Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

{Who will watch the Watchmen?}

The last thing blogland needs is yet another ode to Watchmen, but since I put in the time to reread, I wanted to share my thoughts.

The coming threat of nuclear war, with the arms race with the Soviet Union, in one way seems outdated...but in another, it captures the gripping generalized fear of the Cold War, very different from the remote bloodshed in Iraq to the average American. (Except for the terror fear we feel especially in the Northeast post 9/11.)

The layers of the superheroes, the newsstand worker, the pirate story-- While not the first with these methods, the most credited. The postmodern change from the linear, clear-cut moral tale is evident here. Environmental and psychological destruction, politics, idol worship, and tons of symbolism.

Laurie and Dan's awkward start, and growth into a real relationship was mature and deep. Gibbons art, full of expression is the exclamation point to Moore's story. Nearly every panel includes significant details of the story-line or visual motifs (such as triangles and pyramids) with themes important to the plot.

And Rorschach alone- vigilante, detective, brutalized childhood stands as one of the best characters comics created. He should have made my redhead list.

Alan Moore hates the films made from his works, and once again a Watchmen movie is on the horizon. I fear the movie, currently aligned with the Dawn of the Dead director. I did enjoy V for Vendetta (which Moore took his name off of), while not an exact replica of the book, the themes of fascism and individuality still rang through the film. Even cute but wooden-acting Portman was good.

If comic books have a "Citizen Kane," the clear choice is "Watchmen ," written by Alan Mooreand drawn by Dave Gibbons.

Has any comic been as acclaimed as Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen?

Alan Moore, who wanted to transcend the perceptions of the comic book medium as something juvenile, created Watchmen as an attempt to make "a superhero Moby-Dick; something that had that sort of weight, that sort of density

Two decades after its arrival, there is still no greater comic book.

[an emergency root canal Monday sidelined blog plans for reviews. I have a tooth full of medicine right now to heal the infection. But I have been at work for 2 days- librarian toughs it out.]