Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for April 23, 2014

The Annie subplot is still on?

Good morning all and esp Vista Bill!

Take over Tabby Angus’s holdings for something to do in the meantime.

When did The Asp become Prince Namor?

Just like real life….lots of threads being spun….

I got it, Kolossal is holding both Annie and Mr. Angus’ prized race horse for a huge ransom! That’s how these stories tie in!

Oh, no…..“Gasoline Alley” got me hooked on “Nancy.” “Nancy” got me hooked on “Tracy.” And now this…..

Why, Punjab, we may have to revive our own comic strip! (And I may have to lose my newly-acquired eyeballs…)

Gould never bounced around story lines like this, Stupid…

Why is Namor on Oliver Warbuck’s jet? Wait, you say that ISN’T Prince Namor of Atlantis and that its actually The Asp? Crazy talk!! Look at the pointy ears and the widows peak hairline and the flat cranium.. that is ABSOLUTELY Prince Namor of Atlantis!

When I last checked the Annie strip, she was in Alaska

jpuzzlewhiz… no, the asp DIDN’T “always look like that” at all.His ears were never pointy, he never had teh “elvis sideburns” he never had a flat head and most of all he NEVER had pointed teeth! (as was shown in one of the earlier appearances in this strip) The “kicker” tho is that the asp was regularly depicted as some type of asian in appearance which, obviously, is most certainly NOT the case here!

No worries, Punjab, Tracy will find Annie!

Thank you everyone for your kind words yesterday. They are greatly appreciated.

What if Annie somehow stowed away aboard the space coupe and is now in deep space?

I’m at a complete loss now as to what is going on….

Back to the good ship Tracypop!

Back up. I want to know how Asp and Punjab got off the sinking submarine.

many things going on

Hey, it’s the funny pages..get it?..ha ha ha

Au contraire JPuzzleWhiz! This is a re-styled Asp, not like his traditional self. This Asp looks young, barely adult, unfearsome, and not at all mysterious. Some time ago I posted a link to an image of the older Asp, who is very different and whose appearance I much prefer; here’s another: The Asp.

I guess since Dick is around 80, he needs the rest. He shows up about once every 10 days. When’s the Kerry Drake crossover?

Well, Daddie Warbucks is now in an era he should like, what with corporations having Congress in their pockets and the Tea Party.

Is that dude a Vulcan or a Romulan?

I believe the difference is simply artistic interpretation by both Joe and Mike. It is like when a new actor takes over the role of James Bond or Doctor Who. It is the same character but you know that a new actor’s interpretation will bring differences. In fact, in the case of Doctor Who, fans eagerly look forward to the changes the new actor will bring.

Harold Gray’s Asp always seemed hunched over with a sneaky looking type of posture. He always seemed to be shaded and in shadows even when he was in normal light. Gray’s Asp had Ninja-like powers similar to those of The Shadow. He always seemed to just appear out of the shadows—always there but never seen.

By contrast, Joe’s Asp seems less mysterious and more open. This is reflected in the upright posture and the seeming revelation of himself and his appearance in full light. Joe’s Asp is much less threatening.

Gray’s Asp would never have asked “Is something wrong.” He would have mysteriously known through his powers of observation or his sensitivity to Punjab’s aura or some such. Mike’s interpretation makes Asp more human and less mysterious.

But this may have been necessary in merging the styles of the two strips. While the Tracy strip occasionally wandered into the mysterious and supernatural (i.e.: the ghost of Skinny haunting Flattop Jr. and being set free at his death), the Annie strip prominently featured the supernatural with mysterious characters like Asp and Punjab and, most mysterious, Mr. Am, who has lived millions of years, could bring people back from the dead, and might even be a representation of God. Tracy, however, is concerned with facts and clues rather than supernatural knowledge from ancient cultures (Mr. Am in Atlantis etc.).

In Gray’s world the Asp is mysterious and powerful. In Tracy’s world he is a highly skilled martial artist who is highly skilled in camouflage techniques. Yet Annie and Dick Tracy both purportedly take place in the “real world.” So merging and balancing the subtleties of the two styles is a bit of a balancing act for a writer and artist.

I am enjoying this story a great deal and am very interested to see how Mike and Joe handle it when the main story gets underway.

Well if the Asp premiered in 1937, he’s only got 3 years on Namor who premiered in 1940, so I wouldn’t call that LONG before, considering how long both have been around.

Everybody’s different; I have no problems with parallel storylines if they end up coming together in the climax, but I find interrupting the climax to introduce the next story or stories tends to detract from the intensity that was built up beforehand. It’s not that I CAN’T follow several stroylines at once; heck we all do that just in reading the comic page itself. But to me it’s like sitting in a room, watching a movie on a big screen, but trying to keep track of one or two other movies on other screens the same time….as I said, it takes away from the main event. I realize most readers will disagree with me but I’m not saying you’re wrong; opinions are never really right or wrong in most cases, just stating what works best for me

As for the more angular, less rounded look, I think it suits the style of Dick Tracy.

Of course Tracy will find her! When has he ever failed?

Gweedo,It just occurred to me that the connection is that Annie was in the trunk of Silver and Sprocket’s car. It that is the case, it’s not looking good for Annie’s resurrection.

The Asp on March 21, 1937. A little pointy..

Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!

Drink more Ovaltine!

Who says we’ve reached the climax in the Kolossal/Angus/Mysta Chimera story?

If the reports we’ve been seeing are correct, the Annie story doesn’t really start until June, so we should have fice weeks left of Kolossal/Angus/Mysta Chimera. I don’t think we’re anywhere near the climax yet. We finally have it fairly clearly established that a crime has been committed. There should be a bit more plot which Angus gets his suspicions confirmed and, hopefully, it’s going to take Tracy and company more than a couple of days to chase down and apprehend the perpetrators.

sub mariner

Morning, Anniephans!

The Annie story hasn’t really started yet. There were just snips and teasers for a while back in 2014 until the story actually started on June 1.