Decoder Ring Theatre

They say that there are no small parts, my friends, only small actors. I've never been entirely clear on exactly what that means, or if the folks that coined the phrase intended it to be as insulting as it is. But one thing is for sure, those thin character sketches that populate the margins are usually kept there for a reason. But when left to their own devices, they tend to play familiar games. Games like... Cops and Robbers!

There are few things that cry out for introspection quite like the passing of one year into the next. A time when the rustle of lost illusions crackles underfoot, like a handful of dead leaves in the wind. When past, present and future come together for a single moment to blow a raspberry at you in the shaving mirror. A time when even the handful of thing you might have been sure of shift underfoot, and send you sliding down the slipperly slope to nowhere in particular. And when that moment comes, even the most hard-boiled of gumshoes can spare a moment for... Auld Lang Syne

When everybody's favorite junior boy detective drops by, its usually good for a twist of a certain tail, and our Square-Jawed hero kind of enjoys that, kind of like a mean kid who pulls the wings off flies. But even a bird-dog job courtesy of the Gentleman Detective is tough to smile at when it comes wrapped in... Hush Money!