2019’s ‘Watchmen’ Miniseries Serving as a Comic Book Sequel is Still Such a Cool Move

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Even back in 2019, people were starting to feel overwhelmed by the constant stream of superhero movies and TV shows, meaning even good projects risked being overlooked. Everyone was focused on the finale of the Avengers saga with Avengers: Endgame, but an HBO series quietly brought a classic, beloved superhero story back to life. It seemed like a bold move to approve the show even then, and in 2026, I still can’t believe it actually happened.

As a huge cinema fan, I was really intrigued by the 2019 Watchmen series, especially knowing it built on the world of the classic comic and Zack Snyder’s movie. It was a bold move, and honestly, a bit confusing at times, running for just nine episodes. Even though it still has a fantastic 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems to have faded from people’s memories pretty quickly after it finished. I think it’s a seriously underrated show, and if you don’t see what made the HBO series so brilliant, you might be missing the point!

Why the ‘Watchmen’ Miniseries Was Such an Unconventional Miniseries


HBO

Zack Snyder’s 2009 Watchmen film reintroduced Alan Moore’s comic book to a new audience. For many, it was their first experience with the story, and it’s still considered one of Snyder’s best works. When HBO announced a Watchmen miniseries, most assumed it would continue the story from the film. Surprisingly, that wasn’t the plan. Instead, the miniseries deliberately disregarded Snyder’s movie and went back to the original timeline of Moore’s comic book. This meant the 2019 series actually continued the events of the decades-old comic, not the film.

The show Watchmen only has a 57% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. I believe this low rating is mostly because the show isn’t easy for viewers unfamiliar with the original source material to get into.

While Zack Snyder’s Watchmen movie closely followed the original comic book, it also included some significant differences. Because of this, the movie and the HBO miniseries don’t quite fit together as one continuous story. The creators likely intended viewers to be familiar with Alan Moore’s comic first. The miniseries then revisits that world thirty years later. Considering Snyder’s film was relatively recent, it might have been safer for HBO to make the miniseries a direct sequel to it. Fortunately, they chose a better path, and the result was the excellent nine-episode series.

Can I Watch the 2019 Watchmen Miniseries Without Reading the Comics First?


HBO

When the Watchmen series debuted on HBO, a central mystery immediately captivated viewers. Many expected a continuation of Zack Snyder’s film, but instead encountered a bizarre reality where squids rained from the sky. Snyder had changed the comic book’s ending, leaving those unfamiliar with the original story confused about the squids’ significance. While there were a few other confusing moments throughout the nine episodes, the series generally works as a standalone story. Watching the movie beforehand can help you understand the world, but it’s crucial to remember that the movie and the series take place in different universes.

Alan Moore, the creator of Watchmen, has publicly rejected all versions of his comic that have been adapted into other formats, including the 2019 television series.

As a fan, I really appreciate how the Watchmen show built on the original comics while also introducing a whole new generation of characters – it felt like a fresh start for the story. They did a good job of making it accessible to newcomers, though I definitely think you’ll get a lot more out of it if you read the comics first. Looking back, it was a bold move for HBO to greenlight it in 2019, before we were seeing so many shows expand stories across different mediums like Fallout does now. I’m still grateful they took that risk; it was something special and doesn’t happen often in television.

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2026-02-23 16:17