Watchmen (HBO)
“Perfection” is not a descriptive word I throw around lightly. I’m known among my friends and family for always being able to find something that could have been better with a show or movie. When my in-laws routinely ask “Ok, what would you give it out of 10?” after our trip to the theater, I rarely give above an 8.5. In my mind, here’s how it breaks down:
6 and below = varying degrees of a bad movie. This is rare since we are pretty selective about the types of movies we’ll shell out the big bucks to see in a theater
7 – 8 = decent movie, I see what they were going for, but either it didn’t connect with me or there was some significant room for improvement
8 – 8.5 = a good / great movie. I have almost no complaints and might watch it again someday. But I probably won’t own it. And I probably won’t be watching the director’s commentary or spending the next two weeks discussing it
9 – 9.5 = this is now officially one of my favorite movies. I want to watch it again immediately. I will own it. I will make all of my friends watch it. I will Google all of the behind the scenes info. If you bring up this movie to me I will utter a mix of some sort of groan / exclamation and you won’t be able to tell if that is supposed to be a good sound or a bad sound, but it’s a good sound.
10 = I don’t know if I’ve truly seen anything that would get a 10/10. Even my most favorite films and shows have flaws. It would truly be a rare show or movie to earn a 10 from me.
Of course, a simple number doesn’t include all of the specific ups and downs of each project, or any qualifications that I’d like to give on my rating (and there are always qualifications). I suppose that’s why I have this platform right?
On a side note, this is exactly why I haven’t (and don’t plan to) incorporated any sort of rating scale for the movies I’ve seen (not that anyone has been wondering about it). A number or star rating too reductive for me. Although, I get the appeal, since then you wouldn’t have to read through several paragraphs of my nonsense to figure out if a movie is worth watching or not.
But going back to the illusive 10 / 10… For me, it’s important that I maintain this discretion because otherwise, I might as well stop discussing shows and movies. Then, a 10/10, or the word “perfect, would lose it’s meaning.
All of that BS notwithstanding, I’m going to say it. Watchmen (the series) is damn near perfection.
SPOILER ZONE
First and foremost, I should say that, in general, I’m not a comic book person. BUT I love comic book characters and stories. I’ve never owned or read a comic book. BUT, I love comic book adaptations to film, I listen to what people who love comic books say about those films, and about the comic book itself whatever it may be. I’m some weird in-between fan that knows enough but would never be considered part of the “in-crowd” by those guarding the comic book kingdom gates. Still, the depth of story, the world building, the character arcs that can last years – all like catnip for a story nerd.
In fact, I’m starting to think I should just break down and get into comic books already. I know I would love them. It’s ridiculous I haven’t.
So, I fully admit anything I have to say about this series is with the naivitee of someone who has no idea what they are talking about – in keeping with my brand.
The first thing that strikes me about this show, is that it looks COOOOL (extra “O”s intentional). I watched the Watchmen 2009 film when it was first released on DVD, but I have almost no memory of it. However, I remember enough that my impression is that there is a visual language that remains consistent between the film and the series. I suppose this makes sense. Since they’re both based on the same visual/written hybrid medium, transitioning the look and feel to the screen should be easy with pages and pages of blueprint to work from.
The striking contrast of color vs grey and brightness vs darkness permeates this whole series. (Fitting as contrasting skin colors play such a pivotal role in the themes of this series.) We can’t escape it.
It’s at once extremely realistic and beautifully cartoon-ish. Stylized but grounded.
With over 8 hours of content, there’s simply too much to discuss by way of specifics, but I want to highlight a few of my favorite elements / sequences:
The memory sequence – Regina King experiences her grandfather’s memories, learning the truth about her past by living it. They way this episode was cut together, the way Regina was cut into the memories enough but not too much. It played perfectly. It struck all of the chords. It was confusing, and shocking, and emotional, and chaotic. I have rarely seen anything edited so precisely. Where a quick cut can make me gasp, or an extra moment lingering on any object has my mind buzzing with possibilities about what it might mean to our story.
Regina King’s costume is incredible. So chic, so cool, so mysterious, so tough, so intimidating, so feminine. As a female superhero fan, I’m here for it.
AND THEN we get into the magnificent weirdness of Jeremy Irons. MAGNIFICENT. WEIRDNESS. Piecing together where and when he is, why he is there, and what his plan might be was oodles of fun. Deliciously callous. A bit violent. Completely mad. I could have watched him all day.
The legacy of the Watchmen in general. Over the course of the series, we track three generations of masked vigilantes. Three. This is my first real experience with this universe and it was so incredibly cool to actually see the “main characters” from the comic in a supporting role to what could be called the next generation. I appreciated that one doesn’t detailed knowledge of that original story in order to appreciate this one, but I became incredibly curious about the original team. I knew there would be another even deeper, richer layer to this show waiting for me if I did.
In this series, we manage to see nearly every superhero cliché, almost without realizing it. A superhero origin story, a ticking clock story structure. So many standard tropes that would, in a lesser vehicle, jumped out at me and completely taken me out of the viewing experience. Not so here. In a large part, this contributes to this exciting feeling of familiarity and novelty that permeates every episode you watch.
Eggs make their way all the way through the series – from being cracked into a signature smile in the beginning, to being a key device in the series’ conclusion.
Speaking of through lines – THE ENDING. One of the best endings of any series. Full stop. It’s not until the final frames that you realize everything has been leading up to this moment. Everything has been building to it. It feels inevitable. It’s the cut of the final sequence that leaves the audience begging for more. I want so badly to see where the story goes from here. But, I suppose sometimes it’s better to leave them wanting more.
By the end of this series, I was left with this thought: This is a love story. There is more true, beautiful, heartwarming and heartbreaking romance in this series than in almost any other comic book vehicle I can think of. I think in an effort to avoid anything too “cheesy” most comic book films shy away from romance all together. They sprinkle it in, dip a toe, give you just enough, but keep it vague and on the side. Here, the romance between Angela and Doctor Manhattan is the impetus to a series of events that (we hope) will change the world.
The depiction of racial dynamics in this show bears significant discussion. And certainly, there are smarter people than myself who can more aptly summarize the themes depicted. Certainly, a better forum, a longer piece, a more qualified author would be preferable. That being said, I’ll just list a few things that jumped out to me.
A key event in this story is the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. I’m embarrassed to admit I had to go to Google to confirm it this had been a real event. A shaming indictment on the stories that are told in our country, and the history that is taught. In the past couple of weeks, I’ve seen more and more references to this violent event. I am glad to see potentially an increased awareness, but wish we were seeing the story shared for less terrifying and heartbreaking reasons.
The parallel between Angela Abar operating hooded, in a mask, painting her face. And her grandfather doing the same draws an inescapable connection, a mirror of behavior. Things have changed, but have they really changed that much?
The consistent failure of white allies in this show was, to me, disappointing but expected. If one finds it unexpected, disappointing, and frustrating, that is the point. You are immersed in a world where you don’t know who you can rely on. A world where the ones in power you looked to for guidance have been undermining you the whole time. One where every time you might hope that someone’s intentions are pure and things might actually change, you are let down. Can you imagine?
In general, a world in which the police have been infiltrated by those looking to turn a community in on itself in order to gain and maintain power. I suppose we can all consider how close that does or does not hit home for us. And why.
Here’s an interesting article where show runner Damon Lindelhof explains how he approached this subject matter and the contributions of his diverse writing team: https://gen.medium.com/damon-lindelof-heard-some-hard-truths-in-the-watchmen-writer-s-room-24101b6c11b7
Needless to say, this show delivers a powerful message, albeit challenging for some, but one that I think needs to be heard by (many) more people.
After watching this series, I am desperate to go back and re-watch the film.
As the show revealed more and more about the legacy of these masked heroes (?) I kept finding myself asking “WHY isn’t this as big as the MCU?”. It’s cooler and more violent, smarter, just as funny, equally visually exciting, incredible origin stories, complex characters. The only reason I can think of is that the movie came out 5 years too early. It came out just 1 year after the first Iron Man movie, before the world knew the Avengers the way they do now. Before comic book heroes comprised the bulk of our movie-going experiences. Before the world writ-large has an unprecedented level of comic book fluency.
Consider – would Deadpool have been a huge hit with a sequel if the masses didn’t already have some knowledge of the X-Men or the Avengers as groundwork? Would the Guardians of the Galaxy be one of the most popular teams in the MCU, if the Avengers hadn’t come first for them to play in contrast to?
The Bottom Line
If Watchmen had come out as a film now, or even 5 years ago, I think it would have been considered a game changer. It would have hit the zeitgeist. People would have been craving an edgy alternative to the MCU they know and love. It would have easily become a trilogy, with spin-offs, and we could still even have this show! We might even, for better or worse, get more seasons of this show.
One can only imagine and only dream. Assuming we never get any more Watchmen, I’ll just say that I’m glad to have this series.
But I still want more Watchmen.
