HBO's The Leftovers as well.
And while Watchmen and The Leftovers don't have much in common -- apart from Lindelof and a handful of bizarre incidents -- we have to ask which series is more worth watching.
Here are 5 reasons Watchmen is better than The Leftovers (& 5 reasons The Leftovers is actually superior).
Watchmen Is Better: It Addresses Relevant Social Issues
One aspect of Watchmen the series has been praised for is its unflinching willingness to address relevant social issues -- even if it makes some of its viewers uncomfortable or angry. The series opens with the Tulsa Race Riots, and it hasn't been afraid to hone in on race in America since.
In addition to that, Watchmen has touched on topics like white supremacy and police brutality -- issues that remain prevalent in society today and certainly warrant discussion. And Watchmen has no problem being the series to start that conversation, which is something we respect about it.
The Leftovers Is Better: It Raises Questions About Belief
From its premiere, The Leftovers remains cryptic about what's happening in reality and what's happening in the characters' minds -- and that's a thread that continues straight through to the series finale. It seems that it doesn't matter much what's "actually happening" because belief is what's important -- what the characters believe and what the viewers believe.
Belief is a major theme of The Leftovers, and that theme raises some interesting questions about human beings and how we make sense of the world around us. Those questions are part of the reason so many of us watched the series.
Watchmen Is Better: Its Main Characters Are Middle-Aged Women
Both Watchmen and The Leftovers have powerful middle-aged women in them, but Watchmen puts these women at the forefront. And let's be honest, how often do we see movies or TV shows in this genre that are female-led to begin with -- much less led by women who are older?
It's refreshing to see middle-aged women like Angela, Laurie, and Lady Trieu take charge, and they do it with enough confidence that it's clear they're defying the notion that female characters -- and women in general -- are no longer interesting once they've reached a certain age.
The Leftovers Is Better: Justin Theroux Is A Gift
Justin Theroux's Kevin Garvey is arguably the most important character from The Leftovers, and he's one of the primary reasons fans couldn't take their eyes off the screen whenever the show aired. Theroux's performance as Kevin -- a multifaceted character if there ever was one -- is truly impressive
Would we have watched this series as intently if Kevin wasn't running around, attempting to figure out if he was the next Messiah and trying to determine what was happening with his town's dogs? Probably not.
Watchmen Is Better: It Offers A New Take On An Already-Beloved Story
What's so interesting about HBO's Watchmen is that it takes Alan Moore's already-beloved comic and creates an entirely new story out of it -- but it does keep some of the characters in there, showing fans what became of them after the events of the comic.
There are also plenty of Easter Eggs scattered throughout the series, though it does a good job of standing on its own. That's a balance that isn't always easy to strike, so we commend Watchmen for getting it right.
The Leftovers Is Better: Its Premise Is More Interesting
The Leftovers is also based on a work of fiction, but its premise is arguably more interesting than the masked-vigilante storyline we see in Watchmen. Sure, the concept of half the population disappearing suddenly has been done before, but it's a premise that never gets less intriguing -- probably because of how many questions it raises. (Who doesn't love a good mystery?)
Besides, let's be honest: The Leftovers takes the premise of half of society disappearing and makes it feel completely fresh (probably because it handles it better than most other sci-fi stories with similar synopses).
Watchmen Is Better: It Has More Action Scenes
While Watchmen isn't totally over the top with action sequences, it does have enough action-packed moments to entice fans of superhero shows and movies (even if it's not a superhero series in the more traditional sense).
Watchmen strikes a good balance between actual action and the more conversational and emotional scenes between characters, and that keeps the show moving at a good pace. We don't need James Bond levels of action, but it's nice that we get a few chases and fights in here and there.
The Leftovers Is Better: It's More Emotional
With half of the population disappearing, it makes sense that The Leftovers is the more emotional of the two HBO series. Not only does the Departure change society forever, but it alters the lives of those left behind -- especially those who have lost loved ones to the incident.
Naturally, watching those affected cope with their losses can be difficult at times. But that's what we love about The Leftovers: its ability to make us feel all the things, even among all the weirdness going on.
Watchmen Is Better: It's Beginning To Weave Its Storylines Together
Watchmen raised a lot of questions during its first few episodes, and fans of The Leftovers might have been wondering if Lindelof was going to give us another series where everything is left up in the air after the curtain closes. Thankfully, that doesn't seem to be the case; the later episodes of this season have weaved the different storylines together in a way that makes sense.
Even if we had no idea what Ozymandias' storyline had to do with Laurie's or Angela's at the beginning, all of the characters tales have converged. And that makes for a satisfying series.
The Leftovers Is Better: It Never Answers Any Of Your Questions
Some might view The Leftovers' refusal to actually answer the many huge questions raised throughout the series as a fault, but in many ways, leaving the questions surrounding the Departure open-ended was a smart way to round out the series. After all, how many of us get neatly wrapped resolutions in real life?
Given that belief played such a massive role in The Leftovers, it's also fair to let viewers decide what they think happened in the series finale -- and throughout the show's three seasons -- just as the characters have chosen what they view as reality and what they don't.
