XML FeedsWatchmen Thoughts, Pt 1
By Andrew on Dec 6, 2005 | In Books, Comic Books | 8 feedbacks »
I just started reading Watchmen, mostly on Kyle's recommendation. I've known for a while that I would do well to read some of Alan Moore's work, but, quite frankly, I haven't really felt much like reading comics. Sin City sort of re-awakened my desire to read some good graphic novels, mostly because as faithful the film was to the source material, and as well-filmed and breathtaking it was, the stories seemed better served on the pages in black and white (and the occasional red).
I just discovered where my library keeps its graphic novels, so I sought out the "M"s for Alan Moore, and there on the shelf sat "Watchmen". Sidenote: the graphic novels are kept in the juvenile section, which makes no sense because this is hardly juvenile material.
I'm only 30 pages or so into the story, and already Moore is aiming high. The set-up reminds me of movies like "Lethal Weapon", but it soon takes some turns and fleshes out characters in ways rarely seen in action films or superhero stories. I enjoy how the story subverts the superhero genre, down to the characters mocking the way they used to don costumes before heading out to battle.
The relationships are already complex; Moore uses flashback skillfully to navigate from present to past and back again, and sets his scenes up in such a way that the juxtaposition creates more dramatic tension than the scenes would on their own.
As far as the art, Dave Gibbons uses the panels to full effect. As all great comics do, they tell the story the way great films do. There is as much information in the composition of the pages and the individual panels as there is in the dialogue and narration. I am struck by the timelessness of the art. It does not look dated as I would have expected it to, since it was drawn nearly 20 years ago.
I look forward to the way the story plays out.
8 comments
There is as much information in the composition of the pages and the individual panels as there is in the dialogue and narration.
When I go back and read Watchmen this is what strikes me the most. When I do a very close reading, paying attention to every detail and juxtaposition, it takes me as long as reading a traditional prose novel. Moore is infamous for giving extremely detailed visual discriptions to his artists in his scripts. I read that he wrote up to a full single-spaced page just describing one panel of Watchmen. I'd be able to see for myself in the Absolute edition I ordered if a certain lousy, no-good deadbeat eBay seller didn't cash my check only to gyp me, ignore my e-mails, and disconnect his phone number. Grrr.
So did you see Sin City? I don't think I've ever talked to you about it. What did you think?
We did see Sin City. I can't say I loved it, but I can't say I didn't. I really loved the way the film looked. It really was like watching a comic book in action, which was incredible. I never even thought about how it was filmed entirely on green screen while I watched the film. It engrossed me that much. But the violence, while it worked in the books, was too much for film. All of the dimemberments, shootings and other acts of carnage came out looking much more explicit on film than in the books.
Maybe I'm getting more sensitive, because I remember first seeing the scene in Predator when Carl Weathers got his arms ripped off, and I thinking "Cool." It doesn't seem so cool anymore. I can't stand all of the Law and Orders and CSIs (and the 100s of clones) on TV because they make murder just an event to set into action a "cool" episode detailing how the murder was committed and how the murderer may be caught.
Anyhow, I digress. In the end, the film was successful almost exclusively in being a faithful adaptation. Unfortunately, to me, a film is great on its own merits, not if it has been faithfully adapted.
So, what happened with eBay? Did you pay with Paypal? You should e-mail Mel, she would know if there's a way to get your money back (how much was it...isn't that book $80 or so?).
I was kind of dumb on the eBay auction. The seller said he accepts personal checks, and he had an impeccable history, and because I was feeling to lazy to go to the post office for a money order that day, I just sent a check. It was only for $45, but I'm really upset. The guy just disappeared. I'm hoping I can still get my money back from eBay if I can get a copy of the endorsed check from the bank.
After you get done reading through Watchmen on your own (so as not to spoil any plot twists), I recommend taking a look at these annotations. They revealed to me a lot of interesting details and techniques I never noticed on my own. Most notably, it points out that each chapter has its own motif. Chapter 5: Fearful Symmetry, for example, features lots of mirror images and symmetrical objects. In addition, the story structure and panel layouts themselves are perfectly symmetrical: the last page is a mirror of the first page, etc.
I'm going to quit raving now and just let you read the thing.
I'm going to have to make another Watchmen post soon.
That really sucks. I'm sorry, man.
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