I stopped reading this strip back in the Moon Maid era and only picked it up again at the end of the Locher era, so I don’t know all these characters. I didn’t know Flattop had so many relatives.
Be it puns or tongues, on wives, daughters, brothers or sons, in the Jones Lineage of Flattop - no ones ended on TOP …In Dick Tracy, just a history of failure, every effort a FLOP !
Oh, yeah. Angeltop was nuttier than a Snickers bar and Hightop wasn’t much better. I think Frizzletop is the only sensible one. Mrs. Flattop may be the craziest one of the bunch, but she’s got a long we to go to beat her daughter.
Flattop is arguably the most famous villain ever to appear in Dick Tracy. The problem was that Gould killed him off. So since he couldn’t bring Flattop back for an encore, he had to invent relatives. Each writer and artist have either revisited the Flattop story, created new relatives, or both. Consequently, the family has grown.
However, it was apparently a large family even before many of Flattop’s more sinister kin were created. In the Flattop Jr. story Tracy visits Flattop’s sister (referred to by Sam as Auntie Flattop). On the wall of her home are portraits of other members of the family who are unnamed.
It’s interesting that Sharptop is mentioned and lumped together with Hi-Top in “they haven’t enjoyed great relations with the police.” Hi-Top was a crook and murderer. Sharptop is a bit more complicated.Sharptop was portrayed as an honest man who was taken away from Poptop’s abusive household to be raised by more loving members of the family (with Curtis’ retcons, Sharptop could’ve been raised by Frizzletop’s parents!). But while engaging in some kind of New Age séance, Sharptop got possessed by the ghost of Flattop. As possessed by Flattop, Sharptop murdered the leader of a bank-robbing gang, then took over that gang and used it for at least one major bank robbery (there may have been more, but my memory is fuzzy on the details). Finally, Tracy got Flattop’s ghost to leave Sharptop’s body by tricking Flattop’s ghost into thinking his brother was dying, when he was just suffering normal middle-aged health problems.The last we heard of Sharptop, he was undergoing “psychiatric evaluation”. I know in the real world, there’s no legal precedent for when an honest man gets possessed by the ghost of his evil criminal brother into committing major felonies. There probably isn’t in the Tracyverse either. I wonder if were going to see Sharptop in the near future and see how he’s doing.
I was going to do that, but I couldn’t remember if it had that weird spelling with two l’s and one t and anyway, I wanted to use her married surname to emphasize her membership in the ’Top gang.
Great second panel artwork of Tracy; reminds me of The Spirit and Will Eisner (who influenced so many cartoonists!); as for the Tops, there are way too many of them; even The Four Tops were not my favorites….
AnyFace about 9 years ago
All “Tops” accounted for, ah reckon.
cpalmeresq about 9 years ago
Arer we going to get a Jones family re-union of the remaining members?
AnyFace about 9 years ago
Art has an almost “Jose Munoz” quality to it today.
punslinger about 9 years ago
What about the Box Tops?
Starman1948 about 9 years ago
Good morning my friends @NightShade09 and puns linger: both good groups.Have a fun filled weekend everyone.
avenger09 about 9 years ago
Dicks Getting all Fuzzy Wuzzy on us! I said yesterday he’s got a soft spot for Blowtop. How cute!
Neil Wick about 9 years ago
I love the artwork today, especially the bold solid blacks, but the middle panel is my favourite.
So I guess we’re down to the “four tops” if Mrs. Flattop counts (and why wouldn’t she?).
davidf42 about 9 years ago
Morning, Tracyville!
I stopped reading this strip back in the Moon Maid era and only picked it up again at the end of the Locher era, so I don’t know all these characters. I didn’t know Flattop had so many relatives.
SYDNEY PHILLIPS about 9 years ago
Be it puns or tongues, on wives, daughters, brothers or sons, in the Jones Lineage of Flattop - no ones ended on TOP …In Dick Tracy, just a history of failure, every effort a FLOP !
nighthawk1 about 9 years ago
Oh, yeah. Angeltop was nuttier than a Snickers bar and Hightop wasn’t much better. I think Frizzletop is the only sensible one. Mrs. Flattop may be the craziest one of the bunch, but she’s got a long we to go to beat her daughter.
Starman1948 about 9 years ago
@Nun ‘Ya Bidness: thanks for the suggestion. I’ll have to add the Xanth series to my reading list. Have a great day my friend.
doctor075 about 9 years ago
What about the Flash villain,The Top?:D
doctor075 about 9 years ago
What about the Flash villain,The Top?:D
Chrisstopher about 9 years ago
I wonder if there’s a “Twist-Top” the family lush.
Ray Toler about 9 years ago
Here is Poptop, father of Flattop, Sharptop and Blowtop (paternity questioned by other members of the family).
Ray Toler about 9 years ago
Flattop is arguably the most famous villain ever to appear in Dick Tracy. The problem was that Gould killed him off. So since he couldn’t bring Flattop back for an encore, he had to invent relatives. Each writer and artist have either revisited the Flattop story, created new relatives, or both. Consequently, the family has grown.
However, it was apparently a large family even before many of Flattop’s more sinister kin were created. In the Flattop Jr. story Tracy visits Flattop’s sister (referred to by Sam as Auntie Flattop). On the wall of her home are portraits of other members of the family who are unnamed.
abdullahbaba999 about 9 years ago
This is Tops,,great artwork..
The Real Zarth Arn about 9 years ago
They should introduce a member of the family who’s a computer hacker — Laptop.
boboscar about 9 years ago
It’s interesting that Sharptop is mentioned and lumped together with Hi-Top in “they haven’t enjoyed great relations with the police.” Hi-Top was a crook and murderer. Sharptop is a bit more complicated.Sharptop was portrayed as an honest man who was taken away from Poptop’s abusive household to be raised by more loving members of the family (with Curtis’ retcons, Sharptop could’ve been raised by Frizzletop’s parents!). But while engaging in some kind of New Age séance, Sharptop got possessed by the ghost of Flattop. As possessed by Flattop, Sharptop murdered the leader of a bank-robbing gang, then took over that gang and used it for at least one major bank robbery (there may have been more, but my memory is fuzzy on the details). Finally, Tracy got Flattop’s ghost to leave Sharptop’s body by tricking Flattop’s ghost into thinking his brother was dying, when he was just suffering normal middle-aged health problems.The last we heard of Sharptop, he was undergoing “psychiatric evaluation”. I know in the real world, there’s no legal precedent for when an honest man gets possessed by the ghost of his evil criminal brother into committing major felonies. There probably isn’t in the Tracyverse either. I wonder if were going to see Sharptop in the near future and see how he’s doing.
Vista Bill Raley and Comet™ about 9 years ago
Good afternoon guys!
I love seeing the ‘tops’. What a family! They should be on Topps Bubble Gum cards!
Neil Wick about 9 years ago
I prefer to call her Stilleta. More to the point.
I was going to do that, but I couldn’t remember if it had that weird spelling with two l’s and one t and anyway, I wanted to use her married surname to emphasize her membership in the ’Top gang.Sisyphos about 9 years ago
Great second panel artwork of Tracy; reminds me of The Spirit and Will Eisner (who influenced so many cartoonists!); as for the Tops, there are way too many of them; even The Four Tops were not my favorites….
Civanfan over 2 years ago
Considering Hi-Top murdered another kid for his sneakers, I’d say that was an understatement.