Teapots

The first thing that came to mind when I saw this was "Shirl’s a little teapot, short and stout. Here is her handle. Where is the spout?" Then I looked at the previous Dick Tracy post and saw that Dick was also in the midst of the "I’m a little teapot" pose, though he was clearly at the spout part of the song (and would have completed the move if it hadn’t been for the mini computer in his hand). Another thing about Shirl in this particular comic is that she looks a lot like an older version of Jane Lane from Daria. It’s good to see that Jane’s found work, but I’m wondering if she’s still doing her art, and how all the other people in Lawndale are doing. I miss that show.

But back to the police department. Here we have the miscellaneous officer whose name we’ll never learn. Let's call him Thaddeus. I’ve got some serious reservations about this mission since it looks like Thaddeus here wants to be a James Bond villain and has decided that it's the perfect time to practice petting an invisible cat. (He might also want to be The Claw from Inspector Gadget, but I haven’t heard his voice, so I can’t be sure.) In case the super villain thing falls through, at least he has his music since it looks like he isn’t sitting in front of a computer, but is instead at some sort of electronic keyboard with a screen. Kind of reminds me of the thing Synergy always carried around on Jem (or at least the thing that came with the Synergy doll). This career path may not pan out either though, since judging by the pained expression on Tracy’s face, Officer Thaddeus doesn’t seem to have any talent (maybe he should try the Bossa Nova beat in the background.) He must be really into the music though, because he doesn’t even notice his headphones are falling off (that, or there’s a crab on his other shoulder reaching around to pinch his ear.).
Then again, I guess I shouldn’t be so worried about the police force since the crooks who just robbed the bank are making sure to leave a nice wide trail of spilled milk or paint in their wake. If the police can’t follow this to the hideout, then I'm tempted to change my occupation and take up a life of crime in this city. It could really pay off.

It also looks like our friend/enemy Shirl is the latest victim of T-Rex Arms. It's a shame too. She’s just about to tell Tracy that she caught a fish this big, only now, with the current state of her arms, it’s going to be just a regular sized trout that any respectable fisherman would throw back. (I would say she’s in the middle of a performance of "Singin’ in the Rain," but she’s indoors and I'm not sure they have sprinklers at the station, so I’ll stick with the fishing.) Speaking of T-Rex Arms, I’m wondering how Tess is faring with this ailment and whether she’s still in bed or has somehow miraculously recovered.