Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for September 10, 2009

Are the tiger and the elephant the only animals that this circus has?

Love that tiger, best thing in this strip.

The tiger’s listening to every word. I bet he knows who the killer is and he’s not talking. Tomorrow… the elephant returns! The show must go on!

Ladies, if you are unable to find any eye-shadow in the makeup aisle of your favorite store, it’s ‘cause Agent Ennen has cornered the market.

Somebody should let kitty out of his cage.

Yes, I am in hiding. Every night, I get to hide in front of thousands of people in the audience.

Whenever Locher draws a police radio clipped to a cop’s shoulder epaulette, they look exactly like Karen’s earrings.

Why is Tracy talking out of the side of his mouth?

“Never shoot first, baby”, use to be a standard phrase of Tracy’s back in the early 70’s whenever a villain would attempt to put a bullet in him. Back then Tracy had no qualms about gunning a criminal down if he had to!

Let’s get the writer of Ringo’s autobiography on the phone. The one that covered Ringo’s decent into evil and eventuial transition to the Witness Protection Program. Make sure to bring pictures of his house and family.

” I shot first!” OK well that wraps this one.

It’s nice that there’s no spamming here today or yesterday.

Karen is uuuuggggggggglllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyy! At least Chester Gould covered Ugly Christine’s face with her bangs.

Maybe we should encourage a Mark Trail approach for a few weeks - just animals with word balloons coming out of the distance.

TV is doing a some history of current performers like Betty White current to past to high school. Now that is going back in time. For a minute I thought the referance to Oct 4 is referring to what has been talked about so much on this site.

Someone wondered what ever happened to SAM Catchem (?) We have hardly seen him in THREE years ! (?)

The new Author has a compelling passion to introduce “his” OWN characters. So, his new sobriquet is “BROOM” - Dick “Broom” Locher Coming as a result of sweeping aside all vestigies of Gould’s original characters, and, right OUT of the strip.

“Broom” fancies himself as a sort of new Fran Striker writing “his” adaptation of LONE Ranger, a defective, detective strip we could aptly call “Sick Tracy, stands still again”. His NEW (once-in-a-while) side kick, (- not Tonto), just plain verbose “message-man” - Teevo !

He seems to be achieving his objective. Patton is gone, a “Sexy” Lizz tagged along, Junior, happily morphed into “Broom’s” son John !

Meanwhile, Sam now sits waiting in the departure lounge, he’ll take the same flight OUT that brings his well “advertised” replacment IN - October 4, 2009. Leave it out, Sydney. Final warning.

He should arrive at the Circus in time to save Tracy from –- be it Elephant or Tiger ! (?) – And as they leave the Circus, have an ear for it —- “Hi Ooh! … Nappie Away” !

I say a month ago someone put there interpetation on how DT would be a total execagration was worse then what is printed now. DT may be slow but keeps moving. The past comments had me thinking there was a fight happening not good. I like comics for fun.

Karen seems to be channeling Cleopatra here, presumably because she’s a ‘hottie’. And perhaps the reason why Ringo’s in such a public job when he’s under witness protection is right in front of us - he asked the FBI to hide him, instead of the proper authorities.

That TIGER shot the acrobat! Look how guilty its face is!

The October 4th spam appears to have dried up. Good riddance.

yaaaawn, yawn, yawn! And I’m gettin’ awful tired of that tiger.

And I just finished reading “Calvin and Hobbes”

kab2rb,

Like you I’m relatively new and my “take” is, the majority of readers here are NOT looking for a fight. But some appear to resent complaints on flaws (too many in this strip) that appear, And those are quick to SAY so.

Everyone reads the strip for enjoyment and fun but this tale seems void of action. Tracy’s been in the Circus ring for a whole two months, enough time for an FBI Agent to fly all the way from Wasington and join him there.

If you read the comments carefully you’ll note the truly hillarious thing that often happen, are near impossible.

Reason to chuckle and laugh (and perhaps even CRY), if nothing else ! Shed a tear for dead creator Chester Gould

This is no longer the great comic strip we once had. Pity !

We still read it, “fingers crossed”, hoping by some miracle it will improve. Most think it’s NOT an acceptable option to walk away, that’s one they leave to the Author who’s conscience should tell him he’s NOT doing an acceptable job !

Walking away means an “ALSO RAN” effort triumphs !

Why is the tiger drawn with such realistic loving care, neatly shaded and with every whisker and hair in place… while the humans are cartoon caricatures? Yes, marguritem, it’s the best drawn thing in the strip… but it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t match the style. It’s as if one artist (Locher?) is drawing the humans and another (Brozman?) is lavishing all his attention on the tiger…

BASSMANBOB,

Here you keep on recording wonderful Anniversary things Americans have reason to be proud of, while Lewis Carroll’s “Mad-Hatter” character, seemingly “sulks” - because nobody wants to listen to the repetetition of his exagerated poetry that doesn’t make sense or even play in the poor fellows saucer..

I know I used the word fighting for comments maybe I should use arguing insteading. Arguing/fighting for comments. DT is a about crime fighting the old way. And modern technilogy has changed and the way law enforcement handle crimes. I just like entertainment on comics and comments.

The tiger doesn’t believe a word of it.

-Cougar :{)

Matthew, I understand that this situation has not been resolved to your satisfaction. Unfortunately, comments that vary in content from day to day, regardless of whether they are consistent in their praise or criticism of the strip, and especially if they specifically pertain to that day’s strip, are not considered “spam.” The difference between the comments you would like to see removed and the comments of yours that we did remove are (1) Your comments had nothing to do with the day’s strip. (2) Your comments were identical to your previous posts. (3) Your comments were not part of an ongoing conversation. (4) The comments that were removed did not offer any information that hadn’t already been presented in comments by other users earlier in the day. (5) Your comments qualified as spam because of 1-4, and because they were spam, were generating backlash. All of the above led to the removal of your comments. The comments you want removed for being spam do not qualify as spam.

This is an open comments section where users can make comments that are positive, negative or indifferent in reaction to each day’s strip.

Liam- I appreciate your attention to the comments, and taking the time to explain them.

Kinda funny though to consider…if one of the four criteria for spam is posting the same thing day after day, I think the Dick Tracy strip itself nearly qualifies.

It’s getting more and more intresting. Characters are also getting closer and closer.

These extreme close-ups can be the solution. I think that they have found they own award winning drawing style!

Show some parts of the characters faces and let readers imagine the rest.

Basically you can do the same with just showing one organ from human body. That would be the optimum solution.

jumbobrain,

Yours is post of the day. .Keen obsevation !.

Some one here should note and thank Liam for the CLARITY of his post today in explaining his decision and in particular his outlining the perimeters for comment on the board. All including the person address should now have a better understanding on the subject.

Matthew:

I believe that most of us here would love to say something positive about the Dick Tracy comic strip. Sadly though, in its current incarnation, there’s just nothing positive that we can say about it. Look at the comments for other comics. Is it a coincidence that Dick Tracy is the only one where the comments are overwhelmingly negative?

I mean, really. Under current management, Dick Tracy has degenerated into a parody of his former self. He no longer has the ability or desire to do actual police work. When was the last time that he did an actual police investigation? Since I rediscovered the comics last summer, Dick Locher has had Tracy do nothing but act like a total, incompetent buffoon. And you wonder why we criticize?

Also, I believe that nobody here wants for Dick Tracy to go away. Rather, we would like either that the current writer take a hint and start producing better work, or that TMS take a hint and replace the current writer with someone who knows what he’s doing.

If the thousands of devoted fans you’ve spoken to came to this site and heaped their praise upon this strip on a daily basis, the voices of negativity would be drowned out and would eventually go away. It’s not possible to “keep a CIVIL debate about the strip ongoing” when only one side shows up.

Bassman, Sidney: Thanks.

Matthew: Shhh. Seriously, dude. You’re sorta signaling a serious need to get a life.

Yeesh, Matthew, lighten up. Or here, let me put that in IMPRESSIVE CAPITAL LETTERS for you: LIGHTEN UP.

There’s no threat to anyone’s intellectual property going on here. GoComics does not own Dick Tracy, Tribune Media Services does. The strip was losing papers for years prior to GoComics picking it up.

People saying the strip is bad is not going to kill it, the problem is that the strip IS bad. This site should represent the most diehard fans of Dick Tracy, folks who remember when it was much better than it is now. If there are people who think it’s just fine, then they ought to be posting their support.

For my own part, I’ve followed this strip for decades and I am very sad to see it in such a sorry state. Frankly, the snarky comments I see posted here are the main reason I continue to read it…that and the vain hope that TMS will put a creative team on it who care about quality.

“Sadly, again, GoComics seems not one whit interested in protecting the creators, the intellectual properties, or even their own bottom line.

It is this VERY mentality that is killing comic strips.”

You’re wrong. As I’ve said before, Dick Tracy is the only strip that garners overwhelmingly negative comments. Can you really look me in the eye and truthfully say that the last several Dick Tracy stories have made any sense whatsoever? Can you look me in the eye and say that Dick Tracy is still the great detective he once was? Can you look me in the eye and tell me that you admire the artwork?

Mattie, to use one of your quotes from the comicspage board: “Be gone…”

When an artist chooses to put forth their effort into the public domain, they must accept whatever feedback they may receive, good or bad. Though the consumer may indeed be a fickle beast, they as a rule will present commentary that is consistent with the quality of the product. Produce a good or at least average product and the response will generally be positive in return. Produce a product that consistently delivers an insult to the sensibilities of said consumer and the effect will be almost always negative. This strip has deteriorated into at best a poorly constructed parody of itself. The artwork, though perhaps not what many wish is better than some comics produced and worse than some others. However the plots and dialog that accompanies the art is of such poor quality, that even the most pedestrian attempts by some posters surpasses it. Deliver a reasonably decent product and the response will improve. Continue to insult the intelligence of the reader and they will be most unkind in their response.

Donnie Tevault is so well on target.

Sounds like Mattie is advocating censorship of all negative critiques (?) What should gocomics allow then (?) only cheering teams shouting how GREAT the strip is?

If readers can’t find it reasonable to speak the TRUTH as they see it, they may as well leave it to a few like Matthew to foster a false perspective, effectively, the OPPOSITE of what the public really thinks.

Is that what Matthew wants ? Nothing negative allowed ?

I’d think most are here because of support for this great comic strip, they are not here first and foremost to support the career of the Author, regardless of the quaity he produces, good or bad. TMS (the Owner) requires ACCURATE feedback - - - and I believe they are getting it.

And Liam is right too Matthew, if you are the Captain (?) your entire team was a NO Show !

Today is exactly why I keep on coming back day after day! It matters not what the meat of the strip says, or its lack thereof; it’s the cast. Liam, for example, tried to explain his take on things in a very nice way. I took it as very gentlemanly and intellectually sound. On four different occasions after he finished, he was basically invited to argue - for the sake of arguing. Wisely, Liam wouldn’t take the bait. When he finally did jerk the hook (or hooked the jerk), it was all over!

Bravo, Liam! Kudos to your parents and peers! They taught you a lost art.

Morrow

I agree with ya, Syd…but I’m really curious as to why TMS seems not to care what anyone thinks of the strip. It’s a slap in the face to the handful of papers still running Dick Tracy. Is it some kind of tax write off? It just makes no sense, because Dick Tracy is up there with Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Superman and a handful of other characters who are known to millions of Americans. In that sense, it’s a hugely valuable property, but instead of buidling on that they’re letting it die a slow, poorly written and badly drawn death.

Hey Matt, if you think Dick and Jim need some constructive criticism, I can do that.

Make sure your characters look the same from panel to panel. Pick up the pace, like by not repeating the same plot points five or six times in a row. Make the drawing interesting by not reusing the same drawing/perspective. Stop overusing the cheat of drawing an unrelated object, or the outside of a building, with voice balloons coming from it. Take a look at Will Eisner’s “Comics and Sequential Art,” or Scott McCloud’s “Understanding Comics” and get a handle on the nuances of the medium you’re working in. Develop your characters and characterizations. Apply more logic to your writing. Have things make sense (Why would the writer of the note be mad that the police came in, after the murder was committed in front of thousands of people?) Review Chester Gould’s, or Max Collins’, work on this strip (Locher worked with both). Note how they worked with characters and plots and pacing. Look at other continuity strips and see how their pacing works. Look at the comic strip rectangle as a single unit, and design for that, rather than a bunch of disparate panels. Tighten up your anatomy…it’s frankly sloppy here. Watch how you spot blacks (ie, the distribution of dark areas of the comic). Use that for composition. Do not result to inexplicable, impossible plot devices like giant robots and thermal playing cards. Have actions have ramifications (what happened to the giant robot?) Engage your readers as Gould did, with Tracy facing deathtraps and figuring clever ways out. Study police procedures and apply them here (Why did Tracy handle the threatening note? Why did he not ask who delivered it?)

That’s a start. Locher and Brozman are professionals, plying their trade in a public medium, with one of the most storied characters in comic strips. It’s a very good gig to have. If they can’t do any better than what we’ve been getting for the past few years, I think it’s time to pass it on to someone who can.

i bet it’s not a real tiger it’s a hitman in disguise.

jumbobrain, good job!! I would only add one thing: I WANT SOME ACTION! NOT people standing around for weeks chatting.

Oh yeah, thanks Ludwig…

17- Do not spend two months (and counting) with your characters standing in the same place having a conversation.

I don’t know how I missed that one…

“NOW, more than EVER, the strip needs the support of its fans. It needs people to SHOW that Dick Tracy is still relevant to the world and the industry.”

We are showing support for Dick Tracy. Think of our critiques as pleas for help. Help, that is, for getting the DT strip back on track.

And, if all of the strip’s problems are due to TMS restrictions, then why is it that DT is the only strip that is of such poor quality?

“jumbobrain” has it right. Restrictions or not, there’s a lot that Locher and Brozman could do to make the strip a lot better than it is.

Unless there is some tax scam going on here, I can’t imagine what restrictions TMS could be putting on this strip to make it so bad. The basic template remains the same as when Max Collins was writing it, and it worked fine then (while the drawing is weak, the core problem here is bad writing). The only explanation I can come up with is that the strip currently has so few subscribers that it doesn’t pay enough to put any time into it. If that’s the case, I’m sure there are plenty of talented cartoonists who would take it on spec, with the idea that they could improve it enough so it would be profitable again.

Thank you, jumbobrain, for a well-thought essay. I’d go so far as to call it a lesson. Ludwig is also right. The scenes we remember most are action scenes. Who can forget Queenie’s back end plugging up the smokestack on a tug! The robot fight! What we WANT to forget is Tracy playing the part of a buffoon. Mr. Hansel wants that everyone praise sophomoric work, in hopes the strip survives. I cannot do that. The only way I got through school is from my teachers constantly reminding me of my errors. I got through life the same way; when I did bad work, I learned from it.

I also thank you, JB, for taking the time to ‘splain it to Mr. Hansel. But I think that nut is going to be harder to crack than you think!

Morrow

jumbobrain, you make too much sense.

MPH:

I recently had my original account here deactivated, and some of my posts were deleted. I wrote to GoComics/uClick technical support for find out why, and they wrote back, explaining things to me. I didn’t fully understand, so I wrote asking for clarification. I received it, and they were very nice about the whole matter.

I fully understand where they were coming from, and I respect their decisions. Their e-mails were not signed, so I’m not sure whether I was talking to Liam, but it seems to me that Liam and company are fair-minded, reasonable people, and it is unseemly for you to be publicly antagonizing them and lecturing them about their business practices.

It’s been a long day. You guys have been more than thorough in responding. I really mean that ! In particular Jumbobrain. Liked the pro-active advise although it will almost certainly fall on deaf EARS,

I’ll read Mattie’s post tomorrow.

As I contemplate it all, the thought occurs to me. Where is one sentence “itpozenel”.when we need him ? ;-)