Watchmen biography

Also in , to coincide with the release of the Watchmen movie, IDW Publishing produced a parody one-shot comic titled Whatmen?!

Watchmen biography

Grant Morrison wrote a scene in Pax Americana where a child shoots his father in the head with his own gun, killing him. This was meant to symbolize Morrison's opinion about how the limited series had a negative impact on the superhero genre: "it's Watchmen's shot to the head of the American superhero. The book provides a detailed history of the Watchmen franchise.

In December , DC Entertainment published Watchmen: Annotated , a fully annotated black-and-white edition of the graphic novel, edited, with an introduction and notes by Leslie S. The edition contains extensive materials from Alan Moore's original scripts and was written with the full collaboration of Dave Gibbons. Contents move to sidebar hide.

Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikidata item. Comics by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. This article is about the comic book series. For other uses, see Watchmen disambiguation. Len Wein Barbara Kesel. Publication history [ edit ]. Background and creation [ edit ].

Alan Moore , writer of Watchmen. Dave Gibbons , artist of Watchmen. Synopsis [ edit ]. Setting [ edit ]. Plot [ edit ]. Characters [ edit ]. Main article: List of Watchmen characters. Art and composition [ edit ]. Structure [ edit ]. Tales of the Black Freighter [ edit ]. Symbols and imagery [ edit ]. Themes [ edit ]. Publication and reception [ edit ].

Ownership disputes [ edit ]. Prequel projects [ edit ]. Main article: Before Watchmen. Sequels [ edit ]. Comic book sequel: Doomsday Clock [ edit ]. Main article: Doomsday Clock comics. Television series sequel [ edit ]. Main article: Watchmen TV series. Adaptations [ edit ]. Film adaptation [ edit ]. Main article: Watchmen film. See also: Production of Watchmen film.

Motion comic [ edit ]. Main article: Watchmen: Motion Comic. Animated film [ edit ]. Arrowverse [ edit ]. Legacy [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. Archived from the original on August 10, Retrieved August 9, Archived from the original on November 11, Retrieved November 17, Its comic creator Alan Moore wants nothing to do with it".

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Retrieved December 12, November October 16, Archived from the original on March 21, Retrieved October 12, Archived from the original on June 20, Retrieved June 20, November 3, Retrieved on November 5, February University of Dayton : 3— 4. She repeatedly acts and speaks before she thinks, rarely using logic to think through situations; her impulsivity often buries her in situations that would not have been as bad had she rationally thought through them beforehand.

Similarly, Laurie constantly stands by her beliefs that each human life matters, even when facing the arguments of Dr. February 23, Retrieved on February 24, Engine Comics published September 9, Archived from the original on February 17, Retrieved October 14, Amazing Heroes 97 June 15, , p. June 25, Retrieved on October 15, Comics: Between the Panels.

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Archived from the original on February 11, Retrieved February 10, November 13, Archived from the original on August 14, Retrieved October 18, Archived from the original on February 21, Archived from the original on February 1, Book Standard. Archived from the original on March 13, The duo realize that Veidt exposed Manhattan's former lover, colleagues, and an enemy to radiation and deliberately monitored them for cancer, so Manhattan would flee Earth out of either guilt or public enmity.

When Rorschach and Nite Owl arrive at Veidt's Antarctic retreat, he easily overpowers both of them and explains his plan to save humanity from itself: teleport a biologically-engineered, telepathic creature to New York which would kill millions and convince the world that they were under extraterrestrial attack. The US and the Soviet Union , on the brink of nuclear confrontation, would then join forces against the supposed alien invaders.

He also admits to framing Manhattan, killing the Comedian, framing Rorschach for the murder of Moloch , and staging the attempt on taking his own life, killing his attacker. When Rorschach and Nite Owl ask him when he planned to execute his scheme, Veidt reveals that he had already done so 35 minutes earlier, even before their arrival at his retreat.

When Doctor Manhattan and Silk Spectre confront Veidt, he attempts to disintegrate Manhattan in the intrinsic field subtractor while sacrificing his genetically-altered pet lynx Bubastis, but Doctor Manhattan is able to reform himself. Silk Spectre attempts to shoot him, but he catches the bullet and knocks her out. Realizing that exposing Veidt's plan will undo the nascent world peace, most of the heroes agree to remain silent on the plot.

Rorschach, a moral absolutist , prepares to return to the US and reveal Veidt's plan to the world, but ultimately lets Manhattan kill him. Before Manhattan leaves to create life in another galaxy, Veidt asks him if he "did the right thing in the end. Unknown to Veidt and the other characters, Rorschach has previously mailed a journal detailing his findings about Veidt's plan to a New York newspaper.

The editors' decision on whether or not to publish the journal is not revealed. A six-part series on Ozymandias titled Before Watchmen: Ozymandias had its first issue released in July It is written by Len Wein , with art by Jae Lee. This is part of a planned issue Before Watchmen series. Seven years after the events of Watchmen , Rorschach's journal is released to the public and Veidt becomes a fugitive.

Having purportedly been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer , and knowing that his plan to save the world has failed, Veidt recruits a man bearing the Rorschach moniker and has him break Erika Manson Marionette and her husband Marcos Maez Mime out of prison. When Rorschach II returns with the two, Veidt reveals himself and his situation, explaining to the two criminals that they must follow Manhattan to another universe and convince him to save their world.

In addition, he also cloned Bubastis from his salvaged DNA to help find Doctor Manhattan due to it having some of Doctor Manhattan's energy which is needed to find him. After conducting research on this new world he's found himself in, Veidt goes to Metropolis to ask Lex Luthor to join his quest. However, as he is pleading his case, Veidt is shocked to find himself being confronted by the Comedian, who has been transported to the DC Universe by Manhattan.

The Comedian turns out to be evenly matched with Veidt, forcing him to retreat through Luthor's office window. Veidt falls twenty stories and is hospitalized with minor injuries, but soon manages to escape. Upon returning to the Owlship, Veidt is confronted by Batman , who has read the contents of the original Rorschach's journal. As the two elude the police, Batman asserts that Veidt murdered millions as part of a delusional hero syndrome , and accuses him of concocting a conspiracy theory that has negatively affected the public's trust in the superheroes of the DC Universe.

Veidt in turn criticizes Batman for focusing all his attention on supervillains while ignoring the world's social problems. A struggle ensues, leading to Batman falling out of the Owlship and into a mob of anti-hero protestors below. Veidt uses Bubastis II to summon Manhattan, who refuses to return to their world since he's in the middle of experimenting with this one.

Manhattan reveals, among other things, that Veidt lied to Rorschach II about having cancer in order to get his help. Veidt then reveals that his plan was to engineer the confrontation between Manhattan and Superman as he had guessed that only the latter could change Manhattan's mind. Veidt is shot by the Comedian, but Rorschach stops the bleeding so Veidt can face prosecution.

Rorschach II and Veidt are then teleported by Doctor Manhattan back to the Watchmen universe, where Veidt is imprisoned for his crimes. Adrian Veidt has been deemed "the smartest man in the world" by many, mainly the media, though this title is regarded as well-deserved. From his earliest memories Veidt has been aware of his superior insight; also, his brain possesses a photographic memory.

Following his service as the costumed vigilante Ozymandias, Veidt has deftly built empires legitimate and criminal each; the extent of them combined is enough for him to become a global influence through his exploitation of advanced technology and genetics. He is shown to be a ruthless master strategist, maintaining total secrecy in swiftly eliminating anybody who dares to get in the way of his plans, or who is aware of his plans, or who unknowingly participates—even, ultimately, his most trusted conspirators.

Additionally, Veidt is depicted as having developed himself to the pinnacle of human physical ability. A world-class athlete, he is extremely physically fit and performs public exhibitions of his acrobatic feats in order to aid charity events. He is exceptionally active despite his age mid-forties at the time of the events of Watchmen. Included as a back-up feature to issue 11, a Veidt interview conducted by Doug Roth notes Veidt as resembling a man of 30 rather than one of middle age.

Unknown to others, he has conditioned himself even to catch a bullet with his hand, though he himself was surprised when he managed to do so successfully. The Big Figure and two of his associates try to kill Rorschach, but he outwits and ultimately kills them all in rapid succession. Rorschach's two former colleagues, Nite Owl II and Silk Spectre II , begin to take his "mask killer" theory seriously and break him out of jail to follow up on it.

They obtain a name, a company called Pyramid Deliveries, and then break into Veidt's office. Nite Owl correctly deduces Veidt's password and finds that he runs Pyramid Deliveries. Rorschach, who has been keeping a journal throughout the duration of the novel, realizes that they may be no match for Veidt. He makes one last entry in his journal, stating his certainty that Veidt is responsible for whatever might happen next, and drops it into a mailbox.

Nite Owl and Rorschach fly out to Antarctica. Veidt then reveals that he set his plan into motion well before they arrived. Despite their mutual horror, Nite Owl, Silk Spectre II and Doctor Manhattan all agree to keep quiet about the true nature of the events when the United States surprisingly does enter into a peace accord with the Soviet Union.

Rorschach states the others must be joking, and leaves to tell the world. Manhattan confronts him outside, telling him he cannot allow Rorschach to reveal the truth. Refusing to compromise his principles, Rorschach understands he will be killed. He removes his mask and demands that Manhattan just "do it", which he does. In the final scenes of the comic, Rorschach's journal has made it to the offices of the New Frontiersman , a right-wing newspaper.

Outraged by the new accord between the Soviet Union and the United States, the editor pulls a planned two-page story. He leaves it to his assistant Seymour to decide how to fill that space, and Seymour begins to reach for the paper's "Crank File," which contains the journal. The outcome is ambiguous. Reggie Long, son of Kovacs's prison psychologist Dr.

Malcolm Long, later takes on the Rorschach mantle after being driven insane by Veidt's monster and learning self-defense techniques from former Mothman Byron Lewis , and mistakenly believing that his father and Rorschach had been friends after reading parts of his reports on him. Thirty-five years after the death of Rorschach , right-wing vigilante Laura "The Kid" Cummings brainwashes two elderly comic book creators, Wil Myerson and Frank Miller , into believing that they are Rorschach's reincarnation, before attempting to assassinate Robert Redford 's political opponent, being killed themselves in the process.

During Rorschach's nighttime patrols, he wears a striped purple business suit, similarly colored leather gloves, a grayed scarf, and heavily unpolished elevator shoes. More signature of his apparel is his brown trench coat with his matching fedora hat that has a light purple stripe. Rorschach's mask, which he considers his true "face", is a piece of fabric made from a material derived from the technologies of Dr.

Manhattan, and it is blank except on the front, where two viscous liquids, one black and one white, are between two layers of latex. The liquids continually shift in response to heat and pressure, which explains why the liquid only animates when Rorschach puts it on his face. The black liquids form symmetrical patterns like those of a Rorschach inkblot test while never mixing with the white color of the mask, thus never producing a gray color, much like Rorschach's view of morality and the world.

During his childhood, Walter Kovacs was described as bright, and excelled in literature , mathematics , political science , and religious education. Kovacs continues a one-man battle against crime long after superheroes have become both detested and illegal, eventually replacing his Kovacs identity with the persona of Rorschach. Rorschach considers his mask his true "face" and his unmasked persona to be his "disguise", refusing to answer to his birth name during his trial and psychiatric sessions.

Moore depicted Rorschach as being extremely right-wing , and morally absolute, a viewpoint that has alienated him from the rest of society, even among other superheroes. Rorschach presents his views on right and wrong as starkly black and white with no room for compromise, with the exception of his respect for the Comedian, whose attempted rape of the first Silk Spectre he dismisses as a "moral lapse".

He holds deep contempt for behavior he considers immoral and is openly derogatory toward heroes who do not share his unwavering views, deriding them as "soft". Rorschach displays a discomfort with female sexuality as a result of his early childhood, although the crimes that most affected him spiritually were against women: the murders of Kitty Genovese and Blair Roche.

Rorschach is often described as being mentally ill by other characters in the comic. Like most characters in Watchmen , Rorschach has no obvious "superpowers". He merely has his strong will, peak-human physical strength, and finely-honed sense of timing and precision. Rorschach is very resourceful and creative, adapting ordinary household objects into tools or weapons, such as the use of a can of aerosol spray in combination with multiple matches to set fire to a police officer and throwing ground black pepper to blind another police officer, during a confrontation at Moloch's house.

He owns a gas-powered grappling gun, which he uses to climb buildings and once as a makeshift harpoon gun against a police officer , as seen in Chapter One, which was designed and built by Nite Owl II. Rorschach is well versed in street combat , gymnastics , and boxing. He is also extremely stoic, as shown by his indifference to pain and discomfort.

He even tolerated Antarctic temperatures while wearing only a trenchcoat over street clothes, without complaining or even commenting on the severe cold. Despite his mental instability, Rorschach is extremely intelligent and was described as "tactically brilliant and unpredictable" by Nite Owl, and shows a marked affinity for detective work, as evidenced by his ability to locate the Comedian's costume in his apartment when the police could not.

He is also skilled at lock picking although a running gag throughout the series has him simply forcing Nite Owl's front door to talk to him. The character of Rorschach has been received with critical acclaim by critics, reviewers, and readers; he has also been awarded. Rorschach was named the 6th-greatest comic book character of all time by Wizard magazine in May , with the magazine stating that "Rorschach still stands as one of the most compelling and frightening characters in comics' history.

In the making of the film adaptation, director Zack Snyder said "no character" was more important than Rorschach. The Los Angeles Times further added on Snyder's statement, claiming "The filmmaker said [Rorschach] 'is easily one of the greatest comic book characters ever' and that's a view shared by many fans and the press that serves them.

He is one twisted, sick individual but he's still a fascinating character. Haley's performance as Rorschach in the Watchmen film has been acclaimed. Empire magazine remarked that the portrayals of Rorschach, along with Nite Owl, were the most successful and commented that Haley's performance would make the audience "half-wish Snyder might have stuck with Rorschach as [the sole] protagonist rather than spreading the net so wide.

It's not just a career-defining performance, it's one of the best this genre has seen other than Heath Ledger 's Joker. He owns the screen whenever he's on it. Rorschach has been referred to, quoted, and parodied several times in various media. These include:. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools.

Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item. Comic book antihero. Comics character. Walter Kovacs as Rorschach. Art by Dave Gibbons. Alan Moore Dave Gibbons. Publication history [ edit ]. See also: Watchmen: Background and creation. Wright [ 8 ]. Fictional character biography [ edit ]. Before Watchmen [ edit ].

In Watchmen [ edit ]. Events of Doomsday Clock [ edit ]. Events of Rorschach [ edit ]. Characterization [ edit ]. Appearance [ edit ]. Personality [ edit ]. Skills and abilities [ edit ]. Reception [ edit ]. Other versions [ edit ]. In other media [ edit ]. Television [ edit ]. Film [ edit ]. Video games [ edit ].