Rorschach’s Journal. 2021. The 35th anniversary of writer Alan Moore’s sensational, highly-influential and stunning 12-issue magnum opus, Watchmen rolls on, ever-present in the face of an unfolding mystery.
To continue the 35th anniversary Read-Along for the Comic of Comics, the @JusticeLeagueBookClub (run by myself) and the @DCHistoryClub (run by @msgtv and @TurokSonOfStone1950) will provide a fun analysis of each issue on a weekly basis, with my contributions coming from the odd-numbered issues, while DC History looks at the even-numbered issues.
How this Read-Along works :
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Watchmen is NOT available on DC Universe Infinite. To participate in the Read-Along, you’ll need to have your own copies of Watchmen (be they the single issues or a collected edition) at the ready to read along with as we move from issue to issue, week after week.
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Discussions will be posted on a weekly basis, with each discussion focusing on one issue. If you should run late, fear not good reader, as you are welcome to chime in on a particular week’s discussion at any time. Afterall, this is a 24/7 anniversary party.
Onto the good stuff, good reader:
Read:
- Watchmen #3
If you should need a copy on the fly, the issue is available at Comixology, while the collected edition of Watchmen is also available at Comixology, as well as on Hoopla.
Discuss:
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Watchmen #3 features Laurie Juspeczyk (aka Silk Spectre II) fleeing from the arms of Jon Osterman (aka Dr. Manhattan) and into those of Dan Dreiberg (aka Nite Owl II). Between these two, who do you feel the more natural fit for Laurie is?
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Should Dr. Manhattan have kept wearing a suit after his TV appearance? We all understand why he’s nekkid, but he does look good in a suit. “The clothes make the man.” as they say.
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Dr. Manhattan leaves Earth for the solitude of Mars. Was he right to do so, or should have have stayed on Earth, amongst his fellow man?
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In the Under The Hood supplement, we’re treated to stories about the Minutemen and how the 1950s began for them. From not ushering the decade in with a Christmas party the way they did the 1940s, to testifying before HUAC (the House of Un-American Activities Committee), to dealing with the disappearance of Hooded Justice due to him not testifying to that committee and more, it was a rough decade for superheroes. This mirrors how the 1950s in our world were also a rough decade for superheroes. What did you think of this fictional mirroring of costumed adventurers and how it paralleled what happened in our world with regards to them during that decade?
That’s the journal entry for the 35th anniversary this week, dear, good, reader. Start your adventure on the Black Freighter, wear your best suit while doing so and enjoy the ride, from here, to Mars and beyond.