It's been 30 years since Frank Miller invited readers into the world of Sin City and the series still remains a favorite amongst countless comic book fans. Miller is one of them. "I honestly just how much fun it was," he says, looking back on his time building the world. Miller, who wrote and illustrated the entire series - and who co-directed the 2005 movie adaptation along with its 2014 followup Sin City: A Dame to Kill For - spoke to Screen Rant and shared his thoughts on the now-iconic franchise all these years later.
Launching in April 1991 from Dark Horse Comics, Sin City explored the seedy underbelly in one of the seediest cities in comics. Drawn in a stark black and white, punctuated by an occasional splash of vibrant color, Sin City explored the blood-and-rain-drenched stories of the title metropolis' various rogues, villains, antiheroes, and victims. Miller says the series was born out of, "a love of old crime novels and of old black and white crime movies." That inspiration shines through as most of the series' yarns play out like classic pulp magazine and film noir stories cranked up to 11.
Among Miller’s most seminal work - which also includes classics like 300, The Dark Knight Returns, Daredevil: The Man Without Fear, Batman: Year One, and many more - he ranks Sin City as the title he consders himself closest to. He said trying to pinpoint a favorite Sin City moment would be like asking a mother to pick a favorite child. “I created it out of nothing,” he says, exalting the creative freedom afforded to him by creating a wholly new world as opposed to building on preexisting characters or titles. He’s particularly grateful to Dark Horse for allowing him to, “burst into total freedom” and, “go in a very bold new direction.” Dark Horse released a special edition Sn City rerelease this year to mark the anniversary.
The seventh and final volume of Sin City, "Hell and Back," would conclude the series' run in 2000. But that was hardly the end for Sin City. Beyond the two subsequent films, a Miller isn't out of ideas just yet.
Three decades after the series’ launch and Sin City is still a mainstay in the comics community, one that doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. Miller wouldn’t reveal any details, but he hinted that he’s eager to return, calling it, “a wonderful world to play with.” It seems he’s as keen to create more Sin City content as fans are to get their hands on it, so hopefully that means a return trip to Basin City soon.
