Rorschach (character)

Rorschach
Walter Kovacs as Rorschach. Art by Dave Gibbons
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Watchmen #1 (September 1986)
Created by	Alan Moore Dave Gibbons
In-story information
Alter ego	Walter Joseph Kovacs
Team affiliations	Crimebusters
Partnerships	Nite Owl II
Abilities	Expert hand-to-hand combatant Use of improvised weapons

Rorschach (Walter Joseph Kovacs) is a fictional antihero and one of the protagonists in the graphic novel limited series Watchmen, published by DC Comics in 1986. Rorschach was created by writer Alan Moore with artist Dave Gibbons; as with most of the main characters in the series, he was an analogue for a Charlton Comics character; in this case, Steve Ditko's the Question. Moore also modeled Rorschach on Mr. A, another Steve Ditko creation on whom the Question was originally based.^[1]

While Watchmen has an ensemble cast, many consider Rorschach to be the primary protagonist as he drives most of the plot forward and serves as the series' narrator.^[2][3][4] In the beginning of the story, he is introduced as the only masked vigilante to remain active on his own terms and initiative, a criminal outlaw as opposed to other former superheroes now covertly employed by the U.S. government. A ruthless crime-fighter, Rorschach believes in moral absolutism—good and evil as pure ends, with no shades of gray—which compels him to seek to punish any evidence of evil at all costs. His mask displays a constantly morphing inkblot based on the ambiguous designs used in Rorschach inkblot tests, also his namesake, with the mask's black and white coloring consistent with his sense and view of morality.

The original character was positively received, with multiple references in other comic titles and appearances in other media. He reappears in the Before Watchmen comic book prequel including his own miniseries. Rorschach made his live-action debut in the 2009 film Watchmen, played by Jackie Earle Haley, who also voices him in the video game Watchmen: The End Is Nigh.

A successor to the Rorschach mantle, named Reggie Long, debuted in the sequel limited series Doomsday Clock, which connects the Watchmen universe with the mainstream DC Universe. Another incarnation of Rorschach, Wil Myerson, appears in the DC Black Label limited series Rorschach, a standalone sequel to Watchmen.