Some of the most important -- if not the most important -- fixtures in the Marvel multiverse are the Watchers. Among the oldest species in creation, the Watchers have long been defined by their oath to observe the actions and events of the multiverse, but to never interfere. Despite this, Uatu and some other Watchers have found loopholes in this to assist the heroes of various storylines.
While their pledge might seem puzzling, there's a specific and ancient reason why the Watchers have sworn to never interfere with the actions taken by races across the galaxy, and it's a genuinely epic story of arrogance and regret that still haunt the Watchers to this day.
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The origin of the Watchers was established all the way back in 1964's Tales of Suspense #53 by Stan Lee and Larry Lieber and was later recreated in Original Sin #0 by Mark Waid, Jim Cheung, and Paco Medina. This story revealed that the Watchers were among the earliest races in all of existence. Even as other races slowly began to evolve across the galaxy, the Watchers were already considered ancient and had amazing inventions at their disposal. One member of their race, Ikor -- father of Uatu -- believed that with their advancements, they could reach out and help these lesser species reach their true potential. While their leader Emnu was resistant to this idea, the ruling council outvoted him and allowed Ikor to bring glory to the universe.
Appearing to an ancient race known as the Prosilicans, the future Watchers quickly gifted the species with nuclear energy in hopes they would quickly adapt to their newfound power and advance as a civilization within no time at all. With this guidance, the Prosilicans quickly built cities and then nations, eliminating famine and pestilence in their world. After but a decade, the Prosilicans had advanced in ways that might have taken them thousands of years. Believing they'd created a utopia, the future Watchers departed to spread their influence to other worlds across the galaxy. But by the time they next visited the world, they discovered the irradiated ruins of the Prosilicans world, ravaged by war and with the species eradicated by their own hand.
Emotionally shattered by this discovery, Ikor was heartbroken that their gift was used merely as a weapon for the race to use against their own people. Ikor decided that Emnu had been right all along. While they couldn't reverse the genocide that had occurred due to their interference, their people could forever pay penance for their hubris and Ikor's well-intentioned arrogance. Ikor determined the Watchers have a responsibility to the universe to observe all things, but they must swear to never use their power or knowledge to interfere in the actions of mortals ever again. Although Uatu tried to convince his father that the act had been made with genuine belief for the betterment of the universe, he failed. But that belief carries into the modern-day, with Uatu's not infrequent involvement in events.
Even now, Uatu quietly used his power to observe all realities -- and found none where the Watchers' original mistake wasn't made. In each reality he saw, the Watchers gave the Prosilicans the chance to create a utopia, and they reduced it to a ruin instead. These revelations paint the Watchers in an entirely different light -- as well-intentioned beings who have sworn to not interfere with realities not due to some misguided belief they're better than those they watch, but out of regret for when they did.
Uatu's reluctance to turn on all species also speaks to his willingness to bend the rules when he can to give the heroes of Earth a fighting chance against the cosmic threats they sometimes find themselves facing. Even after all these years, Uatu still believes in the beings that his people once tried to help and in the lessons his father taught him.
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