CBR: EXCLUSIVE: JMS Talks "Before Watchmen: Dr. Manhattan"

[CBR News]

In an exclusive first interview, J. Michael Straczynski tells CBR why "Before Watchmen" is a good idea with or without Alan Moore and how he views Dr. Manhattan. Plus, a first look at Adam Hughes' art for the project.


Full article here.

[Superbeast]

In an exclusive first interview, J. Michael Straczynski tells CBR why "Before Watchmen" is a good idea with or without Alan Moore and how he views Dr. Manhattan. Plus, a first look at Adam Hughes' art for the project.


Full article here.

JMS... I wish I could still like you but you seem to be deeply in denial. Siegel and Shuster sold off Superman, Allan Moore has always been protective of his creations. The absurd logic he's trying to use to justify this project is kind of sad, particularly when he was so ticked off with his own work being altered to fit Marvel's agenda rather than his own plans. Yet he's got the nerve to write a Watchmen spin off without the creator's blessing or involvement and he then hopes "Allan won't be mad at us one day anymore"? What a contradictory way of behaving.

[Uxas]

Dr Manhattan by Hughes will look awesome.

[fredmanson]

SOLD!!!!

I am for these titles at 101%%%!!!

The best gift: a total reprint of each of the "original" comic books to complete this huge collection!!!

[CrazyOldHermit]

You have got to be ****ing kidding me.

[golgi]

Can't wait for this one!

[stewart48]

I thought this was supposed to be a huge announcement that national media would latch on to. This really only concerns hardcore nerd culture, because even after the crappy movie I don't know anyone outside of a comicshop that knows what your talking about when you say watchmen

[Dr. Hurt]

The easy path to an event is, "Okay, we're going to come up with a reason for the Justice League to fight the Justice Society -- then, next summer, we'll find an excuse for the Justice Society to fight the Teen Titans -- and then the Teen Titans and the Justice Society can fight the Justice League and the Challengers of the Unknown!"

I dont like him, but he's right about this one. Avengers vs X-men, Avengers vs those cosmic guys (Nova and the others), etc. Oh and there's also the everyone is spiderman/ironman/cap/thor thing.

[Clea]

Get Alan Moore to write it and maybe then I'll buy it. Otherwise... nope.

[nightrider]

Wow. I seriously cant wait for this.
I should be getting all 7 prequels.

[CrazyOldHermit]

I thought this was supposed to be a huge announcement that national media would latch on to. This really only concerns hardcore nerd culture, because even after the crappy movie I don't know anyone outside of a comicshop that knows what your talking about when you say watchmen

I think you're underestimating the exposure the movie brought.

[harrylike]

I was actually ok with this announcement, but this quote from JMS is a bit worrying

" As one example: it's always bothered me that someone as brilliant and precise about time as Jon could just blithely walk into the intrinsic field test chamber as the time-lock closed. He'd know better than that. But since it did happen, you now have to say, "Okay, that being the case, how did it happen? Is there something we don't know? Or more to the point, was there something he didn't know?"

because that doesn't just sound like writing a stand alone sequel, it sounds like altering parts of Moores story.

[nightrider]

Its no wonder Hughes stopped drawing Batgirl covers.

[Paul Newell]

I thought this was supposed to be a huge announcement that national media would latch on to. This really only concerns hardcore nerd culture, because even after the crappy movie I don't know anyone outside of a comicshop that knows what your talking about when you say watchmen

You mean the comic book that appeared on "Time Magazine's 100 greatest novels", Entertainment Weekly's "Best 50 novels", was listed in "1001 books you must read before you die"?

I think you need to give it more credit for how well known it is amongst the general media.

[Badger1701]

While I'd rather they not do anything more with Watchmen, I do think Straczynski has a point about Moore complaining about people revisiting his world at the same time that he's been doing stuff like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, a series dependent on characters created by other writers. In the NYT, he basically compares Watchmen to Moby Dick, saying that Moby Dick didn't have prequels or sequels, but he's essentially doing sequels to things like Dracula and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.