It is time to take a look at the penultimate volume of Frank Miller’s Neo-Noir graphic novel series. Set in a brutal universe, in the lawless, fictitious Basin City (Sin City for short), it is a place that few would want to even step into. However, there are fans like yours truly who cannot get enough of its tales. This volume packs multiple yarns but is smaller than the rest. A few stories in it are unforgettable, proving that sometimes, big fun can come from small packages.

Booze, Broads, & Bullets

“Booze, Broads, and Bullets” is a collection of several short stories, some forgettable, some good, and one simply magnificent. I must say that the title of this volume is not among the most politically correct ones for our time.

The following are the yarns in this volume:

Just Another Saturday Night

This is a forgettable tale where an amnesiac Marv, probably Sin City’s strong man, does what he does best. It is a pointless yarn that was included in the second Sin City movie by Robert Rodriguez, for reasons beyond me.

Fat Man and Little Boy

This is a small yarn about Shlubb and Kump, two petty criminals who twist the English language almost beyond recognition, deluding themselves that they are eloquent in their oration.

The Customer Is Always Right

This is a small, cynical, violent, and romantic yarn. “The Customer is Always Right” set the tone of his first Sin City movie that worked magnificently. It is a tiny love story between two enigmatic souls.

Silent Night

Marv reappears in this yarn that is told entirely in imagery, without words spoken. The story bears a striking resemblance to the plot of the previous volume, “That Yellow Bastard.” The yarn features some outstanding artwork.

And Behind Door Number Three…

A sicko breaks the rules of Old Town and suffers the expected consequences inflicted on him by the locale’s exotic, sexy, and dangerous residents. There is nothing new here.

Blue Eyes

This is a decent yarn about a man being hunted by an assassin and then reunites with his past flame. It has some shades of “A Dame to Die For.” It introduces us to Delia, yet another Femme Fatale of Sin City.

Rats

This yarn features musings of an inmate. Passable.

Daddy’s Little Girl

This is a sick and twisted yarn that features a patsy trying to eliminate his girlfriend’s father, whom he thinks is shielding her from him. Come on Frank, you could do better than this.

Wrong Turn

This is a decent yarn where a man finds an unconscious beautiful woman while driving in a secluded region. Delia returns in this yarn.

Wrong Track

This tale is about a man who has made a not-so-legal delivery. Delia returns for a third time in this yarn.

The Babe Wore Red

Wow, Frank Miller’s magic makes its comeback in this small yarn. I had almost given up on this volume when Miller hits it out of the park in this yarn. Dwight, Sin City’s most iconic patsy/ladies’ man, returns in this classy tale. The fat man and little boy, Shlubb and Kump, also make appearances in this yarn. Answering a distressed call from his friend, Fargo, Dwight appears at the latter’s home. He discovers Fargo’s lifeless corpse dangling from the ceiling. Dwight discovers the dead corpse of a PI in the toilet. Soon, in typical fashion, he finds his damsel in distress hiding in the shower. Soon there is gunfire, and Dwight cannot help but play the knight in shining armor. The ending of this yarn is perhaps the most outrageous, absolutely hilarious, and redeems the entire volume.

Most yarns in this volume are passable, while the final one, “The Babe Wore Red,” is a masterpiece!