You won't find anybody who dislikes Microsoft any more than I do. I completely uprooted my career about ten years ago, to move myself out of their ecosystem. But I don't read this as a joke at their expense. More like: Perhaps there is a final configuration that all successful companies reach, and Microsoft was in this one instance a pioneer, and got there first.

Besides, even if it is a joke at Microsoft's expense, why would it be okay to say in a blog post, but not in a comic?

I thought Microsoft came off rather well in that strip. It was also a very quick way to make the point. Would you rather have had a 1000 word article droning on about how all the tech companies are copying each other these days?