DC Comics' "Before Watchmen" series were a big part of its 2012 publishing plan, and the sequel to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' "Watchmen" was one of the most unexpected developments in recent memory. With all the series wrapped, the publisher has begun to release hardcover collected editions of the many miniseries and, according to The New York Post, plans to advertise them with a video that will play on the Times Square Jumbotron in New York City prior to Comic-Con International 2013. The 30 second video represents the first time an ad for a comic book or graphic novel has run on the massive screen, and while the spot is short, it certainly gets the point across.

The "Before Watchmen" hardcovers include four installments: "Minutemen" by Darwyn Cooke and "Silk Spectre" by Amanda Conner and Darwyn Cooke; "Nite Owl" by J. Michael Straczynski and Andy Kubert paired with "Dr. Manhattan" by J. Michael Stracynski and Adam Hughes; Brian Azzarello's "Comedian" with art by J.G. Jones and "Rorschach" with art by Lee Bermejo; and "Ozymandias" by Len Wein and Jae Lee with "Crimson Corsair" by Wein and John Higgins.4