Joe Matt’s Peepshow (1992)
Writer/Artist/Letterer: Joe Matt
Rating: 
This week, I will look at a comic book that I never knew existed, and this is “Peepshow” from the twisted yet creative mind of Joe Matt. He passed away yesterday (Sept 18th) at 60, soon after I binge-read all twelve issues of his series, I felt it was best to give Joe his flowers and look at this series that gives the autobiographical comics genre an even larger exposure.
The issue, containing earlier strips by Matt, puts the focus on his everyday life that involves his friendship with Seth and Chester Brown, two of the cartoonists who work alongside Matt for Drawn & Quarterly, and his then-girlfriend Trish (In 1988, he illegally moved to Canada to be with her); If you feel this series is just a quaint yet quirky slice-of-life story, you’d be wrong. If someone took “Seinfeld”, “Becker” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and then added in the most horrifying and disgusting personality traits one could have to where it’s dialed up to 100, you got “Peepshow”; Matt’s portrayal of himself (He’s selfish, self-absorbed, lazy, and downright cheap) makes this series a barrel of laughs while at the same time showing us just how ugly some people are both on the inside and out so I feel that’s where “Peepshow” gets its charm because Matt is not afraid to make fun of himself or his insecurities that will make the readers feel just a little bit better about themselves.
Hilarious with a touch of brutal honesty and some self-loathing to go with it, Peepshow succeeds in taking every aspect of real life that shows us that yes, there is a little Joe Matt in all of us, whenever we would like to admit it or not while giving us a glimpse of what a cartoonist like Matt goes through in his everyday life because let’s face it, Joe Matt was without a doubt the Larry David of his heyday and his body of work is brilliant after all these years…..even if he was labeled a madman with his creativity. He will be missed.
Well, that’s it for me. Thank you for sticking around. I will see you all next time.
About Author
