Tag Archives: Graphic Novel

“SIN CITY: THE HARD GOODBYE” (VOL 1) – Revisited

Posted by ErikSlader on

“Well, I’m gonna find that son of a bitch that killed you, and I’m gonna give him the hard goodbye. Walk down the right back alley in Sin City, and you can find anything.” – Marv

After having revisited all six volumes of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s “Scott Pilgrim” graphic novels, I decided to jump back into another one of my all time favorite ‘indie’ comic book series: Frank Miller’s “Sin City”!

Frank Miller’s Sin City

“Sin City” is a neo-noir anthology series. It’s basically Frank Miller’s ode to the works of the great pulp crime novels and detective yarns. Sin City aggressively leans into the tropes of the entire film noir genre, but it’s also wholly unique in it’s style and storytelling, thanks entirely to the incredible talent of writer/artist Frank Miller. It’s easily one of the most iconic works of Miller’s career, a career filled to the brim with some of the greatest graphic novels of the era: “300”, “The Dark Knight Returns”, and “Daredevil: Born Again” just to name a few.

Continue reading →

REVISITING “SCOTT PILGRIM’S FINEST HOUR!” (VOL 6)

Posted by ErikSlader on

Reblogged from Geek to Geek Media!

Check out my previous review of Vol 5: “Scott Pilgrim vs The Universe” here!

About a year ago, I first started my six-part nostalgia-laden review of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim graphic novels (read Part One here!) and had an absolute blast revisiting each of these amazing books with the gorgeous Color Editions from Oni Press. At the time, I had no idea that a year later Netflix would be announcing an upcoming anime series based on the original comics, which is really fitting, especially considering the heavy Japanese manga influence throughout each of the volumes!

I really enjoyed revisiting this series and it held up surprisingly well for me. I have to admit, I was hesitant to read Volume 6, because I didn’t want it to be over. I’m glad I finally did though, because “Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour” might really be the best one in the series!

Continue reading →

REVISITING “SCOTT PILGRIM GETS IT TOGETHER!” (VOL 4)

Posted by ErikSlader on

Reblogged from Geek to Geek Media!

Check out my previous review of Vol 3: “Scott Pilgrim & The Infinite Sadness” here!

Bryan Lee O’Malley’s “Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together” (does he though?) is the fourth volume in the Scott Pilgrim saga and probably my personal favorite! It’s also possibly the least like the movie?

Scott vs the Summer

It’s a scorching summer in Toronto, Canada. Scott and friends go to the beach to celebrate Julie’s birthday (at her aunt’s beach house). There are a lot of cute moments between Scott and Ramona in this one, while the two of them awkwardly consider taking the next step in their relationship (aka the L Word: not “lesbians”). During a heat wave, Scott escapes his non-air-conditioned apartment to go hang out at the mall where he runs into Lisa Miller! (see the flashback from Vol 2)

Continue reading →

REVISITING “SCOTT PILGRIM vs THE WORLD” (VOL 2)

Posted by ErikSlader on

Reblogged from Geek to Geek Media!

Check out my previous review of Vol1: “Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life” here!

While a good chunk of Vol 1 made up most of the first act of the movie, Vol 2: “Scott Pilgrim vs The World” really has a chance to delve into some of the characters and their relationships in a way that Edgar Wright’s film adaptation isn’t able to, due to time constraints – which is pretty common for film adaptations and is often why most books are considered better than the movie. This is really where Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novels begin to shine!

Scott Pilgrim vs High School

We start with a flashback: Scott Pilgrim in high school, in Ontario, where he meets a girl named Lisa, outside of the Principal’s office, immediately after a fight. It seems as though she has a crush on him, but he appears to be completely oblivious, per usual. The two friends decide to start a band together called “Sonic & Knuckles”. Soon after, Scott meets Kim Pine and they decide to make her their drummer. Scott confides in Lisa that he likes Kim, but before he can make a move, she randomly gets kidnapped by some jerks from a rival tech school!

In true video game fashion, Scott fights his way through wave after wave of enemies until he reaches ‘the boss’, atop the school, right as storm clouds roll in. The two have an epic throw down and Scott uppercuts the guy into the atmosphere. Ultimately, Scott saves Kim and they have an awkward exchange that feels straight out of some dumb heroic dream: “I didn’t know who’d rescue me from that maniac, but I secretly hoped it would be you Scott.” “I like you, Kim. We should be dating. Also, do you want to play drums in my band?” “YES, SCOTT! OH, YES!!” It’s so bad, it’s hilarious. It definitely plays up some outdated tropes (the princess is in another castle), but it’s cute and it seems to be self aware enough to know how ridiculous it all is. This whole chapter really reinforces that Scott is the hero of his own story, but we’re clearly only seeing it through his POV.

Continue reading →