ADVANTAGE: AWESOME


Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Jon Hex Gets It Together...

...To bring you his review of the last volume of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim:

This is JON HEX REVIEWS...

From the start, O'Malley has been throwing readers a curve. When you start reading Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life, you're not really prepared for the craziness and the awesomeness that the story has in store for you. Subspace highways, evil ex-boyfriends (sorry, evil exes), long sword proficiencies, 2 second punk rock masterpieces and vegan psychics come blasting towards you, hooking you into what is the underlining story of how a slacker gets a handle on growing up and falling in love.

Volume Six begins with Scott stuck in limbo, playing PSP Go on his couch waiting for any definitive word on the whereabouts of his love, Ramona V. Flowers. For four months, Scott has been neglecting his job, friends and anything from his life pining for a girl who may not come back, avoiding the final confrontation with Ramona's last evil ex, Gideon. From the earlier volumes, you know Scott can get sidetracked, but without a clear mission, Scott is completely rudderless, moving like a zombie through his life without any sense of what he's doing or what he's going to do.

To me, one of the best parts of this book is Scott's meanderings throughout the beginning of this volume. We get a sense of the what the "lost year" was like, after he broke up with Envy Adams and before he met Knives Chau. Like any finale, we get answers to questions we had from previous volumes and O'Malley delivers here, showing why Scott sees himself a little differently than everyone around him sees him and for his spotty memory.
But life won't wait for Scott to get ready for it. Gideon is opening his new club in Scott's town. Scott's friends are moving on without Scott's participation. Knives Chau is no longer 17 Years Old. Scott tries to get back in the game and finds the road to maturity is not without pain, but it will get him to what he's been looking for.

The greatest thing about this series is how well formed O'Malley's characters are. They're not just props in the story of Scott Pilgrim, they grow and change with the protagonist. You get a sense of how life is changing for Scott by the changes of his friends and it just heightens the story. The emotional center of this series is what makes people into such avid fans.
Rating: A+ This is a finale that does not disappoint and pays off big. Read the whole series. Now.

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