Chapter 17, Page 18a: Emotion Cloud Chaos

Doctor Muskiday’s latest crisis runs screaming through the lab — but the real problem is waiting quietly in a cage.

Project SMILE's emotion cloud chaos continues to spiral out of control as Holo-Clone Miss Match discovers that Doctor Muskiday’s “bad news” isn’t a situation… it’s a somebody.

Evil Inc After Dark

Meanwhile, over in Evil Inc After Dark, we checked in on an intimate moment between Lightning Lady and her favorite minotaur before shifting back to EiAD #79 — in which Mixtape is thrust into the midst of a plot schemed up by a trio of Miss Match haters!

Coming up next, we’ll swing back around to Lightning Lady and Angus…

Transcript

Panel 1:

Narration: Shortly afterwards… in Doctor Muskiday’s underground lab…

Doctor Muskiday is shown running through his laboratory, shouting “Oh, no! Oh, no!Oh, no!Oh, no! No! No! No! No! Oh, no!”

Holo-Clone Miss Match, as he rushes past: “Musky, darling, what’s wrong??”

Panel 2:

Off-panel voice: “Him? Oh, he got some bad news.”

Panel 3:

Holo-Clone Miss Match, walking to the small cage that held the lad rat at the beginning of the story: “Really? What’s the bad news?”

Panel 4:
Rat, with a pink cloud covering his entire head: “I am.”

Alt Text

Four-panel “Evil Inc” comic set inside Doctor Muskiday’s underground laboratory. In the large top panel, Doctor Muskiday runs frantically through the lab shouting “Oh, no! Oh, no! Oh, no! No! No! No!” Holo-Clone Miss Match, wearing a tight white blouse and maroon pants, stands in the center asking, “Musky, darling, what’s wrong??” In the second panel, an unseen speaker says, “Him? Oh, he got some bad news.” In the third panel, Holo-Clone Miss Match approaches a small animal cage and asks, “Really? What’s the bad news?” In the final panel, a lab rat sits inside the cage with a large glowing pink emotion cloud completely covering its head and replies, “I am.”

You Like me… you really Like me (or not)

As you know, I’m an independent cartoonist using the Web as the primary distribution for my work. I don’t work under a syndicate, and I don’t have an employer in the traditional sense. Actually. You’re my employer. You and a few thousand others who stop by and read the comic on a regular basis. Thank you, by the way. You’re the best bosses I ever had. And in the same way a good employee doesn’t want to do anything to tick off his or her boss, I need some information. You see, I use social media, like Facebook, Google Plus and Twitter, as the primary means of publicizing and promoting my work. Its the most effective means I have of growing my small business. And Facebook has long yielded the best results. I have a Facebook Fan Page for Evil Inc called Evil Inc Henchpeople. The comic is posted there regularly, as are features such as “This Day in Evil Inc History.” I post secret codes for discounts on Evil Inc merchandise from time to time, too. And little asides and background information. It’s actually a great place to get an expanded view of the Evil Inc universe and converse with other readers.

Screenshot 2014-01-14 09.00.39And that’s where I need your advice. See, Facebook works like this: It has an algorhythm called Edgerank that tries to determine what you want to see in your news feed. You don’t ever see everything that your Facebook friends post. You increase the probability of seeing a friend’s post by liking, sharing and commenting on them. That’s why you’re always hit with “Jimmy invited you to like his Page, Jimmy’s Gym Jam.”

And I hate hate hate getting those invitations.

But I’m a curmudgeon — given to fits of crotchetiness that would make your head swim.

The important thing is this: Do you hate them?

‘Cause I’m telling you right now, I’d really like to expand the reach of that Facebook page. But it’s going to take people “liking” that page. And that means inviting them to “like” the page. See the dilemma.

So I started a poll on Webcomics.com. And I got some good feedback. But now I want yours. It’s a one-question poll below, and I’d love for you to participate: