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Watchmen | 
 enlarge | Authors: Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons
Publisher: Titan Books Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £17.99
Buy New: £10.47
You Save: £7.52 (42%)
New (8) Used (4) from £10.47
Rating:  64 reviews
Sales Rank: 23
Media: Paperback
Pages: 424
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 10 x 6.6 x 0.8
ISBN: 1852860243
Dewey Decimal Number: 741
EAN: 9781852860240
ASIN: 1852860243
Publication Date: October 1, 1987
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Has any comic been as lauded as Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen? Possibly only Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns but Watchmen remains the critics' favourite. Why? Because Moore is a better writer, and Watchmen a more complex and dark and literate creation than Miller's fantastic, subversive take on the Batman myth. Moore, renowned for many other of the genre's finest creations (Saga of the Swamp Thing, V for Vendetta, and recently From Hell, with Eddie Campbell) first put out Watchmen in 12 issues for DC in 1986-87. It won a comic award at the time (the 1987 Jack Kirby Comics Industry Awards for Best Writer/Artist combination) and has continued to garner praise since.The story concerns a group called the Crimebusters and a plot to kill and discredit them. Moore's characterisation is as sophisticated as any novel's. Importantly the costumes do not get in the way of the storytelling, rather they allow Moore to investigate issues of power and control--indeed it was Watchmen, and to a lesser extent Dark Knight, that propelled the comic genre forward, making "adult" comics a reality. The artwork of Gibbons (best known for 2000AD's Rogue Trooper and DC's Green Lantern) is very fine too, echoing Moore's paranoid mood perfectly throughout. Packed with symbolism, some of the overlying themes (arms control, nuclear threat, vigilantes) have dated but the intelligent social and political commentary, the structure of the story itself, its intertextuality (chapters appended with excerpts from other "works" and "studies" on Moore's characters, or with excerpts from another comic book being read by a child within the story), the fine pace of the writing and its humanity mean that Watchmen more than stands up--it retains its crown as the best the genre has yet produced. --Mark Thwaite
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| Customer Reviews: Read 59 more reviews...
 An alternate world as convincing as any August 19, 2008
Inevitably over-rated after all that has been said and written about it, and about Alan Moore, this remains a necessary touchstone for anyone interested in the overlap between traditional fiction and graphic novels (ok, comics). Not quite as compelling as From Hell in its attempt at the serious, this is richly peopled and paints an alternate world as convincing as any, and occassionally more convincing that the one we're actually stuck with. If you're interested in where and why the imperfect, even damaged, super-heros that now pop everywhere came from, this is as good a place as any to start.
 Outstanding, a gripping read August 14, 2008
Watchmen rocks, big time.
I've only recently started reading graphic novels and what a place to start!!
Watchmen is written for a more mature audience and reflects more of the real world in its grittiness and atmosphere. There is no happy ending, none of the heroes, bar one (who is almost a god I suppose), have special powers other than being at the peak of human development in certain areas. Some are great athletes, some are very smart - some are both and most are pretty handy in a scrap.
The story starts with Rorschach investigating the murder of a man, Robert Blake, in the process of which Rorschach learns was a superhero called The Comedian. The plot revolves around Rorschach's deepening investigation and uncovering a plot which whilst horrendous may actually be the lesser of two evils - that's for the reader to decide.
The characters in the book are clear cut (and some not necessarily after a reader's affection as most superheroes are), take for instance Rorschach who had an abusive mother and a rough upringing and has grown into a man who is utterly uncompromising in his use of violence. He will do pretty much anything to anyone who prevents him reaching his goals. He's a true anti-hero. The story is filled with characters like this, some are almost Nazi's, others lean towards more traditional superhero values and it's interesting to see how the plot develops with this mix of characters who are all there to try and 'help' humanity.
The setting of the story is in an alternate 1985 where Richard Nixon is still president and the world is heading towards a nuclear holocaust. It's dark, gloomy, depressing and very atmospheric.
The artwork is fantastic too. There's a limited colour palette used which lends a unique look to proceedings. To me it looks like a traditional comic, which is no bad thing, as opposed to some comics which look like watercolour drawings.
It's difficult to carry on without revealing the plot but I found myself reading quickly just to find out what was going to happen. I'm reading it again already to see what I missed!
The ending is not what I expected. I was still expecting loosed ends to be tied up neatly, this is a comic book after all!! But, no, there is no such neatness provided and the last few pages leave things open and also show the death of a major character. The ending is brilliant actually.
The story deals with serious issues and is philosophical, thoughtful and emotionally deep. It's easy to see now why it was so revolutionary in its genre.
Essential *****
 I think I liked it... August 11, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have to be honest and say I am not a big reader of graphic novels, and the last one I read by Alan Moore ('From Hell') I really didn't like. This time I'm a little conflicted, I didn't exactly love the story but I was taken with the idea of it being an alternative version of history with a different take on the whole superhero mythos. There was a lot going on and at times I did get a little lost (particularly with Veidt's explanation for everything) and occasionally distracted by the comic-within-a-comic plot (which I sort of preferred to the main story). I'm glad I read it though as it's nice to read something different for a change.
What a read August 7, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'd heard so much hype about this book that i borrowed it of a friend.although i enjoyed it i found it to be a hard read.not that this was a bad thing.i just kept on reading and could not put it down.Alan moore certainly has a unique approach to story telling.Dave Gibbon's artwork works so well and have been a fan of his work since his 2000 a.d. days.i loved the originalaty of it and the character's are very involving.not a book for first timers thats for sure.cant wait for the movie.
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE SHOWS OVER August 3, 2008
The WONDERFUL concept behind Watchmen is its idea of what happens to superheroes when theyve served their purpose,a painful question which asks,supposing they did exist and theyve saved the world ten times over but now we dont need or want you anymore.Alan Moore the genius behind it shows us sad and ageing sides to once great and admired figures.They exist in a world that we all recognise and though it was written a quarter of a century ago Moore shows us a time that is just around the corner.Moore is an utter GENIUS,also as a decent companion piece check out Garth Ennis THE BOYS which have now been collected into two graphic novels,in my opinion both of the series compliment each other and could exist within the same universe.ANYHOO! BUY WATCHMEN,READ WATCHMEN,READ IT AGAIN,WAIT TIL MARCH,WATCH THE MOVIE THEN READ WATCHMEN AGAIN.Did I mention The Watchmen's quite good?
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