"Who watches the Watchmen? is written in wet, blood-red letters on a cracked, cement grey wall; tear gas envelops the fragile facade. A young, emaciated woman holds one hand in front of her face, her other hand holds a spray can tightly, red paint covers her fingertips. A man of strong build with a black mask shoots a tear-gas grenade into the young woman's back with a grenade launcher, she collapses in pain and remains unconscious on the ground. The man with the mask is not a policeman, not a criminal, but a superhero: "The Comedian", with the real name Edward Blake.
"The Comedian" is a member of the "Watchmen", a group of superheroes who made it their business to save the world. Some of the Watchmen, however, went mad, were murdered, or became government mercenaries, like Blake. A law forces the former heroes to work for the government or hang up the cape. The comedian has decided to work for the government, while the population is calling loudly for the action of the heroes and those who give them orders to assert their own interests to be monitored by themselves - "Who watches the Watchmen?"
In contrast to many other comics and comic adaptations, "Watchmen" is not about the simple struggle between good and evil, but about the social, political and economic consequences of being a superhero: What if the mask slips? What if the heroes are not heroes at all? What if the heroes are abused by politicians for their own purposes? Who is responsible for the actions of the heroes, who pays them, who pays for the destruction of cities caused in part by them, for the hospital stays of civilians?