Thursday 10 February 2011

Scott Pilgrim


Scott Pilgrim. Yeah I love it. By a little dude called Bryan Lee O' Malley.
I'm seriously recommending the crap outta these graphic novels.
I saw the movie first and pretty much thought it was the best film of 2010, that's impressive considering Cera is lead. I mean he hasn't been this awesome since Superbad or Arrested Development.
I'm a pretty on/off guy when it comes to the ole' comic books, I mean I dabbled in X-men in my younger years and I've read Watchmen. If maybe I wasn't such a poor bastard I'd be buying up Deadpool and Batman comics are over the show. I basically enjoyed the movie so much I thought it was time to splash out. At about £4.50 a volume I bought all 6 of the Scott Pilgrims.

If you've seen the movie, volumes 1-3 are basically the first half of the movie with some awesome scenes. They set the characters and story up and still pack a perfect combo of comedy and comic book smashy action that we all secretly love. It's really in vols 4-6 that movie left the graphic novels to end on a, compared to the novels, pretty drab note. I'm serious, these last 3 volumes are best described as 'some freaky shit' and the reader is left with a great sense of completion and conclusion but your head might hurt a little, in a good way.

No sequel needed. I wouldn't mind one.. but no it's great.

I'd be a little apprehensive recommending this to a more hardcore group of classic comic book fans, they'd probably rebuke it's status as a graphic novel. But it's fine because they're probably total douchebags. I enjoy the quick-paced change of scenes, it's flashy and I think it's how a comic book should read. If I ever had a problem with this series it would be the artwork. Sure it's quirky and cute but in the earlier novels a lack of consistency in characters and figure is too recognisable and did anyone else have a problem telling Ramona from Lisa? though that could have been the intention of O' Malley... eh?..On a contradictory note, here's what Joss fucking Whedon said about it,
"Scott Pilgrim is the best book ever. It is the chronicle of our time. With kung fu, so, yeah: perfect."
and I'd be inclined to agree with him.

More (shallow?) reasons to read these graphic novels
If you like unconventional comics, maybe you like Western and Eastern styles mixed.
If you like ye olde vidya games.
If you're gay, it's very sexually liberating for gay people, especially adolescence
If you don't like comic books at all, it's not a conventional comic book
If you're a hipster. It's pretty fucking hip.
If you're not a hipster or homosexual or like olde vidya games and just like to be ironic every once and a while.
If you like Toronto.
If you've had or are currently having problems with the potential girl of your dreams and she has a lot of baggage.
If you're in a band or like good music. O' Malley lists the music he listened to whilst writting each volume. Look the music up and listen while you read. Awesome. The whole idea for the character Scott Pilgrim came from a song titled, get this, 'Scott Pilgrim'. It's by Plumtree, check it out, it's awesome.

Also I'm moving to Toronto when I turn 23.
you mad?

Have some cool stuff too
This guy's blog. He's restyled some SP characters to a more western look.
joequinones.blogspot.com

Also make your very won Wallace Wells meme then force it all over the place
memegenerator
Here's one I prepared earlier.

3 comments:

  1. seen the film thought it was great but heard film is totaly different to that of the books

    ReplyDelete
  2. Really like the film, not really a best of 2010 movie for me like a lot of people are saying, but still, I loved it.

    ReplyDelete