Terry and the Pirated 3/16/40 by Milton Caniff

A favorite saying of my wife's applies here.  I need another Terry and the Pirates like I need a hole in the head.  Well, here that hole to go with the almost 100 other Terry and the Pirates I have.  This one came courtesty of Zaddick who is always a pleasure to hang out with and deal with.  I missed seeing him and having him as a neighbour at OAX this year as I was unable to attend.  It was good to connect with him, even briefly, on this deal.  

This is an early 1940 Terry and the war storylines had just started to be more prevalent.  Although I prefer the pre-war Terrys, Caniff really shun on this material and had incredible insight.  This daily is the second appearance of Raven Sherman as she appears in a single panel the day before.  Raven Sherman is an interesting character because she did something no one else in comics had really done before, she died.  Her passing as a victim of war and villainy was a major news even in late 1941 when it happened.  Caniff received death threats for having ended her life and the mail the syndicates got was overwhelming.  I don't know if she had always been ill-fated and Caniff had plans for her to die in 18 months when he introduced her or that is just he way the story unfolded but it was a big deal.  I have a few dailies from her death sequence too, a very somber bookend to accompany this one. 

In addition to the charcter and her weight, there is a lot to like about the art.  The blue wash is always a nice Caniff touch and was used to indicate shading for the printer.  The expressions, especially of Pat are great as he begins with surprise then is flattered only to be caught off guard in the final panel.  It is a gag in 4 panels that introduces story, develops characters, develops the setting and gets you ready for the next days story.  The cinematography Caniff uses here is pretty cool too with the camera spinning counterclockwise around to reveal the background in the final panel to bring home the punchline.  Caniff makes it all look natural and simple which belies the complexity and planning that is really going on.  #genius