Nearly 13 years since the premiere of the live-action adaptation of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, the entire cast returns in an action-packed and incredible animated series to tell a story you’ll never believe. Creator Bryan Lee-O’Malley returns alongside BenDavid Grabinski to bring the world of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World back to the people. With film director Edgar Wright also returning as an executive producer, the whole gang reunites for Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, a spectacular return featuring incredible animation, a stellar voice cast, and a fantastic story, this show has it all.
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The Expectations
This review is going to be as spoiler-free as possible to not hinder anyone’s viewing experience with this show as it is truly a bit of a super-stunner at certain points. The decisions they made here were very bold. Netflix animated revivals have ruffled feathers before with their original choices for how to proceed with the story but some of the stuff they do here is shocking.
While it may be shocking, it’s also quite sound, the story is great and the writing for the characters is even better. Choices made with the direction of this series have allowed for them to take some characters in fun directions and make creative changes and choices along the way. Some of the standouts here include Lucas Lee, Matthew Patel, Gideon Graves, Ramona Flowers (duh) and even Wallace Wells.
One of the other bonuses of this show was getting to spend more time with some of the characters and the actors who gave them their voices. The movie has what could be argued as one of the best ensembles in film. The actors that played these characters became iconic for those roles, and to get to experience them more and in new and at times much more dynamic ways was fantastic.
Awesome Animation
First and foremost here the animation is spectacular, we owe gratitude for this incredible work to the animation studio, Science SARU, who had been involved with the project since it was pitched back in 2020. During an interview that we had the chance to have with series creator, Bryan Lee O’Malley, he said, and I quote, “Let them cook” when referring to Science SARU’s work on the series, and that they did.
You won’t believe some of the stuff you’re seeing in this show, truly pushing the bounds of animation to make for some incredibly enjoyable fights. Scott Pilgrim was always going to thrive in animation, but it exceeds expectations here, putting together some dazzling beat-em-up spectacles.
A Voice Performance Heard Around Toronto
One thing that some tend to worry about when it comes to untrained voice actors picking up roles that limit them to their voice is a bad performance. Well, kick that thought out of your head because everyone knocks it out of the park.
These actors have these characters in their bones, it felt like slipping on a good pair of shoes as the seamless transition to reprising these roles was such a joyous surprise. It felt like not a day had passed since Michael Cera and Mary-Elizabeth Winstead had played the roles of Scott Pilgrim and Ramona Flowers. The way everyone just taps back into their characters and lets themselves become that character each episode is great.
I have nothing but stellar thoughts for these performances, as actors like Ellen Huang and Kieran Culkin shock you with the phenomenal voicing of their respective characters. It is also worth noting that you should definitely keep your ears open during every episode, you never know who might pop in for a little guest appearance.
‘Scott Pilgrim Takes Off’ – Final Thoughts
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is a fantastic return to the world created by Bryan Lee O’Malley all those years ago, and an even better return for fans of the original cast of the live-action film. With some stunning animation and dazzling voice performances, this show will definitely garner quite the acclaim as we’ve never seen a series return like this.
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is now streaming on Netflix. Check out the trailer below.
