Something in me has changed.
I'm not the same.
All my ethics have been in question for the past month and a half.
By what?
A graphic novel, of all things.


You know, many people would... have... told me that I'm obsessive, crazy even, to have the slightest consideration that a piece of graphic literature could have any kind of effect, psychologically or emotionally, on my being. And one about costumed vigilantes, no less. But that's what Watchmen did for me.

The book, written by Alan Moore and drawn by Dave Gibbons, is a mind-blowing, in its complexity, darkness and depth as far as plot, and thick psychological profiles for every character. It's extraordinarily dense and layered with information. It deals with things most other comic books won't even touch. It isn't afraid to add super-realistic (and not to mention horrifying) scenes, including rape, child murder and abuse, etc., with no boundaries set on language: the words "whore", "goddamn", and "shit" (among others) being used mercilessly. It's not suitable for children, which is fine by me. I rather like having one graphic novel that I wouldn't be allowed to show to youngsters. I know I'm not old at all, but I'm mature enough to understand the book, and that's something I know that a lot of my peers fail at (this is said with years of experience, not pride). It deserved the title of "Best Graphic Novel of All Time" (though "all time" is a tad extreme, I'm not in any state of mind to criticize it).

As the reader should know by now, whether by the graphic novel, the movie, me, or even reading reviews, this book challnges the audience's perception of right and wrong. Each main character has a different view on the world, different moral standpoints, different ethics. Even though they all once fought together, and they all want good for the world, it's changed for them, especially after the Keene Act.

Rorschach, my favourite character (I might elaborate later as to why), sees things as black and white. "There is good, and there is evil, and evil must be punished." He blatantly has a death wish by refusing to retire and continues hunting down criminals, showing no mercy. His severe right-wing political views along with his crumbling mental state make him very dangerous. His past: a prostitute mother who neglected and abused him, a father he never knew, bullies, the Charlton Home, and finally the murder of six-year-old Blaire Roche sent his mind over the edge. What once was Walter Kovacs was now Rorschach.

There is so much I want to say right now that I don't know how to write down. I suppose this whole thing is pointless. But what do I care?

I think of Watchmen everywhere I go now, though, which is beginning to terrify me. I think of how this character and that character would assess this-and-that situation. I browse deviantArt for Watchmen fan art. I see it as more than just a comic book. Just because the the storyline revolves around costumed heroes (can't call 'em "superheroes" 'cause Manhattan is the only one with actual superpowers) doesn't mean that the content cannot be seen as something philosophical. And hey, it even has quotes from people like Friedrich Nietzsche!

So, maybe this obsession isn't all that bad. I wish it would die down a little, and I'm sure it will at some point. But I wish people would view it the same way, or at least in a similar way that I do.

I see that I seem to have lost my train of thought, and my point to this whole spiel, which, I am often told, is a very bad habit and something I should seriously consider fixing in the very near future.