Sunday, September 22, 2013

Saturday Morning Watchmen

Screenshot
Saturday Morning Watchmen is a viral video. It is a parody of cartoons of 1980s, which often omitted darker element of the source material. The video is supposedly the intro of a Saturday morning cartoon based on the graphic novel Watchmen.
Portrayals of the Characters
As part of the parody, the characters are portrayed in radically different ways than in the comic. These include:
  • Nite Owl II- Nite Owl is the team leader. Here is  heroic and affective. In the comics, he is a timid and troubled man. In this version, he "loves to party down". 
  • Rorschach- Here, he is the goofy and "nutty" comic relief. In the comics, he is a violent sociopath. He is said to be animal lover in stark contrast to the comic.
  • Silk Spectre II- She is a pop singer similar to Jem and the Holograms.  Like in the comics, she hates the Comedian (although for different reasons). 
  • Comedian- Comedian is shown as a fan of Silk Spectre. As such, he attempts (in vain) to get a kiss from her. In the comics, he is revealed to be her father.
  • Bubastis- Unlike the comic (where Bub had a very small role), Bubastis is a member of the team. Bubastis is portrayed as a Scooby Doo-like, cowardly talking animal. Bubastis being in the team may be a reference how some cartoons tended to put the spotlight on otherwise unimportant characters.
  • Doctor Manhattan- Jon is able to turn into a car (similar to Turbo Teen). He has also the power to give people cancer (a reference to Ozymandias' attempt to convince people that Jon caused cancer in people near him).
  • Ozymandias- He is seen assembling the team after seeing danger on his wall of televisions (similar to X-Men). He seen helping out most notably saving the Comedian from falling to his death (when in the original he caused it).
Other elements from the graphic novel appear. The Crime Busters are called the "Watchmen". Archie (Nite Owl II's flying ship) is the Watchmen's mode of travel. The Squid Monster is a villain in the show. The Soviet Union (who was on the verge of causing World War III in the comic) sent two "Reds" to pollute a lake like Captain Planet villains. The Comedian's badge is the logo of the team. The doomsday clock appeared in the background in one of the fight scenes.
References:
http://watchmen.wikia.com/wiki/Saturday_Morning_Watchmen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDDHHrt6l4w
Watchmen trade paperback

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