Watchmen - Adapting The Unadaptable 

Your editing alone is worth a subscription. Hold this +1.

Great video bubson. I read Watchmen in high school after seeing the trailer for the movie and I thought it was amazing (the book). So I gotta give credit to the movie for getting me interested, even though it was a pretty much a complete shitshow, spare some really well done scenes - like the intro fight with the comedian and Dr. Manhattan's transformation.

"An adaptation should never replace the source material." That's why I have mixed feelings on the Frankenstein films. They were important to the development of cinema, but they have totally replaced the image of the original novel in the public's eye. People think of the monster as Boris Karloff, not the intelligent but murderous character of the source material.

Watchmen is one of the best examples of near-perfect writing that I have ever seen

you thought I was going to dislike this video? I already liked it thirty-five minutes ago

I like both. The movie blew my mind so I bought the comic, and that comic is so damn amazing. I got two different but amazing experiences out of them

Jackie Earle Haley was such a good casting decision.

Find someone who loves you as passionately as Alan Moore hates adaptations of his work 🤗

Damn dude, you just made me want to read Watchmen. THANK YOU FOR EXISTING.

One of the first and only instances of a channel coming out of nowhere and totally amazing everyone good video, good channel, good luck.

@kaptainkristian Big fan. Your editing is incredible. Question -- How do you obtain the pages of comics for your editing? I want to edit essays on comics, but I'm not sure how to find high resolution comics for the video. Would love some advice! Keep doing what you're doing. Thanks.

Nice song choice!

Adapt the unadaptable Break the unbreakable Row row fight the powa

Avatar: the last air bender...you know u wanna

It was actually Fearful Symmetry, but I'm glad you pointed out this chapter. It's right in the middle of the graphic novel, and if you look at it closely, the entire chapter is completely symmetrical, from the panel layout to the motion of the characters action and even the colors. It's the most brilliant and overlooked thing ever done in comics. If you have the comic, I'd recommend going back and finding the exact middle of the book, then turning each page forward and backward to the beginning and end of the chapter (all about symmetry), and just be blown away by the genius of it.

I am always coming back to this video. I love the music, the editing, the points that are made. I just love it.

S I M P S O N W A V E

For me, Watchmen is one of the best movies I've ever seen, so hearing that the comic is a lot better makes me want to read it. Thank you!

Thing is, I never really understood why people called Watchmen "unadaptable", I thought it was pretty straightforward. Of course, that would mean they'd have to cut out a lot of elements, but I thought it could be done and Zach Snyder proved it. But then after watching this video, this guy has really opened up my eyes. It now DOES make sense why they chose the 9 panel comic layout, and why the colours were chosen, and many other things. Great video.

Your editing skills are amazing, great work! Looking forward for the next episode

is this guy talented or what?!?!

Every time, so well done. Fantastic!

I love the movie, and I love the book. Both to death. But I never expect or want a comicbook movie to be a DIRECT adaptation. I appreciate the changes Zack made, and I visit both of these works of art on a regular basis. I cant say which I think is better because they are two different mediums, but I certainly dont think the movie is a step down from the book, and definitely dont think Zack missed the point of it at all. The movie and the book are both polarizing, even while being cult classics. Its a story simply not for everyone, but I love that its one for me.

I absolutely love your stuff. Your attention to detail and ability to see beyond what the story is telling the audience is incredible.

I love Zack Snyder and the movie trailer did get me to read the graphic novel. I think that both the graphic novel and the film are great.

Yours and Every Frame a Painting's uploads always make me feel like it's christmas

I like how your video is created back in 2016 but still hold's up to this day and great video man :]

The movie Watchmen made me wanna read the comics. So, yeah, the movie did its job. And even though it gets its fair share of criticism from people who love the comics, I think it's one of the best comic book movies ever made... And that's saying a lot.

Dude, your editting and your content is phenominal. Seriously, continue to be you.

Has kaptainkristian ever said who he is on his twitter account or something? I'm just completely perplexed by this channel and how it seemed to pop out of nowhere and keeps producing one amazing video after another.

I just happened to stumble on this video by chance but these are some of the best video essays on youtube. Bravo, sir. Bravo

I keep rewatching because the editing is so good. The video is just satisfying to watch

I love your videos man makes my day everytime I see a new one

God, I never get more excited than when I see there's a new kaptainkristian video!

I love the work channels like yours and The Nerd Writer do. Such a huge level of respect for the time and effort you put into these videos and it really shows. They're all amazing.

Your editing and deconstruction of scenes are phenomenal. Keep up the great work.

Snyders Adaptation of Watchmen is a "superhero movie" about Superhero movies. it shows this extreme violence that was becoming popular and mainstream at the time and it asks us "do we really like this" we see him "parody" and give those inside jokes to show how we look at cape films. snyder uses the same concept moore did with the "graphic novel and how its laid out" idea and adapts that to the film.

I keep imagining what a good and proper film adaptation of Watchmen would even look like? Who would direct it? Who would handle the cinematography? Who would be casted as whom? What changes would this adaptation feel needs to be made? Will it have the inverse politics like Snyder's did? What would even be the appropriate runtime? Should it expand across more than one film? Will a faithful adaptation even happen in my Moore's lifetime? Will it happen in mine? Will it ever? But the most important question I find myself asking is - Where can I get my hands on this near perfect graphic novel and read it again? Great video dude.

Dude youre amazing. Everything is on point! Music, writing, research, your editing etc

Such a great channel, thanks ro Philip Defranco for sharing your link! I love film review channels and seeing different approaches to them and you are amazing, and kudos to your editing it's so good! Can't wait for more videos 😊

I bought and read Watchmen because of this video, last year. It was incredible. So many references I now understand, and it's clear how much of it casually seeped into public psyche. I feel like I need to read it again to truly appreciate it though.

Great editing, great commentary, and a clear message. How do you only have around 165,000 subscribers? It's insanity!

I have now watched every video on this channel. The quality is amazing and consistent with the level of thought I never thought a video essay on youtube could have. Keep up the good work! Just don't ever rush yourself.

This is one of the greatest channels on RU-vid! I honestly wait in anticipation for kaptainkristrian videos.

I think that comic as an art is underrated . Comic must be greater than a film if is well done because is more intimate experience. You can watch a film with your friend. But when you are watching and reading a comic book, you are alone and you are more catapulted in the world of images 'cause you have all the time to read and think and see the details. In a film you do not have that "space" in which you can think about and the entire scene could be lost, passing fast away. In every comic you make the time , the reader is in some way a part of the "direction". But in the fast internet era everything is lost in a blink of an eye. No time to think about it, that's what is the real "mainstream": fashion without thinking. That's why I love comics.

looks like I really need to read watchmen

binge watched Netflix shows before but this is the first time that I binge-watch a RU-vid channel from oldest to newest and is Awesome. Keep up the great work !

Every video on this channel is pure gold. Keep up the good work.

Great video. I'd be lying if I didn't say I love the film regardless. Not only do I find it to be a great film, perfect to my tastes, but I owe a lot to it. Were it not for the film Watchmen, I would never have read the comics - and I mean any comics, because of this film I went out and I got every comic I could, just never considered them as something I needed to try til I saw this film.

Your content is always top quality, congrats :)

Just discovered you and now binge watching all your stuff....great videos and amazing content!

This was the most respectful analysis of the film and the concept of adaptation that I have viewed on this website. That is something I can always admire in a RU-vidr like yourself. Kudos. Most try to ascribe one as being inferior to the other or trying to reach a middle of the road compromise that seems resigned. You gave more consideration to both mediums.

Even though it's not perfect, I think it's the best adaptation we could ever get.

Thank you for bringing up the panel arrangements. Watchmen is constantly lauded for its writing (which it very much deserves), but I don't hear as much praise for the visual composition of the art, which is just as complex and important -- if not more so. Each panel frames a moment in a purposeful way that carries dense symbolic meaning and it's this that keeps me coming back and discovering new connections with every read.

I'd like to take a moment here to say that I really appreciate your videos! They make me appreciate the things you talk about much more then I used to. Please keep on doing what you're doing!! You are AWESOME

This is one of the absolute best channels on RU-vid, keep up the great work!

Oh man!! I don't know anything about this!!!! Lol excited

Dropped a like before I even watched, just know it's going to be good

you are one of the best editors I have seen around youtube in a long time. Keep up the good work.

Another absolutely top notch video. Can't wait for your next.

I still prefer the graphic novel, but I liked the movie ending more.

Great video! I agree with almost everything, 2 issues I have. 1) there is blood and gore in huge detail hanging off the ceiling in the comic when Dr. Manhattan vaporizes then men in the restaurant so I'm not sure Snyder's violence was overdone in respect to the comic. 2) the suit Ozy wears in the film is in fact a parody of Batman's suit, you're right on that but costumes in the comic were often meant as parodies of comic book costumes. So isn't the films version a parody of comic book film costumes perfect for a film adaptation? I think al lot of the violence and costumes are meant as film version parodies the way the comic was a parody of comics. What do you think?

I have to rewatch this every once in a while, it continues to gives me shivers every time.

Another wonderful video from this awesome channel! Love it.

god I love this channel

Nice here's hoping everything go's OK with the Calvin & Hobbes video so it can be public again.

man, you took me by a blast. really well done. the animations, research and information given is awesome, Subscribed with love.

That was amazing. I have never see so much intellect and emotion drawn into a video about comic books and it be so vivid and... Amazing, i am at a loss of words

Damn son that sht was dank, from Frankjavcee to the Interstellar OST

To some extend, I must respectfully disagree. I never liked how every movie adaptation is judged in categorys of "that is not, how it is in the book, or comic, or whatever". Those are just different mediums, having different strengths and rules. You are absolutely right, that a comic has a way of telling a story, that is way different of the the way, a movie can. But that way is not by default better or worse. It is just different. So it just makes sense for a movie to step away from the source material at some points, to tell a story that does work on film. And for that reason I don´t think it makes sense to compare a comic/book with a film. The question should be "does the movie work as a film?" and "does the comic work as a comic?"

my god i love this essay form of vlog, i cant get enough of nerwrighter, vox, film/game theorist, extra history (although they may be a step above, they add quite a bit with their animation, particularly love extra history). even mothers basement's over analyzing OPs is just an amazing way to present your work. and you are doing it amazingly!!! every subject you present i can feel the grandiose weight you are trying to portray! you are right up there with the nerdwriter for me man, keep this coming!!

I just discovered your channel and it is already one of my favorite relatively smaller channels, can't wait to see what comes next I'll be looking forward to it

the movie made me want to read the graphic novel

Two posts in a month?!

Your videos are like an amazing essay, not a crappy high school procrastination filled essay but a 2 years in the making Masters degree thesis essay, your videos are so well made and captivating it's insane!

Two videos in and I'm LOVING this channel. Started on Godzilla after a recommendation from a friend. Love the detail. Editing. I don't even know half the terms for what you're doing, but I see it and I really enjoy it. Great work kaptainkristian!

watchmen was the only comic book movie i enjoyed in the past 16 years

Props for using F r a n k J a v C e e music!

The quality of these videos is amazing... really nice job, man

I can't express how much I love your channel. I read Watchmen for the first time, and thanks to you, you have completely changed my view toward comics and superheroes as an art form. Keep up the brilliant work as always :)

Snyder's Watchman is just okay, it doesn't have the subtlety and grandeur of the Graphic Novel, but no true adaption should shoot it word for word and scene for scene. The whole point of adaption is the adapt to a new medium and in this case it's film. Though I do admit I did like the whole Nite Owl beating the shit out of Ozymandias scene since that's what I wanted to happen after Rorsach died in the comics... the asshole who caused it to happen to get a smackdown. Though it's better in the comics with just Ozy asking Dr Manhattan if he did the right thing and the good doctor telling him nothing ends.

First I want to say that I watched the movie first... and it is really good. I read the comic later... and it is significantly better. Secondly I completely disagree with "an adaptation should only be seen as supplementary." I think an adaptation should stand on it's own and needs to make changes to adapt to a new medium or to add new or different ideas. Look at Disney adaptations.

Amazing, your editing, your speech, everything.

How have I not seen these video, I've been subscribed to this channel for a while now

I absolutely adore the movie AND the book. I feel like they each get something right the other one wasn't able to, one not really bring objectively better than the other

I bet his next video will have a green thumbnail.

Another excellent video, Kristian! I'm really loving these in-depth analysis videos that delve deeper into the topics being thoroughly discussed. You're doing a really great job at these! Keep it up! :D

Had to come back and re-watch this cause opf the show. Great work, man. I hope in the recent years, these videos have paid off for you cause your editing/story telling is top notch.

even with all its fauls, the movie was still pretty good

Best super hero movie ever made by a mile.

Dude. The editing in this is unbelievable. Immediate sub.

Love this. Thanks for posting. You always tell such a great story.

What's the song in the ending?

I'm always gonna love Watchmen (film) soley because of Rorschach. Talk about perfect casting. Can't see/hear anyone else. The moment he loses control and butchers that creep felt real (and SUPER satisfying)! Everything with him was outstanding. Movie gets a lot of (valid) shit, but Snyder did some good. I instantly felt the history of partnership between Rorschach and NightOwl II

Great video and great points made. Thanks for sharing the song as well, awesome.

love the sentiments explored. keep the videos up. they are fantastic

The interview with Zack Snyder that starts at 6:13, can anyone help me out with where that is from?

I remember seeing the trailer for watchmen in theaters. I clearly remember the trailer stating "the most celebrated graphic novel of all time" and my friends and I laughed, saying "how can it be the most celebrated if none of us have ever even heard of it!?" We were around 18 at the time. I went to see the movie in theaters and absolutely loved it. I read the comic in a single sitting a few days later. If it wasn't for the movie, I would have never known about Watchmen. I clearly appreciate it as a masterpiece now. Mind you, I wasn't a huge comic book nerd or anything but I'm half japanese and have been reading manga all my life and have been to my fair share of comic book shops. edit: forgot to make my point, the film may be flawed from those that loved the comic from before. but it absolutely did a terrific job of reintroducing the watchmen to a new more desensitized generation and getting people like me to seek it out. Spoilers: This is an unpopular opinion but I prefer the ending of the movie over the comic. It made more sense to me, and I thought the story flowed a lot better that ozymandias would use doctor manhattan's tech and energy to destroy NY (and other major cities) rather than introduce extradimensional beings at the very end of the comic (only in NY if I remember correctly). It really threw me off when I saw that squid monster at the end of the comic. It felt like it came out of no where rather than seeing John constantly working on the machine that was used in the climax of the movie. It also made more sense to me that doctor manhattan could no longer stay on earth because of what adrian did in the film rather than just not wanting to be on earth anymore. Still love the comic as a separate thing from the movie though. Just my two cents as a person that was introduced via the movie rather than the graphic novel.

The music in these videos is always so good man

Just discovered your channel and love it. Thanks for the content!