Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for May 29, 2014

Tabby won’t go peacefully, “You’ll not be taking me in”As the odds grow longer, brashly believes he’ll win.Too much trouble down below, he scrambles up the towerSam and Tracy in his sights, he feels a rush of power.If justice has come calling, he won’t go down aloneTargets agents of the peace, rather than atone.Exits all are covered, taking careful aimFinger on the trigger, deadly is his game.A bullet passes through him, Tabby is astoundedFinal thoughts are fleeting, plunging until grounded.Darkness overtakes him, no last words shall he impartJoe’s aim true and deadly: he shot Tabby through the heart.

Good for you, Montana Joe!

DON’T MESS WITH JOE OR HIS FRIENDS!

Two were right the other day one said lightning, other said shot""It was a lightning shot

Good morning, that’s the first serious look I’ve seen Montana Joe express.

By the way, a lot of you were trying so hard to talk 436rge into signing up for a Pro account that you ended up convincing the wrong guy. ;-)

Kudos to whoever said Montana Joe took out Angus….well played….well played indeed…..

Montana Joe is usually wearing a big goofy grin. He’s deadly serious today!Wonderful work, Pequod77! All your rhymes are good, but I enjoy your ones about Mysta most of all.

RIP

Arrest him for murder, lol

The streak is alive…..once again an inept Tracy is saved, and the bad guy delivered by other than him.

Ah rats, I was hoping this was Mysta’s work. ;) On the other hand, I called it right with Montana Joe. Smokin’ Joe that is!

“Coincidence …………….. I THINK NOT !!!”I think not, too. Mysta brings out the best in many of us. :) It always seems more exciting around here when Mysta appears, doesn’t it, Gweedo? Especially now that she seems to be evolving into a total Lunarian. Watch out world when that transformation is complete!

Great poem today, Pequod. Thanks for that.

Whoever said Joe was the one who fired the gun, congrats on getting that right. It really wasn’t my first thought. I’m still wondering what the legal justification for it is.

In the third panel, Joe is standing by his truck (I still say it’s his truck). I’m thinking that he keeps the gun in the truck, so when he disappeared he went out to get it, then he hid behind the truck until Angus climbed up the tower.

I really like the composition of the artwork again today. The sense of depth from closeups, mid-, and long shots, often combined together, gives a lot of interest to the panels.

Nice work, Montana Joe! :D

They call it justifiable homicide.

Well, well, well! Montana Joe isn’t just a “radio cowboy”! I am respectful of Joe’s shooting accuracy, but even more impressed by his speed with that rifle.Don’t mess with Montana Joe!

Uh-Oh! Will Tracy and Sam be forced to take Montana Joe in for murder even though he saved their lives? And with Kolossal dead and its main financier dead, will Kolossal studios collapse and does this mean no Moon Maid movie and the end of the comic strip J. Staightedge Trustyworthy?

No Tracy, it wasn’t the Gunshot but it was Beauty that killed the Beast! Get it? King Kong reference! : )

Good thing Joe was packin’.

Darn’ tootin’ good shootin’, Montana!

Good morning everyone!

Well I was right this time. Have a good day all of you DT fans…

So we get to see what is really behind that ear to ear grin that usually covers Montana Joe’s whole face. Why do I get the feeling I want to stay on his “grin” side?

So did Montana Joe ever co-star w Vista Bill? (Good Morning Vista Bill)

…aaaaaannd, who wins the pool?

I was wrong. It seems my thought, that he fell while using both hands to steady the gun, wasn’t exactly right.

Montana’s been practicing with that rifle, bet he doesn’t miss much at the range.

Heyyyy Joe….Where you runnin with that gun in your hand?“I’m going down to shoot Ol’ Tabby Angus..Y’know I’m sick of him messin around with the man.”“And that ain’t too cool.”That’s a little “Country Justice” For you, Don’t mess with our families and friends and don’t mess with our livelihoods.My buddy Packrat is fond of saying “be good or be gone” He’s got a few years on me, and tells me some stories about trespassers and thieves who just somehow gotten themselves beaten or shot or just vanished from the face of the earth when caught poking around the wrong farmhouse or barn. I hope hes just exaggerating.. a little.One of the things I love about living out here is I know my neighbors out here. We fish, hunt, and raise hell together.

Food for thought: That several of you picked Montana as Tabby’s demise would seem to make this whole ending rather, well, predictable..Trite as someone said, yesterday, I would still agree that a Blackjack ending might have been more interesting..Or, as Willy007 said, a Mysta ending would have been the most interesting! Good grief, we dragged her back from the grave (figuratively, of course); when are we gonna do something with her?!?.But I also agree with the handful of others who suggest that Tracy isn’t all that effective these days; it’s always someone else that’s getting the job done for him….This could be something that comes back and haunts Mike and Joe…

On the other hand, it is now clear that Montana Joe is here to stay. An emeritus member of the Crimestoppers club?

To state the obvious, Dick Tracy isn’t Law & Order. Criminals almost never “lawyer up” in the strip. If they did, there would be very little action and a whole lot more dialogue to cram into bubbles. Cases are rarely handed over to the DA’s office. Court room drama has never been an element of the strip. When criminals find themselves the target of an MCU investigation, they tend to turn violent or turn tail. Gould created fantastic criminal characters, most of whom shared traits of arrogance and foolishness. Many reacted to Tracy’s investigation of their activities with violence, by their own hands or by paid flunkies..So, it was a bit surprising to read a few harsh critics who couldn’t imagine why Angus chose to flee from his home once Clark came clean to Sam and Tracy. While I grant that the transition from the newspaper headline, “Breakthrough in the Rosato disappearance,” to Angus approaching the radio station on horseback was a bit abrupt, the flight and fight element of criminal behavior has been a staple of the strip since its inception. The transition could have been smoother with a day or two of Angus saddling up Sparkplug and muttering to the horse (about Clark, the Blackhearts and Tracy) as they rode away from the Angus estate, while Sam and Tracy (Elsewhere) headed to the Angus Estate to question (and arrest?) their suspect..The coincidence of Sparkle and Gertie performing live at the radio station was quite Gouldian. The danger to Sparkle is all the more powerful given the fact that she is a new (or expectant) mother. While Tracy can no longer be shown shooting a bullet through the brain of a criminal, the rumpus at the station was quite entertaining. An unexpected hero, Montana Joe, saved the day, the smile wiped off his countenance for the first time in this reader’s memory..Tabby was kept safe from criminal investigation by having Rosato in his pocket. Tracy dove into the files and unearthed the series of related deaths. Once Tracy took the Angus-related cases away from Rosato, the only thing standing between Tabby and jail was Clark. Once Clark rolled over, Tabby was in a pickle. While a wise criminal would have called his lawyer, Tabby was no sage. He had a lot of trouble keeping his temper in check. He nearly got himself shot taking liberties in the lair of Venus. His decision to murder Kolossal was not prudent. Kolossal Studios was important as a means of laundering money. Tabby would have been better off getting his money back over time from a living, frightened Kolossal, as the Nightmarish murder set his downfall in motion..In the entertaining Angus story we went to Mysta’s apartment, Kolossal Studios, Warbucks’ jet, Wilcox Downs, the set of The Moon Maid film, and WDQP. I very much like the complex world of Tracyville, as brought to us by the award-winning Team Tracy. Pacing in a serial strip is tricky business. Too fast (with a six week limit), too slow or just right is a tightrope walk, especially with a daily three-panel maximum. Readers’ mileage will vary with taste and patience. That the pace picks up when the heat is on is no surprise. While I agree that a few nits can be picked, count me as an admirer of this latest winning tale from the talented Team Tracy..Hat’s off to Montana Joe for looking out for Police in the cross-hairs.

Thanks to cpalmeresq, Gweedo, Willy007, Neil Wick and JPuzzleWhiz for the kind words. Much appreciated!

I bet there’s a NRA sticker on that glass somewhere.

Montana Joe just invoked an old Texas saying: "He needed killin’ "

Great poetry Pequod! Angus is no more thanks to Montana Joe? And another one bites the dust!

Not so happy now is he? :)

Ten bucks says Montana Joe walks with no reprimand/legal action taken. Seems EVERYONE is pulling Tracy’s proverbial bacon out of the fire these days huh?

Wow! You don’t interrupt Montana Joe’s show!Big ol’ grinning Montana Joe pops the bad guy at long range!Definitely tougher than he looks!

One of the best things about coming to this site each day is reading Pequod77’s contributions. Well done, good sir. Dick Tracy is in my opinion the best daily comic in existence, and your poems and insights enhance my enjoyment of the strip immeasurably. I mean this sincerely. Thank you. And sincere thanks as well to Mike Curtis, Joe Station, and the rest of Team Tracy for their terrific work, and for restoring my love for the best detective strip ever.

Wish Sam and Dick would get their hats back on.

What kind of gun is that supposed to be?

What kind of gun is that supposed to be?

What kind of gun is that supposed to be?

……don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the story, but I still don’t get the big picture of why Tabby would choose such a bizarre escape plan…..riding a horse to a local radio station to steal a vehicle at gunpoint from someone broadcasting on the radio…..guess otherwise he would’ve escaped and no story, lol. Hey, but at least there’s no Nitrate/Kadaver/Ghote ending…..we know HE’S dead! (or will he get up and disappear too like Michael Myers and Jason, ha ha?)

Hmmmm….did I miss it? What happened to Rosato? Just kidnapped or killed off?

Montana Joe: “I’m all in favor of peaceful solutions. Ain’t nothing so peaceful as a dead troublemaker.”

That’s some rootin’ tootin’ shootin’, Montana Joe. Don’t mess with that boy’s friends.

Touchdown Montana!!!!!!

What was even the point of bringing Angus in if he is offed so quickly?

Score one for the gun owners!

Buh bye, Angus, you murderous rascal. I doubt anyone in Tracyworld will mourn your departure, but hey, it was fun having you around for awhile even if we never got to officially meet “M’ Dearie.”Hello Annie! Here’s hoping Mysta gets involved in solving your mystery.

the search for annie in three days and the whole Vera Alldid/Franken-mindy/J Straightedge storyline gets kicked to the back burner

I for one like Tracy better when he’s not so trigger-happy or making spectacular shots (like shooting someone right between the eyes while his hands were tied behind his back).

Looks like a Marlin 30-30. It’s a saddle gun, not suitable for a scope, as it is about as inaccurate as they come. Moreso than an AK-47. It’s best suited in John Wayne’s hands with a bunch of Injuns chasing him, while he is atop a stagecoach.

Looking like Montana Joe is a hero, but I’m not totally convinced thats all of the story…I reserve the right to be skeptical….as for a “sweatbox” ending..Angus had a few beads of perspiration on his brow before the fatal event, just saying

Just blew away my entire comment over a misspelled word..In short, Moon Maid, the film, and J. Straightedge Trustworthy, the CARTOON, are likely “dead fish dead.”.Kollosal Studios has just kollapsed!.But I think – and hope – that JST, the COMIC STRIP, will be with us for quite some time to come, having successfully existed prior to Vera’s unfortunate association with Kollosal Studios..And what a unique vantage point Vera Alldid has!.Most Tracy villains are more popular than Vera. Almost no one in these pages seems to like him. And his strip is already a parody of Dick Tracy..Seems as if Vera is in a unique position of being able to say what no one else would dare!.In time, he may become one of the more interesting characters in this strip..He may even get rich enough to win back his ex-wife….Making room in Junior’s life for his former wife….Thanks for the tomatoes! I’m making spaghetti tonight!.I’m outta here!

Whoa hoh! Montana Joe defending the good guys. I like this!

Although we know that Angus was financing the studio, most movies have more than one investor. The fortunes of the studio and the movie are different. The other investors may decide to let the movie live on.

asked: “Does it have a sight that’s 20-20? =o)”No. Hindsight is 20-20.

Ta Ta Tabby, I won’a miss ye, laddie.