Comic book, big budget movie, video game. All Scott Pilgrim needed was an animated series. This was done after Netflix ordered eight episodes Scott Pilgrim will fly.
Born in 2004 under the pen of designer Brian Lee O’Malley, this comic In six volumes, it became a tableau, a reference to the pop culture of that time. Scott PilgrimIt’s the story of a 23-year-old Canadian rock band bassist extraordinaire who sees his life transform into a real tournament worthy of a video game when he meets the mysterious Ramona Flowers. Because before he can find the perfect love with her, Scott Pilgrim will have to face a duel with all of his new conquest’s exes.
Beyond the comics, it is also its faithful adaptation in a feature film by creative Edgar Wright (Sean is dead, Hot Fuzz, child driver) In 2010, starring Michael Cera, who grew up Scott Pilgrim to the rank of cult activity. “Upon release, the film met with little success in theaters, but it generated a lot of enthusiasm and was very well received by critics.”, recalls Nicolas LaBarre, professor of American civilization at the University of Bordeaux Montaigne and specialist in comics (BD). According to him, despite some audience success (sin city), films that combine cinema and comics – likeAmerican Excellence (2003) or Dick Tracy (1990) – rarely seen by the general public.
A hybrid work
Scott Pilgrim It initially stood out when it hit American comic book shelves, which were more used to stocking color booklets. The boards by Brian Lee O’Malley, a 25-year-old young designer at the time, are black-and-white and closer to manga in format (the comic will be in color in subsequent issues). If the author does not hide that he is a fan of Japanese comics and mangaka Rumiko Takahashi, his choice was initially economic: “Black and white made it possible to reduce production costs”he explained the world In 2019, only those hybrid albums remain “Automatic graphic novel and manga-like lightness of tone format”According to Nicolas Labare, it was still rare when first published Scott Pilgrim.
Brian Lee O’Malley was heavily inspired by the video game mechanics of the 1980s and 1990s, especially fighting games, to set up Ramona Flowers’ confrontation with the suitors. River City Ransom (1990), Released on Nintendo’s NES console. While references to role-playing games or quests were fairly common in comics, Scott Pilgrim Then they used elements in a rather original way, such as the pixelated typography that we find, for example, on “game shots”, the acquisition of experience points or life level bars. Indie rock music is also everywhere in this series, another favorite of O’Malley, who also named his hero after a song by Plumtree, one of his favorite bands.
“The series was based on my life, but I wanted to make it more fun, so I basically mixed some concepts from video games, anime, and manga. [à mon] daily”Defend the cartoonist in 2019. Scott Pilgrim Plays on nostalgia Retroplay “the moment it starts to settle in a general wayContextualized by Nicolas Labare. This is the time when lots of emulators come out. [programmes permettant de jouer, sur un ordinateur, à des jeux sortis sur des consoles anciennes] For example “. for the teacher Scott Pilgrim It also arrives at a time when the publishing world in North America is in turmoil “The new orientation is to abandon the very masculine vision of comics and open up to more female creators and a more teenage readership.” He cites, for example, such authors as Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.
Nostalgia and many references
Scott Pilgrim This emphasizes the form of late adolescence. For Ryan Lizard, assistant professor at SUNY Institute of Technology (New York), writing in 2012. A magazine of graphic novels and comics, “Scott must face his past through flashbacks, constant visual and narrative references to vintage video games, his inability to grow compared to other characters”.
Although highly cited Scott Pilgrim Nor is it a series that exerts its influence in an elitist way. In fact, you don’t have to be initiated into indie rock, manga, or video games to appreciate the story or the characters. Nevertheless, the work remains a product of its time. ” Scott Pilgrim Very self-centered, he represents a kind of Canadian bohemian class. It is not certain that his carelessness is in keeping with our new age. “Thus the nuance of Nicolas Labar.
On the face of it, this new adaptation is more about catering to an earlier audience and putting cultural garbage on its table than trying to win over a younger audience. The platform appears to retain the original material, decade, and storyline (with the notable exception that Ramona no longer works for Amazon, but for Netflix); He also brought together actors from the 2010 film to voice his characters.
But if Scott Pilgrim It may now be overlooked by the younger generation, this is also because all its innovative or surprising ingredients at the time of its creation have since become widely popular. and Brian Lee O’Malley commissioned the world In 2019: “In 2004, geek stuff wasn’t very common. Scott Pilgrim He was a little ahead of his time; I was in the right place at the right time. (…) At least it makes sense to people. Then, admittedly, time passed: it was before smartphones and YouTube. »
Source: Le Monde
Ben Stock is a writer at Run Down Bulletin. With a finger on the pulse of the latest entertainment news, Ben provides in-depth coverage of the movies, music, and television shows that are capturing the world’s attention.
