Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for August 27, 2018

“Dr. Marx …?”

Good morning™, suspects!

So, “Flattop’s” real name is apparently based on the Marx brothers.

I thought his name was Dr. Mabuse. Did I miss something?

I’m Stunned detective Tracy.

I like your strip, but disagree with this boring minit mystery.

You’d find that out eventually, eventually.

Does Dr. Fine have partners who are both called Howard?

Goodbye Neil Simon, thanks for all the joy you brought to us with your genius!

“Doubleup” stays in character. In character. He also seems to radiate innocence, the way he first didn’t know about the murder, and now admits disagreements rather than insisting on what a wonderful guy Roche was. Too much?

“Pruneface,” one we knew nothing about until now, only gets a single panel before we go to the next one, and his testimony is totally useless. Nothing about where he was or what he saw.

We still haven’t heard anything from “Blackjack” or “Shakey,” but I suppose the most important testimony will be “Brow,” who found the body.

Dr Marx or is it Dr. Mabuse? The plot goofs!~?

Good morning™, morningstar grillers !

The guys must have fired up the Weber ’cause that shore smells like barbecue to me !

I suspect Professor Plum…er, Prune, in the conservatory with the lead pipe!

Hmm…that lamp has now appeared four times…

Sam: Uh, Dr. Hall? Could you please not stay “in character?” The real Doubleup is bad enough.

It’s common at scenes of medical emergencies to ask if there’s a doctor in the house, and it looks like this house may have nothing but doctors. All the suspects so far apparently use that title. What kind (medical, academic, etc.) remains to be seen, but I wonder if that will figure into the cause of death?

We still don’t know what killed him or if he’s dead for sure. No verification yet.

Dr. Marx, you need to be quiet and speak only with a horn.

Which comedian is Dr. Hall supposed to be?

Suddenly we have a name change..Hence, it was probably Rufus T. Firefly, or maybe Chicollino who killed the late (2004) Eugene Roche. Beep Beep

Wiley E. Coyote, Super Genius.

Eugene Roche was an actor who appeared on “All in the Family” as a character named Pinkie Peters.

The drawings of these villains are very nice, especially Pruneface.

So, it now seems that “Flattop,” a.k.a. “Mabuse,” is actually Dr. Marx. But neither “Pruneface” Dr. Fine nor “DoubleUp” Dr. Hall is copping to much, though Hall seems to admit some past problems with Eugene Roche.

If we do a similar preliminary questioning of the other three suspects, “Blackjack,” “Shakey,” and “The Brow” tomorrow, we’ll have a basis from which to proceed with more detailed probing, leading to a solution of the (assumed) murder. But what if Roche died a natural death (heart attack, stroke, embolism, etc.) and there was no murder at all? We need the ME’s report!

“Prune face” called the victim “Dr. Roche”. Maybe Im wrong, but is the first time in the story they’ve used that title for the victim?