Dick Tracy #25

A rooftop showdown takes center stage on this 1950 Harvey Comics entry, as Dick Tracy — in his signature yellow trench coat and fedora — warns his partner Pat to watch out for the flat-topped villain Flat Top, who lurks menacingly in a doorway with a firearm, while a third figure observes the tense standoff from the rooftop's far side in a clever "cut away view." Chester Gould brings his unmistakable blend of hard-edged crime drama and dynamic staging to every panel, and the cover's breathless speech bubble — "Flat Top is on this roof, Pat! Be careful! He's armed!" — captures exactly the kind of pulse-quickening suspense that made Dick Tracy a staple of American comics. At ten cents, this "Calling All Crime Stoppers" issue is a fine snapshot of early 1950s crime comics at their most energetic.