Top 10 Biggest Differences in Scott Pilgrim Anime
Things are always changed in translation! Join Ashley as we look over the most obvious changes made to the Scott Pilgrim anime series
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00:00 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the ways this Netflix's
00:09 Scott Pilgrim anime radically changed the source material.
00:17 10.
00:22 Scott Dies?
00:23 Let's get this one out of the way ASAP.
00:29 The first episode drew us in with the near-perfect adaptation of the comic series that fans had
00:34 wanted for years.
00:35 But, for better or worse, that's not what we got.
00:39 Things veer off course dramatically when, during the fight with the first evil ex Matt
00:44 Patel, Scott abruptly combusts into coins.
00:53 As anyone will tell you, this does not happen in the comics, or even the movie, and Patel
00:59 is dispatched quickly.
01:00 So, yeah, the title of "Takes Off" actually has a different meaning than what we originally
01:06 thought.
01:07 The only explanation the cast can come up with is that he died, and the following episode
01:12 gives us a long, drawn-out funeral scene.
01:21 Of course, we later find out that Scott didn't die, but we'll save that for another entry.
01:27 9.
01:28 Pac-Man to Sonic
01:34 Whilst not present in the original comics, in the movie adaptation, when Scott approaches
01:39 Ramona for the first time, he picks the topic of Pac-Man as the icebreaker.
01:53 It's a now-iconic scene that many would expect to be replicated in the anime series, but
01:59 that didn't end up being the case.
02:01 Instead, Scott drops some Sonic trivia to get Ramona's attention.
02:11 In fact, this isn't the only time Sonic is referenced in the show, as he's mentioned
02:16 a couple of times, including in the final battle.
02:23 8.
02:27 A New Leader
02:28 The result of the Scott vs. Matt fight leads to the latter getting quite the ego.
02:34 After all, he did defeat the strongest guy in Toronto.
02:37 As such, he thinks it's time he got his due recompense, and challenges Gideon Graves
02:43 for the throne as the leader of the League of Evil Xs.
03:02 It's one hell of a fight, and way more than we'd expect from the one who was thought
03:06 to be the weakest in the League.
03:09 And then the unthinkable happens.
03:11 Matthew Patel actually wins.
03:15 And convincingly so.
03:17 This makes him the new boss and, in effect, remarkably rich.
03:26 Aspirations of becoming a stage actor do get in the way of his role later down the line,
03:31 though.
03:32 7.
03:33 Ramona's New Job
03:35 As any fan will tell you, the whole reason Scott and Ramona met in the first place was
03:40 because of her occupation as an Amazon delivery gal.
03:48 Their tendency to use the subspace highway in his head to warp to delivery points is
03:53 the catalyst of his initial infatuation.
03:56 Well, she still does that in this series, but instead of working for Amazon, she works
04:02 for Netflix instead.
04:05 Understandable.
04:08 Why acknowledge one of your biggest streaming rivals?
04:13 Either way, later on she seems to have dropped her Netflix job entirely to become a stunt
04:19 woman instead.
04:20 6.
04:21 Knives Joins The Band
04:23 Knives' part in the series is significantly shrunk in this new adaptation.
04:28 There's no big showdown between her and Ramona in the Toronto Congress Library, no
04:34 getting the highlights punched out of her hair, and certainly no Mr. Chow.
04:39 Instead, after initially being distraught over Scott's death, she picks up his bass
04:44 guitar and gets strumming.
04:48 That's when she finds her calling as a musician and joins the band as a guitarist and later
04:56 piano player.
05:00 Yes, that means young Neil doesn't get to join the band like he does in the movie.
05:10 Instead, he's awfully busy directing a movie based on the original Scott Pilgrim timeline.
05:20 5.
05:21 New Relationships
05:23 Love and romance is one of the key components of the Scott Pilgrim story, but surprisingly
05:28 some of the most memorable ones are switched around.
05:32 Remember Stephen Steele's off-and-off girlfriend with the potty-mouthed Julie?
05:36 Well, as it turns out, she has a long history with Gideon Graves, which leads to the two
05:42 dating and living together after his fall from grace.
05:49 Perhaps the most bizarre mix-up is that of Todd Ingram, who instead of cheating on Envy
05:54 Adams with Lynette, instead hooks up with…
05:58 Wallace Wells.
05:59 It's a wild affair that eventually leads to Todd having a total obsession with Scott's
06:05 roommate.
06:06 Lastly, there also seems to be a hint of a potential future between Kim and Lucas in
06:17 the epilogue.
06:24 4.
06:28 Gideon Graves is a loser
06:30 Yep, you heard it right.
06:33 The G-Man isn't the man you think he is.
06:35 He's actually quite pathetic.
06:38 After losing the company and his chair as the leader of the League, Julie finds him
06:42 crestfallen and reveals his real name was Gordon Goose.
06:50 He was actually the biggest dweeb in school.
06:53 The show also does this sort of odd thing where it implies him watching anime is lame,
06:59 even though this is an anime.
07:04 I dunno, maybe we're reading too much into it.
07:10 He's not the only one who's portrayed as a loser though.
07:13 As for some reason, Lucas Lee is also on the receiving end of some rather cruel character
07:18 assassination.
07:19 He gets kicked out of Hollywood and suffers one humiliation after the next.
07:27 3.
07:29 Not So Evil Exes
07:31 Perhaps the most disappointing thing for a lot of Scott Pilgrim fans is that this show
07:42 doesn't have any of the evil ex fights from the source material, outside of a brief encounter
07:47 with Matthew Patel.
07:54 In fact, there's not much fighting at all as once Scott disappears and Gideon loses
08:00 his position, the League pretty much falls apart.
08:05 When they're not being complete goofballs, the exes are surprisingly nice to the other
08:10 characters.
08:11 Most shocking of all, they actually help out in the final battle and even cheer on Scott
08:16 and Ramona when they kiss in the finale.
08:23 Guess they were just misunderstood?
08:25 2.
08:26 So, Ramona is the protagonist.
08:37 While Ramona's story is crucial in the original comic, the primary focus is on Scott as he
08:43 takes down evil exes, grows as a person and realises he's a bit of a jerk.
08:49 But with Scott gone, that leaves room for a new lead character.
08:53 Perhaps this show should have been called Ramona Flowers instead, since the title character
08:58 is only really present for about three of the eight episodes.
09:05 The rest is Ramona starring in a murder mystery, where she reconciles with each of her exes
09:10 along the way.
09:12 Scott doesn't even win the final battle, as it's up to Ramona to save the day by
09:17 fusing with herself.
09:43 If you're on your phone, make sure to go into your settings and switch on notifications.
09:48 1.
09:49 Scott is the villain
09:51 Okay, we had a lot of guesses for who kidnapped Scott, but "Scott from the future" was
09:56 certainly not the answer we were going with.
10:02 We learn that after the events of the original story, Scott and Ramona get married, and then
10:08 have a major falling out.
10:10 This shatters Scott's soul far worse than his break-up with Envy, leading him to think
10:15 of ways he can avoid this heartbreak.
10:18 His answer is travelling back to the past, staging his own death, and making it so he
10:23 and Ramona never get together.
10:34 When his first attempt fails, he turns to more extreme methods by getting huge and attempting
10:40 to break them up by force.
10:42 He's not exactly the Scott Pilgrim we know and love, but he is voiced by Will Forte,
10:47 so there's that.
10:56 So what did you think of this Scott Pilgrim anime?
10:59 Did you love it, or were you disappointed?
11:02 Let us know in the comments below.
11:17 Thanks for watching.
11:24 (upbeat music)
11:27 (upbeat music)