As you probably know, the venerable Scott Pilgrim series is now over.
(If you are perplexed as to why this is transitioning into a mourning post since the movie and the video game are about to be released, get thee to Neighborhood Comic Shoppe. Buy each volume. Return when you are done. )
I am uncomfortably sad. Not because the sixth volume let me down, but because this is an end of an era.
The last six years of reading Scott Pilgrim have been monumental. The series had wild and unpredictable arcs that mirrored my own crazy years. I cycled through apartments, moved across state and country lines, fell in love a couple of times, and through all the ups and downs somehow still developed into a functional adult. The development of Scott’s character mirrors my own changes, probably because creator Bryan Lee O’Malley is the same age as I am. This may be a reach, but I feel like the maturation in art and tone and direction from O’Malley (and by extension, Scott Pilgrim) reflect the same journey of improvement and challenges that I have taken on. It’s as if we were all on this wild ride of our twenties together and we have all the missteps and bad decisions and weird lettering patterns to show for it. Now the ride is over.
I won’t even attempt to review volume 6. For one thing, it’s been reviewed all over the internet. But most importantly, I am not sure how critical I can be of the book. I will say this though – it was a lovely ending.
Of course I’ll see the movie and I’ll buy the video game. But honestly, there is nothing that means more to me than looking at my bookshelf to see my autographed and nowhere near mint condition copy of volume 1 that shows the wear that only six years of re-reads and loans and moves can make. It reminds me that there was a time when Bryan was so unknown that I ordered my copy directly from him (this makes me excited for my own future success). It reminds me of the person that got me into the series. It reminds me of all the friends that I have forced to read it.
Scott P. and I…well…we’ve been through a lot. It’s been a fun six years.