"Watchmen" by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons comic review - Top 10 Essential Graphic Novels 05 - #6

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Review of comic book "Watchmen" by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons (1987) – from #6 on Stuart McMillen’s list of Top 10 Essential Graphic Novels.

"Watchmen"’s story is about a group of superheroes who were active in the 1950s and 1960s, but were forced to retire after they became unpopular with the public in the 1970s.

After they became outlawed, the Watchmen either retired, got co-opted by US Government, or continued working outside the law as independent crime-fighters.

I love the distinct personalities that each of the main characters have: Dr Manhattan, Ozymandias, The Comedian, Nite Owl, Rorcharch. It's interesting to see the comparison between the superheroes that they once were in their heyday, as well as the way that they each individually dealt with not being able to continue as superheroes, when the law changed in 1977.

One thing that I should mention about "Watchmen" is how complete it feels. There is definitely a well-defined story arc that feels like it's right there from the very beginning.

I like the recurring visual motifs that pop up throughout the book, such a smiley face with a drop of blood on it, as well as the silhouette of two lovers embracing. As well as the story-within-a-story "Tales of the Black Freighter".

From a comics standpoint, it's also interesting to see how the story is told with such a restrained layout. "Watchmen" is drawn with a strict grid format of 3-by-3 panels per page. Although, sometimes they do alter this 3-by-3 format, to add emphasis to certain panels.

If you want to wrap your head around the storytelling possibilities that comics allow, you need to read "Watchmen".

Buy "Watchmen" by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons (1987)
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