Pearls Before Swine (also known as Pearls) is an American comic strip written and illustrated by Stephan Pastis. The series began December 31, 2001. It chronicles the daily lives of an ensemble cast of suburban anthropomorphic animals: Pig, Rat, Zebra, Goat, and a fraternity of crocodiles, as well as a number of supporting characters, one of which is Pastis himself. Each character represents an aspect of Pastis' own personality and world view.
The strip's style is notable for its black comedy, simplistic artwork, self-deprecating fourth wall meta-humor, social commentary, mockery of other comic strips, and stories concocted in elaborate fashion leading into a pun.
