I'm more'n willing to lump Ebert -- whose four-stars and simultaneous blog post gushing over the film's implications -- to be a result of the latent fanboy in his system and its reaction to exposure to filtered Alanmooreium. I've seen more than a few vehemently-disappointed comic-fan reviews, too, though -- maybe in the minority, but enough to cause concern.

And yes, to revisit the Black Freighter, Mason's end and whatever else they can cram into the director's cut -- that's worth waiting for. (Have you seen the motion comics? Half an hour a chapter and one voice actor, but still an interesting in-between....)