The original graphic novel “Watchmen” was released over the course of 1986 and 1987, becoming an instantly foundational piece in comic book lore, whose commercial and critical success stunned the industry. 

Writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons, both at the absolute top of their game, crafted a masterful dissection of the idealism comic books live within, choosing to instead depict an entirely original cast of heroes that feel far more grounded in stark reality. 

What resulted was a piece of art that transcended a medium commonly considered to be for children, landing it on Time’s list of the 100 best English-language novels since 1923.

If a “gritty, edgier superhero adaptation” sounds overdone, understand “Watchmen” is the source material that successors like “Invincible,” “The Boys” and countless others try desperately to catch the flame of. While these pieces of art are fun, Moore does not fall into the cautious optimism of “Invincible” or childish crudeness of “The Boys.” 

Instead, he crafted a world that deals with intensely heavy subjects, just with actual empathy and depth, not the bizarre fetishization comics often succumb to.

Now it is nearly 40 years later, and an adaptation that seems to actually understand the source material has finally hit the market (unlike Zack Snyder’s 2009 film that felt like if you let frat boys adapt the graphic novel). This time around, Warner Brothers opted for an animated two-part film that adapts the source material nearly panel-by-panel.

What “Watchmen: Chapter I” does well is making almost no changes and capturing all of this exactly how Moore intended it to be understood, even though he despises any adaptations of his work (sorry, Moore).

While only the first part is out at the moment (found on Max), it is horrifying how much more accurate it feels now than it did in the 80s. The film sees a seemingly unimpeachable Richard Nixon running for his fifth term, having repealed the 22nd Amendment and killed the journalists who would have broken the Watergate scandal. 

Moore sought to warn us against tyrants like Nixon. 

So, when hearing President-elect Donald Trump telling a roaring crowd they are “not gonna have to vote again” after the 2024 election, it feels as though we hardly listened.

Amid this corrupt world of politics are a slew of “superheroes,” but probably not the ones unfamiliar viewers would expect. Everyone is entirely powerless, except for Dr. Manhattan, who is no Superman-esque savior. In fact, due to his objective superiority, he cares a little more about humans than he does termites. 

Moore also makes a clear statement with the scarce villains that are depicted, humanizing them as real people. These are people who are capable of reform, no thanks to the immense beatings or even murders they endure.

Rather than having an easy and dramatized Joker-esque villain, the main perpetrators of harm are the very “heroes” the story follows, and establishments like the United States and former Soviet Union military-industrial complexes.

Semi-protagonist Rorschach, this universe’s idea of a Batman-type who would love QAnon almost as much as he hates women, is in some ways the blueprint for Homelander in “The Boys.” While he is meant to be depicted as a distressing and unhinged extremist with genuinely terrifying beliefs, Rorschach became an icon to incels, Proud Boys and racists, just like Homelander. 

This horrifying and unintended reaction led to Moore meeting a lot of Rorschach superfans, telling them, “Yeah, great, can you just keep away from me, [and] never come anywhere near me again as long as I live?”

One of the comic’s best moments is seen in “Watchmen: Chapter I” as a distressed Nite-Owl watches his colleague, the Comedian, gleefully firing tear gas into a rioting crowd. Ironically, the crowd is protesting this exact kind of oppression by masked vigilantes who operate without consequence and above the law. 

In an interesting parallel, The Badger Project finds more than 300 officers in Wisconsin this year alone were able to regain their jobs after being fired or forced out. 

Disillusioned, Nite-Owl asks who they are even protecting the citizens from, to which the Comedian eagerly offers up a simple answer: themselves.

“What’s happened to the American dream?” Nite-Owl said.

“It came true,” the Comedian said. “You’re lookin’ at it.”

Understand that this comic comes years before the deaths of George Floyd, Mike Brown or even the near-murder of Rodney King. Only a decade removed from the Vietnam War, Moore could see the trajectory our neoliberal “utopia” was headed on, realizing the United States hates nothing quite like its own people waking up to their oppression.

Moore and Gibbons fit in an incredible amount of commentary in this sprawling epic: Ozymandias’ materialism/capitalism, Rorschach’s moral absolutism, the Comedian’s/public’s over-sexualization and violence towards women, Dr. Manhattan’s ethical apathy and so much more.

Nothing will top a chilly weekend spent obsessively turning the pages of the original classic; that said, “Watchmen: Chapter I” offers a more than apt jumping-off point for those who wouldn’t dare pick up a physical comic book, as well as a satisfying page-to-screen experience for those who couldn’t put the source text down.

While the computer-generated animation can feel flat and emotionless at points, aspects like Dr. Manhattan’s distinct animation style perfectly encapsulate Gibbons’ style. It may not touch the masterful craft of “Wild Robot” or “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” but for a non-theatrical film, the animation is satisfactory and generally gets the tone across.

Watching the film, fictional character Hollis Mason’s “Under the Hood” novel excerpts were one of the few things notably omitted, albeit understandably due to its text-only format. However, as the credits roll and those excerpts are read aloud to ensure the entire book is captured, it is clear at least some of the crew loved the source material. 

The second part is out for purchase and rent now and, if consistent with its predecessor, will likely stream on Max in late January. Until then, do yourself a favor and turn the TV on (or rent the book from the library) and find yourself asking two of the most rewarding questions in a novel, graphic or even literary: Who killed the Comedian, and who the hell watches the Watchmen?