Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Watchmen: Chapter X - page 24


PAGE 24

Panel 1: where we see the mail carrier delivering the journal to the mail sorting depot, which will send the package along to its recipient

Panel 2:  Note the clock in the background is very close to the familiar minutes to midnight motif seen throughout Watchmen. 

Panel 5:  The editorial cartoonist to whom Godfrey refers is Walt Feinberg, who worked with Max Shea on the Black Freighter comic after Joe Orlando left the book – as recounted in the back-matter to Chapter V – and is the artist for the two-part story, “Marooned,” that the younger Bernie has been reading at the newsstand throughout the main narrative.

Panel 6:  The line read by Seymour from the journal is a variation on the very first line of Watchmen.  It may be that Seymour read it wrong, due to Rorschach’s scratchy handwriting, or it is, more likely, a simple error on the part of Moore or Gibbons, who also lettered the book.

Panel 7:  Note that Seymour is wearing a smiley face t-shirt, yet another instance of that prominent visual motif (sans blood spatter).

Panel 8:  Godfrey’s comment, “I won’t see truth and integrity buried beneath an avalanche of drivel…” is ironic considering he’s telling Seymour to bury the truth, in the form of Rorschach’s journal, beneath an avalanche of drivel, in the form of the crank file submissions.

Panel 9:  Again, Godfrey’s comment, “…we could miss something important…” is ironic, considering he and Seymour are missing the most important submission they have – Rorschach’s journal.

Godfrey’s final piece of dialogue, “…the birds could be in the air right now…” transitions directly into

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