Return of the Prodigal Nerd

Alright kids, it's been awhile, hasn't it? Thank God we have Lauren, dedicated to the cause, holding down the fort. I have been an unreliable blogger as of late, I know. Recently, chatting with Lauren, it occurred to me that I need to get to blogging because seriously, if I don't, then I'm just a girl who played WoW and read Watchmen.... what is that called? Oh... Pathetic. That's right. It's hard to claim that these endeavors are for the good of the blog if I don't put fingers to keys to bring you my horrifying tales.

The reviews are beginning to roll in on what might be the biggest nerd news of the millennium: Watchmen: The Musical. What? It's not a musical? Well ok, but I'm still going to see it, and I'm dragging Lauren with me. After all, I recently finished reading the highly acclaimed comic book (graphic novel, if ya know what's up), and the timing could not be more excellent. I chose Watchmen for a few reasons, one of which was knowing that the movie was imminent. But there was another reason. One more sinister... one more dastardly. One that involves my own nerdery.

I'm Heidi and I am a Lost Fanboy (Hi Heidi). My problem began a few years ago when Netflix delivered season one to my mailbox. Like getting home deliveries from your dealer, I got a new disc every other day until season one was spent and I was in love. Ah Season One! My Love! My Life... who's that French woman? What's up with Smokey? Naturally, my love spiraled, and I am today a more avid fan than ever. Someone asked me recently what's been happening "in the past few seasons" and, horrified, I gasped and refused to answer. You do not simply TALK about Lost. God, no.... you live it. And then you talk about it. Endlessly. And if you're a Fanboy like myself, you have an entire folder of bookmarks dedicated to Lost screencaps and discussion boards which allow you to dissect and ponder every frame and utterance. And yes, you care. You care about Kate and about Hurley and about Sawyer (and you don't mind so much when Sawyer never puts on a shirt for an entire episode). But I digress... what has this to do with Watchmen?

Fanboys know from the horse's mouth that Damon Lindelof, adorable Nerd and co-creator of Lost, considers Watchmen to be "the greatest piece of popular fiction ever produced." I don't know about that, but I do know that if it's good enough for Damon, it's good enough for me ... and if it's going to help me figure out wtf is going on on that island, I'm there. He has, somewhere, named Watchmen as a influence on Lost, though I don't remember where. Was it in an article? Was is in the weekly Podcast he does with co-creator Carlton Cuse, (and which um, yeah, of course I listen to)? Where ever it was, he said it, and I believe it. Watchmen is not Lost, clearly, but having now read it, all the while living knee-deep in Lost for the past several years, I see that there are resonances.

For starters:



Ok, so I'm not saying this means anything, and no, we've never seen Locke naked. Ok so maybe that's nothing... what else what else.... oh... of course. Perhaps there are parallels to be drawn here:




Alright fine... also nothing.... here's the thing... I was excited to talk about Watchmen and Lost, but I can't. Some of you have not yet lived inside these worlds and I would Never take from you what will, when you finally succumb, be the most amazing experience of you lives. I just can't do it. So you will have to simply trust that, yes, I have brilliant things to say about each of these excellent works of fiction... but no, I can't share those things with you.

I will say, though, that I enjoyed the book and am even a little worried about seeing the movie. Will it live up to what Steven mocked Elman for thinking was "comic book Jesus"? I may not know much about comic books, given than this is the only one I've ever read (actually, does Betty and Veronica count?), so I am surely unqualified to make any kind of judgment about whether Watchmen truly was Comic Book Jesus... but still, I'm nervous. There is only one thing to do to allay these fears. So let's just wrap this up with a prayer. A prayer that the movie live up to what I thought was a really excellent story, complete with pretty pictures. Let's all hold hands.

Our Comic Book Jesus, who art filled with middle-aged costumed heroes, hallowed be thy name...