This comment was, admittedly, snarky:
"OK, so far during the 'Three Detectives' storyline, we've seen Dick Tracy (Our Hero, America's Greatest Detective) employ his amazing detective skills of
A) Being told exactly who the criminal is and where he went, and
B) Looking out a window.
Of course, there was also that part earlier in the story when he engaged in some wild speculation about a very serious crime and was immediately told that he was wrong..."
Still, snark aside, I believe that my general complaint about the direction of this storyline is valid. Dick Tracy has, in recent years, diminished in his apparent competence as a law-enforcement officer. The bad guys get away too often, and Tracy fails to follow up. Instead, it's just on to the next adventure.
I understand why this happens from a storytelling standpoint. Write Mike Curtis presumably wants to create a mystique around the villains. They need to formidable enough to seem like legitimate challenges to Tracy's skills as a detective, and readers would (ideally) want to see them come back again and again. However, unlike in a Batman or Spider-Man comic where the enemies are often super-human and difficult to contain/subdue, Tracy's villains are only human. Likewise, Tracy has no moral code against killing in the line of duty if necessary. Tracy's villains need to be caught or killed (unambiguously), or else Tracy looks incompetent. The idea that he would leave the case of Mrs. Flattop or the Nitrates or Blackjack or Abner Kadaver unresolved (all of which he has done at one point) is wildly contrary to his established nature and diminishes his character.
Similarly, in the Three Detectives storyline, Tracy is NOT shown to be actively engaging in detective work. He has an informant - Bogart the Roach - whom he seems to trust implicitly and who simply GIVES Tracy the name of the suspect that he's seeking. We don't see Tracy do any follow-up investigation to confirm this information, he merely goes back to headquarters when John Locher Springstein confirms Bogart's report and provides the additional information that Tracy needs regarding Specs' whereabouts.
I can conceive of other directions that this story could have taken. It would begin in essentially the same way, with Specs
obtaining the X-Ray goggles through misadventure. Ideally, we would have a
stronger sense of what Specs and Spicy’s background is - Are they already low-lifes with ties to organized crime, or are they just a down-on-their luck
couple who stumble upon a way to make a quick buck?
Stronger/more consistent characterization of Specs and Spicy
would also be preferable. Are they supposed to be outright villains? Writer Mike Curtis SEEMS to want them to be sympathetic and likeable, caught up in an adventure where they are clearly out of their league. However, as it stands, Specs is a cipher and kind of a dimwit. Spicy alternates
between being a seemingly sweet, supportive girlfriend of Specs, then becomes an amoral
schemer, then goes back to apparently wanting to give up the criminal life and
go straight.
Seeing their induction into the Apparatus could have been
interesting. What sort of condition is the Apparatus in? Are they rebuilding
their power and sphere of influence in the wake of the Fall of the Black Hearts?
Where are their efforts focused? Smuggling, narcotics, forgery, identity theft,
human trafficking, the sex trade, etc? Specs gets assigned to work as a
Jugmarker, providing reconnaissance for high-profile, high-value theft targets.
Is this something the Apparatus has done before? Who are the burglars that act
on Specs’ information? There was an opportunity to create some new and colorful
criminal characters, but readers are only ever shown the aftermath of the
crimes.
Here’s how the story could have been presented- Several
wealthy citizens have their homes robbed, despite their security measures.
These could be people similar to Bea Thorndike (some new, some already
established, maybe an appearance by former-Mayor Norris?). However, the thefts
aren’t random. They’re focused, with only specific, high-value items
being stolen with precision and efficiency. Tracy investigates, but is stumped.
He assumes it must be some kind of inside job, but can’t find a link among the
victims.
Then, the Apparatus becomes bolder. They send Specs to
reconnoiter Diet Smith’s home. This is Specs’ first indication that he’s in
over his head. Spicy (who is enjoying the exciting life of an outlaw because she’s
not personally at risk) reluctantly agrees to look into other options for
Specs, and starts making escape plans.
Diet Smith’s home is then burgled. The only thing taken is
an extremely personal item, with more sentimental than monetary value (say, a
memento of Brilliant). Diet realizes that this MUST be a result of the missing
X-Ray goggles, but he is embarrassed by the failure of his security and does not
inform Tracy of the robbery. He enhances his private security measures instead.
Specs performs another job for the Apparatus, but this time
the burglar makes a mistake. He inadvertently awakens the homeowner, forcing a
confrontation in which the homeowner is killed. Tracy investigates and finds
evidence of the killer’s identity (bullet casings/fingerprints/DNA, etc).
Diet learns of the robbery and murder and is compelled to be honest with Tracy, both about being robbed and about the missing X-Ray goggles.
It becomes a source of tension between them, since Tracy dislikes when Diet is
secretive. Diet tries to reconcile by providing Tracy with an upgraded Wrist Wizard, but Tracy is
not swayed (as he has a stubborn streak).
The Apparatus kills the burglar to avoid the risk of him
being arrested and informing the police of the Apparatus’ activities. The body
is left in a public place and found. Tracy realizes that he’s just lost his
best lead, and that his only chance now is to find the X-Ray goggles and the
person using them.
At the same time, Specs realizes just how vicious the
Apparatus is and begins to fear for his life. He decides to go on the run.
There’s a brief question as to whether he and Spicy would safer if they separated,
but one (or both?) declares their love and personal loyalty, preferring to take
the risk together. This is character development and makes the couple more
compelling/sympathetic (which I believe is Mike Curtis’ goal with them).
From there, the story can unfold similar to how it has so
far, with Specs and Spicy fleeing to Cuba. We could see Tracy engaging in
actual police work, investigating the people who were at the headache remedy testing
group, eliminating suspects until Specs is the only one left. We then see the
reunion with Wunbrow and Ivanova and the arrangements for Tracy to go to Cuba.
We would also (hopefully) get a better explanation as to why Ivanova is
involved at all. Are there some machinations going on between the Cuban
government as some (presumably former) Communist agents in Ivanova’s department?
There’s the potential for intrigue which I hope will be explored.
My point is that I would prefer to see storylines that are
more rooted in character, relationships, realistic motivations and genuine
police work than they are in coincidence, luck, and information being handed to
our hero. I’d also like to see some things happen (the robberies, a narrow
escape from Apparatus headquarters for Specs and Spicy, internal strife in the
criminal organization) than simply being told about it afterwards as people are
sitting around talking.
Mike Curtis responded to my comment on Facebook indicating that the rest of the story will have more action. I'll be eager to see how that manifests.
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