The nonplaces of noir:

US urban palimpsests from the superhero city to Sin City

Abstract

This essay analyzes the progressive loss of recognizable features in the urban space in US neo-noir comics and reconfigures the city both as a palimpsest and a nonplace (following Marc Augé’s well-known definition). The study examines Frank Miller’s Sin City (1991-1992), an emblematic example of contemporary US neo-noir comics, and contends that the “visual nihilism” that Miller develops in representing the city constitutes part of a tradition that originated with Will Eisner and continued in superhero comics. The progressive transformation of urban space from an architectural palimpsest into a narrative nonplace shows a convergence between the narrative conventions of noir and superhero comics.