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.
Having read the first two issues of
Marvel Divas, I have to say that my primary complaint is that they’re too flat.
Seriously.
These characters are almost devoid of any depth whatsoever. I know this was supposed to be a Marvel take on
Sex in the City, but you know what made that show good? The four characters had discernible personalities. And each personality could play off of any other (or others) and lead to interesting dialogue.
It wasn’t particularly original —
Golden Girls was done years earlier (and done better — exponentially better — for my taste). It’s a tried-and true formula for the genre.
Aside from a “girlfriend…” thrown into the dialogue, there’s absolutely nothing to separate this from any standard-issue comic story.
(By the way… does anyone — anyone — actually pepper their everyday dialogue with “girl…” or “girlfriend…”?)
It’s a shame, because, judging from the cover, at least, we were promised anything but flat.
Which brings us to the art and… more flatness.
I’m talking, of course, about the tremendous deficiency in the way these chacacters are drawn…
These people have no noses!
None of ’em do! (
Go ahead… click on the image above for a full page.) It really started to bother me about ten-or-eleven panels into the story — everyone’s face is as flat as a shovel. Nostrils they got. Noses they lack. It was one of those things that, once I noticed it, it started to creep me out big-time. I like my characters to have noses. I’m just that way. If you wimp out on drawing noses, you wind up with aliens.
So, I’m ditching this book two issues in. I was promised a sizzling-hot “Sex in the City” take on the Marvel Universe. But what I got fell flat.
It’s as plain as the nose off your face.
