Watchmen Episode #4 // Review
Watchmen Episode 4, “If You Don’t Like My Story, Write Your Own,” deepens its mystery, introduces one of its best characters yet, and manages to reinvent itself once again. Can it maintain this exponential growth and high-quality storytelling at the same time? It’s impossible to say until the season concludes, but as of this latest chapter...all signs point to “yes.” Previously, the world of the Watchmen leaped forward from the ’80s to the present, and much to everyone’s surprise, it didn’t succumb to nuclear war. Doctor Manhattan seems to have exiled himself to Mars, Adrian Veidt (Jeremy Irons) is living in a mysterious, remote location for reasons unknown, Laurie Blake (Jean Smart) is an FBI agent, and Nite Owl is in jail. Everything seems okay for the most part, minus a hate group inspired by the extreme rightwing legacy of Rorschach, and police being forced to wear masks to protect their identities. The hanging of Tulsa’s police chief leads to Laurie, and local police’s Sister Night (Regina King), investigating from different angles and finding themselves at odds with one another. Now, the enigmatic Lady Trieu (Hong Chau) makes her electrifying debut, and the story tilts on its axis once again.
Damon Lindelof and Christa Henry, writers of this episode, waste no time making a big splash for their new character, known only as Lady Trieu. She has been mentioned in previous chapters as being the builder of the giant clock outside of Tulsa, but she makes an unforgettable entrance right at the start of episode 4. One can’t help but be chilled by the Faust-like deal she offers a couple after showing up on their doorstep late at night, her true motivations a mystery. Whether she is a force for good or evil remains veiled for the time being, but she shares more in common with Ozymandias than Nite Owl, so far. Much like how Laurie took over the show when she came aboard in episode 3, this chapter is owned by Hong Chau and her spellbinding performance as Trieu.
This episode also amps up the buddy cop vibe between Sister Night and Laurie that began last week. This time, while playing a game of cat and mouse with each other, Laurie has also drawn Night in closer by all-but-forcing her into investigating the case with her. The banter between these two is endlessly entertaining, with Laurie relentlessly digging into Night, trying to strike a nerve, only to be rebuffed at every turn. The show could consist entirely of King and Smart drinking coffee in a diner, and it would still be one of the best things on television.
The bulk of Watchmen is built around a mystery, and that is entertaining enough. Who Judd Crawford really was, how he ended up in a tree, what Will and Lady Trieu really want, and what they’re counting down to, are all intriguing in a way that is impossible to turn your eyes away from. But, at the end of the day, the masked vigilantes, and the mystery surrounding them are all just window dressing. They disguise discussion of more significant social issues, like racial trauma, and how it can travel down a bloodline, affecting people today. The debate, not so different than the social issues focused on in the original Watchmen story, is what makes this tale truly great and undeniably important. It elevates it beyond just being a fun comic book story, and it will be the thing that it is remembered most for in years to come. Some might complain that this isn’t the show they wanted it to be, but those people are missing the point of what Watchmen was supposed to be in the first place: a discourse on all the things wrong with the world.
