7. "and there you have it -- the rest is just nitpicking" In response to In response to 5
>http://splashpage.mtv.com/2008/11/14/changing-the-end-of-watchmen-the-great-debate/ > >I’ve read “Watchmen,” I’ve emptied my wallet for the massive >“Absolute Edition,” and I still remember my first response >when turning the page and seeing the full-page illustration of >the giant, psychic squid monster. It was something like, “HOLY >MOTHER OF… WHAT THE F’ IS THAT THING?! Wait… What were the >characters saying a little while ago??” > >Now, if I lost track of the plot and the philosophical debate >that everything up to that point had been building to that >easily, how do you think the average member of the movie >audience — comics rookies, many of them — will react when >Ozymandias reveals the grand finale of his diabolical plan to >be, well… a big telepathic squid from another dimension? I’m >betting that a third of the audience would laugh, a third >would be confused and the final third would either be >celebrating Snyder’s loyalty to fans or complaining that the >version of the squid in the comics had more tentacles. > >In my mind, leaving the squid in is a far more dangerous >gamble than removing it. Taking the squid out and inserting a >series of nuclear explosions — or anything with an equally >devastating effect upon the world of “Watchmen,” because in >the end, their world is intended to draw comparisons to our >own — will make it more likely that the audience will not only >grasp the global scope of Ozymandias’ plan, but also see the >disturbingly rational basis for what he did and hoped to >accomplish. Leaving the squid in makes it a very real >possibility that one of the greatest stories ever told in >comics will have all of its complexities and themes reduced to >a single computer-generated effect. > >Snyder’s decision to forego the squid makes it more likely >that audiences will be able to identify, understand and >hopefully open up a discussion about the moral dilemma Alan >Moore presents in “Watchmen” — and not just write it off as >“that superhero movie with the big squid.”