A List Of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago

CAPTAIN ORTHOGONIAN: I finished Rick Perlstein's monumental (in physical size, scope, and achievement) Nixonland the other day, and while there's a lot of stuff to talk about in the book (much of it not for this site), what it reminded me of in part was Watchmen. One of the achievements of Watchmen the book is that while it's a "superhero" story (sort of--only one character has any superhuman powers), it's also a meditation on Nixon and what Perlstein calls "Nixonland." As is hinted at in the book, through background details and the like, the Watchmen dwell in a United States where Nixon successfully repealed the 22nd amendment and is still President in the early 1980s. What's interesting is how the characters reflect a variety of perspectives on Nixon:

• Rorschach--The "right and wrong" absolutist of either the left or the right. What is right must be proclaimed, and what is wrong must be eliminated.
• Ozymandias--While depicted as a liberal and no fan of Nixon, Veidt's actions and motivations are...well...to say more is a spoiler.
• Silk Spectre/Nite Owl--The "average American," who may not like Nixon, but sure as hell doesn't like those punks either.
• The Comedian--Revels in the idea that "if the President authorizes it, then that means it's not illegal."

That's one of the real achievements of Watchmen as a novel--and one I hope the film maintains--it's not just (or even really) a story about larger-than-life heroes saving the world, but a meditation on whether our world, with all its flaws and defects, is worth saving at all.