The more I continue to read Watchmen and the more immersed I become in the world that these characters live in, the more I appreciate the story being told. I didn’t anticipate enjoying the book at all. I thought that there was no way I would like a comic about superheroes, but I have been pleasantly surprised. Watchmen is probably the furthest thing from a typical superhero story. It seems like almost every character who is meant to be good is also villainous – they are antiheroes.

So far the main thing I have gathered from the story is it’s trying to give an accurate portrayal of what the world would be like if there was someone with superhuman powers, and the effect a group of masked vigilantes might have. In this world that has been created in Watchmen the presence of superheroes has a devastating effect on the world. Although wars may have ceased because of Dr. Manhattans existence, it has in no way achieved peace on earth. There was one quote in particular from Watchmen that I thought was really powerful and it was, “One single being has been allowed to change the entire world, pushing it closer to its eventual destruction in the process. The Gods now walk amongst us, affecting the lives of every man, woman and child on the planet in a direct way rather than through mythology and the reassurances of faith.” The idea that a superhero is hurting civilization just by its existence really contradicts every other type of superhero story where usually if it wasn’t for this super human being coming to the rescue, civilization would be destroyed.

I believe there could be many interpretations of the meaning behind Watchmen, and I believe there could be even more meanings behind one of the most prominent characters, Dr. Manhattan. The way I interpreted it is the story is an alternate version of the time surrounding the Vietnam War and Dr. Manhattan is an analogy for a nuclear bomb. His powers depict the sort of devastating and atrocious effect that a nuclear bomb can have. He has the power to wipe out entire civilizations and no being, human or otherwise should have that ability.