Watchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. Originally published by DC Comics as a monthly limited series from 1986 to 1987, it was later republished as a trade paperback, which popularized the "graphic novel" format. To date, Watchmen remains the only graphic novel to win a Hugo Award, blank">"AwardWeb: Hugo Award Winners" - Watchmen listed as a winner of the _Hugo Award (retrieved 20 April 2006) and is also the only graphic novel to appear on Time Magazine 's 2005 list of "the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to the present." blank">"Time Magazine - ALL-TIME 100 Novels" – A synopsis describing Watchmen (retrieved 14 April 2006)

Watchmen is set in 1985, in an _alternative history United States where costumed adventurers are real and the country is edging closer to a nuclear war with the Soviet Union (the Doomsday Clock is at five minutes to midnight). It tells the story of a group of past and present superheroes and the events surrounding the mysterious murder of one of their own. Watchmen depicts superheroes as real people who must confront ethical and personal issues, who struggle with neuroses and failings, and who - with one notable exception - lack anything recognizable as super powers. Watchmen ' s deconstruction of the conventional superhero archetype, combined with its innovative adaptation of cinematic techniques and heavy use of symbolism, multi-layered dialogue, and metafiction, has influenced both comics and film.

The Watchmen were a Canadian rock band. They were one of the most commercially successful Canadian alternative rock groups of the early 1990s.

The group was formed in 1988 in Winnipeg, Manitoba by vocalist Daniel Greaves, guitarist Joey Serlin, bassist Pete Loewen and drummer Sammy Kohn. Serlin was a comic fan and named the group after the DC comic. They released their debut album, McLaren Furnace Room, in 1992. (The album was named for one of the band's rehearsal spaces, the furnace room of the McLaren Hotel in Winnipeg.) The single "Cracked" garnered the band significant airplay on rock stations, but was quickly eclipsed by the anti-spousal abuse anthem "Run and Hide", which became the band's breakthrough hit.

Loewen left the band amicably to spend more time with his family, and was replaced by Ken Tizzard. The band's 1994 album In The Trees confirmed their place in Canadian rock with the hit singles "Boneyard Tree", "All Uncovered" and "Lusitana". The album was certified Platinum in Canada after selling over 100,000 copies.

Their 1996 album Brand New Day was not as well-received by critics or audiences -- "Zoom", "Incarnate" and "Shut Up" were moderately successful singles, but none achieved the kind of success that the band's earlier singles had. 1998's Silent Radar was the band's return to commercial success, with the hit singles "Stereo", "Any Day Now" and "Brighter Hell".

Their 2001 album Slomotion saw the exit of Sammy Kohn and the remaining members experimenting with more industrial textures. The band also packaged the album with a second greatest hits disc. The album was, however, poorly received, with only the single "Absolutely Anytime" gaining any radio airplay.

In November 2003 the band decided to go their separate ways. However, they decided that before they did so, they would perform one last short tour across Canada as a "Thank You" to their fans. The tour was called "The Watchman's Last Road Trip" and included 9 concerts in 6 Canadian cities and 1 American city. Drummer Ryan Ahoff joined the band for the tour which also saw a guest appearance by original bassist Pete Loewen during the encore of their last show in their hometown of Winnipeg on December 20, 2003.

The band subsequently broke up. Greaves went on to form Doctor with Rob Higgins, Tizzard joined Thornley, and Serlin appeared on Ryan Malcolm's debut album before forming his own new band, Redline.