Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for January 11, 2021

Good morning™, damage controllers!

Well, maybe Pouch really didn’t know about the park curfew. Apparently, he was planning to wait another hour for his customer. That gives Tiger Lilly a deadline. Looks like maybe Aquarius has headed off towards the skating rink. Go get him, Tiger! (By the way, it’s finally settled that information was what was in the balloon, in case there was still any doubt.)

Good morning™, panicked damage controllers !

I better get paid extra for this !

Are we about to see the ending of the age of Aquarius?

With apologies to Mr. Roy Orbison:

Feel so bad I got a worried mind. This is awful don’t have much time. Gotta chase him stay close behind… my blue balloon.

In a pickle it’s a crime. His twenty dollars ain’t worth a dime. Can’t let that scumbag take what’s mine… my blue balloon.

Go get it back right now, don’t care how… my blue balloon.

You could take a take a gun, that’d work so fine… my blue balloon.

Or by the fishing boat, you could slit his throat. Now that, I’d like, to see… A wire necktie, with big bulging eyes, how happy I’d be.

For the first time it looks like Pouch is in deep trouble….and I think Aquarius’ time on this earth is slowly ticking away…..

Anyone want to bet on that blue balloon sailing off into the sky?

From the looks of it, any hints of a reformed Pouch have been popped like a balloon!

Cue the “Benny Hill” theme as Aquarius and Tiger Lily zig-zag through the snow

Some problem with the sunday page, yesterday?

I’m kind of trying to figure what this whole story is about……seems to be going off in all directions…….

‘Leaven’ in my big blue balloon" Sorry Sinatra and Hazelwood!

Up, Up and away….in my Blue Balloon!!!

at this point the cops would have made sure every one moves on from the closed park. so once more the writers can’t even be internally consistent.

I’m not sure blue was the best colour choice for hiding things in. Lots of kids love the colour blue and would ask for it.

I guess we now know that pouch’s balloon business isnt what it seems to be….y’think sammy boy has any idea?

This may be one time Pouch won’t object too much about Tiger’s deadly chiropractic skills.

It was easy to figure out which balloon had the information. It had that floating label that said “Blue”.

I don’t want to say this story line is confusing….but it’s confusing?

1-MEL T. FACE: Raise your right hand. Do you swear to NEVER tell the truth, the whole truth, so help you, insert deity here ? FRENCHY: I do. MEL: OK. I trust you.

2-MEL: I gotta get my balloons back or else I’ll have to blow up more for tomorrow. Follow me. FRENCHY: RIGHT!

3-MEL: I SAID FOLLOW ME AND YOU HEAD OFF IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION!

FRENCHY: Ummm, I thought you meant, like, in a spiritual sense.

MEL: LOOK! Tracks in the snow!

FRENCHY: I read that. By Peter Dragon, right?

MEL: NO YOU IDIOT! THE GUY WITH MY BALLOONS!

FRENCHY: I was certain Peter Dragon wrote that… MEL: JUST FOLLOW ME…

I hope this is the last day in the park.

Todays script is kind of weird , I think . Panel three is strange to me because of the prints in the snow . Anyway as always great images . And what job ?

Back to the commune goes the hippie buffoon with his inopportune balloon (pursued by a goon)!

Information for a job in a blue balloon…who does that? Pouch and Tiger Lily…they work for a counter intelligence unit? If the contents are so valuable, let the “customer” go after Aquarius. Customer: “This is on you Pouch…fix it”! Pouch: "Okay, okay, make sure to have my fee when the “product” is returned. Later on Pouch reflects " I’m going to have my method of operation, this balloons in the park business…sucks.

Hope Tiger Lily doesn’t get a whiff of Cheesecake’s cooking if he has to pursue Aquarius to the house. Then on second thought Auntie Bellum could take a liking to him. Probably hasn’t been seen so far due to chronic loneliness.

I’m trying to find the Dick Tracy comic strip. Anybody know what happened to it?

Should have surreptitiously popped the blue balloon before handing the bunch off. Oops!

I feel another neck-snapping coming on!

The Tiger is stalking his prey! The Hippie has the balloon! Will the hippie get back to his commune-mansion and the helpful muscle of Ty in time to discourage the Tiger? It looks like someone here is destined to buy the farm, but who?

So, the blue balloon is like Craig’s List?