The Poor Bastard

Joe Matt's The Poor Bastard, published by Jonathan Cape from 2007 onward, is a brutally honest autobiographical comic that dissects the creator's own flaws, obsessions, and relationships with unflinching self-deprecation. Spanning a single issue, it stands as a raw, confessional work from the underground comix tradition, showcasing Matt's signature scratchy linework and his relentless willingness to expose his own neuroses. A key document in the canon of personal, uncomfortable comics, it matters for its unvarnished portrait of a creator grappling with his own worst impulses.