Doomsday Clock #7 — Questions and Theories

Doomsday Clock has, up until now, been pretty slow in its build up, but that all changed in Issue #7. This issue had tons of huge things happen, which has sparked a whole lot of questions regarding the future. Just know that this article has MAJOR SPOILERS for the entire Doomsday Clock series so far.

Why did Dr. Manhattan kill Alan Scott/create the New 52?

In the beginning of this issue, we see that Dr. Manhattan altered Alan Scott’s origin, by moving away the green lantern from him, which killed him, and stopped the JSA from forming, which lead to the Johnny Thunder we see in Doomsday Clock. However, Dr. Manhattan isn’t one to just normally change the past, as was seen in the Before Watchmen issues focused on him, where he explored alternate versions of the world where he didn’t become a god. So, could the JSA have had something to do with Manhattan’s downfall, and could that possibly still be true with Alan Scott’s power battery being used by Ozymandias.

What will Mime and Marionette’s children do?

Towards the end of the issue we learn that Mime was saved way back before Watchmen because she was pregnant, and because her children would do great things, both that one, and the one she is currently pregnant with. However, it is unclear what they will do, especially since one of the children is in the Watchmen world, which is seemingly already destroyed.

Is the Watchmen world really destroyed?

Back in Issue #2, the crew left their world for the DC world, but as they left there were missiles that were shot into New York, killing tons of people. It seems as if the Watchmen world should be entirely destroyed, but Ozymandias still thinks he can save it. However, Dr. Manhattan should dispel this question, but he says that he saved Mime for what her child will do, but that child should presumably be dead now, meaning that either Dr. Manhattan is confusing universes, or that the Watchmen world either isn’t destroyed, or will be brought back somehow.

What is Ozymandias’s plan?

At the end of this issue we see Ozymandias says he has a plan to save both his world, and the DC world. This not only shows that he hasn’t changed since Watchmen, but also that he has another sinister plan. While this plan most likely won’t be something involving another giant squid monster, it’s very likely that he will use Superman to fight Dr. Manhattan, and channel the energy of that fight to “save” both universes, possibly channeling it through Bubastis II.

What is the letter to Lois Lane?

During the last pages, we see the fallout of the events of this issue, and see that Reggie is no longer Rorschach, but as he contemplates what to do, we see him mailing a letter to none other than Lois Lane. There’s one major thing that is likely to be inside this letter, Rorschach’s journal. This is an homage to the original Watchmen, which ended with a news outlet using Rorschach’s journal, but this is likely to have very different circumstances, as this is only the seventh issue, and Lois Lane is the wife of Superman. If he sees this, this may be enough to get Superman mad at both Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan, which would set off the fight this series has been building to since issue 1.

Where will Reggie go now?

One of the biggest moments of this issue is the fact that Rorschach is dead again, this time only metaphorically though. Reggie has been trying to emulate Walter Kovacs this whole time, to bring honor to both him and Reggie’s own father, but Reggie didn’t know how Walter broke down his father, as Mothman kept most of the information away from him. Reggie finds this out, and in addition to Ozymandias faking his cancer, Reggie seems done with hero stuff. However, Batman does pick up Rorschach’s mask later on, and could possibly try to get him to help out against Ozymandias.

Will Dr. Manhattan die?

We see Dr. Manhattan looking into his future at the end of the issue, and after his conflict with Superman, he sees nothing. He wonders if he is going to die, or if he’ll destroy everything, but it’s more likely going to be the former, as DC most likely won’t reboot everything again. So, it seems as if Dr. Manhattan will die during that conflict, as he sees nothing but darkness years and years into the future. So could this finally be the end of Dr. Manhattan, and the Watchmen world along with him?

Is Bubastis II a second Dr. Manhattan?

Doomsday Clock always includes extra reading material at the back of the issue, and sometimes, it can give major hints to events in the series. The extra reading in this issue showed Ozymandias’s struggle trying to recreate Bubastis. Things only started to work as he used more of Jon’s DNA, and then Bubastis II was formed in much the same way as Dr. Manhattan. This begs the question though, is Bubastis II now a second Dr. Manhattan. We see her used to track Dr. Manhattan in the latest issue, which could point to her being omnipotent, just like Dr. Manhattan.