The amount of people who call Watchmen a "superhero comic" is getting old

I was at a local shop last weekend, saw a guy grab the Absolute edition of Watchmen and tell his friend it was the "best superhero story ever." No, it's not. It's a deconstruction of the whole idea. The whole point is that these people are broken, messed up, and the masks are just costumes. If you call it a superhero comic, you're missing why it works. I've read it 3 times now and each time I catch something new. Anyone else get tired of explaining this?

3 comments

3 Comments

oliver_morgan26d ago

i mean is it really THAT deep though? like yeah Watchmen deconstructs the idea of superheroes but it's still a comic with people in costumes doing dramatic stuff. it's not like anyone is reading it and thinking "oh this is a perfect example of the genre". it's just a label. calling it a superhero comic isn't wrong, it's just not the whole picture. the guy at your shop probably just likes the story. not everyone needs to analyze it like a college course.

miles7226d ago

Told my buddy the same thing over beer and he finally saw it after the second read.

kelly3856d ago

I'm at 3 reads myself and honestly, I think people get way too worked up about this. Oliver's got a point, it's still a comic with dudes in costumes punching things (or, you know, setting up elaborate traps). Yeah, Moore deconstructed the genre, but it's not like it's some totally different art form now. If someone calls it the best superhero story, so what? They probably mean it's the best one that makes them think, not the best one with a happy ending. Feels like we spend more time arguing about labels than actually enjoying the book (which, let's be real, has some killer panel layouts).