Krypto #95: The Ed Lacy Saga, Part 3

From: Superman Family #191-192 (September-December 1978)

A bit of a recap may be in order, as we've been tracking this story for a month (our time): Krypto, under the cover name Krapper Kapper, is hangin' with private eye Ed Lacy, helping him track down his nephew Tommy, falsely accused of murder and on the run from both the cops and the mob while he, himself, chases down childhood friend Joe Skinner, his near double who actually committed the murder. You got all that? The trail leads the intrepid heroes to Chicago, where Krypto gets so bored in a traffic jam, he flies out ahead, finally finds Tommy, and saves him from a mobster.

Gives new meaning to the phrase "eating bullets". As the hitman runs off, Krypto uses his newly acquired quick-change collar so he doesn't have to hide in a blur of motion.

The cops are more than happy to take Krypto's perp into custody, at which point well-known ne'er-do-well "Nails" Rivard tries to lawyer himself out of the doggie arrest, but Krypto has all the evidence they need:

And that evidence is not tainted at all, either by dog slobber or that cop's fingerprints. Not. At. ALL. They've got Nails dead to rights for... well, I guess firing a gun within city limits. Reckless endangerment? Let's hope this is his third strike.

When Krypto returns to the car, traffic has lightened some and he and Ed are free to visit Tommy in his apartment. Now, if you've been following this complete chronicle of the Super-Dog's adventures, you'll know that I like to make fun of Krypto's "secret identity". He's very keen on protecting it, but not wearing a cape isn't a very clever disguise. Tommy's a bit smarter than that.

Yeah dude, who cares. It's not like you're hanging out with Clark Kent or something. What's to protect? Anyway, to clear Tommy's name, they need to find Joe Skinner. Does Tommy have anything of Joe's the super-nose that always knows could use to track him? It just so happens Joe once gave him shoes that didn't fit, but they're way out in L.A. at his mom's house. Not a problem for Krypto.

That is one ugly-ass cat, but friendly. As usual, Krypto's the real jerk in the equation. Is that how you treat your fans from other species, K?

So then there's some pretty standard stuff where they corner Joe and his mob babysitter tells him to kill Ed and Tommy or else he'll kill all three of them, and Joe regrets everything and can't, so Krypto has to stop the gunsel's bullets. Joe will testify to the grand jury about his bosses, and all's well that ends well. And for Krypto, it's time for a change. The story's done, his cover's blown, he was always meant for more cosmic things...

Unlike Earth dogs who do not cry because of emotions, Krypto shows his alienness here. Also, the fact that he can't take being an ordinary dog any longer. Effin' Kryptonians, slumming it among us mortals. Cue Pulp's "Common People".

And this isn't just the end of this particular story, it's the end of Krypto's strip in Superman Family. The splash panel for issue 192 even gives the creative team a special goodbye:

 Krypto chronicler Bob Toomey, who had also been writing back-ups in Wonder Woman, would go off to write for Creepy and Eerie at Warren. Artist Juan Ortiz would continue to do fill-in work and inking at Marvel and DC through the end of the decade. Did either of them move to Hawaii, or is that Aloha just a turn of phrase? And Krypto? He'd have a few appearances through the end of the 70s, but never as a headliner. I guess that's up next.