartment window, Doomsday Clock reveals that Manhattan saved him and dumped into the main DC universe, where he now lies in wait for Ozymandias, his attacker, to show up so he can get revenge. The problem with this reveal is that a) nullifies the power of Comedian's death in the original comic and b) simply doesn't make an incredible amount of sense. It's nullifying because after so much of Watchmen focused on who he was as a person and how many of his peers have regrets surrounding their relationship with him before his death, it's simply been revealed that he was fine somewhere else.
It's nonsensical because if Blake was transported somewhere else, what did everyone in the Watchmen universe see? They found his window smashed and his blood-soaked iconic button on the pavement, but was there a body? Did literally everyone just assume that the Comedian hit the ground and died so hard he exploded into a puddle of blood?
Of course, maybe Johns will explain that in a later issue. After all, we're only three in at this particular point, so maybe I'm just dragging the series for something that will be clearly defined later. All in all, this isn't a terrible series by any stretch, and it's certainly a better event comic than anything Marvel has put out since Secret Wars, so I'm excited to do this again when Doomsday Clock hits the sixth, ninth, and final issue marks.
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