Scott Pilgrim Takes Off review: Refreshing update is an overall improvement

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is an animated series based on the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels and follows the eponymous character in his quest to be with the girl of his dreams. The series is streaming on Netflix.

Story

Scott Pilgrim pursues the girl of his dreams, Ramona Flowers, and has to defeat her seven evil exes if he wants to date her. When he “dies” fighting the first ex, it is down to Ramona to investigate what happened and confront her past along the way.

She questions her exes and revisits their time together and how it ended, achieving closure with all of them as she finds her way back to Scott, the one that she loves even though they went on just a single date.

Scott reveals that there are outside forces who do not approve of their union, and it will take a lot of reflection and emotional growth to combat this enemy.

Positives

The altered narrative honors the original graphic novel and the movie while still being able to go on its own journey. Many characters benefit from this alternate version with more rounded-out arcs.

Ramona and her exes get more agency in the story, and they all have profound story arcs that they go through. Wallace Wells and Young Neil are fantastic comic relief and there are many other combinations that work well.

The animation is vibrant, and the blend of anime and arcade game styles has the perfect amount of nostalgia attached to it. The background score is upbeat and exciting as well with some excellent choices in the soundtrack.

The writing is brilliant and bringing back the original cast for the voiceovers is a wonderful touch. Edgar Wright also throws in some enjoyable Easter eggs that are a staple in his work.

Negatives

The Netflix product placement and the meta-joke about them running video stores out of business is in poor taste given how Netflix is still a capitalist organization that is guilty of gobbling up profits while not giving back in equal measure.

Verdict

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off deviates from the source material and is one of those examples where it still manages to do a fantastic job of appeasing the original fans and being original enough to bring in new ones. A strong story, a smattering of nostalgia, exciting voiceover work, and brilliant animation all contribute to a magnificent streaming series.

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Also Read: Scott Pilgrim Takes Off summary and ending explained