Plot: Watchmen takes place in an alternative, contemporary reality in the United States, in which masked vigilantes became outlawed due to their violent methods. Despite this, some gather around in order to start a revolution while others are out to stop it before it is too late, as a greater question rises above them all; who watches the Watchmen?
Review: I figured when it comes to reviewing a series like this, I probably shouldn't bury the lead so I will start out by saying that Watchmen is fucking brilliant. Having seen six of the nine episodes of the HBO series, I can say without a doubt that Damon Lindelof has crafted a worthy follow-up to the landmark comic book by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons by virtually ignoring it entirely. Watchmen is set within the same universe as the graphic novel but shows us what that 1980s dystopia would look like four decades later. It is a bold experiment and one that certainly could have backfired, but in many ways this is the best way to honor the source material and explore new storylines.
If you are familiar with the comic (and Zack Snyder's big screen adaptation), the original Watchmen is set in an alternate universe where superheroes have long existed. Nite Owl, The Comedian, Rorschach, Silk Spectre, Doctor Manhattan, and Ozymandias all come to terms with a world that no longer trusts superheroes which creates a rift between the public and the politicians which eventually leads to the heroes themselves crumbling under the pressure. This Watchmen takes that idea and fastforwards it to 2019 where racism and intolerance mimic the current socio-political climate. Rorschach's legacy is adopted as a symbol for a white supremacy group known as Seventh Cavalry while the cops don masks to fight back. It is an eerie world that looks just like our real America, only with a very different historical context.
While some of the original Minutemen factor into this story, especially Silk Spectre (Jean Smart) and Ozymandias (Jeremy Irons), it is the shadow of Rorschach and Doctor Manhattan (who lives on Mars) that have the biggest impact. It also is worth noting that by shifting the narrative away from New York and putting it in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Here, Detective Angela Abar (Regina King) hunts down the Rorschach-masked villains while dressed as Sister Night. She is aided by Red Scare (Andrew Howard) and psychic Looking Glass (Tim Blake Nelson) under the leadership of Chief Judd Crawford (Don Johnson). As the tensions in Tulsa rise after a spate of murders, the legacy of the characters from the original Watchmen play into the endgame for these new vigilantes.
I already get the sense that many are going to perceive this Watchmen as a play for diversity with it's focus on racism, civil rights, and more, but that is where it's brilliance comes from. Co-creator of the comics, Dave Gibbons, serves as a consultant on the series (while Alan Moore has disowned it like he did Snyder's film) which gave Damon Lindelof the fuel to give us a twisted look at tensions in 2019 America much like the original comic book did for the Cold War. Replace Richard Nixon with President Robert Redford and factor in all of the events from the original story (psychic squid, anyone?) and you have a series that balances the elements of comic book tropes with a very complex set of themes.
Kudos has to be given to Damon Lindelof, the co-creator of the massive hit Lost as well as HBO's underrated The Leftovers, who was the bane of fanboys for years thanks to his involvement with PROMETHEUS, STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS, and TOMORROWLAND. Here, he once again proves that his talent for developing characters was not a fluke. Watchmen rests on these characters and the actors who portray them. While Jeremy irons and Jean Smart do an admirable job of succeeding Malin Akerman and Matthew Goode as older versions of their characters, this series is a showcase for recent Oscar winner Regina King who is absolutely stellar here. There are also excellent turns from AQUAMAN's Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Louis Gossett Jr, and James Wolk.
Watchmen, under the direction of Nicole Kassell for the first two episodes, features episodes co-written by Lindelof alongside multiple different writers, all of whom tackle the massive challenge of analyzing racism in this fictional world. It is uncomfortable in many ways but the camera never shies away from showing us the true evil that men can do. Watchmen is violent but never vulgar and by the time you get to the fifth and sixth episodes of the season, you will likely feel shocked to your core. Each episode is heavy on dialogue but there are some visual suckerpunches to be had as well as action scenes that are worthy successors to Snyder's film. All of this comes wrapped in a package set to the music of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross who imbue this series with an incrediblt memorable score.
There are few series that will challenge viewers in the way that Watchmen will. Fans of the comics will find a lot to love here, including so many references and easter eggs that you will have to rewatch each episode to catch them all. Some are subtle and others are not, but they help make this series one of the most original to come around in quite a long time. This is a drama that is perfectly built for future seasons which could run independently from this story and still have just as much power. Unlike the DC Comics follow-ups (Before Watchmen, Doomsday Clock), this series is the only worthy successor to the original. HBO has had a solid run this year with their new shows and event series, but Watchmen feels like the first true successor to Game of Thrones and could easily eclipse Westworld as the network's best drama.
Watchmen premieres Sunday, October 20th on HBO.
