''Rorschach'' is an

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

limited series In the field of comic books, and particularly in the United States, a limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is finite and determined ...

written by Tom King and drawn by Jorge Fornés, based on the character of the same name. The series is published by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

under their

DC Black Label DC Black Label (also referred to simply as Black Label) is an imprint of American comic book publisher DC Comics consisting of original miniseries and reprints of books previously published under other imprints. The imprint intends to present t ...

imprint. ''Rorschach'' is one of two sequels to the

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

maxiseries ''

Watchmen ''Watchmen'' is a comic book Limited series (comics), limited series by the British creative team of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins (comics), John Higgins. It was published monthly by DC Comics in 1986 and 19 ...

'' by

Alan Moore Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', Swamp Thing (comic book), ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman: The Killing Joke' ...

and

Dave Gibbons David Chester Gibbons (born 14 April 1949) is an English comics artist, writer and sometimes letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries ''Watchmen'' and the Superman story " For the M ...

, the other being '' Doomsday Clock''. Ignoring the events of ''Doomsday Clock'', the comic is also tangentially and loosely linked to the 2019 television limited series by

Damon Lindelof Damon Laurence Lindelof (born April 24, 1973) is an American screenwriter, comic book writer, and producer. Among his accolades, he received three Primetime Emmy Awards, from twelve nominations. In 2010, ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine named ...

, set after its events. The standalone story analyzes the divisive cultural presence of Rorschach, a deranged superhero who died during the events of ''Watchmen'', while a detective investigates a prolific assassination attempt.

Premise

In 1985, deranged vigilante Walter Kovacs / Rorschach is killed by

Doctor Manhattan Doctor Manhattan (Dr. Jonathan "Jon" Osterman) is a fictional DC Comics character created by writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons. He debuted in the graphic novel, limited Limited series (comics), series graphic novel, ''Watchmen.'' Follo ...

while attempting to expose

Ozymandias "Ozymandias" ( ) is a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. It was first published in the 11 January 1818 issue of '' The Examiner'' of London. The poem was included the following year in Shelley's collection '' Ros ...

as the mastermind behind the "Squid"; a mutated psychic organism that kills half of the population of New York. The event inspires a tentative world peace under the illusion that an extraterrestrial attack is imminent. Thirty-five years later, Rorschach is the basis of many far right-wing conspiracy theories involving serving U.S. President

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous accolades such as an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, as well as the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1994, the ...

, deceased superheroes and an alien invasion. An unnamed homicide detective investigates the crimes committed by Wil Myerson, a radicalized comic book artist who assumed the Rorschach mantle and was killed during the attempted assassination of a presidential candidate.

Characters

* The Detective * William "Wil" Myerson / Rorschach * Laura Cummings / The Kid

Reception

References

{{Watchmen, state=expanded DC Comics titles Watchmen Comics by Tom King (writer)