Analysis - What's Going On Here?

We seem to be nearing the conclusion of the story of Detective Frisk and the Howells.

I'm pretty confused as to what this story was about.

Readers learned that Detective Frisk (and Lizz and her sister) had been adopted as babies. These adoptions were facilitated by the Howells, Clair and Frank (who was originally called Jimmy). It's not clear if Clair and Frank are married, or brother and sister, or parent and child.

It was explicitly stated that while what Clair and Jimmy were doing is of dubious ethics, it is not illegal, though it had earlier been implied that some of the "Howell babies" had been kidnapped. But it seems like there was no fraud or deception involved in the adoptions that the Howells arranged. The parents got the babies they wanted and the Howells and the birth mothers got paid.

Now, if what the Howells were doing was illegal, then Frisk shouldn't be the one doing the investigation. That should be a matter for the police or the FBI. Frisk was apparently concerned only with finding out information about where the various babies came from and who the birth parents were. This was information that the Howells were keeping secret.

But why? The Howells were willing to kill Frisk to stop her investigations. That seems to imply some more serious violations of the law, which (if Frisk could prove it) would need to involve the police. If the only thing that Frisk is uncovering is the identity of the (now-grown) Howell babies' birth families, I don't understand why the Howells are so determined to keep that a secret. In fact, it seems like they would be willing to make that information available for a price, since they're so corrupt.

Furthermore, the Howells seem to live in relatively squalid circumstances, which would belie their stated successful baby brokering enterprise. If they're able to offer Lily Seven thousands of dollars to re-connect with Frisk, and pay off judges to keep themselves out of jail, then why can't Frank afford a shirt?

Now, I do like that this has been a storyline that is grounded in reality (even if the villains are pretty dull), and that it brings back an old character whose fate had been unresolved. However, I think it does Frisk a disservice by dramatically changing her character. In her previous appearances (back in 2003-4), Frisk's defining trait was her ambitiousness. Yet, apparently, after her near-death in pursuit of Sal Monella, she gave up her goals of advancing in the field of law enforcement and went into the private detective business. Because...?

This plot also missed an opportunity for Frisk to display some righteous anger. I had wanted to see a scene in which she vituperates Tracy, i.e. "You always undermined me, Tracy! You were happy when you thought I was dead, weren't you? Because I was finally out of the way? You didn't even LOOK for me! Is it any wonder that I went into hiding, you vain-glorious jackass?" This would have given the eventual reconciliation between Tracy and Frisk more emotional heft.

(There's also the unsatisfying plot contrivance of Frisk's Wrist Geenee being in her coat and alerting Tracy to her peril purely by coincidence, but that's neither here nor there...)

It remains to be seen if Frisk will have a continuing role in the strip. Maybe she'll join up with the Tracy Agency? Or partner with G.M. Shoe? It would not hurt to have another strong female character in the mix...

In conclusion, I think this would have been a stronger storyline if readers were given a better sense of what the various characters wanted, and what was at stake.

Custom Action Figures - 6" Dick Tracy, Pruneface, and The Brow

Several years ago, a company called Shocker Toys released a 6" action figure of Dick Tracy as part of their Indie Spotlight line of toys. I did not get one at the time, and they now command a hefty price on the secondary market. Additionally, I wasn't especially fond of the sculpt of Tracy's face.

So, I decided to make my own. I found some DC Multiverse Joker figures of him in a black suit that were deeply discounted, and I made molds of the heads of the several figures from Mezco's Dick Tracy Mez-Its, since they're in roughly the same scale.

Admittedly, there's not much unique about each figure, which is one of the problems of having a Dick Tracy toy line. It's mostly just guys in suits.

I have plans to make Flattop and Sam Catchem, but those will require a different base figure. I might also make a removable hat for Tracy, and maybe an alternate version in his overcoat.

Here's Tracy next to the original figure:

"So, who has the best Rogues' Gallery?"

Some artsy shots:

Review- Dick Tracy: Dead or Alive #1

Now that issue #2 of “Dick Tracy: Dead or Alive” is available, I thought I would publish my reaction to issue #1.

To put it simply, I didn’t like it very much.

Granted, it’s only one issue, but as an introduction to the look and tone of this mini-series, it did not inspire confidence.

I’ll start with the characters- I read another review that took issue with this comic’s violent content, specifically the amount of it coming from Dick Tracy. In the newspaper comic strip, Tracy has typically been depicted as using violence as a necessary means to an end. He famously doesn’t shoot first, and he’s never been shown reveling in or enjoying violence and gunplay. That doesn’t seem to be the case with this version of Tracy.

I find the opening sequence especially disturbing, in which Tracy assaults the fugitive tech guru. This criminal (guilty murderer though he may be) doesn’t pose any physical threat to Tracy, yet Tracy kicks him hard enough to knock a tooth out and send him tumbling down the stairs. It demonstrates a cavalier attitude about violence from Tracy that is unbecoming in a hero, particularly in the modern-day context of the militarization of police and their use of violence.

I’m willing to give the comic some leeway, though, if the point of the violence is to show Tracy changing his ways later in the series, perhaps due to the influence of Junior or Tess. We’ll see.

I also had a problem with the art style. I don’t mean to suggest that the comic is drawn badly, but it’s too cartoon-y given the content. Everything is stylized and drawn with clean, sharp lines and bright colors that are at odds with the grim nature of the goings-on. If it’s supposed to be ironic juxtapositioning, it did not work for me. Even Kyle Baker’s art (which is notoriously stylized) in the 1990 movie tie-in comic was a kind of “messy” that suited the material. It was a dimly-lit, rumpled, disorganized world that reflected the nature of its villainous inhabitants. This new comic does not achieve that same tone.

One of the major problems that I had was with the anachronistic nature of the depiction of the world that these characters inhabit. It’s clearly a world with old-style cars and clothes and buildings, yet they still have very modern communication technology (i.e. cell phones and flat screen TVs). It felt to me like the creators refused to make a choice about the era in which they wanted the story to be set. It’s just a truth of storytelling that if you want your characters to be in pinstripes and using tommy guns, they can’t have cell phones, and vice versa. Progress has either happened or it hasn’t. Trying to have it both ways makes it not work.

I’ll point out that I could not avoid comparing this comic’s use of technology to that of “Batman: the Animated Series”, which also had old-style cars and buildings but also had computers. I can’t fully put my finger on why it works on BTAS and doesn’t work here. Perhaps because Batman is inherently more fantastical? This Dick Tracy is apparently trying to be gritty and realistic (to a degree), but the anachronistic look undercuts that.

Along those same lines, I had trouble processing how much time passed during the course of single issue. It seems to be a matter of only a day or two between Tracy’s arrest of Mr. Peepers and his arrival in Chicago (The City by the Lake, whatever…), then within hours of his arrival in the city he’s dismantled Big Boy’s whole operation. Then it’s apparently only another day or two before Big Boy is tried, convicted and executed. Events happen at an implausibly fast pace, and the story takes no time to breathe, so the impact of the events don’t land.

Again, this could be intentional, where the creators are attempting to create a heightened reality. If that’s the case, they succeeded but I didn’t enjoy it. And I’m the target audience for this comic.

I have purchased issue #2 of this miniseries but have not read it yet. I will most likely buy the next two as well. Hopefully, sales will warrant further publications from IDW, perhaps with a different creative team on each 4-issue series, each showing their take on Tracy in different eras with different styles.

Catching Up With the Joneses

Long Ago-

Stiletta Jones sat in her rocker, desperately trying to lull her infant daughter to sleep. Baby Angelica had been wailing for an hour, with no apparent reason and no sign of stopping.

I didn’t have this problem with Floyd Jr… Stiletta thought. He’s always so quiet.

Upon thinking of her son, Stiletta realized she hadn’t seen him since before Angelica had started crying. Carefully, she stood, bouncing Angelica gently in her arms. The girl kept crying. Stiletta made her way to son’s room and knocked on the door.

“Junior?” She asked. There was no response. 

Panicked, Stiletta opened the door and found her 4-year-old lying on his stomach, drawing with a crayon on a blank pad. In the corner of the room was an elaborate structure made out of wooden blocks. Floyd seemed to be drawing up plans for his next project. Stiletta sighed in relief.

“Junior! Why didn’t you answer when I knocked?” She demanded.

“Not Junior.” The boy responded coldly.

Stiletta couldn’t be sure, but the comment almost seemed to make Angelica stop crying and laugh. She promptly began crying again.

“I know you don’t like being called ‘Junior’.” Stiletta said. “But I want you to answer when I ask for you! Do you understand me, young man?”

“Yes.” Floyd Junior said flatly.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you!” Stiletta scolded. 

Floyd Junior turned and looked at his mother with a heavy-lidded glare. His cheeks were fuller, but he looked so much like a child version of his father that it never failed to amaze Stiletta. She bounced Angelica in her arms.

“Would you like to hold your sister for a while?” Stiletta asked.

“No.” Floyd Junior responded. He just stared at her. Stiletta rolled her eyes.

“Fine. Stay in here, then. Your father should be home soon and we’ll all have dinner together.” Stiletta turned to leave.

“I know…” Floyd Junior said impassively. He waited until his mother had left the room to return to his drawing.

Stiletta made her way back to the front room. She wished that she could share her son’s certainty about her husband’s comings and goings. Recently, Floyd Sr. had been so different. Distant, aloof, hardly his old adventurous self. At least, not when he was around her.

“Don’t call me ‘Flattop’,” he had said to her the last time they were together. He had never complained about the nickname before. But now it seemed to irk him when she used it.

I wonder if he suspects… She thought.

Forty minutes later, Angelica was finally napping. Stiletta took the opportunity to finish preparing dinner for her family, her eye on the clock, wondering when Floyd Sr. would arrive. 

This was hardly the life she had expected for herself. She’d been a daring, care-free young woman, as much at home on a dusty backroad as in a sumptuous hotel suite. Her skill as a knife-thrower had allowed her to travel the world giving exhibitions even as a teenager.

Then she had met Flattop and her world turned upside-down. Something about him drew her to him. His cool, dispassionate demeanor which fell away the moment they were alone together was irresistible. He had taken her with him on some of his early jobs, finding that she made an effective distraction in preparations for bank robberies. And the “celebrations” they had afterwards were even more exhilarating.

The life of an outlaw soon took over, though. Floyd would frequently send her to some relative’s or a safe house while he fled the state. “Lay low, I’ll send some money when the heat does down,” was a common sentiment that she would get in his letters. When Floyd Jr. had come along, she had insisted that they have a proper home, which quickly became like a prison to her.

Of course, she wasn’t a lonely woman. Floyd’s brother Walter went on fewer and fewer jobs with him, and he consequently became a frequent visitor to Stiletta’s home. Walter was so unlike Floyd in so many ways, but his passion was just as fiery. Stiletta had found it difficult to resist after a while…

Stiletta heard the front door swing open. She wiped her hands on a towel and went to meet her husband.

“Floyd! You’re here! Dinner is almost ready.” Stiletta beamed at him.

“Where’s the kid?” Flattop demanded, coldly.

“Angelica? She’s right here in her crib. She’s only just calmed down after-“

“Not her. MY kid.” Flattop said, fixing his wife with a intense gaze.

“What do you-" Stiletta gasped. “Oh! Oh, Floyd, no! It’s not what you-"

“I just had a long talk with my brother.” Flattop said. “I’m not having a long talk with you.”

Flattop pushed past Stiletta and made his way to the back of the house. Stiletta stood, fixed to the spot, unable to move. She heard Flattop talking to his son, then they emerged into the front room. Flattop was pulling Floyd Jr. by the arm. The boy wasn’t resisting.

“Go get in the car.” Flattop told his son. Floyd Jr. walked out the front door without looking at his mother.

“I’m taking him.” Flattop told Stiletta.

“Where?” Stiletta asked?

“None of your damn business.” Flattop snarled. “I paid for this house, got it? That makes it my house. When I get back here tonight, I don’t want you or HER-“ he pointed derisively at Angelica’s crib, “-to be in it. Understand?”

“Floyd, I-“ Stiletta started. Flattop cut her off.

“Blowtop’s my brother. I’m not going to kill my brother.” He stepped towards Stiletta and wrapped a hand around her throat. “You, I’ll kill. If I ever see you again, I’ll kill you.”

Flattop squeezed his wife’s neck for a brief moment, then released it. He stalked out without back.

***

Less than an hour later, Stiletta was pounding on Walter’s door. Angelica was wrapped in a blanket in her arms, squalling. From inside, Walter shouted at her.

“Woo! Gosh!” Who is it?” Walter demanded.

“It’s me, Stiletta!” she answered. “Walter, let me in! Floyd knows! He threw me out!”

The door flung open and Walter stood there in a robe. He blocked her from entering. 

“Of course he knows!” Walter bellowed. “You think he’s stupid! Look at her head! Look at her hair! He was bound to figure it out!”

“But- But did you tell him?” Stiletta asked.

“We were coming back from a job and had a few drinks!” Walter yelled. “He’s my brother! We talked! He weaseled it out of me!”

A neighbor across the street opened his front door. “Hey! Knock it off out here, will you?”

“Mind your own business!” Walter shouted. “Woo! Gosh! Some people!”

Stiletta lowered her voice. “Will you just let me in, please? Floyd threw us out and I don’t have anywhere to go.”

“You can’t come in here.” Walter said, his voice quieter but insistent. “You know what he’d do to me if he knew I took you in?”

“But, Walter, we were…” She didn’t finish the sentence. Instead, she held up her crying child. “She’s your daughter, Walter.”

Walter looked from the baby to his brother’s wife and back again. He sighed.

“Wait here.” Walter said. He closed the door. After a moment, he returned. “Give me the kid.”

Hesitantly, Stiletta placed Angelica in Walter’s arms. Angelica stopped crying. Walter looked at her and half-smiled. Then, he looked back and Stiletta and held out a bundle of cash.

“That should get you pretty damned far away from here.” Walter said. “You can buy a new name, face, documents, whatever you want. Just don’t try to contact us.”

“Walter-" Stiletta began.

“And I mean ANY of us. Not the boy, not my other brother or sister, not our parents, aunts and uncles, ANYBODY. You’re not a member of the Jones family any more. Forget you ever were. Understand?”

Tears were welling up in Stiletta’s eyes. “But, they’re my children, Walter…”

“Not any more. Now get lost! Seriously!”

Walter turned and shut the door. Stiletta stood there for a moment. She sobbed, silently, only once. Then, she wiped the tears from her face and walked off the front porch. She was resolved that it would be a very very long time before she cried again.

Epilogue

Eight year old Angelica stormed into the house and confronted her foster father.

“You threw away my letters!” She yelled.

“I don’t know what you mean.” The man said, impassively.

“I waited by the mailbox until the mailman came! Every day for 3 weeks!” Angelica shouted, red-faced and teary-eyed. “Today I got this!”

The girl held up a letter and an envelope addressed to her.

“It’s from my brother! He asks why I haven’t written back! He says he’s been writing me twice a month sometimes!”

“Those letters get you worked up, Angel.” Her foster father explained. “I decided it was better that you not see them.”

“He’s my only brother! He’s my family and he loves me! I have a right-"

“Now you stop that this instant, young lady.” He scolded. “You live in my house and you follow my rules. Those letters put all kind of foolish ideas in your head about running off and robbing banks and shooting guns and all manner of terrible things. You’re much better off here in a safe, secure home than you would be surrounded by a bunch of outlaws and hoodlums, do you understand? It wouldn’t hurt you to show some appreciation.”

Angelica scowled, then adopted a calmer demeanor. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

“Good.” The man held out a hand. “Now give it here.”

Reluctantly, Angelica handed over the letter from Floyd Jr. Her foster father folded it and tucked it into his shirt pocket.

“All right, now. Go to your room until you can show me the proper respect.”

Angelica sulked off to her room. You think you’re so smart, She thought. My father was the most wanted man in America. My brother’s a genius and I’m just like them. 

Closing and locking her bedroom door behind her, Angelica lifted her mattress. Hidden between the mattress and box spring was the painting that Floyd Jr. had made of her, based off of a photograph she had sent him, back when she had still been allowed to write back. It had creases from where it had been folded to fit in an envelope, but the likeness was remarkable. She could sense the affection for her that must have guided his efforts.

Someday we’ll be together. She thought. Dad may be gone, but as soon as I’m old enough, my brother and me will show the world that Flattop’s kids are smarter and tougher than any cops…

Angelica didn’t think about her mother at all.

Analysis - Regarding the Last 18 Months

So, during the past year-and-a-half, Tracy has:

1. Allowed Bribery to escape from Ace Tower

2. Didn't bring charges against Mysta for her interference in the raid on Ace Tower (see above)

3. Allowed production of the "Midnite Mirror" film to continue after 2 confirmed murders took place on set

4. Prepared to leave Cuba without recovering the X-Ray glasses (he didn't know that Ivanova had them when they got on the plane)

5. Left Europe without confirming that Abner Kadaver is dead

6. Gave Blaze Rize - a wanted fugitive - a "couple of days" to put her affairs in order before taking her into custody

7. Allowed Selfy to sneak up on him, knock him unconscious and take his police equipment

8. Announced Sam Catchem's personal family medical issues to both the Mole and Fritz Ann.

Usually one doesn't think of "poor judgement" as a character trait that is common in the hero of a long-running piece of serialized fiction, and the creative team has certainly made a bold choice by giving it to Dick Tracy.

More to come.

One Day at Diet Smith Industries...

November 17th, 2016:

Earlier That Day:

"Stellaluna! Retik! I'm going out for a drive!" Mysta called out.

Retik looked up from his tablet. "Oh, OK. Did you want both of us to come with you, or just one of us?"

"Neither," Mysta replied. "I want to go by myself."

"That's... That's not really how this supposed to work, Mysta." Retik tried to keep his voice soothing.

"I can go out if I want to," Mysta responded. "I'm not a child."

Stellaluna entered from the other room. "But, Mysta, you only have memories of the past three years of your life or so, so in a way-"

"It doesn't matter!" Mysta's eyes flashed. "I don't need handlers!"

"That is literally our ENTIRE job description." Retik pointed out.

"I just need to get away from the compound, all right?" Mysta pleaded.

"Need to?" Stellaluna asked. "Is there an emergency?"

"No, I want to get some magazines." Mysta answered.

Retik and Stellaluna shared a glance.

"Mysta, we have the internet here." Retik explained. "You can read magazines online."

"Or we could have them delivered." Stellaluna offered.

Mysta sighed in frustration. "I just want to go out and clear my head! Is that too much to ask?"

Retik leaned into Stellaluna and whispered in her ear. "Do you want to...?"

"Yes, I'll do it." Stellaluna responded quietly. She approached Mysta and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Mysta, honey, didn't you tell us recently that you've been receiving some kind of mental communications from an unknown source?"

"Yes," replied Mysta.

"Or, to put it another way, there are unwanted distracting thoughts entering your mind that you can't control. Right?"

"That's another way of putting it, yes." Mysta responded.

"So," Stellaluna made her voice as plaintive as possible, "Don't you think that it's probably not a good idea for you to be driving a car? That it could be dangerous?"

Mysta threw off Stellaluna's hand. "Look, I guess nobody told you, but I'm Mysta Chimera. That means that I get to do whatever I want, regardless of the consequences, because I'm cute and everybody loves me for some reason. Now, get out of my way before I scrooch the both of you!"

Mysta stormed off. Stellaluna and Retik watched her go.

"Remind me again why we like her?" Stellaluna asked Retik.

"Well, in my case, it's because of those thigh-high boots. And her tits."

"Oh, right." Stellaluna acknowledged. "And I have such fond memories of the Moon Era that I don't care what she does as long as there's Moon stuff going on. Oh, well. She's not our problem now..."
END

Analysis - What's So Great About Mysta?

The current storyline in the Dick Tracy comic strip features Mysta Chimera (the "new" Moon Maid) in a prominent role. I'm not a fan of this character, and I genuinely don't understand why she's popular, other than the superficial reason that she's drawn sexy and she gratifies the desires of those fans of the Moon Era to see it acknowledged.

So, I posted this question to the Dick Tracy Fan Club Facebook page, also listing what I see as Mysta's character flaws. Some people responded, with Dan Forrester composing a lengthy response in defense of Mysta.

Rather than post my counter-argument in the comments section of that page, I decided to place them here. Mr. Forrester's argument is in italics.

Well, Dave, you really dumped the truck. :) Let's see, Mysta was kidnapped, had her mind destroyed and replaced with false memories, experiments were performed on her body, and she was manipulated by criminals. A character who's undergone such abuse might deserve a tiny bit of sympathy and understanding, no? That's a big reason why Diet took her under his wing, because he felt so horrible and guilty about what had happened to her. So I would start with that as an explanation for why fans like her.

Interesting. This pre-supposes that Glenna WAS kidnapped and altered against her will. We’ve not been shown any evidence of that. I consider it just as likely that Glenna volunteered for the procedure, even if Ghote and Sail (and Bribery) didn’t make clear the full extent of what the transformation would be. It was clearly established that Glenna wanted to be like Moon Maid, and I find it entirely plausible that she would have agreed to any offer to MAKE her like Moon Maid. She MIGHT not have been told that she would lose her personality and memories, but it’s equally possible that she WAS told and agreed anyway. Without knowing exactly what methods were used to change her brain, I have to assume that the process would be more successful with a willing participant (as is the case with hypnotism) than with someone who was resisting the process.

Of course, this is all speculative because we haven’t been shown/told the exact circumstances of Glenna’s transformation into Mysta. Mike Curtis either hasn’t fully decided what it is yet, or he’s being deliberately ambiguous.  

That being said, I do feel some sympathy for Mysta, in the same way that I would sympathize with someone who was suffering from severe memory loss, or had just awakened from a long coma, or was returning to society after an extended period in captivity. However, feeling sorry for a character isn’t the same as liking them.

Since she discovered what she has become, Mysta has established her own unique identity and has spent a lot of time developing a career in acting and writing. She's trying to improve herself and make her way in the world, so I can't accept the "irresponsible" charge.

Has she, though? What has she done to establish herself as a unique individual, rather than just a copy of Moon Maid? Yes, she took the acting job, but that’s because she doesn’t have any education, qualifications, or skills that could apply to other work. Furthermore, we were never shown if she was successful in that job. Did the “Mysta” movie do well? Was it warmly received by critics or audiences? Are they making a sequel?

I also haven’t seen any evidence that she’s actually trying to improve herself. She doesn’t seem to have significantly greater mastery over her super-human abilities, and she still doesn’t seem to understand how the world works. If she IS trying to improve herself, she’s making extremely slow progress, which indicates that she’s either not trying very hard or is genuinely dim-witted.

Beyond that, she hasn’t shown any other goals or ambitions. This is a fundamental flaw in Mysta as a character, since I have no clear idea what she actually WANTS. Does she want to achieve a better understanding of society and join it, or does she want to live in isolation at Diet Smith’s compound with occasional visits from Honeymoon? I get the impression that she tends towards the latter, which I don’t consider to be admirable.  

"Impulsive?" I don't know about that, either. Yes, she acted that way when she was still under Dr. Sail's malicious control, what with her vigilante work and scheming against Sparkle. But not since. Learning who she really is and working hard to establish a new identity for herself has plainly had a sobering effect on her life.

"Naive?" Perhaps a little and definitely so before she learned the truth about her identity. However, she's definitely awake now to the evil people who used her for their twisted schemes. I'd rather have Mysta be a little too trusting than bitter, angry, and vindictive, which humanly speaking she probably has a right to be.

I disagree. She’s been consistently impulsive AND naïve. Upon sensing that Honeymoon was in danger during the Fall of the Black Hearts, she commandeered a helicopter and flew to the 52 Gallery. She didn’t consider other options or how she could actually help once she arrived. That’s being impulsive.

Likewise, her decision to confront Rep. Bellowthon was impulsive AND naïve. If she had any understanding of how the world works, she would know that showing up unannounced at the office of a Congressional Representative would not help her achieve her goals, but she did it anyway, apparently without considering the consequences. Likewise, if she had stopped to think about she was doing, she would know that arriving in an outfit that amounts to a one-piece bathing suit, thigh-high boots and opera gloves is not an effective way to be taken seriously in the halls of government. But she either didn’t consider the implications of what she was doing, or genuinely didn’t understand those implications. 

So I stand by my characterization of impulsive and naïve.

"Prone to emotional outbursts?" You mean like, say, most women in the world?

Well, if that’s not the very definition of chauvinism, I don’t know what is.

 Yes, Mysta gets emotional at times. That's bad because....? Seeing her cry tells us she has real feelings, and expresses those feelings in the way most young women do. It's understandable that she has become emotional at times, given the traumatic and life-threatening experiences she has endured over the last few years. And all of that has certainly contributed to feelings of empathy for the character.

Emotional outbursts would be fine if she wasn’t being presented as one of the Heroes. B.O. Plenty is prone to crying, and it’s presented as humorous. Readers may like B.O. and think well of him (we may even recognize that he has the CAPACITY for heroism when the situation calls for it), but we’re not expected to think of him as a force to be reckoned with or as a role model to other characters in the strip.

Regarding Mysta's deeds since she discovered what the Blackhearts had done to her, I only recall two times when she "showed up at a situation." On one occasion she went to Honeymoon's house late at night because she telepathically picked up on Honeymoon's extreme distress, which her parents knew nothing about. She served a very good purpose on that occasion in the way she helped Honeymoon through the significant physical transformation she was undergoing. She didn't "accomplish nothing" in that episode. Far from it.

The only other time I remember her "showing up" was at the conclusion of the Blackhearts story last year. The reason she went to the Blackhearts HQ was because Honeymoon had telepathically signaled her that she and Annie were in mortal danger. Mysta didn't just "show up" on that occasion with no purpose to "accomplish nothing." She came to rescue her friends from physical harm. She didn't kill anyone but disabled a bunch of bad people and helped the police secure the building as it turns out. I presume this is why she wasn't accused of any wrong doing when it was all over. She started crying at the end of that story mostly because Bribery had used a weapon against her and insulted her and confused her a bit. So I think we can excuse her for that, if she can be allowed to cry?

She showed up at the Wheaten farm and accomplished nothing except drawing more villains to the scene, further complicating matters for Tracy, the police, and their allies. She did nothing to help in that situation, or during the case of Tabby Angus. 

She showed up at Rep. Bellowthon’s office and complicated matters there as well. If she hadn’t taken it upon herself to confront Rep. Bellowthon, there would one less suspect in the Representative’s death, and Tracy and Sam wouldn't have to take up their time interviewing her.

As far as the Fall of the Black Hearts is concerned, that was her most unforgivable transgression. She trespassed into the 52 Gallery, interfered with a combined FBI/MCU operation, assaulted an undercover police officer, and enabled Bribery (a wanted felon and a known murderer) to escape. Did readers actually see her doing anything useful during that adventure? Did she stop any bad guys or protect anyone from harm? She didn’t even achieve her goal of rescuing Honeymoon. Instead, Honeymoon had to protect HER.

Consider this- If Mysta HADN’T shown up at the 52 Gallery, Lee (as T-Bolt) could have delayed Bribery’s escape long enough for him to be captured. Failing that, they could have escaped together in Bribery’s helicopter, thus allowing Lee to continue monitoring and reporting on his activities. Instead, Mysta arrived and interfered, and as a result Bribery got away. She should be in Federal Prison, but she’s not because Team Tracy has decided that she’s One of the Good Guys and expects readers to think of her in the same way.

As for criticizing fans for liking her looks, you're kidding, right? Are we adults here? Would you prefer that Mysta be plain looking, wear no makeup, and dress in tent clothes? Isn't in the nature of a daily strip that we should like the way the characters look? Are we to infer from your comments that women who like to see Superman in his costume are also being "salacious?" Yes, being "cute/sexy" is one reason why I and other fans like Mysta. Why is that a problem?

It’s not a problem in and of itself. Tess and Lizz and Lee are all physically attractive female characters, but they all also have OTHER positive qualities that make them valuable additions to the strip. If the only role that Tess had ever played in the strip was to look pretty and get captured so Dick could rescue her, I would condemn that as sexist as well. 

Furthermore, there’s nothing wrong with liking eye-candy. But, if that’s the ONLY reason why a reader or audience member likes (or, indeed, is expected to like) a certain character, then that’s shallow and it should be acknowledged as such. I recall readers on Facebook and gocomics comments asking for more of Venus, despite the fact that Venus has no identifiable personality traits other than “she’s a villain”. They wanted more of her, though, because she’s a sexy dame.

For a good period of time, the most popular TV show in the world was “Baywatch”. Pamela Anderson’s character was certainly there to look good in a bathing suit and bounce around. Of course, C.J. also had the redeeming quality of being a good lifeguard, so viewers could argue that her appeal wasn’t based SOLELY on her appearance. If Mysta had other positive qualities, I’d be less condemnatory of her and her fans.

As for "nostalgia," probably the main reason the Dick Tracy strip survived through all the lean years is exactly because of nostalgia, a longing for the excellent work Gould did which by then seemed a million miles away. Now that the strip has been taken over by talented, imaginative, award-winning people, is it really surprising that so many fans are glad that a classic character like Moon Maid, now reborn, has been restored? Dick Tracy is an 85 year old comic strip. Nostalgia carried it through the dark times, and nostalgia is what carries it now. There is nothing odd or unusual about fans liking certain characters when they were young and being glad they have been restored.

Again, nostalgia is fine, but it can’t be expected to carry a strip. For all the flaws during their tenures on the strip, I can’t imagine Kilian or Locher sitting at their desks thinking “It doesn’t have to be good, the fans will like anything as long as it has Dick Tracy in it”. I’m willing to believe that they (and the current Team Tracy) are working at the best of their abilities, or at least at the best that the medium and the realities of syndicated newspaper content will allow. 

Just because Mysta reminds a reader of a previous time in the strip that the reader liked does not make Mysta a good character. She needs to be evaluated on her own merits, which (in my estimation) are few.

Granted, I don’t think highly of the Moon Era in general. It represents Gould at his most divorced from reality, and a lot of it is meandering, unfocused, and nearly unreadable. Bribery, as a villain, is not a character as much as he was a collection of affectations. Moon Maid, while potentially complex and interesting, was mostly just used as cheesecake and comic relief. The running gag of her not being able to cook, for example, was a wildly sexist and out-dated premise, even in the mid-sixties.

I’m willing to be more forgiving of Gould, though, as he was operating in a different time. The current Team Tracy should know better.

I would contrast Mysta with another amateur crime-fighter that appeared in the strip- Brighton Spotts. Brighton was occasionally helpful, but he caused as much trouble as he helped to resolve. The other characters considered him to be a nuisance at worst, well-meaning but ineffectual at best, and readers were meant to think the same way.

If Mysta was treated like Brighton (irrational, irresponsible, potentially dangerous, and in need of guidance), that would be more palatable to me. Instead, she’s praised, her transgressions are excused, and Honeymoon declares Mysta to be her hero, for no comprehensible reason.