Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter (R, 2009)

I rented this DVD after viewing the Watchmen movie back in March, so my review comes a little late...but it will be more important now that the Watchmen: Ultimate Cut - The Complete Story DVD set is out. More on that later. Anyway, Black Freighter is a comic within a comic in the Watchmen universe that involves a man who tries to return to his home in order to tell people about an incoming killer pirate ship called The Black Freighter. On the other hand, Under the Hood is a documentary describing the history of the superheroes within the Watchmen universe (based on Hollis Mason [original Nite Owl]'s biography/expose). Both of these shorts are based on their respective texts in the graphic novel. The DVD also includes a documentary that details how everything is connected, episode 1 of the motion comic, and something about the Green Lantern animated movie. Sounds good, right? Well, you're halfway right, then. While these are definitely really good extras if you're a Watchmen fan, here's the thing: they are all available on the Ultimate Cut DVD set I've described earlier. Not only that, but in the new cut of the film (even longer than the director's cut), Black Freighter is woven throughout, as it should be. Even though the Ultimate Cut comes at a rather steep price (up to $50-70 at some places), it's worth it if you're a Watchmen fan, as the complete motion comic, a new cut of the film, and other features are included, as well as the extras here. Overall, get the Ultimate Cut DVD instead of this, especially if you're looking at buying the Watchmen movie as well.