Meat-ing

I don’t know if this is the dirtiest joke in the comic so far, but it’s probably the least subtle. Especially since it’s a Steve joke, and he allows me to exercise my desire to make terrible jokes with full belief that they’re funny.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Robbie Dorman, host of the Simpsons Show and Serial Fanatacist podcasts, is the Employee of the Week. I just mailed his Hockeypocalypse Season 4 book. He also has a Patreon, perhaps consider throwing him a few bucks as well, yes? CORPORATE SYNERGY. If you want to get in on the corporate synergy, support the Hell, Inc. Patreon so I can keep using the corporate gold card.

Next Week: Gotta get some jet fuel, and things get weird in the Real Break Room. Get into the Real Break Room on Patreon.

How!?

That’s a very good question, Willis. Doug’s drawing reminds me of the drawings I used to do on the back of tests. I never liked being the first one to hand a test in, so I would draw on the back until somebody else handed theirs in. Upon having one German quiz returned, I discovered that the professor had ALSO drawn on the back of my test – a dinosaur drawn chasing soldier I had doodled (who later became George in Redcoats-ish). That worked out better for everyone than whatever B.L. Zebub is doing to that poor computer.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Happy Harbor Comics is the Employee of the Week, and also the reason why I worked a 12 hour day helping run a book fair in Beaumont, AB last week. I was actually happy to help, until I spent an hour in traffic trying to return the fixtures and leftover product to the store. I was much less happy about that. Make me happy by supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon, where you’ll be supporting a less evil corporation than… well, most of them.

Next Week: Steve makes puns, Doug makes faces. Learn more of Steve’s punmanship by reading next week’s comic early on Patreon!

Actual Chlamydia

Most strips turn out more-or-less like the final thumbnail sketch of the script, but not drawn as a tiny rectangle full of scribbly lines that are indecipherable to anyone but me. This one ended up changing a lot – it was supposed to be a pretty standard row of five panels, with the inset panel that is panel 2. Then I tried to lay it out on paper, and realized that I had laid it out in the thumbnail and made it too wide, and didn’t actually have room for it to be five panels wide AND fit the dialogue bubbles. The end result is way more visually interesting, I think, and made me a lot happier with the strip than I would have been if it was just a normal five panel layout.

Employee of the Week:

Brien Aronov is the Employee of the Week! We haven’t had a new Employee of the Week in a while – let’s get some new names in the rotation. You can do that by giving some money to the Hell, Inc. Patreon, which is how I pay for things like the website and justifying working on this instead of taking more freelance work.

Next Week: How does a computer get an STD? A theory. Read it early on Patreon!

Work the Butts

The Hockeypocalypse Kickstarter is over (thanks to all of you who pledged your support and helped share the project), and other than some administrative end stuff (making the surveys, sending files to the printer, stuff that doesn’t take much more thought than the effort to type it), I have done pretty much nothing but draw next week’s Hell, Inc. strip and paint Warhammer dudes. First, I painted a bunch of Ork Boyz, and have since moved on to finishing up a Kharadron Overlords Thunderers squad.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Joe Amon is Employee of the Week! While the Hockeypocalypse Kickstarter made a great leap forward, the Patreon took a bit of a step back. At 20 patrons you’re all getting the original Hell, Inc. issues #1 and 2 as physical copies in the mail, so harangue your friends into supporting our favourite capitalist hellscape. Support Hell, Inc. on Patreon – because old, rich white dudes need your money less than I do. Goddamn, how isn’t corporate America banging down my door with genius promo lines like that?

Next Week: After you work the butts, remember that you’re in an Inhuman Resources seminar. Read it early by supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon.

Horny For Work

Last chance for the Hockeypocalypse Kickstarter! It’s wrapping up at 5PM MT on Wednesday. Take a few seconds to back it now, and avoid the regret of missing out!

One day I will master digital type on a frosted glass pane on a door. This was a huge improvement over the last attempt, however, which involved giving up and leaving the window un-lettered.

In the original Hell, Inc. comics, this meeting was about harpy safety in the workplace (aka how to be safe from harpies in the workplace). The harpies will show up in this version, at some point, but I haven’t decided on their role in the new story yet.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Still the Hockeypocalypse Kickstarter. Back it, it’s my favourite book I’ve made. Next week, back to patron shoutouts as Employee of the Week. If you want said shoutout, perhaps to promote something of your own, support Hell, Inc. on Patreon.

Next Week: Work the Butts. Find out what that means early on Patreon.

Your Plans Mean Nothing to the Photocopier

This strip was the first thing I’d coloured digitally in well over a month. It went smoother than I was expecting, to be honest – with the palette now pretty firmly set, I guess it’s easier to pick up after a long time off than it would have been earlier in the comic.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

The Hockeypocalypse Kickstarter has passed its funding goal, so it’s Employee of the Week again, and will be until the campaign ends and I can send the book off to the printer.

Next Week: It’s the start of a new day, but the New Day. Read it early on Patreon.

 

Never Stop Screaming

I spent an unreasonable amount of time trying to figure out what the upsetting thing in the fridge was going to be.

I’ve also been spending an unreasonable amount of time fretting over the new Hockeypocalypse book on Kickstarter. If you like Hell, Inc., go check it out. As of the time of this post, it’s over 60% already, but my broken brain won’t allow me to see that as a positive – all I can see is the 40% that’s left, and agonize over whether things I make actually connect with people. It’s super fun.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Damion is the Employee of the Week, and I think I’m out of factoids that I know about him, so I’ll just go with a sincere thank you for your ongoing support. If you want a sincere thank you, and also want to support my work, head over to the Hell, Inc. Patreon and chip in a few bucks. Or go back up and click that Kickstarter link and get a book for your efforts!

Next Week: Bossly consequences. Bossly is a word now. Read it early on Patreon!

Yo Yo Yo, Kick It

Good News, everyone! The fourth Hockeypocalypse book is launching on Kickstarter at 5 PM Mountain Time (4 PM Pacific, 7 PM Eastern) TODAY! Go buy it.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

It’s Cait of the North, who is essentially an unpaid marketing intern. If you want to be Employee of the Week (or an unpaid marketing intern), hit up the Hell, Inc. Patreon and help support your corporate overlords.

Next Week: Meanwhile, in the fridge…? Also, more Hockeypocalypse plugs, although hopefully you’ve all helped that get funded by then. Read the comic early by supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon.

99 Printers and I Forgot Which One

This is definitely the most obnoxiously pleased with myself I’ve been about a strip title so far. As soon as I make several Wu Tang references in the titles, I will reach a very specific kind of nerd apotheosis. B.L. Zebub’s issue with the printer is also something I can identify with recently – I got a new printer, but my computer remembers the old one, and I keep accidentally trying to send things to the old printer. I’m very good at things, you guys. So good.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Congratulations, Ben Hamlin, you’re our Employee of the Week, and our Dungeon Master for the Cursed Seas podcast. Statistically speaking, you, the reader, probably listen to The Adventure Zone – so you should also listen to Cursed Seas. Do you want to be Employee of the Week? Of course you do, everyone wants to please their corporate overlords. You can do it by supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon!

Next Week: B.L. Zebub gets kicky. Is kicky a word? It is now. Read it early on Patreon!

He’s Right Behind Me, Isn’t He?

This is going up after Edmonton Expo, but being written the day before it starts, so thanks to those readers who may or may not have stopped by to chat and buy some books. It was clearly the best possible idea to follow up three and a half months of sitting at home drawing with two conventions in two weekends. Eventually they won’t be a key revenue stream, and that will be a good time.

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK:

Robbie Dorman, host of the Simpsons Show and Serial Fanatacist podcasts, is the Employee of the Week. Did I see him at Edmonton Expo? Maybe! Only the me that can time travel knows, because I’m not going to go back and edit this later. He also has a Patreon, perhaps consider throwing him a few bucks as well, yes? CORPORATE SYNERGY. If you want to get in on the corporate synergy, support the Hell, Inc. Patreon so I can keep using the corporate gold card.

Next Week: The boss might be angry. MAYBE. It’s possible. Find out how possible by supporting Hell, Inc. on Patreon, where patrons get to read each week’s strip early!