Product Description

It's one of those hot nights, dry and windless. The kind that makes people do sweaty, secret things. Dwight's thinking of all the ways he's screwed up and what he'd give for one clear chance to wipe the slate clean, to dig his way out of the numb gray hell that is his life. And he'd give anything. Just to cut loose. Just to feel the fire. One more time. And then Ava calls.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13034 in Books
• Published on: 2005-03-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

aintitcoolnews.com. Reviewer: Ambush Bug
"Dare I say the most perfect depictions of noir in illustrated literature form?"

Customer Reviews

Fantastic artwork, shame about the writing
The book really shows what Frank Miller can do with graphics - the artwork is absolutely superb. However he doesn't manage to pull off the Chandleresque style - the story feels like it was written by an adolescent trying too hard. Miller can write (Dark Knight Returns, Electra Lives Again), but the noirish realism of Dame to Kill For exposes a lack of subtlety here. Still, worth it for the art

Not nearly as engaging as the original
Frank Miller's original Sin City story was a classic piece of storytelling. It brought noir to mainstream comics in terms of both artwork and storytelling. Miller's striking use of black and white marked a departure from conventional comic artwork. The original also had a very engaging protagonist in the form of Marv.

How does anyone top a work like that? The answer is that you don't. A Dame to Kill For is the "sequel" of sorts to the original. Marv has a guest role but the main protagonist in this story is Dwight. Unfortunately, Dwight is not nearly as engaging as Marv. The story is also not as tight as the original. And the novelty of the Sin City style is no longer there. All in all, not a bad story, but not the classic that the original was.

What happened?
The first Sin City book was incredible, I've never read anything like it. So, how come the next book is such a flop? Firstly, all the characters are a bit dull, none of them have the charm that Marv did in the first book. This being set before and during the events of the first book, Marv makes a cameo appearance, but you never get to hear his thoughts during the book, which is what made him such an interesting character.

The plot is as flat as the characters. The first book has you constantly wondering what's going to happen, and could easily be read in one sitting, you just don't get bored enough to put it down. This time, however, you think nothing of putting it on the shelf and returning to it later, when you have the free time. It just doesn't draw you in as well.

The biggest problem with the book is the art work. What happened here? Miller spends less time trying to be artistic this time round, with much less of the kind of shots that made sin city good in the first place. Many panels lack any kind of shadowing at all, which ruin the atmosphere completely. And some characters appear slightly more cartoony than those in 'The Hard Goodbye'. It's only a small change, but it's noticeable. And lastly, he's not as willing to experiment with styles as much as he was last time round, so if you were expecting something elaborate such as the scene set in the rain, you can forget it now.

So put simply, not as interesting, not artsy enough and appears like a total lack of effort on Millers part. However, it is still very much Sin City, and still an OK buy, even if it isn't the best in the series.