Featured Photo by Netflix
Story by Larry Rincon
Scott Pilgrim is back yet again with a brand new iteration of the original graphic novels in the brand new animated series, “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.”
I had always heard of Scott Pilgrim, but never actually looked into who that was or what it was until a few years ago. Watching the 2010 film felt like a fever dream. The film was weird and confusing at times, but I still ended up liking it regardless of how eccentric it was. Imagine my surprise when I found out that the original 2010 cast would return to voice the characters in the anime.
I hadn’t planned on watching the anime until I heard this news. I’m not a die hard fan of the graphic novels, and unfortunately I haven’t gotten the chance to play the video game. I think for a lot of actual fans, the nostalgia of the original cast was a primary motive to watch the new series.
With that being said, this eight episode series was a pleasant surprise for me. I had mostly forgotten what had happened in the film. Luckily, the anime lets you experience the story for the first time since it is actually a brand new version of the graphic novels.
While in both the film and novels, Scott fights all of Ramona’s evil exes, in the anime Scott ‘dies’ in the first battle against Matthew Patel. The setup is similar to everything else. Scott dreams of Ramona, he meets her and he asks her out. The story differs when, in the first battle, someone kidnaps him and fakes his death.
The series then switches to follow Ramona as she tries to find who took Scott. She ends up confronting all her exes, and everyone’s lives have changed. They grow from these Ramona obsessed individuals, and end up with mostly a better life. They’re all alive to the very least.
The characters are all just as insane and quirky as they were in the film, and the art style of course was true to the comics. As far as anime adaptations go, “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off” is pretty good. However, this isn’t necessarily a series you want to watch unless you really are a big fan of the graphic novels.
I liked the series because it was different and new. I didn’t have to know the graphic novel or the film all too well to like it. If you’ve read or watched either, you’ll get the bigger storyline that is present, but overall you can watch this with no context.
The downside of this new iteration is the pacing. The story was slow. It felt like everything was drawn out at the beginning. I had to force myself through the first few episodes until it felt like something was actually happening. It reminded me of a different anime called “Aggretsuko”. They’re both so chill in style that it’s boring.
I will admit that the new twist on the characters and their lives was an interesting perspective. The characters felt far more dynamic even if their lives were still very goofy and cliche. Scott was not even in the show that much, and even he grew a lot more from what I originally remember in the film.
I personally cannot recommend this series for anyone who isn’t a fan. Eight episodes for a decent expansion to the “Scott Pilgrim” Universe is great, it is just not what I would go for.
To contact Lifestyles Editor Destiny Mizell, email [email protected]. For more news, visit www.mtsusidelines.com, or follow us on Facebook at MTSU Sidelines or on X at @MTSUSidelines.
