Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for January 17, 2020

Good morning™, lurkers!

You’ll have to come out from behind that mask eventually!

Good morning™, happy hostage scammers !

Like the shadowing on Dick and Sam’s face in P.2. It’s a great day to be a Robo ! :-)

Something in Tracy’s mind… Where did I hear that voice before?

Gee. How nice and convenient. When the people in the bank tell the cops that one of the crooks went out unmasked as hostage, it will easy for em cops to track em crooks down.

I don’t suppose anyone will call from the bank and say “He’s not a hostage”?

It’ll be awhile before that place re-opens…..all the broken glass not to mention it’s riddled with bullets.

Speaking of which….those cop cars ought to look like Swiss Cheese after all the shooting Mr. Roboto and his gang did.

And the snow continues to fall!

For some reason, the hostage scene in “Blazing Saddles” comes to mind… :D

Wondering if Roboto’s mask is bulletproof…

“And thank you very much Mr. Roboto For helping me escape When I needed to”

What kind of modern police action is this? No vests, and/or helmets. No mobile communications van. No SWAT. Tracyville PD insurance costs must be as high as a a politicians campaign fund.

Man, I hope y’all got clearance from the DeYoungs for all this… or that, at least, they’re huge DT fans.

At least follow them with a Police copter!!!

Why don’t ALL crooks pretend an accomplice is a hostage?

The art is still fine but the stories are approaching Locherian levels of inanity.

be nice if the blond we noticed yesterday could call out that the ‘hostage’ is a part of the gang. the crooks are clear of the bank and so are exposed to gun fire.

and needless to say again we have tracy violating police policy. they are not going to let them walk out with a hostage.

As far as anyone knows so far, this Roboto is a new crook in Tracyville, right? The dialog at HQ seemed to indicate that the cops were just becoming aware of him as he made his first robberies. Yet, Roboto has been acting as if there is something personal between him and Tracy – calling him by name more than once, and addressing him personally. A new crook in a big city wouldn’t ordinarily know the name of the Chief of Detectives, no matter how famous he might be. My guess is that there will be a “big reveal” when the mask finally comes off, and it’ll be someone we know.

The idiocy in this story is amazing. The villain walks casually thru the police gathering with a gun to one of his henchmen’s heads, while carrying on a conversation with tracy… yet there’s NUMEROUS officers behind him who could get off a shot and wound him… ending his threat

Clybourne lookalike “hostage” is a pretty good actor…

Leaving the Postal Clerk to fumble with the buttons on her blouse, Kabuki puts his escape plan into action…

1-KABUKI: I’m coming out with a hostage. Go ahead and shoot. See if I care coppers! KNUCKLES: Wait a minute boss… KABUCKI: SHADDAP!

2-DT: Do you know that hostage Barney? Maybe Kabuki is running the ol’ fake hostage gambit.

3-BARNEY: Well now he could be Gomer’s big city cousin from Mt. Pilot visiting to get in a little fishing. I heard he just got into town yesterday. Now he might be stayin’ at the Mayberry Hotel on Main or he might be staying with Gomer but I wouldn’t recommend that. Word around town is that Gomer is a little ‘funny’ if you know what I mean. Not that Mayberry folk would hold that against…

DT: Never mind. They’re already gone. PICK UP YOUR BRASS BOYS. BARNEY: Well, aren’t you going to follow them? DT: Huh?

“Good thinking, Boss!”

“SHHHHH!”

The Good: Great, colorful art..the Bad:..More plot holes than Swiss Cheese. And BTW..Is that guy Clybourne, out on bail?

This robbery has put Mr. Roboto’s mettle — and metal — to the test.

These days, the police err on the side of public safety. This is why many American cities have effectively banned high speed police chases within city limits. Too much danger to the citizenry. Even though the bad guys escape, they are often caught anyway because helicopters, street cameras and even satellite technology help the police to find them. This is why I have no problem with Tracy letting Roboto go. It’s entirely believable he would do that in the era in which we live.

He could hope Mr. Roboto falls for the “Look out for that truck!” line. (It worked with Big Brass the TV scammer in 1974!)

It looks as though Lefty Roboto’s quick thinking might pay off. Thug #2 makes a credible hostage, while henchman Charlie Johnson has Roboto’s back (and keeps an eye on the Payroll Pals people, both the employees and the customers). Tracy is letting them pass, though once in their car, I expect the chase to resume….

Now, if you don’t mind, we’re just going to stroll on outta here.

Good thing the lady in the previous day’s strip overheard them!