HBO has been looking for a follow-up to the success of “Game Of Thrones” with mixed success. The corporate drama “Succession” certainly turned heads in its second season, earning some “best show on TV” recognition from critics and fans; “Big Little Lies” had a fantastic two-season run (even if a third season seems unlikely); and of course, there are the “Game Of Throne” spinoffs to look forward to. But based on its recent debut, the comic book adaptation “Watchmen” seems to have a shot at next big thing status.
Starring Regina King and Don Johnson, among others, this new show will attempt to bring the beloved graphic novel to life in a way never achieved before (even if the Zack Snyder film based on the same source material has a sort of cult following). And while the consensus seems to be that the premiere introduced interesting questions more than anything else, the quality of the show already looks hard to deny. HBO, Warner Bros., and DC should strike while the iron’s hot, and pull out all the stops to turn this into a legitimate phenomenon.
Besides simply keeping the material strong, here are a few ways they can do it.
Guerrilla Marketing
There’s something about “Watchmen” that, even if you haven’t actually engaged with the material, points to mysterious happenings in the dead of night. The whole concept exudes a Gotham-like air of real-world chaos and masked activity. HBO and Warner Bros. could play this up with some guerrilla-style marketing. “Watchmen”-inspired graffiti popping up overnight; posters of bright yellow clock faces spread around whole towns; shifting Rorschach masks as computer pop-up ads…. Anything along these lines would fit the mood of the show, and help to drum up interest and give the sense that something bigger than just-another-new-show is happening.
Video Games
Video games never hurt genre material in terms of expanding popularity, and while it would be tough for HBO and Warner Bros. to churn out a full console or PC game particularly quickly, there are some speedier options. One would be to go the app route and put out a formulaic-but-fun platformer or mystery game based loosely on the series to come. Alternatively, they could also go the casino route, which would expose them to a huge international community of gamers. The U.S. may not be quite as involved with this type of gaming, but some of the best online casinos in Canada have hosted slots and arcades based on comic book heroes before. In fact, some of these games have been based on DC material.
Novelization
We’re not exactly in a golden age of physical novels, what with audiobooks having gained so much popularity. Still, far more people read novels than read comic books or graphic novels, which essentially means that the audience for the original material behind “Watchmen” isn’t as big as it ought to be. It might therefore help the cause for HBO and Warner Bros. to find a writer to adapt the original graphic novel into more of a straightforward (and fairly short) novelization. One could just imagine this becoming a modern bestseller even as the show starts to rise in popularity. They’d only help one another.
Podcasting
These days, great HBO shows often come with accompanying podcasts – for deep dives, behind-the-scenes information, theorizing, or whatever else works. “Game Of Thrones” sparked a virtual mini-genre of recap and theory podcasts; many seek out The Ringer’s post-episode explainers for the ultra-complex “Westworld”; and The Chernobyl Podcast got reviews almost as good as the show itself. Before we get too much further into “Watchmen,” HBO ought to launch its own podcast for all things show-related (though there are already some podcasts out there covering it!).
If they take these steps, HBO and Warner Bros. may have a legitimate blockbuster on their hands. And even if they don’t, “Watchmen” seems more than a little promising.
