It was interesting for me to experience this story in it’s original graphic novel form since my first exposure to it was through the film version. The film was well done and took from the book almost exactly. However, the heaviness of the political history was somewhat lost. Marjane’s childhood isn’t given nearly as much attention as it is in the book. The relevance of these events is more powerful when we are given more detail, more information, more victims, and more personal involvement from her in tragedies that occur. I suppose that given the restraint of time the film maker chose what they believed to be the most important portion of her childhood, her uncle’s arrest and murder, and concentrated on that rather than on the many marches, the maid, her slight obsession with class difference, and her involvement with God.

I found myself really appreciating the concentration Satrapi put into each individual story that revolved around the revolution and her childhood. There is so much detail and care placed in the art and in the facts. As was said in an earlier post, she is giving us heavy information that could seem too intense for a graphical novel. I would say that the novel is equally about the revolution and Satrapi only we are given more of Satrapi’s memories and childhood humour because without it the book would perhaps be too serious to be taken seriously.

The art was changed slightly, too, but enough that I found it interesting to see the movie version of the characters on the cover. The differences are slight but noticeable enough. For example, her mother’s hair is more stylized to fit modern times, the shape of Marjan’s eyes are different, and the grandmother look younger and sassier. She is drawn to look older in the book than in the movie. There are small changes but for me it affects how I see these characters. The way they care for themselves, carry themselves, etc. is completely based on how they are drawn. This is true for any character in a comic book, of course. So seeing the change in the way the main characters are drawn makes them slightly different people in general for me.

Overall, the experience of reading this story has been a different on than the film. I am finding the book version more enjoyable and I am evening learning history more accurately than in the movie version. It’s one of the most stimulating reads I’ve had in a while.

In chapter 7, there is a a strong connection between Rorschach and the Night Owl in regards to their true identities. Though in an earlier reading, Rorschach’s capture and de-masking is as dramatic as it is influential to the character development of all the superheroes we have come to know in Watchmen. Rorschach happens to be the only character that openly admits to being his persona rather than his day to day being, Walter Kovacs.

In regards to Night Owl, Moore basically gives us an entire chapter showing Dan accepting the fact that he feels impotent in his normal skin. He literally uses the word impotent while wearing nothing but his owl goggles. The fact that he admits his own inabilities not only while completely exposed in his normal skin is a quiet admission to feeling only himself when in the skin of the Night Owl. This happens also after his dramatic dream of peeling back the human form to expose the true form of the superhero underneath.

We shouldn’t forget his sexual impotence. This is indeed a difference between Rorschach and Night Owl because of Rorschach’s disgust toward physical intimacy of any kind. Before he puts on his owl skin we see an unsuccessful attempt at physical intimacy between Night Owl and Laurie. After they put on their superhero skins, they save a burning building, and lo and behold sexual success. When asked if the costumes helped Night owl says yes, “It just feels strange, you know? To come out and admit that to somebody. To come out of the closet.” (VII, 28)

It’s interesting to see Laurie’s reaction to this experience. Maybe if it were looked at more closely we could argue she is maybe accepting her superhero skin more than she did before. This I think has something to do with the fact that she was there to see someone she respects openly accept his position as a superhero and admitting that it makes him feel powerful. This is definitely a complete opposite to what Laurie says her mother makes her feel about the superhero world.