Snakes and Ladders

Read Snakes and Ladders, The Birth Caul, and Miracleman Book Two earlier this month... The Miracleman book is still a solid read, but the other two didn't thrill me as much. I think after reading Alan Moore's treatise on magic (via Promethea) these two are a pale companion read.

When Alan announce we was quiting writing comics and devote himself to learning magic, I didn't know what to make of it (I've always love his books). The Birth Caul and Snakes and Ladders were written after his decision (or near to it). In both books, I see the germination of ideas that he later expounds upon in Promethea -- the Tarot as a creation story (myth) explanation; heaven is about escaping the trappings of the mundane and reaching (intellectual) enlightenment -- and I also see his pain over his mother's death...

I've also picked up another copy of Watchmen and finished reading it... I think at the time it was mind blowing; I just started getting back into comics from a long dry run and a comic store owner recommended it to me. His condition was, take it home and read it, if you like it, buy it; if you don't bring it back. Well, the next week, when I went back, I paid him for the book.

In the mean time, I think I have either misplaced my copy, or I have lent it out to someone else to read... Even if I do find my other copy, I'll probably end up giving this copy away to someone to read.

Watched the Watchmen movie trailer... it looks good. I think because I've already read the book (maybe this has been my 3rd or 4th time through it now) the story doesn't seem to be as mind blowing as it once was... I think I'm use to Alan's comic "twist endings" that for a new generation of kids, Watchmen will be simply amazing, but to me, I've seen Alan's genius for years now, that popular culture is finally just reaching what I already know about the man. I've seen Alan's genius back when Swamp Thing was coming out... the man could take an old story and twist it into something new and amazing by re-telling Swamp Thing's origin story. In the process, he created a new "comic language" (visually and verbally) in the process; adding a new dimensions to the comic craft... and I see his influence on comic creator since.

When I saw Dark Knight, I was blown away. The visuals, the sounds, Heath Ledger's acting, the story... all the elements were there for a great Batman movie. But in the back of my mind, even though it's not a strictly an Alan Moore story, I see his fingerprints (see The Killing Joke).

My only concern for Watchmen is that it is a little dated... The story came at the height of the iron age of comics; they were being cranked out fast and furiously as retailers were cashing in on fan's blind dreams of collecting comics and one day retiring by selling off their collection. Stories were plentiful, but not meaningful. Alan took some of DC's lesser know intellectual properties, created a alternative world back story, and asked the age-old question, does the means justify the end? And how terrible can the means be, before it doesn't? The story asks a meaningful question and leaves the reader to decide (think about it more).

Now, Coming off the Dark Knight success -- here you have the Joker dishing out enlightenment to the common person, forcing them to make moralistic choices with sever (real, damning) consequences -- to a movie where someone has already made those choices, brings about a type of "world enlightenment" (see LSD in the drinking water), then asks the question "was I right in playing God?" Should be interesting to see how the general audience responds... I just don't think it will have the same impact.