Fairmount City has faced plenty of supervillains before. But this may be its first livestreaming supervillain.
After losing her brief burst of social-media stardom, Hailey re-emerges with a new look, a new name, and a dangerous new relationship with engagement metrics. Now she is Countess Influencia — the Validation Vampire — and every heart, like, and notification seems to make her stronger.
Fairmount News Network tries to cover the attack, but even the news crew can’t stop checking her feed. As hearts start streaming from phones across the city — and around the world — it becomes clear that this crime spree is no longer just a local story.
The world has met Countess Influencia.
And she would very much like you to smash that “Like” button.
Transcript
Panel 1
At the Fairmount News Network studio. Someone off panel whispers, “Psst! Ms. Takahaski! You’re on the air!” Hana Takahaski looks up from her smartphone and says, “Oh! Umm… We’ve got breaking news!”
Panel 2
Hana says, “We’re getting live reports of an attack on the downtown area.” A stream of hearts begins floating from her phone.
Panel 3
The scene widens. Hana is still on her phone. The cameraman is also on his phone. Streams of hearts flow from both phones and from other unseen people in the studio. Hana says, “She may be the first supervillain to livestream her own crime spree! Moreover…” Then, distracted by her phone, she says, “Hold on…” Her phone displays the text: “YAS, Queen!”
Panel 4 (inset)
Exterior view of the Fairmount News Network building. Several streams of hearts flow outward from inside the building and from the street below. Hana says, “Moreover, while Fairmount City is her current target, she has already taken the whole WORLD by storm!”
Panel 5
Hailey, now transformed into Countess Influencia, floats above the city as streams of hearts flow directly into her body. She says, “Look upon Countess Influencia and despair!” Then, in smaller type: “And don’t forget to smash that ‘Like’ button and subscribe!”
Alt text
A five-panel Evil Inc comic introduces Hailey’s new supervillain persona, Countess Influencia. At Fairmount News Network, anchor Hana Takahaski is caught looking at her phone just as she goes on the air with breaking news about an attack downtown. As she reports, red heart icons begin floating from her phone. The scene widens to show the cameraman and others in the studio also absorbed by their phones, with streams of hearts flowing upward. Hana reports that the villain may be the first supervillain to livestream her own crime spree, then gets distracted by a message reading, “YAS, Queen!” Outside the Fairmount News Network building, heart streams pour from the building and the street below. In the final panel, Hailey floats above the city in her new vampire-inspired outfit as Countess Influencia. Streams of hearts flow into her body as she declares, “Look upon Countess Influencia and despair!” She adds, “And don’t forget to smash that ‘Like’ button and subscribe!”
The Mean Streets of Sesame
At first blush, it seems like one of those stories that makes people wax hysterical about that old boogey-man “Political Correctness.” From the Philadelphia Inkwaster…
[
Philadelphia Inquirer]
The gang at Sesame thought it would be a sunny day, and everything would be A-OK when they introduced Abby this month, complete with her poofy, sparkly pigtails, fluttery lavender wings, a magic wand, and a pretty chiffon frock.
But before any of them could spell Aloysius Snuffleupagus, the criticism began…
…Susan Linn, cofounder of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, calls Abby’s introduction a blatant attempt to compete with the gigantic Disney princess market.
“The last thing little girls need is one more pink fairy,” she says. “My understanding is that she’s a little incompetent with her magic, too. I’m concerned that now even the Sesame Workshop has bought into the girly, girly commercialized image of what it is to be feminine…OK, apart from the people who are worried about Abby’s magic being a portrayal of witchcraft, some of these people have a point. It
does smack of the Disney Princess syndrome. We’ve got enough girl characters in pink, frilly dresses demonstrating a sort of “oopsie” incompetence. I think the anti-Abby lobby has a valid point.
For my money, I would have much rather seen the next Sesame Street character be based on
this little lady.
