Watchmen: Chapter I - page 18

PAGE 18

Panel 3: Again, we see Rorschach utilizing his grappling hook in order to enter a building many flights above the street. He is extreme.

Panel 4: Moore & Gibbons utilize another large panel. One thing that a large panel does is to make the reader stop. There is so much more to see in a larger panel, plus that “opening up” of the 9-grid structure also unconsciously allows the audience to stop and take a breath – things slow down with a large panel. And used here, it allows Veidt’s contemplation to extend for the reader as well.

On the desk we see the Ozymandias figure Rorschach was playing with, all twisted (foreshadowing the twisted nature of Veidt’s plan and his moral judgment), and we also see – in the pen set – the Egyptian motif that is associated with Ozymandias.

Also of note, the New York Gazette’s headline reads: “Nuclear Doomsday Clock Stands at Five to Twelve Warn Experts,” much the same way that most of the clocks within Watchmen stand at five to midnight.

Also note the sidebar story entitled: “Geneva Talks: U.S. Refuses to Discuss Dr. Manhattan.”