Before Watchmen - Comedian/Rorschach

 

Yet another purchase from the hip, happening Cemetery Pulp, I have been intrigued by this series although I haven't picked up much yet, but these two twisted characters combined together made for a fairly irresistible package.

The Comedian's story shows him to be a close confidante to John F Kennedy, but also an important PR figure in the fight against crime and eventually he is brought in to help with the ungainly war-that-was-not-declared in Viet Nam. Of course, he can't help but go rogue, and we see some of his adventures there as well as the repercussions in the States. His interactions with John & Robert Kennedy run the gamut, and he has his own reasons for everything that he does, which many of us may not agree with but there is a certain logic, from the Comedian's perspective.

Rorschach has his own reasons for his war on crime and, of course, he is flawed in many ways - a loner from a broken home (to put it mildly), who is slightly insane, but obsessive about doing whatever he can to clean up the city (NYC). He is nearly taken out by some low-grade thugs, but he turns the tables on them and although he does not capture the serial killer on the loose, he gets revenge for the killer's victims when he is released from the legal system on a technicality. There's even an appearance by Travis Bickle, who was certainly somewhat of an influence.

Good storytelling and artwork, as befitting the Watchmen series - certainly something for the fans!