Martin Carr reviews the second episode of Watchmen…
Racial insurrection, American arrogance and a determined sense of entitlement permeate this second foray into the reengineered world first created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Iron statues of disgraced Presidents and incinerated servants define Watchmen as designed by Damon Lindelof. Reading between the lines is mandatory as this showrunner has turned subtlety into an art form.
Flashbacks both historical and contemporary light fires under a narrative with more than enough contentious content already. Regina King and Tim Blake Nelson dominate alongside a quieter more reserved Louis Gossett Jr. Slowly the conspiracies are being revealed like someone delving into an open wound. Double agents abound, agendas are alluded to but never divulged while unwanted connections and bloodshed shape society.
Holed up in his ancient ruin paying homage to history through the written word and burning flesh sits Ozymandias. Coldly calculating, unthinkingly dismissive and elusive in his motivations Jeremy Irons embodies intellectual aloofness giving rise to further speculation. His involvement with coinciding situations not to be ruled out despite appearances. Once more there is an ambiguity which weaves within the narrative as we watch them watching the Watchmen.
Lindelof has made his canvas varied and expansive enabling him to use American history to tell this story. From their arrival and first encounters through to ingrained prejudice, blinkered persecution and that all important sense of entitlement, this is a call to arms against contemporary America. Sanctioned violence, unchecked retaliation and a distrust of authority figures who manipulate for their own ends are all alluded to here.
Watchmen mark two gives no quarter and offers no easy outs for the uninitiated, offended or outraged minority. This is a fictionalised pulpit pounding preacher calling out the sinners. There is no sense that anything has been watered down to appease network censors and sensibilities. HBO have offered Lindelof the narrative freedom, creative autonomy and unbridled freedom to raise hell and he is currently lighting fires. Kerosene soaked and highly flammable Lindelof is taking a flamethrower to mainstream superheroes and American heritage without compunction.
Martin Carr
