Dick Tracy by Mike Curtis and Charles Ettinger for January 14, 2024

Tess caught in bad traffic, so she’s running somewhat late

Johnny greets Morgana and does feel the hand of fate.

Just a little pen prick. Please excuse my fumbling grip

That dose was meant for Tracy. So sorry I did slip

A drop of deadly poison into the hand of John

Soon he won’t be feeling well or able to keep on

Call a medic! 9-1-1! Too soon his life could cease

Poison may well stop his heart and then shall he know peace.

Good morning™, everyone!

Oops! She was just telling Rikki that they would soon be able to relax for a while. Accidentally injecting poison into the hand of a private investigator who is the partner of your intended victim is not going to lead to a relaxing time!

The consensus is that Tess could not die. What about Johnny Adonis?

At least she defended the wearing of the mask at all times. That question came up in yesterday’s comments.

“It was a gift from an old friend. Alas, she’s no longer with us. A tragic fall. So sad.”

Oh snap???

There’s no way a professional killer’s gonna say that. Just plain silly.

Shark worthy.

“Bye Bye Johnny.” — Chuck Berry.

oh, snap?… kinda the wrong situation for that remark to be made…

So that your big plan? You is walk into office in official appointment and then use the old poison pen trick? And still nobody suspect you? And you thinks Ms. Tracy not has her own pen in office and will use yours? Gee how was this hit woman even survives so far in this beesiness.

So, Fata has monogrammed murder weapons! I like her style.

Oh snap, Johnny’s a goner?

Good bye™, dead men !

Looks like curtain fall for Johnny. I know !!!  A cure, for an unknown chemistry will miraculously be found ! :-D Might be time for Johnny to ‘retire’. That pen was clearly an accidental drop. How long before Johnny drops ?

I have heard of the poison pen letter, is this what a poison pen looks like?

She’ll offer him a complimentary ticket to her show to make up for this mishap.

Her initials are on the pen…oh snap!

Poor Johnny

Well, she already said she planned to take care of him too, so what’s the problem?

aww, it’s just a stage mask..? I wanted to believe it was some sort of cybernetic ‘skull replacement’ type thing.

Did he get poisoned, and will he be gone from the strip? Stay tuned!

Will he become a Johnny gone lately? I am waiting to see with baited breath!

That could be a deadly mistake!

Seven of Nine would never make a mistake !

Looks like Tess may be hiring a new associate soon.

A sharp pen? That should set the alarm bells ringing in Johnny’s head. Before he passes out… Oh, wait, it’s a delayed acting poison so FM can’t be identified instantly as the killer. (The police will have to look at the tapes of the meeting… FM should consider modern tech.) Meanwhile, since it’s delayed action (or at least it was for first victim we saw) Johnny will have time to look at the device and realize it isn’t a pen.

Now I strongly suspect that ‘borg mask’ isn’t a mask at all, but some sort of either a medical device that’s experimental or an enhancement.

But not as sharp as you, Johnny.

Crummy arctic weather . Frozen pipes , dead car . It’s working its way east boys and girls . I had my fun now it’s your turn .

Oh, snap? Some real tough thinking there. When something goes wrong for me, I might say, “oh, snap,” but that’s not what I’m thinking.

Now Dick Tracy and Tess will be investigating the murder of Johnny Adonis.

ka-oops

‘The bouncing pen pricks; and having pricked, rolls on.’

Pen is mightier than sword. She tooks it too seriously eh.

“Whoopsiedoodles! Now I have to explain a death during my interview!”

She is lacking in professional terms…..

Theeeeeers Johnnny !

For a magician, her sleight of hand skills need a little work

Collateral damage?

1-JOHNNY ADUMAZZ: Put ‘er there, pal! FATS: No thanks. Where’s my target?

2-JOHNY ADUMAZZ: Tess? She overslept again. Say…I’m digging your mask. Does it hide some wicked disfigurement?

3-FATS: If you must know, I applied some of Abner’s makeup but fortunately stopped before the damage went too far.

4-JOHNNY: That’s cool. You make that mask work! bounce bounce bounce I GOT IT!

5-…OH. 9:30 on the dot. Excuse me. It’s time for a Personal Palm Reading. I used to go to a pro but it got too expensive. That’s weird – my life line has disappeared…

FATS: DAGNABBIT ALL TO HECK AND BACK!

The pen has needle with a fast acting posion?

Johnny’s in trouble and Fata’s a sociopath . How is this going to play out ? Will Johnny die ? “The Friends of Johnny Adonis” certainly hope not ! Will Johnny lie at deaths door for weeks on end ? “The Friends of Johnny Adonis” can live with that . We won’t like it but we can live with it . Will Sam Catchem get the skinny on Fata ? Will Sam Catchem go into action soon ? “The Friends of Sam Catchem” are counting on it . All in all this is shaping up as a pretty good tale.

Uh oh, has she committed a blunder? Is this bad news for Johnny?! “Oh, Snap!” used to be dominant slang back in the 90s, especially in Toronto, ON. It’s fun to see it pop up again!

Bye, Johnny.

OT: Day 3 of -4 t -7 wind chill. so SICK of being house bound. Irritable and I want to eat. Everything.

One might expect a professional magician not to be so fumble-fingered—or to have guarded against it.

Then again, from what we have seen, her speciality is big-illusion stage magic rather than close-up work.

Can this be the end of Johnny Adonis?

F. Morgana (“oh, snap”) has made a little mistake, and now Johnny is, as it appears, infected with the fast-acting poison that was meant for Tess.

WHEN HITS GO WRONG: Fata “i am not a Seven-of-Nine Wannabe!”—

Uh, sorry, I just remembered that I have an optician’s appointment, So long, gotta run, ta ta, been nice knowing you! (Oh, crap!)

I’ll bet she only fumbled because she was wearing gloves to avoid making fingerprints. Also, we don’t know if that pen was the intended murder weapon. This could be a false cliffhanger.

Something didn’t go as planned!

Okay—-did our lady magician dash out of the office without calling 9-1-1- for Jonny? That falls under the category of“suspicious behavior”.

I’m flashing back to Pucker Puss’ famous baseball stadium hit,where he didn’t realize he was on camera the whole time—-and he dashed out of his seat and ran off instead of offering help to the guy who collapsed in front of him(a guy who HADN’T shot him would have)