Chapter 17 | Page 13d: Performance Reviews

Today’s performance reviews didn’t just evaluate employee performance — they completely eliminated the need for Dr. Muskiday’s "inter-office orgy" plan. Turns out, nothing clears the emotional air quite like brutally honest feedback.


Upcoming Events

If you’ve ever thought about stopping by to say hello, these two events are genuinely special opportunities to do that.

Since I’m no longer doing the traditional comic-convention circuit, chances to meet up in person have become pretty rare — which makes days like the Moore College Comics Expo and the NCS Cartoonist Showcase all the more meaningful to me.

Philadelphia
Moore College Comics Expo
Saturday, April 11th
10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
https://moore.edu/events/2026-moore-comics-expo/2026-04-11/

Columbus, Ohio
Cartoonist Showcase — Billy Ireland Museum of Comic Art
Saturday, August 8th
1 p.m. – 6 p.m.
https://nationalcartoonists.com/showcase/

I always enjoy putting faces to names, chatting about comics, and hearing what you’ve been reading (or creating). So if you’re anywhere nearby, I’d love to see you there.

And who knows — with travel getting trickier these days, these kinds of appearances may end up being even fewer and farther between… which makes this a pretty great time to take advantage of one.


Transcript

Panel 1:

Cassie Cruz: “The clouds are disappearing! But how?!”

Giant Tess: “Heh.”

Giant Tess: “Since everybody was standing around, I decided to make good use of the time by handing out the annual performance reviews.” 

Panel 2:

Giant Tess: “Believe it or not, I actually softened the wording from last year.” In the office, all of the co-workers are furious, (clockwise from upper left: Miss Match, Count Spurlock, Psy-Chick, Lightning Lady, Iron Dragon, Desdemona, Holo-Clone Miss Match, and Catnip).

Detailed Alt Text

Panel 1:
Dr. Muskiday (a small, fly-like scientist with wings and large red eyes) hovers near Cassie Cruz, the branch manager, who is walking briskly into the office. Cassie looks surprised and says, “The clouds are disappearing! But how?!” Standing nearby is Giant Tess, a tall, muscular woman in a green superhero outfit with a cape and a large “G” emblem on her chest. She calmly holds a stack of papers and explains, “Heh… Since everybody was standing around, I decided to make good use of the time by handing out the annual performance reviews.”

Panel 2:
The scene cuts to the open office floor in complete chaos. Employees are reacting violently and emotionally to their performance reviews (clockwise from upper left: Miss Match, Count Spurlock, Psy-Chick, Lightning Lady, Iron Dragon, Desdemona, Holo-Clone Miss Match, and Catnip). MIss Match is surrounded by flames, Psy-Chick is shouting angrily, Lightning Lady is generating crackling energy around her hands, and others are arguing or throwing things. Papers are scattered everywhere, chairs are overturned, and computer monitors are damaged. Despite the destruction, Giant Tess stands calmly in the foreground, still holding her papers, and says, “Believe it or not, I actually softened the wording from last year.” Cassie stands beside her, taking in the mayhem.

52 Web site

DC Comics has been having a lot of fun with its 52 Web site, a site created to help readers follow 52, the comic series that will unfold this year, chronicling the aftermath of Infinite Crisis.

Check out the TV listings from the Daily Planet’s Senior Entertainment Columnist:

WGBS Announces Summer Season

Metropolis, May 17 — Last week, the series finale of “The Worst Wing” – a fictionalized version of the Luthor Administration – got its biggest ratings ever for a two-hour special where President Rex Boother pardoned himself on his way out of the Oval Office, only to be killed in an accident involving a lobbyist’s limo.

SPECIAL:
CRISIS OF INFINITE MIRTH
Comedians claiming to be from different dimensions offer their humorous looks at race, relationships and superheroes in a benefit for Star City.

SERIES PREMIERE:
LEADER OF THE BAND: SCARE TACTICS
Following last summer’s surprisingly popular reality show about the revived 1970s band Great Frog, this incarnation follows the cult-favorite “monster rock” phenomenon Scare Tactics as they look for a new lead singer. In the debut, singer Susie Kavanaugh has a voice unlike any the band has ever heard… but will being a soul-draining banshee keep her in the running, or make her the first contestant to be eliminated?

RETURNING SERIES:
I WANT A HOUSE! NO, A BIGGER HOUSE!
Master carpenter Roger Gail and country singer Alison Stevens travel the country, creating homes for people who need them. In the heartbreaking premiere, it’s a family who fled Bludhaven. Does a townhouse in Coast City offer them a second chance, or just a sad reminder of what they’ve lost?

GOOD KNIGHT AND GOOD LUCK
The sitcom about King Arthur’s trusted squire (Kevin McKinley) working at a Medieval-themed restaurant in 21st-century Metropolis returns for a third season. In the premiere, Sir Tristan decides to reveal his true background to his best friend, “mead wench” Traci (Alyssa Barrett) but will she believe him? Plus, comedian Frankie Sennett makes one of his popular cameos as Tristan’s meddling Uncle Modred.

MOVIE:
THE NEW FRONTIER
Director Darwyn Cooke’s award-winning 2004 epic about superheroics during the Kennedy era makes its network-television debut. HDTV viewers can enjoy the movie with enhanced “Absolute” features.

TV MOVIE:
INTERAMERICAN
Fact-based drama follows a suburban advertising executive (Gregg Rice) who quits his job and drives across country in search of the daughter he never knew he had… because her mother was his girlfriend on a parallel Earth.