Prior to the 1986 DC Comics release of Alan Moore’s Watchmen, David Thompson reports – in his article “No Laughing Matter” – comic book publishers were experiencing “falling sales” and a disinterested reader base, a fact which Thompson concludes was a result of countless “throwaway” titles released by the comic-book industry to capture the “casual” comic book reader (Thompson). DC Comics itself had released several titles over the past few years that created multiple continuities within the DC universe, in which differing versions of prominent DC characters – like Superman, Batman, and the Flash – existed over a broad fictional spectrum. Essentially, these continuities functioned like “alternate realities” in which separate fictional events could occur in one without affecting the others. This was likely a ploy to increase comic book sales, considering the sheer amount of fictional material that was available (Thompson).
Essentially, there were seven “alternate Earths” from which DC comics provided comic book stories, all of them operating under independent continuity, as the History of Comic Books affirms – and readers began to lose interest (The History of Comic Books). In an effort to consolidate these multiple realities, while at the same time reaching for a much needed marketing success, DC Comics published in 1985 the 12-issue mini-series Crisis on Infinite Earths: a story in which all seven “alternate Earths” came together, as well as the endless sea of characters who occupied them. The story washed the multiple realities clean, so that a singular, consolidated DC universe could be established: an extermination of multiple characters resulted from the purge (The History of Comic Books). Yet, the complexity and motivation of the story may have been a flaw. Mitchell Brown, in his review of Crisis on Infinite Earths, suggests that the complexity of the series prevented writers from keeping the story cohesive; and that the sheer number of characters hindered character development and confused some readers who were not familiar with the DC universes (Brown).
Although Crisis on Infinite Earths is considered both a marketing and literary success, readers were growing weary of the grandiose superhero interpretations of yesteryear. While TheFreeDictionary.com affirms that, for the era, Crisis was an outstanding production; it also claims that the series was “rooted firmly in the cliché-ridden stereotype of ‘superheroes battle to save the world’” (TheFreeDictionary.com). The comic-book industry began to suffer as a result, and major publishers – as Thompson reports – began to communicate with smaller retailers and to entertain publishing lesser-known but quality work, hoping to revitalize the comic book market and re-capture the attention of older and more faithful comic book patrons (Thompson).
One of the works released during this time was Watchmen, published in 1986 by DC Comics. British creators Alan Moore (writer) and Dave Gibbons (artwork) constructed a massive 12-issue mini-series that rejuvenated the stagnant superhero genre simply by changing the formula. Instead of relying on traditional, clean-cut superhero stereotypes; Moore allowed his story to be told by despondent, unlikely heroes, and the believable human personalities and faults that accompanied them. Originally, Moore sought to revitalize existing “Charlton” characters (namely the Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, and The Question); but DC Comics commissioned him to invent totally new characters – as Moore recalled in an interview for The Extraordinary Works (Khoury 109). Moore’s new players subsequently became the beating heart of Watchmen and the object of its namesake. Moore states that he pushed the “limits” of the new characters further than the Charlton characters had ever been, contributing ultimately to Watchmen’s political, philosophical, and dramatic depth and complexity.
Watchmen’s central story revolves around the mysterious murder of Eddie Blake – known as the Comedian – a former sadistic, nihilist superhero: and the subsequent investigation. In the series, Blake is characterized in retrospect as a violent, cynical anti-hero of sorts; his physical appearance is grizzled and unkempt, his face sporting a deep scar, and his borderline-dominatrix leather outfit providing no “comedic” imagery, save for a small yellow “smiley face” button that ultimately becomes the true face of Watchmen. Above all, Blake is one who understands the indifference of those he protected; and one who mourns that, although he can save so many, he cannot save himself. Ironically, a joke integrated by Moore into the story illustrates perfectly the plight of the Blake’s Comedian persona:
Man goes to doctor. Says he’s depressed. Says life seems harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a threatening 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” (Moore 2; 27).
Moore utilizes two issues from the series to develop two major Watchmen characters, which creates a viable sense of depth and continuity for the story to operate upon. Dr. Manhattan, a nuclear-charged super-being possessing powers rivaling that of a god. Initially, Dr. Manhattan lived as Jon Osterman, a human scientist who miraculously regenerated himself after a horrible laboratory accident; an event which essentially made him his own creator, and effectively alleviated his principle humanity. This characterization provides an existential and – as David Thompson suggests – a disconnected view of the human condition: as Manhattan himself claims, “A live body and a dead body contain the same number of particles. Structurally, there’s no discernable difference. Life and death are unquantifiable abstracts. Why should I be concerned?” (Thompson)
While Moore affirms that Rorschach is not the protagonist of Watchmen (Khoury 113), he is certainly the most provocative player. Garnished in a tattered, stained trench coat and fedora, Rorschach bears a symmetrical, ever-changing visage resembling a Rorschach inkblot (a mask, as revealed later in the series). In effect, Rorschach represents the “black-and-white” sensibilities of society, a conviction which develops in the character as a result of frequent childhood and adolescent abuse. Although Rorschach fancies himself a vigilante: his efforts effectively combat any injustice perceived by Rorschach himself, in the most violent manners possible. His uncompromising, yet calculated sense of responsibility drives the investigation of the Comedian’s murder; and while the supporting characters (like Doc Manhattan, and companions Dan and Laurie) regard Rorschach as a deranged killer with a warped sense of honor, Rorschach – in the end – maintains his commitment to “truth and justice” by exposing the central conspiracy of the story, even at the cost of his own life. Moore quotes Rorschach in The Extraordinary Works: “You know what I wish? I wish all the scum of the Earth had one throat and I had my hands about it” (Khoury 113).
The chief player of Moore’s Watchmen, however, is also the most comprehensive and three-dimensional. Adrian Veidt – once a prodigious superhero known as Ozymandias – has retired under the direction of the Keene Act (a fictional act passed in Moore’s Watchmen by legislature to force the retirement of costumed heroes, preceding the current events of the series by nine years). Still considered the “World’s Smartest Man” (Moore 1; 17), Veidt possesses a popular appeal that maintains his celebrity even after declining his duties as a crime-fighter; and this appeal has established him as a corporate tycoon and “friend” to the masses, even to the extent of presenting an annual charity demonstration of acrobatic skill by Veidt himself (Moore 7; 14-15). Veidt’s appearance is likewise significant: he is tall and handsome, with perfectly trimmed blonde hair adorning his head; sporting regal violet robes and formal business suits (Moore).
Additionally, Matthew Wolf-Meyer – a master’s student in Anthropology and American Culture Studies – describes Veidt’s philosophy in his article “The World Ozymandias Made: Utopias in the Superhero Comic, Subculture, and the Conservation of Difference”. According to Wolf-Meyer, Adrian Veidt adheres to “Nietzchean” ideology; that is, he has prevailed over the boundaries of humanity to become something more, and has done so through “enlightenment”. For instance, Wolf-Meyer quotes Veidt on this idea from Watchmen:
Entering school, I was already exceptionally bright, my perfect scores on early tests arousing such suspicion that I carefully achieved only average grades thereafter. What caused such precociousness? My parents were intellectually unremarkable, possessing no obvious genetic advantages. Perhaps I decided to be intelligent rather than otherwise? Perhaps we all make such decisions (Wolf-Meyer).
In fact, Watchmen’s narrative centers closely on Veidt’s philosophies. In the world of Watchmen, a world war seems imminent; and Veidt, acting as a pseudo-antagonist, formulates a plan which involves “faking” an alien threat (leading to thousands dead in the streets of New York City) to unite the world powers under a utopian society and end the threat of war. His plan ultimately succeeds, but on the last page of the series, Rorschach’s diary containing the facts regarding Veidt’s utopian plan - as Rorschach himself had intended – is discovered (Moore 12; 32).
Wolf-Meyer uses this event to criticize the “pettiness” of Rorschach: for he does not adhere to the philosophy that the “needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few,” because he sabotages Veidt’s new utopia. Wolf-Meyer himself calls Rorschach an “adolescent”; and he considers Rorschach’s popularity among Watchmen readers “disturbing,” citing that this phenomenon was most likely due to the inability of the predominantly male, teenage, and socially-deficient readers to identify with the very “bourgeois” Adrian Veidt (quoted in Wolf-Meyer).
Yet, Wolf-Meyer fails to interpret correctly the theme of the series, which is printed at Watchmen’s conclusion - Quis custodiet ipsos custodes – and translated from Latin to read: “Who watches the watchmen?” This phrase, which was quoted in President Reagen’s 1987 Tower Commission Report on regulating foreign policy, satirizes the “hero” archetype; and as Moore suggests, proves that it is “dangerous to have heroes” because it is a matter of perception by which heroes operate (Khoury 115). Watchmen’s Rorschach is a hero, but his flaws are evident: his appearance is unkempt and tattered, his “crime-fighting” methods are brutal, and his sense of morality is radically conservative. Throughout the series, the supporting characters refer to him as “nuts” (Moore 2; 18) and “masked maniac” (Moore 6; 27). Adrian Veidt, on the other hand, is admired: his appearance is clean-cut and impressionable, his skills are celebrated (Moore 7; 14), and he has no evident flaws – all of which make him a more acceptable public hero. His shortcomings, however, originate from his very notion of success. Veidt’s plan for a world utopia succeeds, but he fails to grasp that no one individual should manipulate world affairs. As Moore describes, Veidt uses his position to seek out a better world, but ultimately pushes those good intentions to a delusional sense of heroism (Khoury 113). And in a final conversation with Dr. Manhattan, Veidt asks, “I did the right thing, didn’t I? It all worked out in the end,” to which Dr. Manhattan replies, “‘In the end’? Nothing ends, Adrian. Nothing ever ends” (Moore 12; 27). Finally, Veidt realizes that life does not operate like a comic book, and the story does not end when there are no more pages to turn. Life goes on, and new problems to solve arise – worldly or otherwise - because that is precisely human nature.
Veidt’s inability to see his faults contrasts strongly with Rorschach’s celebration of his own; and this fact alone establishes Rorschach as much more than “adolescent”, as Wolf-Meyer suggests. Rorschach is the only Watchmen character who understands that his flaws exist, and that they are the product of the violence and desolation which saturated his early life. His commitment does not rest with heroism and salvation of the masses, but with the truth. Rorschach’s exposure of Veidt’s utopian intentions does not judge them right or wrong. It simply informs the masses of the means through which the “watchmen” are watching out for them – a measure of knowledge they most certainly deserve.
Fundamentally, the most enduring icon of Alan Moore’s Watchmen is the common yellow “smiley face” button, smeared with the Comedian’s blood over the left eye. It is the same button Rorschach finds in the street that perpetuates the entire subsequent story, and it emerges many times throughout the series (Moore 1; 5). Most notably, it appears on the very last page of Watchmen as a T-shirt (with a ketchup stain in place of the blood smear) being worn by the bumbling journalist assistant who will ultimately discover Rorschach’s journal; accompanied by the words, “I leave it entirely in your hands” (Moore 12; 32). To Moore, the “smiley face” symbolizes the face of innocence: it was scientifically proven as the most basic image that will cause a newborn child to emotionally respond. The image of the bloody “smiley face” suggests that innocence is also bloody, and that it is “no longer possible”, because the “age of innocence” is gone. Additionally, the “smiley face” complements the innocence of the superhero archetype, to which adolescents can ultimately relate (Khoury 117).
Clearly, Moore wanted to provide differing “superhero” characters with equally differing views of the world and society, and in the end show that all of them – despite their capabilities and variations – were still as inept, uneducated, and unprepared to resolve the world’s problems as the masses (those who perpetuated those problems) themselves. This notion of innocence relates to the lowly assistant with the "smiley face,” ketchup-stained shirt at the end of the series: his innocence is evident, but even he is tainted with the blood of the world because he is ultimately a part of it. He essentially becomes the personification of the everyman on Earth; the innocent and uninformed bystander who is finally allowed to grasp the truth regarding the world around him – just as the quote reads, “I leave it entirely in your hands” (Moore 12; 32).
David Thompson understands the value and complexity of Watchmen when he suggests that simplifying its plot to epitomize key points would be to “miss its point entirely,” because the series’ excellence stems from the consummate implementation of Alan Moore’s interconnected themes and sensibilities of character (Thompson). Moore himself credits Watchmen’s value and success as a ground-breaking work to the effort made by he and artist Dave Gibbons to present it: “I don’t think that the dark take on super-heroes was the most radical thing about Watchmen,” he says, citing the “treatment” Marvel creators Jack Kirby and Stan Lee were giving the Fantastic Four in dramatic shadows and believable dialogue. Moore continues: “[T]he most radical thing about Watchmen was the storytelling, the ideas behind it, things that only really emerged in the telling” (Khoury 110). Watchmen quite clearly operates – not just as a comic book – but as a legitimate work of literature, one that examines a wide range of complex philosophies and beliefs inherent in the human condition, and one that hides no blemishes. In a genre saturated with trite and overused archetypes that speak nothing to the ruminating minds of their readers, Alan Moore’s Watchmen provides a magnificent ray of intellectual sunshine, essentially becoming a product of its own conviction: at the conclusion of chapter nine, a C.G. Jung quote reads, “As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light of meaning in the darkness of mere being” (Moore 9; 28).
Works Cited
Brown, Mitchell. “Crisis on Infinite Earths.” The Unofficial Comics Crossover Index. Tripod. 13 Nov. 2004 http://members.tripod.com/~MitchellBrown/xover/dc_crisis.html
“Crisis on Infinite Earths.” TheFreeDictionary.com. Farlex. 13 Nov. 2004 http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Crisis%20on%20Infinite%20Earths
“The History of Comic Books.” Comicbooks.com. Collector Times. 13 Nov. 2004 http://www.collectortimes.com/~comichistory/Hist4.html
Khoury, George. The Extraordinary Works of Alan Moore. Raleigh: TwoMorrows, 2003.
Moore, Alan. Watchmen. New York: DC Comics, 1986/1987.
Thompson, David. “No Laughing Matter.” Academic Search Elite (2001). 5 Nov. 2004 http://www.ius.edu/Library/article_search.html
Wolf-Meyer, Matthew. “The World Ozymandias Made: Utopias in the Superhero Comic, Subculture, and the Conservation of Difference”. Academic Search Elite. 5 Nov. 2004 http://www.ius.edu/Library/article_search.html
