Doomsday Clock #1 Review: The Beginning Of The End Is Top Notch

The Watchmen graphic novel was a pivotal point in my comics-reading resurgence when I was in college. The brilliant story from Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons opened up a whole new world of storytelling to me.

So when Doomsday Clock was first announced I was a bit skeptical. How can anyone do these characters and this world justice, let alone bring them into the DCU proper for a modern audience?

To answer that, DC Comics brought in the creative team of Geoff Johns and Gary Frank, a duo that has done some amazing work for the company. Their involvement with this project definitely gave me hope that they would tell an entertaining story while respecting the characters and universe of Watchmen.

And you know what? They did exactly that. After reading Doomsday Clock #1 I’m more excited than ever about diving into a DC Comics event and I’m confident that anyone who felt that the characters of Watchmen were off-limits will change their mind after reading this entertaining issue.

SPOILER WARNING! This review will have spoilers for the first issue of Doomsday Clock. Read that book first before proceeding.

What makes Doomsday Clock #1 so good is that it takes its time establishing the stakes and universe of Watchmen after the events of the book. While the action is minimal, the methodical, character-driven story was necessary to explain the risks and the motives behind the story Johns and Frank are telling.

Taking place seven years after Ozymandias’ murder of millions of New Yorkers, we learn he has been found out and become the most wanted man in the world as Russia and the U.S. get closer to nuclear war.

The creative team really puts the reader into the doomed world of Watchmen. There are riots, forced evacuations and a real sense of dread in the opening pages of the book and there’s a constant reminder throughout the world is on the brink of nuclear annihilation.

While the world of Watchmen was always a dark and gritty place, it was never without hope. Doomsday Clock takes the logical next step and all hope is seemingly lost for this universe. A massive amount of people are going to die, that’s unavoidable, and the world itself may not survive.

I couldn’t keep my eyes off the page as I saw civilization devolve into madness.

Johns’ writing and characterization is spot-on. It was a joy to read Rorschach again, as I’m sure it was for Johns to write this iconic character. He has a very specific voice and cadence that isn’t matched by anyone else in comics and Johns really got it down. The humor infused in Rorschach’s talk is great, especially when you just know it’s completely unintentional.

As for Ozymandias, Johns paints him in a very sympathetic light. After all, Ozymandias was only looking to better the world and its shows in the writing (and in Frank’s artwork, of course). You can’t help but feel for the man, seeing everything he worked for crumble in front of him.

There’s not a lot of Ozymandias in this first issue, but there’s enough to make you invested in his mission to find Doctor Manhattan to save their world.

Doomsday Clock #1 not only brings old characters back but introduces new ones. The Marionette and Mime are brought on to Ozymandias’ crew and they are welcome additions.

Johns has always had a knack for writing obscure or new characters that inevitably steal the show and make you care about them, so I’m interested to learn more about their backstories. The way Marionette and Rorschach play off each other is well done, like they’ve known each other for years.

Before we move on, we have to talk about the reveal that this Rorschach isn’t THE Rorschach. Although he acts and speaks like the original, this new Rorschach will likely cause a huff in the comics community. Johns has said that making him an African-American will play into the story and that it preserves the original Rorschach’s death, so I’m giving the creative team the benefit of the doubt. It does offer an interesting dynamic as everyone around the new Rorschach has had some past with the original and it’ll be interesting to see his backstory and why he’s crucial to Ozymandias’ mission.

I said it before but Johns and Frank work so well together. The art is great, from the expressive faces to the detail of Rorschach’s gloves and trench coat. I absolutely love Frank’s Rorschach.

Keeping the nine-panel page, which was present in the original Watchmen, was a necessary touch. You know this story will need as much space as possible, and having the nine panels really puts a lot into this first issue.This is a story driven by the characters and you need the nine panels to really dig into this new Watchmen world and into the minds of the new characters.

There’s no wasted space in any of the panels, and that’s a testament to Frank’s mastery. Although, there are some pages where the sequential storytelling seems a bit rushed and choppy (like when Mime tosses Marionette the screwdriver) but for the most part the storytelling and artwork is amazing and I was completely engulfed by it all.

Brad Anderson’s colors on the book need to be commended as well. After reading the six-page ashcan given out at New York Comic-Con and then reading the final product, the colors really popped. There’s a reason why Anderson and Frank work together a lot, his coloring pairs naturally with Frank’s inks.

There’s a touch of muteness to Anderson’s coloring when we’re in the Watchmen universe that is likely intentional, especially in the jail scenes. The universe is a dark place, especially on the verge of war, so it only makes sense to dampen the vibrancy of the colors until you get to the DCU and the colors seemingly get their light back. It’ll be interesting to see in subsequent issues when we’re in the DCU how much the colors change.

Doomsday Clock #1 is an amazing first issue that sets up what will be a game-changing story. From the writing, to the colors and art, the entire issue is a must-read for anyone who loves comics.

If you’re worried about the portrayal of the Watchmen characters and universe, don’t. Johns is a perfect usher for these characters to merge into the DCU, getting the voices of these characters right while also bringing a sense of levity and humor that a story of this magnitude needs.

Frank’s art and Anderson’s colors bring the issue together in a way that only they can. It’s gritty when it needs to be while expressive and bringing out the humor in Johns’ writing.

I’m sure there will be issues that amp the sense of dread to another level but this first issue really sets the tone of what fans can expect. And it’s good.