Watchmen Theory: Does Ozymandias Become The Joker?

WARNING : This clause contains likely SPOILERS forWatchmen&Doomsday Clock

DC’sDoomsday Clockcomic may bea sequel to the original Watchmen , but other clue make it an descent account for The Joker - and how Ozymandias became the Clown Prince of Crime . It ’s a bold , scandalous suggestion on its own , and on the open may seem like the worst caseful scenario manyWatchmenpurists warned of whenDoomsday Clockwas first announced . Geoff Johns has emphasized his respect and investment in the original serial from the start … but there ’s no deny that the other hints of Ozymandias finally " get the jest " will pleat feather ( and blow some mind ) .

_Cillian-Murphy-in-28-days-Later

It should n’t be treated as a " spoiler , " since it ’s pure venture on our part ( and maybe a little wishful thought ) . Even if Adrian Veidt trades his purple adventitia for a purple tuxedo , that does n’t reveal much about the overall event , history , or purpose ofDoomsday Clock- nor therole played by Superman or Dr. Manhattan . And lest we draw a blank , the launching of DC’sRebirthmystery began with the revelation that there was n’t justone Joker in the DC Universe , but THREE .

So , was one of those Jokers beingWatchmen ’s villain Adrian Veidt Geoff Johns ’s idea from the start ? And if it was , where does this re - imagining of bothWatchmenand The Joker end up ? Is he ostensibly doom like the sleep of Watchmen ’s world … or does he , like Manhattan , assay out a new world ? First things first : let ’s get to the clues inDoomsday Clock#1 , so lover can make up one’s mind if we ’re really on to something .

As Ozymandias’s Plan Failed… He Laughed

For those who may have missedthe big beats ofDoomsday Clock#1 , the story picks up seven years after the master copy in 1992 . And as an extension of that fictional world ’s bloodcurdling world , thing are about as bad as readers would gestate . The patch hatched by Adrian Veidt a.k.a . Ozymandias to unite the world by wipe out three million civilians in New York City - dupe of an artificial ' alien attack ' - was discovered and exposed . The result was Veidt becoming the world ’s most hated criminal , and the world ’s nations run correctly back to the nuclear standoff Veidt had tried to foreclose in the first station .

To anyone , it would seem like a tragedy . ToWatchmen ’s Comedian , it might seem too obvious a put-on to even smirk at . But in Veidt ’s retelling of the story , he appreciate the caustic remark in an unexpected way . Having the wisdom to know that all greatness eventually fades , and taking the name " Ozymandias " as reference to the poem of the same name and message , he had much to find out . Even a single sprightliness ’s work can break down to nothing , as his did . His response?“Laughing uncontrollably … laugh until it hurt . "

At which point Geoff Johns and artists Gary Frank and Brand Anderson emulate Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons ’s narration style , juxtaposing Veidt with a word broadcast advise viewers,“Do not believe their Trygve Halvden Lie . “To most reader , a sign of Veidt ’s illness . To some , perhaps a vague connector to the sort of ' laugh in the boldness of horror ' that The Joker incarnate . With a jot of Veidt breaking the 4th wall , seeming to glare beyond his venire at the news reader . But therealevidence comes in the next panels .

A composite image of the Peanuts gang hoisting Charlie Brown and Snoopy in the air in front of black and white panels from the Peanuts comic strips

Ozymandias is Losing his Mind

It ’s at this point in the storey that Veidt ’s genuine consideration is confirmed , after x - rays first appear during the looting of his offices are explain . The context of use throw is that Adrian Veidt is die of cancer . Judging by the x - rays , a brain tumor the size of a ping pong ball and growing - explain why his earlier laugh was make out short by a pained oink . What comes next is a narrative box lamenting that the cancer is"taking what is most precious to me,“placed over the look-alike of peace posters being smashed by glass bottles . Violence , the story says , has reclaim the unity and peace treaty Veidt hop to grow . Except … that ’s probably not whathemeans .

For lapse sports fan or those who have never readWatchmen , there ’s little doubt that Adrian Veidt’sbrainis what ’s most wanted to him . He ’s famous for being " the smart piece on the planet , " andGeoff Johns has confirmed that fact himself . His brawn and soldierly art make him telling in a battle , but they were always -always- defined as an extension of his mind . Veidt ’s greatest plus is his creative thinker . And thanks to the tumor in his skull , he ’s slowly losing it . Which intend the clock is check to find the one person who stillcansave the human beings : Dr. Manhattan .

If the promise ofWatchmenbeing connected to DC ’s Universe , Adrian Veidt erupt into uncontrollable laughter as his purpose dissolve , and the admission that he ’s misplace his mind does n’t persuade you … well , the placement of that tumor just might .

peanuts' charlie brown and snoopy

A Recipe To Turn Ozymandias Into The Joker?

We ’ll get to Gary Frank ’s cover art forDoomsday Clock#5 , depicting Joker donning his signature makeup with Veidt ’s " Nostalgia " product line in a import . But first , the tumor . Without a side scan it ’s impossible to discern its location front - to - back , so we judge found on what appear : the tumor is place on the right side of the head , presumably closer to the front of the skull . That plants it squarely in the frontal lobe , the part of the wit that mostly compile personality . Or , in the words of theCentre For Neuro Skills , the frontal lobe controls"problem solving , spontaneity , memory , language , initiation , judgement , impulse control , and social and intimate behavior . "

So what lies ahead for Adrian Veidt ? Well , what symptom get up in patients with frontal lobe illnesses - specifically those on the right side of the brain ? For starters , mastery of facial expressions is affected ( fewer , broadly speaking ) . As studies cited by theCNSstate,“behavioral spontaneity"is another side effect , precede to excessive speech pattern for lesions on therightfrontal lobe . “Risk - taking,““non - submission with rules,“and"dramatic changes in personality"can occur , as well as"reduced intimate interest"in lesions locatedabovethe eyeball airplane . And finally,“Left head-on equipment casualty usually manifests as pseudodepression and right head-on damage as pseudopsychopathic . "

In other word , if you wanted to turn a man as brilliant and assess as Adrian Veidt into someone like The Joker , you could just imbed a tumour in his proper head-on lobe , and let his brainpower do the residue . The same learning ability that he admit inDoomsdayClockis being " taken " from him , after earn his flock murdering was meaningless … and laughing uncontrollably " until it suffer . " Add in The Joker seeming to ' get into reference ' with Veidt cosmetics on Issue # 5 ’s screening , and we think you ’ll accord : it ’s hardnotto consider it .