[This story contains spoilers for season one, episode two of HBO’s Watchmen, “She Was Killed by Space Junk,” as well as Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ graphic novel on which the show is based.]
Welcome back to Series Regular, The Hollywood Reporter‘s weekly podcast dedicated to diving deep into hit TV shows.
Every episode of Series Regular comes courtesy of Josh Wigler (that’s me!) and takes a closer look at the genre television space — and for the next eight weeks, it’s all about one space in particular: Watchmen, the new HBO drama based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ seminal graphic novel of the same name. Wigler and co-host Antonio Mazzaro of Post Show Recaps fame will provide weekly podcast coverage of Watchmen, following each and every round of the nine-episode first season.
In “She Was Killed by Space Junk,” Watchmen presents its most Watchmen-y episode yet — insofar as how it directly connects to the comics, at least. The Lord of the Manor stands revealed as Adrian Veidt, alias “Ozymandias,” the man responsible for changing the world with a giant flippin’ squid. Jean Smart arrives as Laurie Blake, formerly Laurie Jupiter, the costumed vigilante once alternately known as “Silk Spectre” and “The Comedienne,” now serving as a federal agent. According to Damon Lindelof, both characters were top of mind when it came to which of Moore and Gibbons’ cast to bring into the HBO version of events in prominent roles.
“We might see some other characters from the original Watchmen appear,” notes Lindelof, speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, “but I didn’t want to overburden this narrative with Watchmen babies, as they say. Those were the two I felt were essential to the storytelling.”
Some other Watchmen comic book references littered throughout week three:
• News about Dan Dreiberg, aka the masked vigilante known as “Nite Owl,” who apparently spends his time these days trapped in a cage;
• More than a couple of callbacks to “Tales of the Black Freighter,” the pirate comic book featured repeatedly throughout Moore and Gibbons’ tale;
• The arrival of Dustin Ingram as Agent Petey, who isn’t from the comics, but knows the events of the comics better than just about anyone as the federal agent repeatedly mentioned in the HBO.com Watchmen ancillary material;
And more!
Listen to the Watchmen podcast below, and subscribe to make sure you don’t miss an episode. Follow Wigler and Mazzaro on Twitter at @roundhoward and @acmazzaro, respectively, and send your questions and feedback to SeriesRegular@THR.com.
Series Regular is part of THR‘s roster of podcasts, including TV’s Top 5, the weekly TV news analysis podcast hosted by West Coast TV editor Lesley Goldberg and chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg; Awards Chatter, Scott Feinberg’s weekly in-depth (and award-winning) interview show focusing on the most interesting talents of the Oscar and Emmy seasons; crafts expert Carolyn Giardina’s weekly series, Behind the Screen, which explores the top artists and technologies creating film and TV magic; and Seth Abramovitch’s monthly series, It Happened in Hollywood, which revisits indelible moments from 90 years of THR‘s entertainment history. Other podcasts are in the works.
