Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for May 14, 2009

A mighty swing, and he totally miffs it. Is Tracy smoothing OEJ’s moustache in panel 2? That kick in panel 3 is just sad…

THE ACTION! THE DIALOGUE! THE PLOT! When will they improve?

Probably no. Ya know I can remember when this strip was actually good. But then again I remember when TV’s had knobs, telephones had dials, SNL was funny, dang I’m old.

Tomorrow finds the evil OEJ battling Donatello, Michaelangelo, Rafael and Leonardo, otherwise known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Grokenstien took pretty much every thing I had to say; so I guess I must state that today’s Tracy has left me just SPEECHLESS (other than I cannot contain ” giggle, giggle, tee heee snerkkk snerkkk. ” oh Man!!! this is really unbeleivable.

“He Yi”??????

Tracy and Jackie look nothing like themselves in the first panel.

I’m a tad confused by the last panel, I suppose it is supposed to be some form of Kung Fu … he didn’t just break into a Russian folk dance, right???

Ooooooooookay…

But, man, can they talk dat trash!

I really thought this strip was going to improve after a few teases. The art was getting better, and the villian was “OK” considering the previous stories. Then it goes south again. I am confused why the strip is so out of control. For example, what ever happened to the credit card/bank statements that had Tess all worried about earlier in the story? It don’t seem to fit anymore unless I am missing something.

“HE YI” ,,. WOW ! “Kung Fu” !! Look at the height of that vertical leap, almost to the top of the Roulette table! Brine has it right, styled just like a “Russian Folk Dance” Another example of “sound and fury”, a modern day substitution for what passes for substance, danger and action. Someone must have told Locher that he got “high marks” for that fight on the Casino Patio with the Queen of “Diamonds” (2007), and now he’s trying to replicate it here all over again … he just changed the suit to “Spades”.

But it’s “Spring” and I give him (and Brozman), an A+ for the unusual spring in Jack’s hips, as I do for Tracy “coat”. Both so fashionably in sync for this time of year! Interestingly, the coat we see in panel one, changed seasons magically between Sundays 4-26 and 5-03. But as we know, that’s all par for the course these days.

OEJ will be like Hong Kong Fooey, but without Sputz and “dumb chance” to help him–and get royally clobbered!

In panel 1, Tracy and Jack will be played by a Frenchman in a raincoat and a large trained monkey, respectively. Panel 3 was drawn by an African tribesman trying to simultaneously bring to mind Bruce Lee and Russian folk dancing. It’s a multicultural extravaganza!

Panel 2 would have been salvageable if some motion lines had just been added to the rake thing to make it clear that One-Eye was dodging. Also, the dialogue. Seriously. ANYBODY with a high school diploma (even an American one) can do better than that.

This time he changed his dashiki and his undershirt.

Panel 2: No Tracy, a little lower and to the left. Ahh, that’s it!

panel 3: OEJ finally explained the scheme. Unfortunately, he chose to explain it in Apache. (HE YI).

That sound you heard was Bruce Lee rolling over in his grave. Someone send this strip to Chuck Norris, he’ll straighten these guys out. Ah so, grasshopper

What happened to the roulette wheel? It was in his hand in panel 1 … it’s gone! :O

Sing along with Cyndi Lauper: HE YI, she yi, we yi, they yi … http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuGSx-2UGjo -Cougar :{)

brine says:

I’m a tad confused by the last panel, I suppose it is supposed to be some form of Kung Fu … he didn’t just break into a Russian folk dance, right???

Someone bring out Laura’s bellalaka!