Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for February 22, 2023

Good morning™, everyone!

So, they haven’t found anything implicating Art Dekko? He’s a slippery one!

I’m thinking that “99” probably set fire to Paul Chandler’s home to make sure there was no evidence that the police could find.

Good morning™, burned off clues !

Nothing to find in this old burned out husk of a home. “99” does good coverup work. She is, so far, beyond the furthest periphery of suspicion and can stay invisible, like super heated steam. ….. She’ll be bach.

Did we know Paul’s home was torched? I don’t remember an announcement being made about that.

Looks like Dekko covered his tracks…

Not quite sure what Dekko’s “story” about Paul Chandler’s home is. Is that where Dekko told Tracy Chandler created the fake da Vinci? The police don’t need any more incriminating evidence against Chandler, they can’t prosecute a case against a dead man. Is that where Dekko says he met 99, who forced him to go along with the scheme? It’s had to know what evidence would exist that would prove 99’s existence, even without a fire, unless Tracy believes Chandler may have kept some records or documents about 99, which would have been pretty sloppy on Chandler’s part. Then again, we have a professional hitman who kept an arsenal in his hotel room.

Looks like Tracy wants Dekko for a murder rap.

Like the lightning bolts representing the wrist radio!

The key, a clue!

So the last several weeks were all set up

That’s a lot of shadows on a cloudy day.

Since I’ve been pretty critical of Pleger’s past depictions of absurdly non-functional firearms, it’s only fair to say that today’s weapon is much, much better, and the overall art direction is terrific.

That weapon appears to be an older style Walther PPK, either 9mm or .380. Magazine is single-stack, 7 rounds.

A paid and unused hotel room? Hmmmm. Why, Tracy! Plannin’ on little ‘investigating’ ker-whoopie on someone else’s dime? Better watch out for the hotel’s Sinister Maid (she’s the new arch-fiend in the next story — Dustula the Undead Housekeeper).

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!

1-SAM: I think I finally found you a new Slam Pad, Tracy.

2-DT: About time. Trixie’s fondness for crack resulted in the loss of my last one. Make sure that one has a sprinkler system…

3-…OH, uh, for your trouble I bought you a Walther 9mm with a…umm, looks like a 7 stack clip… to replace your single shot 22 target pistol. Hey – don’t enter that pistol into evidence and delete that photo!

Round and round we go where we stop no one knows!

What I will never know such as why did Kryptonite shoot at Art…was he short-changed on being paid? When he (Kryptonite) was brought into his story, he looked like he worked out in a gym. The character on who was on the roof had the appearance of someone on steriods. Yeah, the fellow was bulky. And Tracy trying to psych Art how do you know the person was not shooting at me?

Since Tracy is at Kryptonite’s place today, he must have finished questioning Art. Then on second thought Art could have lawyered up.

From today’s Comics Curmudgeon:

Sure, that’s an awkwardly worded headline, but you have to understand that in Neo-Chicago newsworthy incidents that do not result in multiple horrible and disfiguring injuries are extremely rare, so you have to put the most important and interesting thing right at the beginning of the sentence.

’The fire investigation team will need some time"— Especially with Smokey Stover heading it up!

No injuries, everyone killed

The police photographer with Tracy at the late Kryptonite’s room has in sight a pistol, a couple of magazines, and (?) is that in the fore a box of ammunition?

Otherwise, it seems the MCU is blanking on clues! This does not bode well for their case against Dekko, nor for their discovering anything about Agent 99, who remains disturbingly elusive….

Love that detailed first panel,and galling me that Dekko is living so high on t he hog.