Should There Be a 'Watchmen' Season 2?

Well—SPOILERS FOR WATCHMEN SEASON 1 OBVIOUSLY FOLLOW—it's all over. The mustache-twirling MAGA bad guys are vapor (or, in Not Great Bob's case, ooze) but so is Doctor Manhattan. All relationships end in tragedy, after all. Will Reeves got his revenge, Adrian Veidt got his comeuppance. And what did Angela Abar get? Well, the finale inevitably cuts to black before we can see. Damon Lindelof's HBO-adaptation of Alan Moore's beloved superhero deconstruction has come to an end, and—though it's a belabored phrase/way of thinking—yes, he did nail the ending, stick the landing, etc. Some things, reflexively, weren't flawless: we could've probably benefited from seeing a bit more of Lady Trieu. And while Jeremy Irons as Adrian Veidt is fantastic (boy, was he having a blast) the more the curtain drew back on his Europa adventures the sillier they became.

Those are quibbles, though. Hats off to Damon Lindelof, Nick Cuse, Jeff Jensen, Cord Jefferson, Regina King, Jean Smart, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Nicole Kassell, Stephen Williams...the list is endless, truly. Everyone came together and clipped up to tell a story of remarkable relevance and stunning execution. And now, the age-old question of the Peak TV era: is there more? Or rather, should there be? Would continuing with another season deepen and enrich this story, or does what we got tonight feel too complete to risk touching again? Complex's Pop Culture team debates if Watchmen is better off ending here or if nothing ever ends.

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The Creatives That Defined the 2010s

Defining a decade can be tricky, especially in an era where the last thing entertainment companies want to do is make less. Peak Content is the name of the game, and with everything from Disney’s Marvel Studios making serious bank from Marvel’s Cinematic Universe, Netflix throwing all kinds of bags to lure the biggest and best directors to their streaming platform, and new TV shows springing up every week, it’s easy to get lost in this sea of limited series, blockbuster films, and everything in between.

Even still, it’s easy to find your way. When it comes to themes of innovation, moving the goal post, and progression within the industry, there is a clear-cut group of actors, writers, directors, brands, and executives who have led the pack. Creatives that either bucked trends to create a brighter future or set the trends that the rest of the industry followed. Creatives that dominated the box office or ascended to the heights of the AWARDS SZN circuit on a consistent basis. The best of the best, along with the figures who are paving the way for the future.

In looking at this collection of names, we had to figure out a number of things: How did the actions of these individuals impact their respective fields? If they act, how large did their presence loom over the zeitgeist of the decade? What did their actions mean for their peers and how they operated—and will operate in the future? Were they best in show? These attributes and accolades, alongside the overall quality and consistency of their work in their respective fields this decade, were huge factors in our selections.

When looking back at the 2010s, these are without a doubt the men and women who helped shape one of the most challenging and exciting decades in film and television. Here are the creatives who defined the 2010s.

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Explaining 'The Snyder Cut,' Zack Snyder's Lost Version of 'Justice League'

Remember Justice League?

What was originally supposed to be a cinematic event for the DC Extended Universe that matched the hype and anticipation levels of The Avengers never fully reached the, ahem, marvel of its competitor. The team-up movie between Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash, and Cyborg was released in the fall of 2017, losing an estimated $60 million and failing to break even on its production budget of $300 million.

In the two years since its release, there have been numerous attempts to Monday Morning Quarterback the situation, with a number of potential different solutions. The most accurate of these is that Warner Bros. simply tried to do too much, too soon. While Marvel and Kevin Feige took their time—albeit with a few stumbles along the way—to build Avengers into something meaningful for its audience, Warner Bros. didn’t have the same luxury, as they had to try and play catchup to an already dominant force. In short, Justice League was reactionary, just like Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice was before it; each movie tried to respond to the criticisms of the film prior, spectacularly missing the point each time. The other main point is the film’s rocky production. For those unaware, director Zack Snyder was initially at the helm of the film, before dropping out due to a family tragedy; Warner Bros. then enlisted Avengers director Joss Whedon to come in and rework the script through a series of reshoots that involved a horribly removed mustache among other things.

After the film’s failure, the DCEU largely moved away from the dour, joyless tones Snyder had imbued into Man of Steel, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League opting for a full turn into a lighter, bouncer feel readily seen in films like Aquaman and especially Shazam!. But for a certain devoted group of fans, there was always a desire to see what Snyder’s vision of the film could be...and thus #ReleaseTheSnyderCut was born. What follows is a story about a lot of different things: fans who feel inherent ownership of a property and are therefore entitled to a certain outcome, how social media can be weaponized, and what means to ultimately be a “real fan.”

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So, Who the Hell Is That Woman on 'Watchmen' This Week?

For the past two weeks, Damon Lindelof has been challenging viewers to, to borrow a phrase from his previous series, let the mystery be. As a sequel to Alan Moore's seminal '80s comic book, Watchmen the series hasn't been shy about throwing fans into the deep end of its universe with nary a breather for any kind of conventional exposition. Those who read the comic are still finding their footing, so there's no telling what it's like to try and watch this series without having read or even seen Zack Snyder's mid-2009 film adaptation. 

And yet, what's been on screen has been undeniably compelling. If you're patient and trust that answers will come and the narrative focus will sharpen into clarity, then it's been a fun, if disorienting, ride. That patience is starting to be paid off with this week's episode, "She Was Killed By Space Junk," which shifted Regina King's protagonist Angela Abar to the backburner in favor of a new character played by the GOAT character actor Jean Smart—who was quickly revealed to be an older Laurie Juspeczyk aka Silk Spectre II. Having had romances with both Doctor Manhattan and Nite Owl, as well as being The Comedian's (the hero whose murder is the inciting incident for the novel) secret daughter, Laurie was a major character in the novel and the first to interact with our new characters here. The episode doubles down on its comic connections from there, confirming the obvious: Jeremy Irons' mysterious man in the castle is indeed a secretly-alive Adrian Veidt, as well as giving backstories on Nite Owl and Manhattan. With that said, Lindelof fan Frazier and Complex's Watchmen expert William Goodman break down the excellent episode and where the series goes from here.

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Breaking Down David Benioff & D.B. Weiss' 'Star Wars' Exit

There’s been a disturbance in the force.

As reported earlier this week, former Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have left their planned trilogy of Star Wars films, making for a fourth high profile departure from a Star Wars-related project since Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012. The company’s once lofty ambitions for stories in a galaxy far, far away seem to have changed dramatically and significantly in the proceeding years, leaving a great number of projects to cast out amongst the stars. Before we move forward and take a look at what’s next for Star Wars, it might also be helpful to take a look back and see how we’ve ended up here in the first place. It involves a classic tale of too much, too fast and bold ambitions, culminating with a timely reminder: The best-laid plans are great...until you get a punch in the mouth.

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All of the Ways 'Watchmen' Episode 2 Connects to the Comic, Explained

Those looking for answers to the myriad of questions posed in last week's Watchmen pilot got a little bit of satisfaction during tonight's ep—which also, inevitably, opened up a whole other can of worms. Once again directed by Nicole Kassell from a script written by series creator Damon Lindelof (co-written with Nick Cuse), episode 2 or “Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship,” pulls back its scope to focus more on Regina King's fiery protagonist Angela/Sister Night and the event that led to her donning a mask and costume in the first place. Let’s take a look at the most interesting aspects of this episode, the questions they answer and the new ones they pose, and their larger connections to the comic book.

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HBO's 'Watchmen' Gets Off to a Bold Start

From the very first issue of the ground-breaking comic book series, Watchmen has always posed heavy questions: Who killed the Comedian? Who watches the Watchmen? Who are these people, really? What kind of person dons a mask and beats people up at night, anyway? In that regard, the pilot of the Watchmen television series provides plenty of questions of its own: What happened to the heroes we knew and loved before? How did we get to this point? How have the events of the comic’s conclusion further shaped this world? And most immediately, just how did Judd Crawford (Don Johnson) actually die?

Like any other first episode, the pilot to HBO's Watchmen is an introduction to this brave new world that’s all about establishing what’s to come. Writer and showrunner Damon Lindelof’s script, expertly directed by Nicole Kassell, forces you to ask many of the questions posited above, knowing that there might not be answers for a while, or in the parlance of The Leftovers and Lost, maybe ever. But the biggest question for many going into this premiere was this: Will the show feel like reading an issue of Watchmen? Turns out the answer to that question is a resounding yes.

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'Mayans M.C.' Star Michael Irby Teases Bishop and EZ's "Connection" in Season 2

Michael Irby is having a really good year. A veteran actor whose IMDb boasts nearly 70 credits over 20+ years, he’s been a steady character actor, working (mostly) in television. But the past year-and-a-half has been a real breakout for Irby, with an increased, recurring role in HBO’s Barry and FX's high-octane Mayans M.C., the Sons of Anarchy spin-off which recently had its sophomore season premiere.

Complex caught up with Irby to talk about Mayans, learning how to ride motorcycles, getting back into comedic roles, working alongside the GOAT Anthony Carrigan (aka NoHo Hank), doing stuff that scares him, and much more.

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