Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth

the long version

Ware s hero is a doughy, middle-aged loser who retreats into fantasies that he is "The Smartest Kid on Earth." The minimal plot involves Jimmy s tragicomic reunion with the father who abandoned him in childhood. In abruptly juxtaposed flashbacks, Ware depicts previous generations of Corrigan males, revealing how their similar histories of rejection and abandonment culminated in Jimmy s hapless state. What makes the slight story remarkable is Ware s command of the comics medium. His crisp, painst