Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for January 21, 2011

Locher’s been watching too much gay porn.

With their usual subtlety, Locher and his inker leave the reader with the impression that a certain unpleasant tension exists between Thick and Morbid.

In panel #2, is Morbid climbing the stairs ahead of Thick? Or, given the striking resemblance of that black shape to hooves and a tail, is Satan leading Thick to perdition?

Flight Suit, this arc’s latent homosexuality and Morbid’s quote-laugh-unquote reminds me of the Fat Freddy’s Cat cartoon in which the Cat daydreams that he’s a secret agent. His mission: to locate the source of the sinister drug Tee Hee Hee, which turns straight people gay. Maybe Locher is ripping off Gilbert Shelton.

I still wonder how they can see what they are doing when there is no electricity.

The old granary still has bags of grain under the stairs. So at least they won’t starve.

Bill, I remember that Freak Brothers issue!

Is it me or is Tracys language horribly off? ‘A big hate’? I understand what hes saying but it just doesnt sound right. Maybe he meant something like ‘a lot of hatred’, but that wouldnt work with him having such a big mouth. It could work though right?

’Not only do you have a lot of hatred, you also have a lot of mouth?’

Is that any better? The strip has to be bad if Im trying to fix the English in it. Why is it taking them so long to go upstairs? I thought the water was rising rapidly. What is Mordred laughing at? Why wont he let anyone in on the joke? When will something actually happen here?

Hey fellow Posters -

Do any of you live in the Sun Belt.

Please send us some warm weather.

Internationals Falls, MN aka “The nation’s Icebox”

is going to be around 43 below zero overnight.

(not counting the windchill factor)

Another prediction: When Curtis and Staton take over, we’ll see Dick and Tess in bed.

Dick: “Tess, I just had the strangest dream … ”

Tess: “Oh, Dick, you say that every time they rerun the final episode of Bob Newhart!”

Did anyone else see Locher’s original editorial cartoon on 31 October? The one where he showed Uncle Sam as a bound criminal being dragged to his hanging? This arc is starting to look like that.

We’ve got Mordred the convicted killer, his arms bound, being led upstairs in a rickety structure. He’s even wearing a hood, as is traditional for hangings. What are the odds that he will somehow, ironically, end up being hanged by his own chains as he attempts to escape?

This is reminding me of Logan’s Run where the logic was in order to remain warm during a blizzard, you should remove all your clothes and put on some skimpy underwear.

Bill, I’m going to remember that you called it if that’s what winds up actually happening!

“Big hate’? Is that code for something else???

Bill T:

CLANG! HONK! TWEET! ;)

Ah, good ol’ F. Frederick Skitty…

If Mordred’s laugh ever goes “Tee Hee Hee,” we’ll know which drug he’s on!

Thanks, Flight Suit. The more I think about it, the more this arc looks like a set-up for a hanging. There’s the incessant, overstated chatter about Mordred’s evil; it sounds like a prosecutor trying to sell a court on a death-penalty conviction. Then there’s the bizarre way that Thick and Mordred wind up alone in the granary (which is the only building in the area, and tall enough for a proper hanging.)

If I’ve guessed right, we’ll see the hanging around mid-February. That way we’ll have one week left for the other cops to show up and absolve Thick of blame (“Ironically, Mordred sentenced himself to hang.”), two weeks of bad jokes and one week of Locher patting himself on the back as he retires.

@Safeway… I live in the South (Memphis), where our winters are generally much milder. Let me see what I can do for you… whoops, it’s 14 degrees this morning. Sorry!

This drivel just gets worse and worse. You guys think if we took up a collection we could get Joe and Mike to start earlier?

Is it March yet?

PLEASE don’t tell me this is how Locher gets Mordred out of his chains. Tracy sets him free so his clothes can dry?!?

Didnt Tracy set him free to help him get out of the car after his ‘power approach’? Im still wondering when and how he got those chains back on Mordred. Not only do I doubt Tracy would chain him up properly but I also doubt that Mordred would even let him.

And you not only have a big mouth, you’ve got a big nose too! Nyaa nyaaaaaaaa! And your butt is fat! And you were born to hang! And your mama dresses you funny!

Oh noes, I just wrote two weeks of Tracy’s word balloons for Locher….

-Cougar :{)

barticle35 said, about 8 hours ago

The old granary still has bags of grain under the stairs. So at least they won’t starve.

—————————————————————————– They can’t eat the grain as it is wet from the rising waters. I would think that after all these years that it would be filled with mites. ————————————————— neonleon59 If you are cold you could come to Boston to warm up as it is 32 degrees and snowing. ————————————— Why does Mordread have water on hi head and face?

I still can’t figure his “moving parts mask” out. Should I keep wasting my time?

Mordred’s death by hanging on his own chains could be a unique and deserved ending.

When the red sweater kid had up his ‘Protective shield and his Praetorian Guard uniform on (he had visited Locher’s studio twice), back then (in the ‘know’), he used to boast that Locher kept his finished work 17 weeks ahead of ‘publication’ date.

If that gap still applies the ending is already done. Jim Brozman is just there inking in the daily strips for the week to March 12th. It’s already ’all over’ in the world of finished art. BillT’s great ending idea on hanging on his chains has probably missed the boat.

Glad to see Matty’s now PULLING the waggon instead of riding to Naperville in it …

There he IS yesterday (bold at last), on arrival’ advising Author/Artist Hick O’Locher what to do with his ‘REPETETIVE’ scripts

http://www.gocomics.com/dicklocher/2011/01/20/

Then, see the last tip of the hat by the ghost of Doc Mike Kilian to GENIUS patient O’Locher on his unfinished Mr. Oily (Jan. 2006) story

http://www.gocomics.com/dicklocher/2011/01/19/

Spoiler warning: I’ve looked ahead one week. Same old thing. Talk, talk, talk. Same talk over the last three weeks. Seems it will be that way till March.

You’re probably right, Sydney Phillips. Locher’s last arc was so off-the-wall that he’s unpredictable. The elements are all there for a death by “accidental” hanging, but who knows? We could see:

“And then he suddenly died from hemochromatosis, induced by the iron in his chains. Such an ironic death for a doctor who specialized in anemia!”

“He was about to kill Thick when the Earth’s magnetic field suddenly reversed its polarity, magnetically dragging him by his chains out the window. Such an ironic death for a man with a PhD in geomagnetics!”

“Just as he swung his chain, a bolt of lightning penetrated a broken window and struck the metal. Can you think of a more ironic death for a one-time professor of meteorology?”

Accidental hanging seems the most obvious choice, given Locher’s limited imagination. But I’m sure the chains will figure in the end, if only to give Thick a chance to make iron-ic comments.

I still think they’re trying to turn this into a buddy comedy.

froggy has the look of love…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a28kY1-s-Vc&feature=fvw

Klypzyxm - Mike Curtis and Joe Staton,

Will you be finishing your current storyline in Major Crime Squad?

Nothing gets my day started like a couple cups of black coffee and some cocaine Flaky biscuits! Thanks!

It’s -20F here in Iowa - shiver.

Oh and wndrwrthg, I didn’t know you could write positive stuff (not that you’d have any reason to until yesterday).

GREAT JOB, summing it up for all of us!

Just curious as to whether International Falls is anywhere near Frostbite Falls.

Couldn’t let the day pass wndrwrthg, without putting on record my ” appreciation ” of yesterday’s comemtary in verse on Dick Locher’s pending departure.

It was a classic !

And I’ve taken trhe liberty of copy pasting it for sharing on the D.T.Yahoo board. Hope you don’t mind.

MZDAD - International Falls is Frosbite Falls.

Wikipedia says:

Frostbite Falls, Minnesota is a fictional small town seen on the American animated series Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show. It is located in the (real world) location of Koochiching County in Minnesota.

Frostbite Falls is the home of Rocket J. Squirrel, better known as “Rocky,” and his pal Bullwinkle J. Moose. The two are the town’s most famous residents.

Frostbite Falls’s population fluctuated over the course of the original series, ranging from 23 to several thousand residents. Frostbite Falls was also noted as having many more television sets than residents, thanks to the stature of Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Frostbite Falls has a movie theater, a church, and a pet store (all in the same building). It also features at least two newspapers, the Frostbite Falls Far-Flung Flyer and the Picayune-Intelligence, the latter which ran an ill-fated contest with the grand prize being an old-fashioned car. The town’s sole high school is Frostbite Falls High School. There is also a college, Wossamotta U., which Bullwinkle attended.

Natural features and landmarks near Frostbite Falls included Veronica Lake and (presumably) Moosylvania, an island of which Bullwinkle was the “governor.”

Travel to and from Frostbite Falls was depicted as a less-than-convenient affair. Only one road led into and out of the town, and train travel to and from the town was not particularly timely.

Frostbite Falls is most likely a parody of the real-life small town of International Falls, Minnesota (which is located in Koochiching County). International Falls is the coldest city (average temperature) in the contiguous United States

Seeking to satisfy their hunger They may have made a tragic blunder Of the grain they did partake Now their minds they may bake On the grain a fungus did grow Called ergot, just so you know Their brains have now been affected Reality has been disconnected Mordred’s face and the walls do melt Such feelings he has never felt He starts to laugh and to trip About his future he gives not a rip Tracy soon will follow suit This story could be a hoot Tripping in the old grist mill Small things give them a thrill Pretty colors, astounding shapes Soon out the window they will traipse They hear things they cannot see Experiences denied to you and me The Blue Boy was once like this From Sgt. Friday, he was dissed If you go tripping without a sitter You may wind up on a litter So when ingesting spoiled grain Be careful you don’t fry your brain. Than you, Sydney, tsouthworth, woodworker318, marvee, neonleon59 and Nvash.

“And get out of these wet chains, ha hee!” And into a dry martini.

Thats a nice twist there wndrwrthg, surely its better than this drivel but I seriously doubt Locher would go anywhere near that plot.

Brilliant, Wonder Warthog!

Bill Thompson and WNDRWRTHG, Great alternate endings and much more interesting than what we’ll end up with. But at least there is an end in sight and something to look forward to. )I just can’t avoid those preporsitions.)

To BASSMANBOB6, Bill Thompson and WW Thanks to your poetry, songs and stories you brighten our days as we read the awful excuse of a story. THANK YOU, ONE AND ALL

To BASSMANBOB6, Bill Thompson and WW Thanks to your poetry, songs and stories you brighten our days as we read the awful excuse of a story. THANK YOU, ONE AND ALL

woodworker318 said, To BASSMANBOB6, Bill Thompson and WW Thanks to your poetry, songs and stories you brighten our days as we read the awful excuse of a story. THANK YOU, ONE AND ALL

I second that emotion!

BASSMANBOB6, that was excellent.

Bill Thompson, while that is an interesting theory to how it will end I have one real problem with it. Weve been told how evil Mordred is for how long now? But what did he do? Why would I celebrate his death when he is hanged by his own chains? All I see here is a man who doesnt know when to shut up and finds many things to be hysterical. That isnt illegal last time I checked, but, this is Lochers world. Might just be. This isnt a complaint with you, I like your ending, its more a complaint with the strip. All this time and still, why should I fear for Tracy? The storm is the only reason, Mordred is all bark and no bite.

Maybe hell pull off something towards the end thats supposed to make everyone hate him, much like the $1,000 bill escapade.

BASSMANBOB6, your series is a pleasure to read.

NVash, all we know about Dr. Mordred is that he is a serial killer, he has been convicted of killing eleven people, and he is the most hated man in the country. Exactly why he is the most hated man is not known. Locher never gave any details of his crimes, so we don’t know how he stacks up against Ted Bundy, or the BTK killer, or John Wayne Gacy. We know that he hasn’t been sentenced for his crimes; Thick was supposed to take him to Nappingville for his sentencing.

It’s just my hunch that this arc is Locher’s way of agitating for the death penalty; Mordred will accidentally hang himself and the police will say it is a good thing. I expect we’ll have a week of almost-action when Mordred gets loose and struggles with Thick, then slips on a banana peel and hangs himself.

But I kept waiting for the D’imwitted arc would make sense, too.

Safeway and DT’ers: I was a card-carrying member of the Bullwinkle Fan Club, Chowder Marching and Moose Watching Society in 1960. In an amazing coincidence, I just found an article in TODAY’S Oregonian about Rocky & Bullwinkle: http://www.oregonlive.com/movies/index.ssf/2011/01/poptalkanecdotalevidencero.html

I googled it, I’m from Louisville, where the temperature is currently 10 above zero, before wind chill.