So I picked up a whole butt load of Frank Miller’s Sin City books for a song the other day. I mean, tons of them. I’m not sure that I’ve got the full run of everything ever done, but I think it’s close. Something like 40 books.
Now I just need to know in which order to read them. Suggestions?
Are these the comic books or the collected novels?
Comic books. Let’s see if I can remember them all…
Sin City: A Dame to Kill for
Sin City: Lost, Lonely, & Lethal
Sin City: Silent Night
Sin City: That Yellow Bastard
Sin City: The Babe Wore Red and Other Stories
Sin City: Hell and Back
Sin City: Just Another Saturday Night
Sin City: Sex and Violence
I think that’s all of them, but I might be forgetting a few.
Hate to say it, but you should probably start with the very first one, just called Sin City, which doesn’t seem to be on your list. It’s the one about Marv.
Yeah, I would read the original Sin City first. It was originally published as installments in Dark Horse Presents. Your best bet is buying it in the collected trade paperback volume. I believe recent reprintings of this one have amended the name to Sin City: The Hard Goodbye.
I would read them in publishing order. I don’t remember where some of the one-shots fall into the sequence, but the main series after the original were
A Dame to Kill For
The Big Fat Kill (not on your list)
That Yellow Bastard
Family Values (not on your list; published as a graphic novel only)
To Hell and Back
The timelines of the books don’t always follow publishing order, but by reading them in publishing order, including the one-shots, you should be able to pick up on any references or cameos of characters from other Sin City stories. You can probably Google up a site that has them all listed.
Actually, Family Values is a collection of one-shots, including at least a few on Dante’s list.
I read 'em out of order and don’t think it really detracted from anything; each long story is pretty self-contained. You might argue that if you knew more of Dwight after reading Dame to Kill for it would illuminate some of his actions in Big Fat Kill more clearly, but that’s getting a little precious. This stuff ain’t George Eliot.
Big Fat Kill would be me personal favorite. Lot of people seem to give the nod to Yellow Bastard.
No, Family Values is a single and separate story, about Dwight and Miho and Old Town.
You’re thinking of Booze, Broads, and Bullets.
Oof! My bad. Apologies to you, Tangent.
It does get confusing.
It’s true that reading order doesn’t matter that much. You should go back and read them all a second time anyway to pick up on any cross-overs that you may have missed the first time. For instance, a fight that takes place in one series may show up in the background of a scene in another series.
FYI, Dante, the upcoming Sin City movie reportedly will intertwine Sin City (original), The Big Fat Kill, and That Yellow Bastard, so you definitely want to make sure and read those.
Ah- I know the scene you’re talking about! Must’ve read those two books chronologically. Yeah, true, I love stuff like that.
[Merv Griffin voice] Ooooooh. [/Merv Griffin voice]
I’d heard it was incorporating the 1st and Bastard, but not BFK!
Deadly little Miho.
Whatever you do- Do not read too many in one sitting or over a short period of time. I made the mistake of reading about 4 of the graphic novels in the span of a day and got burnt out. Something you learn about Sin City and a lot of Noir is that it is really just the same story with different dressings. Not saying it’s bad or any different than other genres it’s just when you expose your self to that much of it at once… It well like I said, burns you out.
I still can’t wait for the movie.
Well, seeing the trailer is what predicated the purchase. It had always been on my “to read” list, but it seems I never got around to it.
I managed to find one site that lists a read order for them. Can someone verify?