Secret Agent for the C.I.A.

Robert Crumb’s sole, self-contained 1972 Ballantine Books comic, Secret Agent for the C.I.A., is a single-issue satire that turns the spy genre inside out with his signature underground comix edge. Written and drawn entirely by Crumb, it follows a bumbling, paranoid operative on a chaotic mission that lampoons Cold War paranoia and government absurdity. Though brief, the book stands as a sharp, idiosyncratic artifact of the underground comix movement, showcasing Crumb’s unflinching wit and distinctive visual style at its most pointed.