Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for February 21, 2023

Good morning™, everyone!

Sue Reel is like, “Nobody tells me anything.” She’s right, actually. She didn’t really participate in planning the crime. She believes Art’s lie that Paul Chandler is still alive. I’m sure that Lee knows that Paul is dead.

“You know, Paul? Who’s of course totally alive as far as innocent little ol’ me knows. That Paul.”

Good morning™, deluded dimbulbs !

Suzy Q. is so behind on Art’s dealings. She is surely or very nearly so, going to walk or at least get off light since she is helping the po po and there doesn’t really seem to be much that she can get hung up or over on.

wow, actual detective work being done… and by Lee, no less… now get Lizz involved, as well…

“And your role in this ‘DaVinci job’ was what, exactly?”

“To know just enough information about the plan to feed Dick Tracy another effortless win while being detached enough from the crime to retain audience sympathy. Honestly, I thought it was kind of strange that Art felt the team needed a useless traitor for the job, but he just kept saying he didn’t get this far by fostering loyalty or common sense, so what can you do?”

I don’t believe Art ever told Sue that Chandler was dead, at least not on camera. So I think she’s being pretty straightforward here.

I guess defense lawyers have the week off in TracyVille.

Didn’t she ever hear the phrase “Dead men tell no tales?”

Oh my gosh! Sue doesn’t know that Paul has been snuffed out. Tomorrow they will tell her…then she’ll go into shock.

Now it can be told…Art kept her in the dark about his other activities with the exception of the Da Vinci thing. His slogan must be the less my comrades know…the less the authorities won’t have all the dots to connect me with anything.

“Wake up Little Susie” (Everly Brothers) “Paul is Dead” (Beatles Magical Mystery Tour)!

Mike is presenting fisheyes as a classic ditzy blond! Except for the ridiculous mustache!

So she keep shaving beard and trimming moustache in jail? Or do it not grows?

Once I drag my lazy self out of bed (in my defense it’s only 6:45am and I’ve been awake for less than 40 minutes….dont judge me lol) I’m going to post chapter seven of Trouble In Paradise on my message board

I re-read the first 6 chapters and in the beginning I realized that I may have made a mistake by having tracy respond to the call from Eiko…but then I noticed that I set the wrestling match for two weeks after the introduction, so chronologically he would be there…but Sam is still in charge….something I will address in chapter 7 later this morning

I also realized that I unintentionally left the storyline on Tracy’s vacation dangling…so that will probably end up being a “flashback story” for the next one after Trouble In Paradise wraps up

The TRUE mastermind is arch-baker and counterfeiter Vincent Van Dough. Who, in his everyday identity fights a never ending battle for lies, profits and anchovy pizza with little pineapple chunks shaped like friendly little poodles on thee top. Maybe with a sprinkling of Red Hots.

Hey, don’t blame ME! HE’S the sicko. Poodles. Brrrr!

Mike clearly has gotten to like Art and Sue and is trying to finagle ways to extend their story and/or set things up so they could plausibly return in the future.

1-SUE: Hi Lee. Nice to see you again…

2-…about that “mustache ride” you enjoyed while we waited to see if Tracy… LEE: SHADDAP! They’re listening!

3-SUE: Oh! Gotcha! Who are you? What’s your name? Can we go get a coffee and discuss where our relationship is going? OOPS!

BLAM BLAM BLAM!

LEE: She was coming over the table! I had to protect myself!

TRACY THROUGH INTERCOM: You’re not supposed to have a gun in an interview and the suspect should’ve been cuffed to the table. Remind me to schedule a protocol meeting, Sam. Sam? Where’s Sam???

MOVIE QUOTE—

“Here is our Freida,Queen of the Artichokes!”

Boris Karloff—BEDLAM—1946

Maybe it’s just the “kinder and gentler nature” of the modern strip,but Lee seems to have a talent for EASING facts out ofpeople rather than breaking out the old rubber hose.

They should pipe Dekko’s interrogation into Sue’s cubicle so shecan see how much he “cares” about her.

The judge sentences Art Dekko to 20 years at hard labor.

Dekko says—-"I’m a wealthy society crook.What’s ‘hard labor’?

Ok…chapter seven is up on the message board

NEW YORK CITY papers—-

So far in 1923,there have been more than two dozen lithium—ion battery fires.

For all of 1922,there were 216 fires with 6 dead and 147 injured..Most of them from electric vehicle recharge batteries.

Again,Diet Smith,change to windpower.

Irma’s husband died fer nuthin’.

The question has been frequently asked about Sue Reel’s mustache, OK , I heard it said by a person not authorized to comment, when she goes out on the town she puts pretty pink bows on both sides of it!

Today’s installment would make a lot more sense if we knew what transpired in that first conversation, or interview, between Tracy and Sue. But Mike didn’t see fit to let us in on any of that – so we don’t really know why Sue thought of calling Tracy when Art started to lose it. What did Tracy tell her in that first conversation? Something that might have put her on alert? Why must we constantly speculate about these things?

Sue Reel is either a very good liar or a genuinely naive blonde (with a disgusting mustache). She professes, in effect, to know nothing beyond the initial “da Vinci” scheme. If she is telling the truth, she may escape prosecution, or at least get off with no significant amount of jail time. Can Lee Ebony determine whether Sue is telling her the truth (or not)? Will she let Reel know about the so-far mysterious murder of Paul Chandler? Cui bono?

OT: You’ll be glad to know I’ve put Yeti to bed, so to speak. Just finished the second of three book in the series, and in the final one, he cameos as a lowly flunky for a revenge-driven fiend. Think I’ll make him the palace toilet cleaner.

My motto?If you cant KILL ’em, humiliate ’em! Works for small house pets too.