Watchmen

No. Not even in the face of armageddon.

 Never compromise.

Watchmen pops up all over the place when discussing comic books, and for good reason. It is the universal holy grail of the graphic novel genre, the pinnacle of comic storytelling, and as complex and deep a run as any before or after have come. This one broke the map, and critics and scholars are still analyzing its themes and symbolism decades later.

Writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons outdid themselves, creating a masterpiece satire of the superhero genre while bringing the comic industry from the bronze age into the modern one. It was the pinnacle of darker, more thoughtful storytelling that weighed the actions of superheroes with real-world consequences. Ironic, given the lack of actual superheroes within the story itself. Watchmen features a cast of morally grey characters, each one representing a different aspect of society and humanity. Their flaws ultimately prevent them from doing what is right, given their threat is not that of a traditional sense. Perhaps they made the best of a poor situation, it is open for interpretation.

There is no need to write a long review for Watchmen because it has already been done, time and time again. Pages upon pages have been taken discussing the cynical tone, the realistic repercussions, the iconic smiley symbolism and the sharp magnification of the more hidden elements of human society. When it comes to analyzing comics, this sets the bar. It has been used as a benchmark to compare other works before and will be used to do so again in the future. Watchmen is a true work of literature, and, more than any other comic, should be seen as such. It is a must-read to the highest extent.