As most comics fans know, Alan Moore was originally going to use the Charlton characters for the his Watchmen series. I think that he and DC ultimately made the right decision in creating all-new characters for the story instead, but part of me has always been curious as to what the final result would have looked like if he had gone with The Question, Blue Beetle, Nightshade and the rest, rather than Rorschach, Nite-Owl, Silk Spectre and the other cast members of Watchmen. How much would the use of the Charlton gang have affected mainstream DC continuity down the line? Would the comic have still reached its legendary status, spawning prequels and a movie? It's interesting to speculate on, but I am glad we have two sets of cool characters instead of just one.
13 comments:
ross fyi the new 52 question appears in phantom stranger 5 no known powers as yet shown
Nice. Headline is a great touch.
Apparently, the New 52 version of the Question has the power to speak only in questions, a really annoying gimmick that got old by the end of his first page.
Ka-Pow! That would be something I'd like to see in the New52.
Hey Ross! Any chance of the female Question appearing in this blog? I think it might be interesting to see her team up with (for example) Wolverine to investigate something.
I am a fan of Montoya - although I prefer her as just a plain cop. Still, if I can find images that work, she may make an appearance.
Dave sez,
Twins! Separated at birth! Twin sons from different mothers - er, fathers!
Was it AFTER Watchmen that Denny O'Neil launched the new Question series? It seems that The Question started becoming more and more like Rorschach...
I read that The L.A.W. mini-series. I'll never get that time and money back. It was all about sidekicks that go bad. Giordano's art was pretty decent. The story was just a little less than compelling.
@Dave: The O'Neil "Question" series debuted while Watchmen was about half through.
If you have a strong stomach, the ultimate exposé on DC-style sidekicks has to be "Brat Pack" by Veitch. There are several paperback printings, some with alternate endings from the original mini-series, I've heard. I never read "L.A.W." because the synopsis when it came out made it sound like a watered down version of "Brat Pack".
If you look close, you can see Rorschach and the Question walking together in the splash page in the first issue of Smax by Alan Moore, which is a follow-up to his Top 10 comics. That's just one of the throw-away appearances and in-jokes that are everywhere in these comics. (My favorite is the poster advertising a trip to Yesworld, through travel agent Roger Dean.)
IIRC, Moore originally wanted to use the Mighty Crusaders for Watchmen ... which might've made for come considerably different dynamics.
Rich is remembering correctly about the Mighty Crusaders. Moore mentioned them as his first choice in the afterword to the original hardcover edition of Watchmen (by Graphitti). I have no idea if that afterword has been carried in subsequent editions, because that's the only version I have.
There was a Watchmen parody in which the heroes were the Archie superheroes: Pureheart the Powerful, Captain Hero, Superteen, &c.
Now that there are at least three different Watchmen universes running (the film version, the Tulsa-based TV miniseries and the DC Comics continuation within the DCU), it would be interesting to see a crossover across those worlds. Say, the Seventh Kavalry are preparing to lynch Reggie Long (they would not be amused to see an African American wearing Rorschach's mask), and Walter Kovacs (or maybe Wil Myerson) intervenes.
There's also "the Fact", a Morrison Doom Patrol character who is what you get when you order the Question off of Wish: https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/The_Fact_(New_Earth).
Post a Comment