Scott Pilgrim has become a household name in the pop culture community ever since its inception as a relatively small-scale comic book from the Indie writers scene. Now it has even spawned an exclusive anime series on Netflix that aims to bring the pure unadulterated Scott Pilgrim experience to your household television but does it succeed?
What is Scott Pilgrim about?
It spawned from the dreaming mind of one Bryan Lee O’Malley, and quickly won the hearts of many pop-culture enthusiasts like myself, due to its 90’s gaming aesthetic and oddly deep character writing beneath the plethora of really well-written gags and references.
The series stars the titular Scott Pilgrim, a 23-year-old laidback failure of society, who is part of a music band that no one listens to and is trying to get with a girl way out of his league using “Sonic the Hedgehog” trivia, but plot twist! The girl he is after just so turns out to be the infamous heartbreaker Ramona Flowers and her 7 evil exes are now engaging in 90’s arcade beat ’em up style street fights against our hero in order to decide on who wins Ramona’s heart.
Is Scott Pilgrim Takes Off a good adaptation?
This is a good opportunity to make a few points about the series clear for a newcomer.
- It has many differences in plot from the original comic story unlike the Scott Pilgrim movie, it is in fact an epilogue to the events of the original comic, during which we learn about Ramona’s perspective and her past with her exes.
- All the while Scott is forced into the future by an older version of himself, to break up his relationship with Ramona in order to avoid their mental breakdown once she eventually leaves them.
The series falls inside this odd line of not only being a direct sequel but also an adaptation due to its time travel trope insert, which serves as a refreshing way to experience the world of Scott Pilgrim and also creates newer backdrops to the familiar scenes that have been provided for the multitude of side characters.
What should we expect?
A whole lot, as it comes to Scott Pilgrim tradition, for example: –
- The anime is filled to the brim with slapstick 90’s humor that is corny for all the right reasons.
- The animation is stellar due to its pixelated art style directly ripped off of the video game adaptation and amazing frame direction (which contains a whole lot of dynamic angles during each scene).
- The music will also hit all the right beats for those who are nostalgic for the 16-bit Genesis and SNES gaming era.
But for the fans of our beloved failure, the series provides: –
- Added character depth to Ramona’s 7 Evil Exes and made them more emotionally engaging as characters.
- More agency to Ramona’s character, as we get to experience a vulnerability in her that further highlights her nature as a morally gray character.
- A Scott Pilgrim experience that has never been more over the top in its direction and script brought to you by a welcome reunion of the movie cast!
Conclusion
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is a brilliant addition to the mythos of this beloved pop culture idol. Not only does it serve as an excellent jumping point for newer fans to establish themselves with the series, but it also acts as a highly welcomed return for fans of the original who just want to experience more of the wacky hijinx that this Franchise provides. If you are in the mood for some crazy Saturday night fun, then this is the show for you!