Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for October 26, 2012

It would certainly give me a headache!

Who’s this guy with Measles?

Measles has “pizza face.”

Good morning all…

Measles sure loves his pizza!

One among us will be a year older tomorrow!

Good morning, VistaBill. Happy early birthday, too.Guess Measles decided to eat before heading to Sunny Dell Acres.

Trains crashing into your building and debris falling on you may cause death or serious injury—even migraines….

Mike and Joe are running out of good stuff, this is starting to get a fishy smell.

Many happy returns, VB! :D

First pizza, then Gertie.

Measles, like a train wreck, is a disaster off the rails. He means great harm to Gertie, in this I hope he fails. Sparkle will protect her mom, at risk to her own life. I see a bad moon rising, blood-red with sorrow and strife. All Hollow’s Eve, a spooky time, is marked by ghosts and ghouls. To do harm to Tracy’s family is a game for punks and fools.

(3) flashbacks/character backstory since Sun re. both Measles & Moon Maid storylines. I’m enjoying the Measles storyline (not so much Moon Maid) but it does show how much story “space” is allocated for such exposition,

And w/ 6 week or less arcs…that’s valuable time just so the casual reader can get-up-to-speed. I’m also critical on this issue as I feel it’s mostly a piggyback ploy—re-hashing what Gould has already done.

My preference is for new villains & wholly new stories like the recent Phishface arc.

Or what Collins/Fletcher has already done ie. Big Boy story w/ Moon Maid’s death.

constantine, it doesnt necessarily “piggyback” the other stories as opposed to expanding upon them. i for one am glad that mike, joe and team tracy decided to bring moon maid back SOMEHOW, and i am patiently waiting for the entire story to unfold and reveal to us all how this came to pass. i am ALSO enjoying the measles tie-in as well since, to ME.. measles is a “new character”.. and like i had said before, i am actually somewhat sympathetic towards him.. which is WHY he is now ranked my number TWO favorite tracy villain of all time right after mumbles. oh hey vistabill.. HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY YOUNG MAN!!!! have you visited that convention near the aquarium yet or are you gonna leave vitamin flintheart hanging in the parking lot awaiting your arrival? LOL! :-D

Happy Birthday, VB!Celebrating with Pizza?

Hmmm, wonder if that Hispanic fmaily Measles had run into at this time in his saga will pop up again. The daughter had an aue de Model Jones tragic fate about her, but nothing ever came of it.

I got hit by a train and a building fell on me. But I’m OK now.

Measles took refuge in the home of the Gonzalez family, who lived in a boxcar shack next to the railroad track. Mr. Gonzalez was suspicious of Measles, but Measles gained the affection of Mrs. Gonzalez by providing her with grocery money and his dead mother’s ration cards (this was during the waning days of the second World War). Measles was also the object of affection of the Gonzalez teenage daughter Paprika, who found the mysterious stranger exciting. Measles had Paprika run small errands for him, and he eventually sent her to his apartment in the city to bring back his radio. Measles apartment was being searched by Dick Tracy and Pat Patton when Paprika arrived. The police officers hid while she got Measles’ radio, then followed her as did some shopping. Tracy obtained the Gonzalez’s address from a grocery clerk who had delivered to the family, whcih Tracy used to make some arrangements with the head of the local railroad.

Upon receiving his radio, Measles revealed that it contained his gun. Paprike and her mother realized that they had been harboring a fugitive and turned on measles, but he held them at gunpoint. At that point, Tracy and the police arrived with a specially authorized train engine and boxcar, trapping Measles in the Gonzalez’s home. However, smoke from Mrs. Gonzalez’s stove clouded the air between the shack and the train car, obscuring the officers’ view. Measles poured more fuel on the fire, hoping to create a smokescreen in which to make his escape. Mrs. Gonzalez knowcked over the stove’s smokestack, filling the room with smoke and forcing Measles to flee. He tried to escape out a window, but was apprehended by Tracy (April 7, 1945).

Tracy loaded Measles and the Gonzalez women onto the train car, planning to question all of them. When they arrived back and the railyard, however, the excited railroad worker forgot to throw the derail switch, and the train car crashed into a shed. The collapsing rubble broke the handcuff that held Measles to Tracy and the younger man assaulted Tracy, took his gun and escaped.

Source - Dick Tracy Wiki

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, VISTABILL!Let there be dancing in the streets, and singing in the bathtub!And break out the silly hats and cake!

Bringing back old characters is very retro, and retro is a cool way of enlightening younger generations. I agree that there’s too much brown in the strip. The colors could be more bright and primary, giving the DT strip a unique feel. Why would a law enforcement professional choose to wear yellow business attire when brown, grey, and tan are available? More bright colors, please!

Many happy returns of the day VB! Really nice artwork in panel two. It looks especially great in black and white.

Have fun, Vista Bill It’s your day! Enjoiy it and the group here gives you a standing ovation! (I assume I’m speaking for us all)

From yesterday’s comments, JoviusGM said, “As long as they don’t retcon Pollyanna, I’m a happy man.”No worries, Pollyanna is most certainly dead. She and three other people were vaporized on 12/11/1967 when she dropped a laser pistol and it went off.On the other hand, it seems to me the original Mysta is most certainly dead, too, but we’re talking about how she may have survived. So there you go. Maybe Pollyanna is alive and well, too. ;)

Though I’m kind of new around here (as a commenter), I just wanted to wish VB a very HB!

VB – I know I’m a day early but I’ll be on the road to Salisbury U tomorrow to see the youngest (storm? what storm?) so…

Best wishes for a healthy, lively and laugh-packed birthday celebration shared with loved ones and filled with memories you’ll cherish for many years to come.

You are a rare and true gentleman, VB.

Measles likes his pizza, and he likes his cigars enough to keep smoking while he’s eating! Yeesh!

Yeah, wndrwrthg’s verses were outstanding, too. Wish he would check in more.

Thanks to tommygunner, JerryH and Gweedo for the positive feedback. Staton and Curtis provide the motivation, but it’s Moon Maid that’s my inspiration. She put a spell on me, ‘cos she’s fine…

Am i the only one who remembers that the Measle storyline also included the first appearance of florist George Decopolus, featured by Curtis and Staton back in September of last year? When fleeing prison after the death of Measle’s mother Anna Enog, Gertie gets a job working for him. Wonder if he will make a cameo in this story line since he is now a neighbor of the Plenty’s?

Thanks to everyone for the happy birthday wishes and nice comments! It certainly makes my birthday special! My birthday is Saturday but it’ll take until then for me to reread and continue to enjoy the comments from all of you! I’ll be 78 years old and haven’t missed a birthday yet!

Happy birthday, Vista Bill!No brag, just fact!

With Hurricane Sandy approaching, one weather person said it could be “the storm of a century”. It brought back memories of Tracy and Mordred facing the storm of the century when DT did a power approach. I sure won’t attempt that!

May I add my Birthday wishes to the other posters today? -HAPPY BIRTHDAY- VISTA BILL.