The unfortunate Citizen Kane of its genre.

For years I was told that Citizen Kane was the best movie ever made, for one reason or another. It was tops on all the critics’ lists and even number one on those AMI lists years back. One of my professors in college lauded it for its innovations (mostly camera work and narrative) and told us all how it changed movies forever.  When I was finally made to watch Citizen Kane, I thought it was tremendously boring and just knew I was missing something or that I just didn’t get it. Rosebud? Really? For all the hype, Citizen Kane did absolutely nothing for me.

Well, I feel the exact same way about Watchmen.

This opinion, as I have found owning a comic book store, is not widely held.  In fact, I might be putting my safety at risk by publicly expressing these sentiments.  I cringe when that bright-eyed new reader plunks down that big yellow book on the counter because this might be the only change I get to show them how cool comics really are.

Watchmen is a hard book to read and even harder to enjoy. My adventures in retailing have led me to understand one unavoidable fact; new comic readers who purchase Watchmen solely based on its status in the comic world as our Citizen Kane, are inevitably disappointed. I beg for another chance to show them what this medium has to offer and sell them a copy of Y The Last Man or 100 Bullets or Preacher or Ex Machina, hoping to reel them back in.

POST-VIEW BREWS After viewing party back at Local Heroes; beers and reviews were shared.

This is when the best and most rewarding part of this job happens, they come back hooked and in love with comic books.

Why?

Because they had fun reading these books. While there may not be any comics as highly revered as Watchmen, there are hundreds that are more entertaining.

Local Heroes took all of its regular subscribers to see Watchmen and then brought them back to the store afterward for free booze, giveaways and discussion of the film. Our customers range from the casual reader to the die-hard fanboy, so I think we had a nice sampling of tastes. The general consensus (aside from excessive frontal nudity) was that no one thought Watchmen was awesome or  even comparable to The Dark Knight in the hierarchy of great comic book movies.

Watchmen revelers

I would definitely agree with that sentiment. Watchmen the movie failed to entertain me much the same way Watchmen the book did. It’s very well made and I appreciate the innovation, but it fails to appeal to a mass audience who just want to have fun.

I think the reverence for the source material is the ultimate downfall of the Watchmen movie.  Casual movie goers will likely not enjoy it, just like their comic reading counterparts. Watchmen revelers at Local Heroes had the benefit of spirits to help spurn opinions or wash away disappointments. We love these books with words and pictures and contrary to popular belief, want more people to enjoy them too.

There have been hundreds of great movies since Citizen Kane and comics are no different.

Catching the buzz

Stop by anytime and we’ll show you.

Editor’s Note: I met Greg when he Facebooked me a few weeks ago, asking if I might be the Hannah Serrano who dropped her check card near Cogan’s Pizza recently. And if so, I could come pick it up at his store next door. Of course I was that Hannah Serrano. And I had indeed noticed Local Heroes every time I stumbled out of Cogan’s, as I must have the night I  dropped my check card like a drunken idiot. When he hadn’t heard from me, he shredded the card for me. Local heroes indeed. I had to stop by to introduce myself after such a kind gesture, and when I did I found a kick-ass store in a killer location, and an owner who seemed just as progressive about local business and culture as we are. Go say hi: 1905 Colonial Ave. Ghent, Norfolk.