Well, as I said the other day, my theory is that Abner’s had plastic surgery and this IS Abner. The mask is for when he wants to look like his old self.
We know Abner’s skull-face is his real one, because that’s how he looked in prison. My own guess is that Abner had plastic surgery and has become Gruesome; he keeps the mask for those occasions when he still wants to look like his old self.
I love that second panel image of Punjab, with his eyes in shadow. Joe really seems to enjoy drawing him, as we’ve gotten some great depictions of him.
I understand why some people might be having trouble juggling all the plot threads, but I love it when things get complicated — as long as it all ties together logically in the end.
Hi! I’m sorry to disagree, bur that disc set is not the “Archie’s TV Funnies” version (which was reasonably faithful to the comics). It’s for the “Dick Tracy Show,” the very cartoony show with Go Go Gomez and Jo Jitsu, where Tracy himself just sits behind a desk and assigns the cartoon cops to the case.
I checked, and there is a DVD of “Archie’s TV Funnies” available used from Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Archies-TV-Funnies-John-Erwin/dp/B0001Y4LB4/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1393602606&sr=1-1&keywords=Archie%27s+TV+Funnies
Unfortunately, it’s just three episodes, and it doesn’t specify which comic strips are featured on these three episodes (you could wind up with Alley Oop, Moon Mullins, and Nancy). But at $3.58 plus shipping, you might try it anyway.
Thanks AnyFace for the recommendation. I’m an old Jonny Quest fan (as well as a Steve Rude fan from his work on “Nexus”) and the film looks fun.