Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for March 03, 2015

Still not a confirmation of a demise, unless she’s talking about ‘loading up’ Lena with Stiletta!

Silver realized that his sorrow would growunfortunately he knew that they would have to goHe knew that although this place felt like homethey would have to pack and they would have to roamFunny the ending that fate had in storean inch to the right or a wide open doorThen maybe a Nitrate would have thier heart torninstead it’s a Flattop that fell to the floor.

One classic after another, avenger09!

Silver’s so shocked part of his sunglasses fell off! LOL!

The Unofficial GoComics Staton/Curtis Death ListAs compiled by boboscar

Flyface

The Fifth and Eddie Garcia (at the same time)Earl (Flaky and Hot Rize’s innocent co-worker)Hot RizeEmma Parks (A.K.A. Ponytail Mk I)The 2 terrorists who tried to hire and double cross Morning GloriaBig FrostFlaky Biscuits (never confirmed, but implied)CueballMr. Levitz (Doubleup’s main henchman in his first story; later killed by Kadaver to get Doubleup off)The 3 supporting members of the Mumbles QuartetPandaDavey Mylar (A.K.A. Mr. Crime Mk II)Bookie (Measles’ partner)MeaslesSweat BoxBardollHy PressureDrs. Sail, Ghote, and Flash Munroe? (still alive last we saw them, and ambiguous that they’re dead, but it often sounds like Curtis thinks of them as dead)Bill “Shortcake” Mitchell (never confirmed, but implied)Miles MycroftMr. KolossalEd Rosato (never confirmed, but implied)Tabby AngusThe Butcher of the Balkans (A.K.A. “Henrik Willemse”)AxelOtis

Is Mrs. Flattop dead or just unconscious? Will they feed her to Lena like they did that other guy? I hope Stilletta’s still alive and when she comes to after being knocked out she’ll really be mad after the Nitrates took her cash and son’s car! Please be alive Stilletta!

Well, guess this drive-in ain’t the place we ought to be …

… so we’re loadin’ up the Wonder-Car and headed to D.C."

Or someplace else, anyway.

Good day to all fans. ___________________@seanyj: when Stilleta fell she may have broken her neck or possibly had a brain hemorrhage. ___________________@avenger: keep up the good work!___________________I’m surprised that the Nitrates are not going to feed Stilletta to Lena. Y’all have a spectacular day my friends.

I was already thinking what Sprocket is pointing out. If Silver had walked through that door any sooner that he did, he would have had a direct hit by that knife.

Looks like they’re heading out, so they won’t be scamming Aggie after all, if that’s the case. It doesn’t seem like loading up Lena and feeding Stiletta to Lena are compatible, unless Lena eats really fast, so I’m not sure yet what happening.

The problem is that Kandikane, for one, knows that they are there, so a body (if that’s what it is) would give them away as being guilty of murder (or at least manslaughter). If they hightail it out of there, as they seem to be doing, we may not be able to confirm the fate of Stiletta.

Thanks for another poem, Avenger. You’re really on a roll.

Lena is clearly thinking …

“Eat now?”

I Love the Lena shadow pose in panel 3.____________________

Agreed.

Is it wrong that I’m starting to root for the Nitrates?

When did that happen?!

I bet you got A’s on book reports !

Is that good or bad?

Cute that Joe & Mike places the author block just under the “Private” sign on the door. But a good story so far, so probably we will cut away to drive us crazy about the Nitrates and Stilletta.

Well, I didn’t really get many C’s. I remember that I once did an oral book report in high school about some 19th century novel which I complained to the class was too long. The teacher suspected (correctly) that I hadn’t really read the whole thing. Parts of it I just skimmed. I don’t think I got an A on that report.

Good morning guys!

What about the buyer for my movie? I had hoped that Silver and Sprocket would include me in on the profits.

Morning, Tracyville!

Actually, we are still not certain whether Stiletta is dead or alive. The dialog is deliberately ambiguous just to leave us hanging. This is excellent story telling by Team Tracy! I personally feel that Team Tracy worked too hard to develop this character to get rid of her so quickly.

Good Morning Vista Bill and others…

I don’t know The words “She WAS an expert Knife Thrower” seems to indicate Stiletta’s dead. Add to that both Silver and Sprocket know what a corpse looks like (Having created a few)

I’m rooting for the Nitrates also. They do have to dispose of the body and Lena seems like a good method for that. They can feed her Stilleta as the drive away. Then they could wait until dark and dispose of the bones in a secluded location. Or perhaps throw them in a lake somewhere.

I still think (this morning confirmed it) that Joe and Mike should do a short side of the City Poets with Avenger and Pequod in a friendly ‘poets duel’…anyone want to be the moderator for such an event?

looks like the nitrates are “bugging out” according to M*A*S*H lingo

I wonder if Stilletta wakes up just as Lena is getting started on her; THEN things would get interesting…

Avenger, your work is living proof you’ve been practicing. Just don’t get caught “practicing” at work! Keep it up! Remember, “The Eyes of Texas Are Upon You!”

I’m pretty sure Stiletta’s history.Silver referred to her in the past tense (“was a professional knife thrower”) and referred to the fight as “a short bout.”And no one’s rushed to her aid.--Hmm. Maybe the UFC could set up a match between Sprocket and Ronda Rousey. (A few days ago, Rousey won a match that lasted 14 seconds. About the same time as Sprocket over Stiletta.)

Yer just peelin’ them rhymes off like dollar bills into a G string !-——-You got class, Gweedo! Compliments like that are few and far between.

I agree with tsull2121. Just because Silver and Sprocket think that Stiletta is dead does not mean that she actually is dead. She may be banged up with broken bones and unconcious and barely hanging to life but not dead. The Nitrates (particularly Silver) are not the brightest bulbs. Before bugging out, I would make sure that Stiletta was actually dead. Otherwise, we may see a banged up body slowly crawling out of the Snack Bar.

I also agree with Cheapskate that Stiletta has become pretty one dimensional. Many moons ago, I expressed my thoughts that “revenge plots” tend to be one dimensional. I would much rather see criminals who commit a crime against society rather than a crime against Tracy personally. So unless there is some new wrinkle, plots that are based on revenge make me a bit tired.

Okay, the Nitrates are going to flee. But not before we find out what Silver has been doing in the back room!

It’s all pretty unpredictable…and the cartooning is great..to be continued..

@tsull: you could be right. The Benders may have been misleading us._________________@John K: I nominate Vista Bill and Gweedo to moderate the poem writing contest._________________@Vista Bill: how about it?_________________@Gweedo: how about it?

I don’t know how a poetry competition betwen Pequod77 & Avenger09 would work.They have very different styles. It would be like having an artists’ contest between Rembrandt & Picasso. Yes, their works sell for millions each, but who’s to say which style is better? Of course, when you come down to it, a contest between P77 & A09 is solely up to them.

1. Flew in from a trip last night on a plane full of cheerleaders. I think if they saw today’s strip they would say, “Hey, no sweat, this game ain’t over yet…”2. If Sprocket wanted Stiletta dead, she would surely remember this important rule, DOUBLE TAP.

It’s funny how within the past few months, and especially in the past few days, the Nitrates have gone from “despicable” to “lovable” for many of us, so much so that many of us want them to get off. I’ve been thinking about it, and I think it really is possible they can get off.How the Nitrates Can Get Off Scott FreeFirst off, I will make two assumptions that haven’t been confirmed yet:1. That Blowtop will survive his critical condition at least long enough to warn Tracy of Stilleta’s plan to kidnap Tracy’s grandson.2. That Stilleta is really dead, the Nitrates are just going to leave her there, and her body will be found.Sprocket can just tell Tracy the truth: that they were selling the Wonder Car to Stilleta, Stilleta tried to recruit Sprocket in her plan to kidnap Trey, that when Sprocket refused, Stilleta tried to kill her, and Sprocket acted in self-defense. Blowtop’s corroboration of the kidnapping plot would be especially convincing since he and the Nitrates don’t know each other. Stilleta wore gloves when she threw the knife that’s now embedded in the door, but the fibers on the handle will match the fibers on her gloves, indicating she was the last person to throw it. The blood on the knife’s blade will match the DNA on Sprocket’s shoulder scratch. Stilleta’s injuries would’ve made it impossible for her to have thrown the knife after being hit by the steel can, meaning that she threw first.That’s the charge they can easily be cleared of. Then there are the crimes that we know they’re guilty of, that they can get off by lying. Here’s how those lies can work:-They’ve committed multiple scams in the past, but until Flintheart, all their past victims were too ashamed to press chargers.-The “Captain Video” footage they were trying to sell Flintheart was undeniably a fraud. What they can deny, however, is knowing that it was a fraud. The footage itself only implicates Miles Mycroft, who’s clearly impersonating young Flintheart. It doesn’t implicate the Nitrates in and of itself.-They’ve already told Tracy they only knew Mycroft as a shady character they didn’t trust who was calling himself, “Bernard Fife”. They can deny knowing the footage came form him, deny knowing how his bones ended up in their theater (which were found only after they left it for good), and deny that they were the ones who threw away the bloody smoke jacket into their dumpster.-They can claim the Wonder Car was stolen from them after they drove off with it as the car display, and that they found it again only after the chase with Tracy and Sam was over. Tracy and Sam can’t say for certain that it was the Nitrates who were driving the car the night it opened fire on and fled from police cars.-They hired Kandikane Lane to film the commercial, but haven’t yet approached Agate Aggie. They can still claim at this point that they really are trying to break into the legitimate commercial business.-Finally, they can deny knowing that Stilleta was a wanted fugitive by claiming they don’t follow the news much, and given their lifestyle, that lie would actually be quite plausible.Now all of the above defense of their past crimes is full of holes. However, Tracy will know that in killing Stilleta, they acted in self-defense and in defense of Tracy’s own grandson. He will want to go easy on them, just like he’s done in the past with Blackjack and B. O. Plenty. So despite having committed serious felonies in the past, the Nitrates can still have a golden chance to straighten up and reform without having to endure prison time.

Stiletta may or may not be dead; that has not been confirmed by anyone, and the Nitrates are concentrating on getting away rather than waiting to find out.But even if she is still alive, Stiletta is surely injured; 70 pounds of thrown steel canister to the chest of a slightly-built woman is going to do some damage.My suspicion is that Stiletta is still alive, but only barely, and will require lengthy recuperation while plotting her new top-priority revenge: to eliminate Sprocket and Silver Nitrate. The Tracy kid can wait until that’s taken care of.So, yeah, Stiletta is still interesting; an exotic, revenge-driven knife-throwing killer, but not super-human nor invulnerable.

I don’t know if that’s a compliment or an insult, but I’ll take it anyway it comes!-——-Just an observation, Gweedo. That was an ‘unusual’ compliment you paid avenger. (“Yer just peelin’ them rhymes off like dollar bills into a G string !”)

Gweedo, the only reason you would volunteer to do anything with Vista Bill is to get close enough to Rikki to get her phone number and find out what type of Pocket Rockets she prefers.

“Might forensics attempt to do DNA sampling from the fabrics, not to mention that a hard surface like a button, could hold a finger print or two that matches Silver’s own ? "Even if Silver admits the smoke jacket is his, it’s clearly one of several identical ones he owns, and he could claim he hadn’t realized he’d left it behind when they moved out of the theater.

I also seem to remember an Apparatus member being offed by DoubleUp on Pandas order. I think he was fed to the barracuda afterword.

Found it!Apparatus Member (Killed by DoubleUp) 10/25/11 & fed to Tonsils 10/27/11

I have the complete list saved now. If anyone can think of names that boboscar and I have left off the list, let us know. Also feel free to argue about any names that are included. I agree with AnyFace that the Space Coupe and it’s passengers may still be alive out there somewhere, although again the chance is very slim.

This is barely even an issue, they could just claim Stiletta found out they had the Wonder Car and tried to take it by force.

Well, they did cash a cheque written by Stiletta, so it’s very possible there is some kind of a “paper trail” there that could be investigated.

In Professional Wrestling, it’s called a “Face Turn,” when the bad guys unexpectedly do something – well – not so bad – and get the fans behind ’em.

By the way …

Over 100 posts per day for four days running.

And over 150 posts yesterday.

“Too Much Time On My Hands” #714:

If you google “70 pound film canister thrown at chest,” one of the results you’ll get is …

Weighty Matters

Fully agree on both, Gweedo. But then I tend to be biased toward tomboys :) Also as stated before. I have some respect for Sockett.

Not sure if anyone had ever posted this, a very brief 2013 piece from TIME MAGAZINE …

Indestructible Meme

My two favorite baseball teams are, in this order:

1. The Red Sox.2. Whoever beats the Yankees.

.Ahh, knew there was a reason I don’t like you! LOL! JUST KIDDING!

Sam the man, two in handcoffee’s hot but kinda blandBlowtop’s Jones, painful moansbut singing songs in various tonesWhat a dope, Still Tracy hopedStiletta’d soon be tied and roped.Wonder car seen, by members of his teamHopefully clues found that are nice, tidy and clean.

.Hey, I tried. Not much too work with today!

why will they call there car lena because it is a awesome car or is it to old for them or they like it very much.

It SO serves Stilleta right.