Change of pace?

Zach and I were talking about the comic, and the way we have been doing it... and are kinda at a crossroads about how we want to continue. We have been wanting to do longer panels, and tell more story driven jokes. But with the amount of time it takes to shade every panel with 3 down tones, and 2 up tones (usually) it is difficult to make time, or to realistically aim for any huge multi-page jokes.

I can move 10x's the speed now, if i could cut out the shading process... but if i look long enough at the unshaded panels, it makes me crazy. I like the sketches, i love the line art... but when i apply the "flats" (or the flat colors without shading, i think the art looks really bad. Perhaps i am imagining a problem where there is none. Maybe they look just as good without shading, (or just as bad... who knows?) but i have a hard time putting them out, for fear of you all hating it, and putting a bunch of art-hate on me for cutting corners.

But the truth is, its not exactly corner-cutting if i can pump out 3 or 4 times the story, with a reduction in lighting. Its more about time management vs. story quality... And when it comes to this. Im stuck...

I want to try not shading a few comics in the near future, to see what you all think about them. But (and i know this sounds stupid) im terrified, people are going to look at them and think im a shit artist, and bad at what i do. Which wouldnt normally bother me.... but what does bother me is that you all might think i was cutting back on quality or effort. Which i assure you isnt the case.

Not sure how Im gonna go about this... but we shall see.

-Deece