DC Comics will publish 35 issues of Watchmen prequel comics in seven miniseries and a one-shot under the banner “Before Watchmen.” The original comic series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, released some 25 years ago, was 12 issues. Those issues have become the bestselling superhero graphic novel of all time.
Moore has remained opposed to any new work based on Watchmen; artist Gibbons released a statement with the DC announcement offering acceptance of the plan, if not endorsement. “The original series of Watchmen is the complete story that Alan Moore and I wished to tell,” Gibbons said. "However, I appreciate DC’s reasons for this initiative and the wish of the artists and writers involved to pay tribute to our work. May these new additions have the success they desire.”
DC’s co-publishers Dan Didio and Jim Lee laid out the rationale for the new title$. “It is our responsibility as publishers to find new ways to keep all of our characters relevant,” they said. “After twenty-five years, the Watchmen are classic characters whose time has come for new stories to be told. We sought out the best writers and artists in the industry to build on the complex mythology of the original.”
The seven miniseries will each focus on a character or characters from the original series. The titles and their creative teams are:
Dr. Manhattan (4 issues): J. Michael Straczynski and Adam Hughes
All 35 books will include a two-page back-up story, “Curse of the Crimson Corsair,” by original series Editor Len Wein and original series colorist John Higgins.
DC will release one issue per week.
The fact that DC is publishing new comics based on Watchmen comes as no big surprise (see “Andy Kubert on ‘Watchmen’ Prequel?”), although the details have been kept carefully under wraps (see “DC Demands ‘Watchmen’ Art Takedowns”).
DC teed up a massive PR campaign to go with the announcement, including exclusive interviews with mainstream media outlets USA Today, New York Times, LA Times, Entertainment Weekly, Hollywood Reporter, Wired, and Associated Press.
DC teed up a massive PR campaign to go with the announcement, including exclusive interviews with mainstream media outlets USA Today, New York Times, LA Times, Entertainment Weekly, Hollywood Reporter, Wired, and Associated Press.
