Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for June 28, 2015

Saw that she was different, resorted to rude namesDerision and belittlement, the classic bully games.Unsettled by what they were not, what they could never beCovetousness rears its head. Antennae all they see.Beverly unwittingly lays hands on changeling HoneySets off a Zap that sets her back. Abuse is never funny.Lights go out for Honeymoon. Her first taste of Moon powerYears from now she’ll reflect how transformation marked this hour.Firemen come rushing in. The mall safe for consumersCrowd murmurs of antennae, Lunarians and dark rumors.Collin steps up to lend a hand, knows about this kind of messBeen the target once or thrice, the jaundiced eye might guess.Security arrives with facts: hidden camera captured allDazed Beverly and TJ wish they’d steered clear of the mall.

Good morning guys!

Quick action from Pequod77, too! See you guys when daylight arrives…

Who was it that called the mall security-cam recording this?

Take a look at the damages to the stores!

The sign reminds me of the old Action comics book cover

When someone grabs a Lunarian’s antennae, she will wish she didn’t! Honeymoon needs to talk to her parents first. That essentially means getting the police involved — at least one member of the police force. To be continued …

OOPSIE…..always those darn security cameras to catch one in a lie….

Actually it shows by action which child isn’t a spoiled brat. The bullies were quick to step right up and lie outright, but Honeymoon, because of a good upbringing and greater intelligence, decides to consult her parents before making any statements or making unadvised decisions. @Neil Wick I believe you are on to something, but the question is will Dad or Grandpa (or both) get involved?

Guessing that “Officer Engler” is based upon a real person as well?

Efficient wrap-up to this anti-Lunarian bullying incident! Collin calls Sparkle; his mom (at least in RL; not sure about in the strip), Officer Engler, squashes TJ’s lies; Bev, having been zapped, moans about her hairdo. And, in the background, firemen attend to the damage to the mall….

Morning, Tracyville!

Officer Engler is none other than Collin’s mom! Notice that she called him “Son.” But he called her “Officer Engler” probably because he didn’t want the other kids to know yet that he is literally her son!

Blissful Sunday morning everyone.-———*Pequod wins the Poet of the Comics Award again!

I know I am constantly beating a dead horse, but I understand that Shelley Pleger doesn’t ink the Sunday strip, but I find it hard to believe that Joe does the pencils. The difference is just too much.

Panel 1 looks like it may’ve been an ‘outreach’ from Super Fan Curtis -to DC and Action Comics * . . . ?*

Might we expect (given the enormity of the Mall story (by virtue of the Horns) see a reporter (say) Lois Lane appear ?

Then perhaps Clark Kent passes by to pick her up ?

Saw it all, the entire tussle by X-Ray Vision ?

Way to go, Officer Engler!

Excellent PQ77, You have great insight into this topic of Bullying…Action Comics Lives..

Love it when a little lying biotch gets caught by video.

@AnyFace As stated above, “Officer Engler” is Collin’s real-life mom, see http://comicbook.com/2015/06/03/dick-tracy-comic-strip-to-take-on-bullying-with-guest-star-littl/ That article, published over three weeks ago, has a panel from yesterday’s strip which was a bit of a spoiler.

That ain’t no police officer…. That’s a mall security guard.

Bev got what was coming to her!

I wonder if Mysta got a telepathic jolt from Honeymoon.

It’s nice to see some bullies get caught lying for once!

This trip to the mall makes for a swift, effective lesson on bullying. The long term implications are especially tantalizing. With economy and purpose we’ve seen Honeymoon reveal her antennae and then (innocently) give a dolt a jolt. Her character has even richer potential as her relationship with Mysta deepens and her Lunarian traits begin to assert themselves. This is a very satisfying development. Honey’s age and pronounced ties to the fantastic bode well for rich storytelling possibilities. Honey Becomes Electric is more than an effective lesson on bullying. Recent events reveal exciting changes for Honeymoon, while underscoring her Lunarian heritage. What a great character. Good question, Day-Day2001.

Thanks to Vista Bill, Gweedo, Night-Gaunt49, Willy007, Starman1948, Ray Toler (great link), Sydney Phillips, Jonathan K. and abdullahbaba999 for the kind words. Very much appreciated!

I was referring to Tawana (Brawley), and misspelled her name. When I discovered the misspelling, I deleted it. Good catch, Puzz!

The bullying story has been great. It even got the attention of an Italian blog: http://www.lospaziobianco.it/153802-dick-tracy-lotta-bullismo and I don’t know that Dick Tracy is even available in Italian—at least maybe not without a delay.

Looks like Colin is a keeper.

From Mike Curtis on Facebook:

“Everyone is wondering about Collin;s shirt. It’s :LS for Lifesong, which we all attend.”

Thanks for clearing up the question of Collin’s shirt, Ray.

Gweedo said,Smokin’ fresh cremation Hot, if you please, Bill -————————————————————————————

Chilly today, hot tamale, Gweedo!

*@Ray Toler: Thanks for posting Mike’s Facebook comment. Be well my friend.

My my, how quickly the tide turns when TJ is caught flat-footed making a false statement. Serves her right, along with Bev “shocking” lesson.

As usual, wonderful poetry from our resident bard, Pequod!

Will we see an “anti-Lunarian” undercurrent i Tracytown with Moon Maid 2.0 and, now, Honeymoon’s DNA kicking in? (Maybe Tracy can get picked up by Marvel Comics – they’re big on this sort of thing…)

“* . . .*Carlo Coratelli”

Big Thanks Gweedo !

Awwww! Poor baby. Her new haircut is wuined. Didn’t her mother teach her to look but not to touch?

Thanks to Jonathan K and Bagert – And anyone else I didn’t already mention – For helping clear up the “Officer Engler” mystery.

A quick note about inking …

In ye olden days, newspapers allocated a lot of space to comic strips, as they were potentially a major sales draw: Features such as Dick Tracy, Little Orphan Annie, Blondie, and many more made the jump to radio and film as well.

Public awareness of the characters was very high.

Sunday strips often occupied a full sheet of newsprint, the top two-thirds going to a main feature, such as Flash Gordon, with the bottom third occupied by a secondary strip.

Over the decades, for a variety of reasons, newspapers reduced the size of both daily and sunday strips, to dimensions some refer to as akin to “Postage Stamps.”

[Only a slight exaggeration.]

Hardest hit by this were the Continuity Strips – As we’ve often opined, Tracy would benefit from additional panels.

Comic strip creators today need to take into account both the size at which the art will be presented, and the physical limitations of the printing process.

In short …

Thick lines good.

Thin lines, possibly problematic.

Gweedo wonders,Where do you dig these babes up anyway ? ? ?-————————————————————————-

They are permanent residents here, Gweedo.

I wonder if our 2 bullies will learn anything about changing their ways from this incident. Somehow, I doubt it for the same reason criminals often don’t learn that crime doesn’t pay. I think this part of the story will be coming to an end shortly but it wouldn’t surprise me to see these 2 again someday, possibly seeking revenge.

Wow! I saw the shock to the mean girl, but I didn’t think Honeymoon zappified half the mall, too!

Saw that she was different, resorted to rude names

Derision and belittlement, the classic bully games.

Unsettled by what they were not, what they could never be

Covetousness rears its head. Antennae all they see.

Beverly unwittingly lays hands on changeling Honey

Sets off a Zap that sets her back. Abuse is never funny.

Lights go out for Honeymoon. Her first taste of Moon power

Years from now she’ll reflect how transformation marked this hour.

Firemen come rushing in. The mall safe for consumers

Crowd murmurs of antennae, Lunarians and dark rumors.

Collin steps up to lend a hand, knows about this kind of mess

Been the target once or thrice, the jaundiced eye might guess.

Security arrives with facts: hidden camera captured all

Dazed Beverly and TJ wish they’d steered clear of the mall.