For those not familiar with the term, Occam’s razor, you can take a quick look at the Wikipedia article:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor
The thing I admired most about this sequence was that many readers actually were are to figure out who was guilty on the material presented and I think that the previous four Minute Mysteries all failed that basic goal. Maybe the solution was too obvious but that’s exactly why it’s titled “The Occam’s Razor case.” I have noticed that readers have often tried to make other recent Dick Tracy stories more complicated than they really were. It’s usually pretty simple.
I have been disappointed to some degree with all the Minit Mysteries to date. I think this one hit a lot of good notes. If I get time, I might write more later, but I’m pretty satisfied with this one overall.
Thanks to Jim for putting up with some of the negative comments and feeding us lots of interesting background material in the comments. It’s always a treat to interact with the writers and artists, and I think they also appreciate being able to interact with the readers.
(3) Sunday’s, (12) dailies & a cast of (16) discounting Tracy & Pat: >Patrick Culhane>Austin Black>Osborne Yollman>Big Boy>Sal Famoni>Waite Wright>Jim Herrod>"Muscle" Famon>"Cut" Famon>"Bail" Gordon a.k.a. Jim Trailer>Alberto Famoni>Albert Famoni’s 3nd wife>Office Adrienne Hart>Drew Hart>Revell Oswald Lucian>Father Waldemar
ALSO group references to The Outfit & People’s Freedom Front.
My point— WHY? Some of the above names are throw-away references ie. book cover w/ Yollman’s name, the priest overseeing the slain officer’s service. Yet all specific names in a “mystery” are potential suspects. But how many had a pay-off? Did I really need to know why Famoni was truncated as Famon? Did we need co-authors for all this history? Was the historical infodump in Week #1 merely red herring bait? Nothing about Tracy’s book or The Outfit having anything to do w/ the actual murder & suspect? The reader slogged through all those character dumps for what reason?
I do find it odd that the actual killer isn’t specifically ID’ed by 1st name until the penultimate panel today. All those above names & yet the prime plot instigator is merely referenced as Officer Hart’s husband until late in the game.
The Suburban Slasher is referenced as a serial killer (5/3) but is that the same thing as a hitman who doesn’t mind targeting copy? (5/6)And why Suburban? Does Lucian only bump off small town cops? Who pays him for that? Is that an actual line of business for a contract killer?
Why does it take a professional hitman six shots at point-blank range, pulled alongside the victim? (5/4)
What was the point of making Officer Hart African-American? (5/4) The interracial marriage angle never seemed to be an issue re. motive. Or was this depending on what internet source colorist I read the day Office Hart was intro’ed…& immediately killed?
Why would a sole police officer on the midnight shift NOT notice a car pull alongside her vehicle? (5/4) Her paperwork was that absorbing?
More specifics that had no pay-off. A pair of California references that ultimately had no connection to each other, or the murder plot— 1) “Cut” Famon released from Federal prison in CA (5/1) & 2) a half-dozen PFF killed in southern CA police shoot-out (5/5)
“We ignored a few legal niceties…” (5/9) CONGRATULATIONS! YOU JUST PROVED WENDY WICHEL RIGHT ALL THESE YEARS! TRACY’S ABOVE THE LAW & NOT ACCOUNTABLE! (I haven’t ready anything earlier than Boris Arson story but if this was how Gould depicted Tracy in the 30’s strips…well, I’m glad he changed that angle. Yech.)
Lucian has “sixth sense” (or tipped-off by his employer) & yet he charges out front door to confront Tracy (5/8) & then immediately thereafter three? four? five? (Pat?) more cops who immediately open fire on him? (5/9) Wow. Spectacularly dumb tactics for a professional killer.
And lastly, you can reference James M. Cain & Occam’s Razor all your want but all Tracy’s loosey-goosey speculations today (5/12) are just that— speculations, not cold hard evidence.
Two weeks of mostly background information, flashing back between 1930’s and sometime in the recent past (I think), yet trying to tie the two timelines together (and failing miserably I might add) throw in a HIGHLY unlikely mixed race marriage in the 30’s era PLUS a black woman police officer, a RIDICULOUS explanation for “manufactured tears” (who would INTENTIONALLY hit themselves directly in the face with pepper spray?!? seriously! and to “add it to food for an extra kick” is ludicrous) this story spent WAAAAAAAY too much time with useless background information to the point where it overshadowed the ENTIRE “mystery” itself. Also, the husband’s hairstyle is TOTALLY out of place for a story supposedly set in the 30’s
I’d give this story an “E” for effort but that’s about it
By the way.. did the weeks of useless background information EVER mention that Adrienne liked spicy foods at all? or is that just something that got thrown in at the end to wrap up the story?
Dicko, you can reference (incorrectly BTW) James Cain all you want, but believe me this two week interlude was by no stretch a Double Indemnity or for that matter The Postman Always Rings twice clone. Two classic films. Not a classic MM. Move on.
I thought it was a nice change. Two weeks was plenty of time to roll a story out, we got to see lots of Tracy history, the clues actually made sense and the art was great. Well done.
Well,the Occam’s Razor principle is NOT that the simplest solution is correct. Rather, the principle enjoins us to use the simplest model that is consistent with all the evidence as our explanation. But more evidence may invalidate that prior choice. That’s why we’ve moved beyond to OR to notions like falsifiability. We don’t assume the ‘simplest’ explanation is true, we assign likelihoods to competing explanations and rule out explanations that are contradicted by evidence.
In any case, OR’s original statement (something about not needlessly multiplying causes) is imprecise and it’s interpretation has varied, is debatable, and is often misused by people who think they have a played a trump card by pulling out OR. What does ‘simplest’ mean, anyway?
Pequod almost 5 years ago
What’s that you say?
Hot pepper spray!
Dick Tracy solves the case.
Crocodile tears
Now all Hart’s years
Confined in a small space.
This mystery
Is history
Guest writer take a bow.
Young Dick and Pat
Arrest the rat
Slap cuffs on him right now.
AnyFace almost 5 years ago
HarryCK almost 5 years ago
Good morning™, Wilkinson Sword solvers !
A close shave that left Hart pretty nicked up !
22ph almost 5 years ago
The cook did it!
avenger09 almost 5 years ago
Wishing Tess and all the other moms a happy, safe and blessed Mothers Day.
Neil Wick almost 5 years ago
Good morning™, razor-sharp readers!
For those not familiar with the term, Occam’s razor, you can take a quick look at the Wikipedia article:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor
The thing I admired most about this sequence was that many readers actually were are to figure out who was guilty on the material presented and I think that the previous four Minute Mysteries all failed that basic goal. Maybe the solution was too obvious but that’s exactly why it’s titled “The Occam’s Razor case.” I have noticed that readers have often tried to make other recent Dick Tracy stories more complicated than they really were. It’s usually pretty simple.
I have been disappointed to some degree with all the Minit Mysteries to date. I think this one hit a lot of good notes. If I get time, I might write more later, but I’m pretty satisfied with this one overall.
Thanks to Jim for putting up with some of the negative comments and feeding us lots of interesting background material in the comments. It’s always a treat to interact with the writers and artists, and I think they also appreciate being able to interact with the readers.
Counterpoint almost 5 years ago
Occam’s Razor = KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid)
Constantine500 almost 5 years ago
(3) Sunday’s, (12) dailies & a cast of (16) discounting Tracy & Pat: >Patrick Culhane>Austin Black>Osborne Yollman>Big Boy>Sal Famoni>Waite Wright>Jim Herrod>"Muscle" Famon>"Cut" Famon>"Bail" Gordon a.k.a. Jim Trailer>Alberto Famoni>Albert Famoni’s 3nd wife>Office Adrienne Hart>Drew Hart>Revell Oswald Lucian>Father Waldemar
ALSO group references to The Outfit & People’s Freedom Front.
My point— WHY? Some of the above names are throw-away references ie. book cover w/ Yollman’s name, the priest overseeing the slain officer’s service. Yet all specific names in a “mystery” are potential suspects. But how many had a pay-off? Did I really need to know why Famoni was truncated as Famon? Did we need co-authors for all this history? Was the historical infodump in Week #1 merely red herring bait? Nothing about Tracy’s book or The Outfit having anything to do w/ the actual murder & suspect? The reader slogged through all those character dumps for what reason?
I do find it odd that the actual killer isn’t specifically ID’ed by 1st name until the penultimate panel today. All those above names & yet the prime plot instigator is merely referenced as Officer Hart’s husband until late in the game.
Constantine500 almost 5 years ago
More thoughts:
The Suburban Slasher is referenced as a serial killer (5/3) but is that the same thing as a hitman who doesn’t mind targeting copy? (5/6)And why Suburban? Does Lucian only bump off small town cops? Who pays him for that? Is that an actual line of business for a contract killer?
Why does it take a professional hitman six shots at point-blank range, pulled alongside the victim? (5/4)
What was the point of making Officer Hart African-American? (5/4) The interracial marriage angle never seemed to be an issue re. motive. Or was this depending on what internet source colorist I read the day Office Hart was intro’ed…& immediately killed?
Why would a sole police officer on the midnight shift NOT notice a car pull alongside her vehicle? (5/4) Her paperwork was that absorbing?
More specifics that had no pay-off. A pair of California references that ultimately had no connection to each other, or the murder plot— 1) “Cut” Famon released from Federal prison in CA (5/1) & 2) a half-dozen PFF killed in southern CA police shoot-out (5/5)
“We ignored a few legal niceties…” (5/9) CONGRATULATIONS! YOU JUST PROVED WENDY WICHEL RIGHT ALL THESE YEARS! TRACY’S ABOVE THE LAW & NOT ACCOUNTABLE! (I haven’t ready anything earlier than Boris Arson story but if this was how Gould depicted Tracy in the 30’s strips…well, I’m glad he changed that angle. Yech.)
Lucian has “sixth sense” (or tipped-off by his employer) & yet he charges out front door to confront Tracy (5/8) & then immediately thereafter three? four? five? (Pat?) more cops who immediately open fire on him? (5/9) Wow. Spectacularly dumb tactics for a professional killer.
And lastly, you can reference James M. Cain & Occam’s Razor all your want but all Tracy’s loosey-goosey speculations today (5/12) are just that— speculations, not cold hard evidence.
pschearer Premium Member almost 5 years ago
I wonder how many innocent people are in prison because someone took Occam’s Razor seriously.
DaJellyBelly almost 5 years ago
The overkill was because he hated cops !!!
DaJellyBelly almost 5 years ago
Early in the story seeing the pepper spray can. Piqued my interests! ;-)
iggyman almost 5 years ago
No surprise here, Folks! I enjoyed the story and the artwork!
iggyman almost 5 years ago
No surprise here, folks! I enjoyed the story and loved the artwork!
crobinson019 almost 5 years ago
Less than satisfying; but true in most parts. And a little better than some previous Minnit Mysteries
upanddown17 almost 5 years ago
I wonder if this is the Dick Tracy who appeared on "What’s My Line’ in the early ’70’s.
Lyons Group, Inc. almost 5 years ago
And that closes the case of another Minit Mystery for now.
JD_Rhoades almost 5 years ago
Nice shout out to the great James M. Cain.
MJ Premium Member almost 5 years ago
I wonder if “extreme seasoning” is an actual cooking term. I like it either way.
tsull2121 almost 5 years ago
Two weeks of mostly background information, flashing back between 1930’s and sometime in the recent past (I think), yet trying to tie the two timelines together (and failing miserably I might add) throw in a HIGHLY unlikely mixed race marriage in the 30’s era PLUS a black woman police officer, a RIDICULOUS explanation for “manufactured tears” (who would INTENTIONALLY hit themselves directly in the face with pepper spray?!? seriously! and to “add it to food for an extra kick” is ludicrous) this story spent WAAAAAAAY too much time with useless background information to the point where it overshadowed the ENTIRE “mystery” itself. Also, the husband’s hairstyle is TOTALLY out of place for a story supposedly set in the 30’s
I’d give this story an “E” for effort but that’s about it
tsull2121 almost 5 years ago
By the way.. did the weeks of useless background information EVER mention that Adrienne liked spicy foods at all? or is that just something that got thrown in at the end to wrap up the story?
Cheapskate0 almost 5 years ago
Occam’s Razor – as summarized by someone else on Prickly City: To every complicated problem, there’s always a simple solution.
That is usually wrong!
In fact, in my life, the simple answer is usually either wrong, unattainable, or both!
Drbarb71 Premium Member almost 5 years ago
Thank you for the story about the real Dick Tracy! He indeed did the name proud.
buckman-j almost 5 years ago
Dicko, you can reference (incorrectly BTW) James Cain all you want, but believe me this two week interlude was by no stretch a Double Indemnity or for that matter The Postman Always Rings twice clone. Two classic films. Not a classic MM. Move on.
David Rickard Premium Member almost 5 years ago
Somewhere, Phyllis Dietrichson is thinking: Triple indemnity? Damn—I should have shopped around …
jdb5169 almost 5 years ago
It’s ’’OCKHAM’S RAZOR’’…NOT ’’OCCAM’S!’’
Sisyphos almost 5 years ago
Tracy saves the day! And when he writes, or sells, his memoirs (“The Case Book of Richard Tracy”), the Ockham’s Razor Case will stand tall among them!
Sky_Shachaq almost 5 years ago
The Minit Mysteries should be released in book form.
Durak Premium Member almost 5 years ago
I thought it was a nice change. Two weeks was plenty of time to roll a story out, we got to see lots of Tracy history, the clues actually made sense and the art was great. Well done.
AmuRegression almost 5 years ago
Well,the Occam’s Razor principle is NOT that the simplest solution is correct. Rather, the principle enjoins us to use the simplest model that is consistent with all the evidence as our explanation. But more evidence may invalidate that prior choice. That’s why we’ve moved beyond to OR to notions like falsifiability. We don’t assume the ‘simplest’ explanation is true, we assign likelihoods to competing explanations and rule out explanations that are contradicted by evidence.
In any case, OR’s original statement (something about not needlessly multiplying causes) is imprecise and it’s interpretation has varied, is debatable, and is often misused by people who think they have a played a trump card by pulling out OR. What does ‘simplest’ mean, anyway?