Review: Watchmen: Chapter II finishes strong

This review will probably be a bit shorter than usual, just because a lot of what I have to say, I've already said in my review of Watchmen: Chapter I, which was a great kick-off to this story. DC usually has one or two projects each year that release in multiple parts -- last year also brought a solid three-part take on the famous Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline -- and this is the strongest one I've seen. I get why they didn't just drop it as one three-hour movie. I assume audiences find it more digestible to have it broken into parts, and more importantly, this is a way to make more money. If you squint, you can also pretend it's to honor the comic book origins of the story. But this one only spans two issues.

Watchmen: Chapter II picks up right where the last one left off. Rorschach is behind bars. Laurie is staying with Dan. Dr. Manhattan is on Mars. And the world is on the brink of war. Chapter I did a great job of setting up the board, introducing the various players, and establishing the scope of the story. It even felt a little overwhelming, despite my having read the book (albeit many, many years ago). Here, the walls start closing in, the story's focus narrowing, as everyone's paths finally really converge, leading right up to the endgame.

It took me a few minutes to readjust to the animation. It has those nice heavy lines that recall a comic look, but the characters' slightly wooden movements are somewhat jarring. Once I got used to it, though, I found it very appealing, and it really fits with the mature subject matter. This isn't overly colorful or dynamic to look at, but everything is sharp, well-defined, heavy. There are some really great uses of shadows on characters' faces at different points -- forming the image of his mask while Walter (Rorschach) is in prison, or a nuclear explosion on Adrian's face. Good stuff.

There are some particularly striking moments here that, I think, give this an edge over Chapter I. The entire sequence on Mars is stunning, and so perfectly performed. Dr. Manhattan gives Laurie the chance to convince him to intervene, to save Earth from the looming threat of nuclear annihilation. In doing so, we get more of Laurie's backstory, particularly relating to her parentage, and the emotional fallout is gorgeous. As his glorious Martian castle crumbles around Laurie, Dr. Manhattan reflects on how her mere existence is a miracle, and taking that further, every human life is a miracle. The world is so full of miracles, then, that they become commonplace, mundane. For a character who is so (seemingly, at least) neutral and unfeeling in his approach to the world and his place in it, it's a beautiful sentiment, and a core theme for the story overall.

Other highlights include getting Rorschach's backstory, a kiss in a dream backed by a mushroom cloud, the quite grim finale at an Antarctic fortress. Because of how half-remembered this all was for me, I found myself taken aback by how bleak things end up, but it certainly fits the larger themes and story beats here. It's part of why this story has remained so top-of-mind over the years, and has been adapted and spun-off multiple times. I imagine this isn't the last time we'll see this adapted, but I'm glad that we have such a strong animated adaptation to come back to now.

Watchmen: Chapter II is available to rent or own digitally, or to purchase on Blu-ray. I imagine it'll be streaming on Max soon, as well.