Who Reads The Watchmen? Me, That's Who.

Aside from pretty much everything Kurt Vonnegut has ever written, the most influential piece of literature for me has been Watchmen by Alan Moore. First of all, let's set something straight: yes, it is a comic book. But for god's sake, do not let that deter you from reading it. After all, I guarantee you all of your friends will be declaring next March that "the movie wasn't as good as the book," whether or not they have even read it. So do yourself a favor and pick it up, no matter how embarrassing the prospect of buying a graphic novel may be.

In short, the story is of an alternate universe very similar to Earth, although Richard Nixon is now in his fifth term as President. A disbanded group of superheroes who used to protect America are forced to join together once again to solve the murder of one of their former team members, The Comedian. This is a very, very basic plot synopsis, of course.

The novel is effective not so much because it is a comic book, but because it completely goes against genre. I have always enjoyed reading comic books, but up until Watchmen, they were always something I could read if I didn't want to think too hard. Superman is good, Lex Luthor is evil, Superman wins. Not too challenging, but entertaining nonetheless. Watchmen flipped that all on its head, blowing my teenage mind. Superheroes are tortured alcoholics, sexually impotent, or just plain evil. And most importantly, a lot of them don't care about the people they save.

The story could easily have been successful as a regular novel, but its publication as a graphic novel greatly increases its psychological effect. Why describe the vacant eyes of Dr. Manhattan (easily in my top three favorite fictional characters of all time - a man who, as a result of an atomic experiment gone wrong, has powers comparable to God and who grows increasingly removed from and apathetic towards human society as a whole) when they can be shown in beautiful, realistic color drawings? Similarly, the fact that it is "merely" a comic book forces it to be compared to other comic books, not other novels. Dr. Manhattan draws obvious comparisons with Superman, so the reality of his character is made all the more apparent compared to the often two-dimensional alter ego of Clark Kent. Nite Owl and his multitude of gadgets is similar to Batman, which makes his impotence, depression, and weight gain after retirement even more strikingly realistic in comparison.

But the most important effect Watchmen had on me - and thousands others, I'm sure - is that it took the average, childish comic book and transformed it into a respected medium, one that pushes the boundaries, is able to be self-reflective and self-critical, and that is definitely not for kids. Therefore, it was no surprise to me when it was only one of two graphic novels on Time's list of All Time 100 Greatest Novels a few years ago (the other was Maus, another boundary-demolishing graphic novel about the Holocaust, in which the Jews are mice and the Nazis are cats).

So go on, don't be afraid to pick up a comic book. They're not for kids anymore.

(Full disclosure: while Watchmen is incredibly realistic and culturally important, it does obey the Traditional Comic Book Rules by momentarily including a giant alien squid. So a reasonable amount of suspended belief is required.)