Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for February 08, 2009

Oh wow! The story line is really moving!

Can’t believe Locher actually made forward progress!

Where’s Grokie’s scathing wit?

Let’s not all erupt into spasms of joy. I realize that this seems like a real ground and (TMS)’rule’ breaking Sunday strip. TWO panels of repetition and FIVE of PROGRESS ? How? Just how, could it be done? Whatever happened to those” RIGID, stifling, TMS rules on ‘recapping’ and ‘repetition’? that have been used to “mask” and give a “pass” to an apparent lack of Locher “know-how”. Can Locher now so casually break them without spending an hour with his face in the ‘corner’? In many ways this looks like a ‘polished’ up part of a ‘story board’ presentation, effectively a master synopsis for January/early February. And what’s the purpose of the GUN in the final panel? It wasn’t needed to get the contract signed, just a panel to make the strip seem more threating? Seems rather silly and amateurish, she can’t kill now, Noll must still DO work for Driller. I’m not sure who has been fooling who on the level of “severity” of the TMS controls. but as it relates to “recaps” today every rule was broken. OR … did Locher (blushingly) at the age of 80 (?) eventually discover how everyone else at TMS (Brenda and Annie) and in other strips across the USA did it ? If so, there may still be HOPE for those “hands”.

Asian Dick back in panel 3…

And somehow Tess shed the black jacket she was wearing DURING HER PHONE CALL. She had it on when her “partner” (hmm) Sally called, and now the jacket is gone even though Tess is still holding the phone.

Did Tess lose the ring finger on her right hand? Must have been a painful accident!

Angelatrocious’ bracelets are defying gravity!

Slimedripper’s Textbook tells us not to buy bricks on street corners. Why didn’t I think of that? Pure Genius!!!

Looks like Nubby has some thyroid issues.

Ludwig: I thought they look like bricks too! Wouldn’t want to buy any stolen masonary, that would be terrible, kids!!

OMG Sally! Why did you put that on your skin?

Holy Carp! No boring recap! Yay!!

NEWSFLASH! Sally Noname, longtime friend of Tess Tracy has gone on a killing rampage. Sally was pushed to a life of crime when her face was horribly disfigured in a ridiculous incident involving the crackpot scientist Dr. Noll. Sally blames her former friend Tess Tracy as the cause of her injuries and has sworn a lifelong vendetta against her. Sally has now become the latest Archnemisis of local crimestopper Dick Tracy, husband of Tess. In an interview Tracy warns local populace to avoid caustic perfume and buying bricks on street corners. Says Tracy, “Kids, only buy your masonry from licensed, reputable dealers. And that goes double for your perfumes, girls!”

Oh Mannn Dypak, you just blew the whole next story arc… what they gonna do until 2112 now?

i am delighted to see Angelicious follow proper gun etiquette…. pinky’s up dear, just like holding a teacup

The phone receiver cord has gone from straight yesterday to curly today. This is supposed to be Dick Tracy not the game where one tries to find differences in two seemingly identical pictures. I am glad that we finally see something inside one of the empty canvases in the Tracy house. But how that is supposed to represent a duck is beyond me. Sigh.

I realize some of the readers only get the Sunday panels, so they have to be caught up. Do all the people who get the daily also get the Sunday? Anyone know? Or will the daily readers have to be brought up on the events of the Sunday strip?

fish, you ask a good one. Regardless of the number there WILL be “repeats”! It’s said TMS requires them and it seems Locher likes ‘em too. Less creative work per week with fewer fresh panels. If you get the “lazy” drift. No doubt about it. Estimate. Come back next Saturday to read the start of the next chapter.

Who knows what the Sunday readers see? In my area all the papers refuse to run Tracy, weekday or Sun.

Until she pulled “Roscoe” on Doc, there has been no crime. So now, we have a misdemeanor.

I have a question, I hope it can be answered. It is this: If DL is hampered by TMS rules to the point where an essentially lame and repetitive storyline is all he can produce (though it HAS been much better recently) why is it that no other authors/cartoonists/artists and so on seem to be so affected? Nowhere else do you see a story stall as bad as DT seems to do. Even Alley Oop has been able to get a move on and he’s only using one panel to actually move the story along these past couple of weeks.

Kudos where it’s due department: DL has done a decent job this past week, with the possible exception of the last panel today. The only reason I can figure for that turn of events is that Angelorious is, in fact, a tool of the Devil. Check Pibgorn and see if they’re short a demon over there.

I’m forewarned! Never again will I buy a hot dog or pretzel from a sidewalk vendor. Angelglorioski’s left hand looks like it might be in proportion, her right looks like a talon. Her face today reminds me of the villianous host of the Kung Fu tournament in “Enter the Dragon.”

You know if you look at the 1st panel just the right way, it looks like the house is about to be gobbled up by a giant mouth or wave.

DYPAK - That was great stuff dude.