Scott Pilgrim Takes Off Review: Ballsy As Hell

The Pitch: Not so long ago, in the mysterious land of Toronto, Canada, Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) was dating a high schooler. But when Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), quite literally the girl of Scott’s dreams, comes to town, the 22-year-old bass player, master fighter, and hopeless romantic gets his life turned upside down.

Despite his romantic entailment with aforementioned high schooler Knives Chau (Ellen Wong), Scott immediately pursues Ramona, only to find out she carries quite a bit of baggage: a league of seven evil exes that Scott will have to defeat in order to fall in love with Ramona. Man, this sounds familiar.

Scott Pilgrim vs. Adaptation: And that’s because it is familiar! Fans of the original graphic novels or Edgar Wright’s cult classic film adaptation are more than aware of the trials and tribulations of one Scott Pilgrim and his quest for self-respecting love.

While there’s undoubtedly a modicum of interest in seeing the story told through animation, you wouldn’t be out of line for wondering if yet another version of Scott Pilgrim is all that necessary. Even Scott Pilgrim vs. the Animation beat Scott Pilgrim Takes Off to the medium of televised animation by 13 years, and recasting nearly all of the actors from Wright’s film — while, admittedly, makes one’s nostalgia gland start salivating — only compounds the feeling of déjà vu. Fans have been here before, so does the new Netflix series give them a reason to once again return to the well?

Yep. Yes. Indeed. Indubitably. Ahem — it most certainly does.

Without dipping too far into spoiler territory, the show initially establishes itself as an adaption of an adaption, borrowing jokes, story beats, and shots from Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, only to take a sharp and abrupt left turn. By Episode 2, Scott’s familiar story has been upended and reframed, asking new questions that go on to linger throughout the rest of the season. It’s ballsy as hell, but it’s a risk that pays off, resulting in a fresh take on an IP that had seemingly been tapped dry.

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (Netflix)