I think not, good sirs and madams. Besides, the movie came out last month, and even though it did horrible in the theaters, I'm getting that bad boy on DVD as soon as it comes out.
Because, you see, I love the Scott Pilgrim books.
For those who don't know anything about the series, it follows the story of 23 year old unemployed slacker, Scott Pilgrim (rating: awesome) as he meets a girl who very literally skates through his dreams. This girl is one Ramona Flowers, a mysterious American with a hidden past and plenty of emotional baggage. (This baggage is most often illustrated by the appearance of one of her seven evil exes, determined to destroy Scott for trying to date their former love.) But then, Scott isn't free of his own multitudinous suitcases of emotional turmoil.
What I think I love most about this series is the stellar fusion that O'Malley creates. It combines everything pop culture, everything indie, and everything international into this blend of surrealism and real emotion. From Scott's crappy indie band to the ridiculous trappings of a video game made flesh, from O'Malley's clearly manga-influenced style to a thoughtful meditation on how we remember relationships versus what actually happened, Scott Pilgrim has a little bit of something for everyone.
Was it perfect? No. But was it one heck of a good ride for six beautifully illustrated and brazenly plotted books? Yes. Oh, yes.
Final verdict: Adore it
And check out the movie, too. It's not quite as good, but some of the changes from page to celluloid were effective (such as condensing the action into a few weeks rather than over a year) and Edgar Wright has arguably captured the sentiment and feel of a comic book made film better than anyone since Rodriguez's seminal Sin City. At any rate, time spent with Scott Pilgrim is not time wasted.
2 comments:
Not being familiar at all with the series, I find it interesting you rate Scott, the character, as awesome. I only say that because the most common comment I heard on podcasts and such about the character (at least from the movie) was that he was an unlikeable prick.
Actually, my attitude towards Scott as a character is far more nuanced than just awesome. (That's simply a callback to when you're first introduced to him in the book.) In the books, he's usually likable, but he does plenty of stupid things you'll hold against him for a bit - but when it's all said and done, you root for him to the end.
However, in the movies, I didn't like him as much. Honestly, I still LIKED him, but I prefer book Scott over film Scott, because he was a bit more priggish. (I think that may be an unintentional result of the condensing of a year's worth of action in the books into a couple of weeks in the film. You have less time to get to know Scott as an awkward character you could actually sort of relate to.)
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