I know I’ve been accused of creaming my pants for all things Watchmen, but I got to see the film last night, and I don’t recall ejaculating during any part of it. That said, the film is fantastic. What’s also fantastic is the advertising campaign that’s been bringing a lot of the satirical world of selling super heroes within the pages of the original comic book to life in our real world. TV news reports chronicling Dr. Manhattan, great images from The New Frontiersman with The Comedian in Viet Nam, and now we’ve got our hands exclusively on the cover of NOVA magazine featuring the Great Big Blue God himself as well as a really cool retro-style back-cover advertisement for Adrian Veidt’s personal toy line of masked avengers.

Check ‘em out:

Do I want to buy those action figures? Probably not. But do I want that advertisement hanging up in my room? Yes. It’s a really cool blend of real-world art and a fictional universe. This is the kind of exciting stuff that the marketing world is doing right now, bringing us deeper into the story by making us an active part of it. It’s also the kind of thing that will confuse historians of the future when they find it. Surprise people of the future! We had a God-like man wandering around in the mid-20th century! And he was American. Maybe this stuff should come with disclaimers.

For more of our week-long Watchmen feature, check out our Watching the Watchmen homepage.