Curiosity will get the best of me and I'm sure to read them but I know all I'll do is be thinking 'is this how Moore would see these characters?' and completely ruin them. Anything Watchmen should come from him or not at all.

"The story of the Minutemen is just as important as that of the Watchmen because the Watchmen story alludes so heavily to the original members."

It really isn't. Watchmen alludes to the Minutemen as much as it needs to, but it doesn't mean we need to know what the Comedian had for breakfast.

Ultimately, DC took the one and only complete hero story they had, and turned it into another exploitable property, giving weight to all the outsiders who think comics are a disreputable medium. There is about 1% chance that any Before Watchmen title will live up to the original. In the long run, it's more likely that Watchmen will outlive DC, Warner Brothers, and American copyright laws. And DiDio and Lee will keep up their front until the day they die. Lee in particular is a real tool for supporting this, and it shows how much the original Image experience was about cash and not about creative control for him.

I'll download it though. No shame in stealing from thieves.

I'm a casual comics fan and this is the first time I've heard of "Before Watchmen" and it sounds like a pretty (pardon the french) goddamn awful idea. Sounds like a cheap cash-in. I guess there's nothing wrong with Watchmen fans deciding to pick it up but like others have said, I'm just going to keep humming along and going to forget it ever exists.

I don't believe Mr. Moore wanted any of those movies (V, Watchmen, League of Extraordinary, From Hell, Constantine) to be produced. But we still watched the movies, didn't we? Either way, I'll be reading these mini's and will consider them well done fan fiction and homages. If Alan was producing any type of comics, I may be more sympathetic. Since he essentially left the industry, I'm glad kinda glad someone is using his characters. Someone has to fill that void. Just like Moore did with Lovecraft's legacy in Neonomicon.

Minutemen #1 was awesome!

I honestly don't understand people defending Moore. Once the product is out there, once its given to the fans, it becomes the fans. It's the same case as in Star Wars except its a little backwards. See George Lucas wanted to expound upon the original Star Wars Trilogy by digitally adding and removing things (because he didn't have the budget at the time of the original production), and since then has released everything BUT the original. Fans are clamoring for the original but Lucas responds with "no, it's my work, and I can do what I want with it." But see, its not anymore, its the fans now. It's much more than a piece of work by Lucas, its fans childhood and the twinkle in their eye. But to take that original piece of footage that awed the viewer and change it because its not what he wanted is just plain wrong. The whole point of the entertainment media is to captivate audiences and become part of their lives is it not? Then Moore defending his work, renouncing mainstream comics, and whining about someone adding to his production is moot. It's not about you Moore, its about the work you created and we can see it evolve (or devolve) whether or not you go kicking and screaming into the night. It has nothing to do whether or not these pieces will be good or not. It will not change the original Watchmen release. They are just icing on the cake. All in all, I liked Watchmen, but I'm also tired of people worshiping it like it is the end all be all of comics. It's a piece of work that has its flaws just like any other work. Is it good? yes. But no piece of work should basically be worshiped.

That said. I enjoyed the Minutemen book. Though it just expounded on the characters and really didn't go places with plot. Is it taking away from my original reading of Watchmen? No, its just fun. It's a book. It's entertainment. If you don't enjoy it, don't read it. If you do, then good. It's when it becomes something other than entertainment/art is when the industry is at its worst.

when i'll read it i;ll find out