Watchmen: The Annotated Edition

by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons (Illustrator), Leslie S. Klinger (Editor)

DC Comics is proud to present an all-new retrospective edition of one of the greatest graphic novels ever in THE ANNOTATED EDITION. This book examines each of the series’ twelve issues in unprecedented detail, moving page by page and panel by panel to reveal the hidden foundations of this milestone in modern storytelling.  Edited with notes by Leslie S. Klinger, this new edition draws upon critical and scholastic commentary, in-depth interviews with Dave Gibbons, and previously unseen original source material.  Klinger provides the reader with a unique and comprehensive view of WATCHMEN as both a singular artistic achievement and a transformative event in the history of comics as a medium.  Set in a world in which history has been forever altered by the existence of superheroes, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ monumental graphic novel WATCHMEN is one of the most influential comic book series of all time. Following two generations of masked crime-fighters from the end of World War II to the height of the Cold War, this compelling tale unfolds from a simple murder mystery into an epic saga of power, corruption and the ultimate meaning of humanity.  More than 30 years after it was first published, Moore and Gibbons’ masterpiece continues to inspire and entertain readers around the world. Named one of Time magazine’s 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century, WATCHMEN has won countless critical accolades and honors, including the Eisner Award and the Hugo Award.

Genres: Comics, Literature, Graphic Novels, Sequential Art, Science Fiction

425 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 12, 2017

About the author

Alan Moore is an English writer most famous for his influential work in comics, including the acclaimed graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell. He has also written a novel, Voice of the Fire, and performs "workings" (one-off performance art/spoken word pieces) with The Moon and Serpent Grand Egyptian Theatre of Marvels, some of which have been released on CD.

As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.

Reviews

[Wendi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars only because Watchmen itself is excellent, as always. But this annotated version is not worth the high price. The annotations are really relatively sparse compared to some of the fan annotations I've previously read, and when you combine that with a black and white version of the book (thus eliminating some great details!) it's just NOT worth the $32 I paid for the Kindle version. Watchmen itself: 5. This version? 2.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the annotations were solid, but sometimes lacking in obvious areas. Great Bibliography though.

[David Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent

The seminal graphic novel - the one that showed that adults could read this style - gets annotated by the great Leslie Klinger. His Sherlock Holmes annotations are the standard as are his Dracula and H P Lovecraft volumes. These annotations are superb - enlightening, useful and not intrusive or irrelevant. The kindle version is great in how it’s done. .5 taken off for not having it colour. But thoroughly recommended.