Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for February 22, 2014

Uh oh…..Nitrate’s in trouble now…..

On their way to hide out in a cabin in the hills! This is looking more Gouldian all the time!

That is Lizz in the last panel, isn’t it? Where is she off to on the train. Did she just happen to be in the train station?

Of course, there isn’t really a limit of three. It’s just that it’s usually not practical to have any more than that. To get panel 3 of your example in, it had to be a very narrow panel with really only room for one character and virtually no room at all for any dialogue or lettering.

Ah, the old “I’ve got a little cabin in the hills near the lake” trick, ‘eh? Enjoy it while you can, Nitrate! And good mornin’ Vista Bill, wherever you are…

The Nitrate siblings are going to find out that you can run, but you can’t hide from Dick Tracy and his team!

I think I see where this is going, Lizz notices the Jones car is gone, asks about it. Concerned that one of the more criminal Jones family members has it, she asks for a description and realizes it’s actually Silver and Sprocket.

Lizz had good reason to check out the train station, since Officer Doherty had spotted Sprocket there. What is less clear to me is why Lizz would suddenly divert herself to the Wonder Cars Museum simply on the basis of an advertising brochure [Union Station in Chicago has racks full]. Or does she have some valid reason to suspect the Nitrates may have gone there? Am I missing something?

It’s all so……so…..so ’50’s. Old car…….old cabin………trains runnin’ to & fro……….WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!! A walk-on by Ritchie, Potsie & Malph (Hey we got Mary Perkins Back!!) wouldn’t be out of character here………

Yes, Liz. That IS the Batmobile in the upper right hand corner. :D

Great story line. And yes, this is a typical 40’s and 50’s story line. Love it. Keep up the great work.

I must admit, Mr. Curtis makes Liz even more attractive, and should I say, sexy? Than even Mr. Gould did, in the 70s.

I remember a 1 panel strip that Mr. Gould did when he had Tracy looking over his shoulder telling the atrist he needs more, good looking women. I’m quite happy he brought out Liz. Growing up in Appalachia, we had few role models to learn from.

40-5-s story line? 60s maybe, but this tale is in no way shape or form like anything in the 40s and early 50s. They moved.

No, I think I’ll go shopping on Madison Ave instead, or perhaps go to Navy Pier. On second thought, why not the Museum of Science and Industry. Or the Sears tower…

In a story strip like Dick Tracy or The Phantom – which includes characters, background and dialogue in eaach panel, three panels are usually all that’s practical for a daily strip.Non Sequitur’s Wiley Miller has sometimes squeezed five panels into the daily strip, but they often include reaction scenes without dialogue.

Good afternoon everyone…

Once again, Team Tracy will succeed in defeating a villain only through a lucky break I guess…..not that this is unique to Mike and Joe, Pruneface, Flattop, you name ‘em…..that’s why I love stories like Ms. Pruneface where brilliant thinking is the crucial element in victory for law and order. Also, the more I read “classic” Gouldian Dick Tracy from time to time, the more I realize that while Chester will always be king because he originated the script and created do many unique characters and storylines, today’s authors are doing an absolutely tremendous job continuing in that tradition…..a million thumbs up!!!

When I first suggested that this might be Flattop, Jr.‘s car, I didn’t know I would stir up so much discussion. But, that’s half the fun of this board! Also want to say that I love the little touches that Joe always adds (in this case, Sprocket’s reflection in the rear view mirror)!

I had never read the Flattop, Jr. story until last year. I picked up a used copy of Dick Tracy’s Fiendish Foes: A 60th Anniversary Celebration. Nearly all of 1956 is included under the title, “Enter Lizz.” The panels shared by Neil (yesterday) and Ray give a good look at the car before and after the fire. If the snow gets any heavier it will look downright Gouldian. More of the good stuff from Team Tracy.

Lizz does have a knack for being in the right place at the right time. I can think of two episodes from Gould where this was the case. One is the aforementioned incident with Flattop Jr. She was on her way to an outlying village on a personal errand when she spotted FT, and when she chased him, they both fell into a hole that lead to yet another crime – Ivy and his secret counterfeiting cave.Then, she once took Little Boy Beard to the zoo on a day off, and overheard two kids talking about a big animal that their neighbors kept in an apartment. This was a trained leopard being used to snatch jewelry cases out of the hands of salesmen. She reported back to HQ, but Tracy and Sam, had gotten another lead to the same case.I thought Lizz was at the train station officially, but I like the idea that she may be there for personal business, and stumbled into these clues! She is sharp enough to recognize significant things, even when off duty. Go, Lizz!

The car had everything and the kitchen sink.