In this, the fifth and penultimate Scott Pilgrim tome,
Ontario-born former Mount Uniacke resident Bryan Lee O’Malley gently
ushers his hero a step closer to manhood and taking on the Final Boss.
What makes O’Malley’s scrappy, Manga-inspired comics so compulsive
isn’t the stylishly disaffected urban tone, nor the primary plot thrust
of having the eponymous hero fighting to win the love of his
super-powered girlfriend Ramona Flowers by defeating all her evil
ex-boyfriends in Street Fighter-esque battle sequences. What
makes it work is that underneath the sly wit and pop references are
breathing, fun, relatable characters—even the ones that are
resolutely bored or unimpressed. Scott’s constant misunderstandings of
women ring true, as does his begrudging realization of life’s
disappointments relative to his expectations, even though he has youth,
super-powers and plays in a band called Sex Bob-Omb. Another pleasure
of Scott Pilgrim are the unabashed Torontonian locales, with the
Dundas Bus Terminal added to the roster, though nothing matches the
wonder of the Honest Ed’s implosion (Vol. 3) or the Lee’s Palace battle
(Vol. 4). For a city in constant search of its identity, Scott
Pilgrim celebrates Toronto’s insecurity with sweet and funny
stories.
This article appears in Apr 2-8, 2009.