"Hard-boiled is about toughness and Noir is about pain." I can't remember where I read this quote but I have it taped up in my writing area. It's said that, "in Noir, doom rules the mood." This quote comes from the Oxford American's Issue 55, that deals with all things noir. Doom and pain don't exactly sound like anyone's idea of a laugh riot but I found comfort in the dark humor of noir. Cause if you can't laugh in the face of doom or get the joke while you're in pain, what good are you?