'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYH/8QAFQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAX/2gAMAwEAAhADEAAAAMPjy8D/xAAhEAABAgYCAwAAAAAAAAAAAAABAgMABAURFCEGEyJBkf/aAAgBAQABPwCiytIf4rVsmUezCpIbmgsHq9iybfdwppYUR46Mf//EABkRAAMAAwAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwAEMf/aAAgBAgEBPwDfkixkwHRn/8QAGhEAAAcAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDBDNhwf/aAAgBAwEBPwBrMsV4P//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Watchmen: Chapter 1, released on August 13, 2024, is the third adaptation of Alan Moore's graphic novel after Zack Snyder's 2009 movie and the HBO miniseries. The animated film’s synopsis on IMDb reads:
“In 1985, the murder of a government-sponsored superhero draws his outlawed colleagues out of retirement and into a mystery that threatens to upend their personal lives and the world itself.”
The murdered government-sponsored superhero is the Comedian, and the vigilante Rorschach took it upon himself to probe into the murder mystery. However, as Watchmen: Chapter 1 ended, Rorschach found himself framed for the murder of Jacobi.
Trending
The closing scene of Watchmen: Chapter 1 revealed that it was actually Adrian Veidt aka Ozymandias who had killed Jacobi and framed Rorschach for the act. Ozymandias had been planning something big and sinister, and getting Rorschach out of his way became necessary for him.
Disclaimer: The article contains spoilers
Watchmen: Chapter 1: Ozymandias killed Jacobi and framed Rorschach for it
When the film opened, Rorschach was zealously pursuing all possible clues to find out who killed the Comedian. Several flashbacks showed how the Comedian had a boisterous personality who was not short of enemies.
Vigilantism and the code of the superhero are prominent themes in Watchmen: Chapter 1, and Rorschach tries to live up to his reputation as a nocturnal crime solver who has his own ways of getting his jobs done.
However, the shady figure of the ambitious Adrian Veidt loomed large in the film. Also known as Ozymandias, his motives and actions became clearer as Watchmen: Chapter 1 progressed. Ozymandias was planning something sinister, and anybody who caused problems for him faced his wrath.
Jacobi, formerly known as the Moloch, was a cunning criminal once. But Watchmen: Chapter 1 captured the concluding bits of his life when he was a mere shadow of his former self. He was suffering from cancer and would die soon.
Rorschach visited him to see if he could learn anything about the Comedian’s murder from Jacobi. He tormented Jacobi for some information and threatened him with more violence if he did not keep in touch and kept supplying him with more info.
During one visit to Jacobi, Rorschach found him dead from a bullet wound in his forehead. Also, it was clear that someone had tipped off the police who had been waiting outside Jacobi’s place when Rorschach walked in. A violent face-off between Rorschach and the police ensued, after which the former was held captive.
As the film drew to its end, it became clear, through Ozymandias’ voice-over, that it was actually he who had killed Jacobi and set up the scene in a way to throw all suspicions on Rorschach.
Rorschach and Ozymandias had a tense confrontation towards the beginning of the film, where the former insulted the latter. Moreover, Ozymandias was planning something big. Due to all these reasons, getting rid of Rorschach became necessary for him.
Read more: How long is Zack Snyder's Justice League?
What is Ozymandias up to?
Watchmen: Chapter 1 is a commentary on what 'greed for power' can do to people. As the film progressed, it became clear that Ozymandias was hatching a morbid conspiracy, and getting the superheroes out of the picture one by one would be ideal for him.
Due to this, he started a malicious but secret campaign against Dr. Manhattan, spreading the allegations that the godlike superhero ‘infected’ people with cancer. Due to such falsehoods spreading against him, Dr. Manhattan left Earth and went to Mars.
Similarly, Rorschach had been investigating the murder of the Comedian keenly. If he went on, he could have unearthed intelligence that could prove disastrous for Ozymandias. Thus, he slyly framed Rorschach for Jacobi’s murder.
While Watchmen: Chapter 1 ended with the ambiguous voice-over of Ozymandias without shedding light on what his plans are, the comics show that he has been experimenting on an island (this is referenced by the Comedian as well).
The results of the experiment, the comics tell us, would soon be tried in the real world, now that it is not protected by its powerful superheroes, and Ozymandias would seize the chance to capture worldwide power. Watchmen: Chapter 1 foreshadows this.
Read more: Despicable Me franchise sets record as first animated series to surpass $5 billion
What to expect from Watchmen: Chapter 2?
The sequel to Watchmen: Chapter 1 will be released in 2025. Chapter 1 is very faithful to its source material, and Chapter 2 could follow suit.
Given the tense ending of Chapter 1, the next part could explore the evil plans of Ozymandias, and also show how the heroes rise to the occasion and respond to them.
However, the world of Watchmen is a morally complex one. Thus, with every act, there are lots of complicated consequences and questions. The sequel could make room for those as well.
Watchmen: Chapter 1 is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.
