Doomsday

Moore re-imagines the image of the messiah in his work Watchmen. There are three characters that play the role of savior in the novel: Rorschah, Adrian Viedt, and Dr. Manhattan.
Rorschach is a strict moralist. In his view, there is only right and wrong, good and evil. Rosen says Rorschach is meant to represent the apocalyptic God of retribution. He punishes evil, mercilessly, and follows his own moral code. At the conclusion of the novel, he attempts to stop Viedt’s destruction of the world and refuses to compromise even when he faces his own death. To Rorschach, the means do not justify the end, even when that end could be the possibility of a New Jerusalem.

Adrian Viedt subscribes himself the role of messiah as he tries to destroy the world to create a new start. Viedt, the smartest man in the world, decides to take on the burden of having the blood of half of Manhattan on his hands. He recognizes that the war of good and evil is a continuing battle that there must be a traumatic wake up call for the world. Rosen describes him as embodiment of the apocalyptic Christ, ushering in an age of peace through destruction.

Dr. Manhattan is unwillingly labeled the savior by the American people and government. He is meant to bring an age of peace that is not based on the realization the human beings should be kind to one another but based on fear of ultimate destruction. He is seen as the weapon to end all wars just like the atomic bomb he has replaced in the eyes of the U.S. government. Rosen argues that of all the saviors he is the most godlike character. His perception of time and space is boundless as he experiences life simultaneously.

Interestingly, Moore doesn’t make a case for any righteousness of any of the saviors. None of the characters achieve their ultimate goal. Rorschach dies defending strict morality, Viedt’s utopia is only temporary, and Dr. Manhattan doesn’t escape humanity as he decides to create his own life forms. Moore leaves his characters flaws as the humans who created them.