HBO’s Watchmen is defined by its masked characters. The police force have to wear the yellow masks in order to hide their identities and there are many vigilantes both within and outside of the police itself. It’s an ongoing plot point throughout the show.
We loved the concept of these hooded crime fighters still running around the city ever since the premiere and as the show has progressed there have been more and more masked characters joining the fray. Here’s every masked character in Watchmen ranked. Watch out for spoilers!
MISTER SHADOW
Mister Shadow is very clearly a Batman knockoff and isn’t that impressive in the show. We’ve only met him once, which puts him firmly at the bottom of this list and during that time he was absolutely useless, getting caught so quickly by Agent Blake.
The FBI were onto Mister Shadow as he was an unregistered vigilante, which is illegal in many parts of the country. He’s got quite a lot of equipment which suggests he’s quite rich and while his intentions are pure he was taken off the streets easily and made a joke of.
LUBE MAN
The second man on this list we actually know even less about and yet we’re intrigued by what’s going on with the ‘Lube Man’ character. The silver man seen running through the streets has everyone’s interest piqued, but we have no idea who he even is.
He gained the moniker ‘Lube Man’ after he oiled up and slid across the pavement, into a sewer. It was a surprisingly athletic move although it was clearly planned out in advance considering how specific it was. We don’t think he fights crime but he could certainly be a kind of spy.
SENATOR KEENE
It turns out that the local Senator, and potential presidential candidate in the future, loves to put on his own Rorschach mask. He’s part of the 7th Kavalry and could actually be considered their leader, although we’re not totally sure as of yet.
He manages to hide his identity well, as no one is suspecting of the good Senator, who was even targeted by the 7th Kavalry at some point. However, he may believe in the white supremacist part of the group, but what he’s more concerned about is the squid conspiracy.
PANDA
Everyone from this point on is ranked higher than the senator because they aren’t just racist members of a larger group. However, the Panda isn’t exactly the most interesting character because we are yet to know too much about him.
He is clearly very much restrained in his beliefs, as he feels like guns should not be on the streets and that the police should be restricted in some way. Despite this, the Panda-headed official is usually overruled, but we can imagine he has good intentions.
PIRATE JENNY
It’s funny there’s a pirate-related character because of the links to the pirate aspects of the comics. Pirate Jenny is another member of the police, although her costume doesn’t exactly make people think of a pirate when they first see her.
She’s obviously heroic in her nature, due to being one of the many people to put their life on the line to defend the police, but like many other officers, she isn’t afraid to use force very liberally. She’s very much a valuable member of the team though.
RED SCARE
The Red Scare is very much in the same boat as the Pirate. He’s just as violent and just as brutal when it comes to dealing with the racist 7th K. His methods are certainly not pretty, he clearly gets results and is quite good at his job.
The Red Scare has been fleshed out a little more than the other hooded members of the police. He’s a little less well-dressed with his tracksuit and lazy mask, but he has a lot of heart for the police force and is determined to tear apart this terrible group.
HOODED JUSTICE
Last episode we saw who the true Hooded Justice really was. Will’s story is one of heartbreak, violence, and racism. Throughout the series we were made to believe that Hooded Justice was white because of the TV show; however, Will made everyone believe that.
He started to wear the mask and the noose after being attacked and hung by his fellow police officers. Hooded Justice could carry out genuine justice that the badge just wasn’t achieving. He resorted to killing eventually though and we’re unclear where his loyalties now lie.
OZYMANDIAS
Ozymandias is so high on the list simply because he’s so interesting to watch. He is, of course, a masked villain although we sometimes believe even his own face is a mask, as rumors spread that he had some form of plastic surgery in order to disguise his appearance.
Adrian Veidt, the man who dropped a genetically mutated squid onto New York, is clearly trapped by some unknown being in deep space. We can only assume that it’s Dr. Manhattan that’s imprisoned the quirky, super-intelligent and extremely cruel Ozymandias.
LOOKING GLASS
Looking Glass is one of the most fleshed-out characters on this list as we completely understand why he wears the silver mask and his reasons for joining the police force. As a young man, Glass was subjected to the mental attack of the giant squid.
The silver lining of his mask helps to protect from future mental attacks. However, he is now essentially being blackmailed by the 7th Kavalry, which puts him in a very difficult situation. He just wants to protect his partners in the force.
SISTER NIGHT
Sister Night is, of course, the main character of the series and the most interesting masked character in Watchmen. She is heroic and violent when she needs to be. She has a strong set of principles and we’re enjoying watching her unravel the mystery of her grandfather and the former Captain.
Angela has been a very compelling lead throughout the show so far and will continue to be throughout the rest of its episodes. The heroic Sister Night is also the most well-rounded vigilante on this list, with the character hopefully serving justice very soon.
