Progression+of+Detective+Comics

Alex Peretin

The "**Detective"** (or more universally regarded as) **"Noir"** movement in comics refers to a look, design, or feel as opposed to the time it was made. The subject material in **Noir**-inspired comics more often than not includes a story-line set in the American 1930's-50's. The main character is quite often a gumshoe detective who has his own loose-cannon ideas about the definition of justice. Concerning history, the most sincere definition of **Noir** ideology are found in films such as **The Maltese Falcon**, or **Casa Blanca**. Since these movies it seems that every **Noir** protagonists effectiveness pales in comparison to **Humphrey Bogarts** inerpretation of **Sam Spade**. **Bogart**, of course, is one of the largest **Noir** film stars of the 40's, and quite possibly in all of film history. If ones intention is to make a **Noir** film, novel, comic, or anything that even involves the word, it's almost impossible not to incorporate something "Bogie" has already portrayed. Other necessities of a Detective comic include fedoras, trench coats, a femme-fatal whose been convicted for murder at least twice, the mafia, self-righteous internal monologue, twenty-odd glasses of bourbon, gang shootouts, a lit cigarette every five minutes, and a brief romance between the main character and femme fatal which never ends up working out. Another likeliness for a detective series is that the ending is always a bittersweet situation which furthers the protagonists reputation of being heartless, unreliable, and shooting first and asking questions later. Though there are dozens of branches of **Noir** comics, underground, independent or otherwise, **DC comics** is perhaps the most popular. **DC** (short for Detective Comics) has produced it's fair share of dark, gritty story lines and high-trouser, gumshoe characters such as **The Crimson Avenger, The Question,** and **The Shadow**. Although **DC** is more associated with the Superhero branch of **Graphic Novels**, they were technically **Noir** for nearly twenty years simply because **DC** was established in 1934, and that all comics produced between the late 30's to late 50's were in the official **Deco Noir** era. Although unassuming given what they are today, **DC**'s more popular creations such as **Superman** and **Batman** had aspects of **Noir** in their early years. Because their "careers" in the late 30's had only just begun, the heroes main villains such as **Lex Luthor**, **Braniac**, the **Joker** and the **Riddler** were yet to be established, the foes encountered nearly 80% of the time were the mafia, drug lords, crime bosses and street thugs; the essentials for a dirty, black-and-white **Noir** theme. Although most **DC** superheroes have evolved with the times, certain characters choose to remain as they were when first conceived, or at least are convinced that they work better in this way. Both **Batman** and the **Crimson Avenger** continue to hopscotch over the line of present-day and 40's **Noir**, but a backdrop superhero called **The Question** has retained the classic gumshoe persona and overall look consistently over 4 decades. This is most evident both in his first comic incarnation, and in the animated show **Justice League Unlimited**. In the series he is portrayed as a super sleuth whose deductive reasoning rivals that of **Batman** but is severely paranoid and sees conspiracies everywhere he turns. Seeing the attraction of such a character, **Alan Moore** used **The Question** as a basis for **Rorschach**; a vigilante superhero in his six-part graphic novel **The Watchmen,** which was made into a film in 2009. A separate, though equally successful comic branch, **Marvel**, was never officially part of the **Noir** scene since they were established in the 60's, long after the **Noir** era had died. However, they recently became aware of what they were missing, and a sub-company attached to **Marvel** has begun taking some of comics most beloved superheroes and giving them an unnecessary, though tremendously interesting makeover into **Crime Noir.** Heroes such as **Spiderman**, the **X-Men**, the **Punisher, Daredevil** and **Ironman** are some of the few with **Noir** genres out on the comic shelves. Needless to say, its hard for Spidey and **Wolverine** fans to trade in the bright red and blue spandex and yellow leather for fedoras and trench coats on the dingy streets of 1930's Chicago. You see filmmakers and game designers occasionally utilize the **Noir** style to appeal to a certain audience, and in the end, thats all it is, just as futuristic, **Scifi** scenes appeal to audiences familiar with that genre, or Horror or Steam Industry, or Epic Fantasy. **Noir** holds a timeless old fashioned appeal that adds new levels of depth, mystery and dimension to anything it's applied to, and is one of the more successful forms of comic art that delve into emotion, truth and simplistic poetry without trying too hard.