# Is "Watchmen" by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Watchmen by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons (DC Comics, 1987) is identified by: True first is the DC softcover trade (collecting the 1986–87 twelve-issue maxi-series), with the printed cover price, ISBN 0-930289-23-4, the 'bloody smiley / broken window' cover, and a stated first printing with a number line ending in 1. The DC US trade is the recognized true first edition of the collected work.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the DC softcover trade (collecting the 1986–87 twelve-issue maxi-series), with the printed cover price, ISBN 0-930289-23-4, the 'bloody smiley / broken window' cover, and a stated first printing with a number line ending in 1
- Early printings carry no UPC barcode block
- 448 pages, full color
- Correct publisher/imprint: DC Comics

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Year | 1987 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | True first is the DC softcover trade (collecting the 1986–87 twelve-issue maxi-series), with the printed cover price, ISBN 0-930289-23-4… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first is the DC softcover trade (collecting the 1986–87 twelve-issue maxi-series), with the printed cover price, ISBN 0-930289-23-4, the 'bloody smiley / broken window' cover, and a stated first printing with a number line ending in 1. Early printings carry no UPC barcode block. 448 pages, full color.

## Is this the true first?
The DC US trade is the recognized true first edition of the collected work. The individual comic Watchmen #1 (DC, Sept. 1986) is the true first appearance in serial form. A UK Titan Books edition and later DC printings follow the DC first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition per se; distinguish the first printing from the many later DC/Titan reprints by the clean number line ending in 1 and the absence of any 'second printing' or later notation. 'Absolute Watchmen' (2005 oversized slipcase) and recolored editions are not the first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Watchmen* by Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/watchmen
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.