What Watchmen Means To Me, Pt. 4

So, from 1997 to 2009, I lived with Watchmen as the pinnacle of comics perfection, the high water mark that all other comics would be compared against. During these years, I was pursuing a different path. I completed my Masters Degree in Library and Information Science and I worked for a number of universities and libraries in a variety of positions. In all of them, Watchmen affected my creative endeavors and there was hardly an instance in which I was not able to recommend it.

So, when someone was looking for a graphic novel to read, Watchmen was always #1 on the list. When it came time to put together a core collection of graphic novels for a library, Watchmen was always in that collection. When we gave panel presentations at annual librarian conventions, Watchmen was always one of the first choices of graphic novels to recommend. When I had the chance to write a comic book script, Watchmen directly influenced our creative process.

Alan Moore himself often said that Watchmen was not supposed to ever bridge the gap between comics and film. And, true to his conviction, he eventually divorced himself from film versions of this, one of his best and best known works. The Watchmen film had an interesting stop and start history and you can find that information elsewhere on the web. One thing you should read is the Sam Hamm script that almost became the film version of Watchmen back in the early 1990's.

I'm proud to be a Watchmen fan and here on the eve of the film's release, I am confident in saying that director Zack Snyder has captured the graphic novel effectively for film. Watchmen will be fit to stand beside his two other film masterpieces Dawn of the Dead and 300.

Enjoy the Watchmen movie!