GobbledyBLAM! -OR- Holy Freaking Crap, This Scott Pilgrim Trailer Is Awesome

I really just wanted an excuse to post the above picture.

But while I’m at it, HAVE YOU SEEN THIS SCOTT PILGRIM TRAILER?! If not, take two minutes and thirty-three seconds of your pathetic life to watch it right now:

If you’re too lame to watch it, A) we are no longer friends and B) Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is an adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s beloved Scott Pilgrim series of graphic novels, with the sixth and final volume due out July 20. Scott, bass guitarist for the band Sex Bob-Omb, falls in love with the mysterious Ramona V. Flowers, and in order to stay with her, must defeat her seven evil exes. Hilarity, tragedy, and lots of bizarre video game references ensue. I just read all five books yesterday, and they’re unlike any comics I’ve ever read. In appearance, they might seem pretty typical; O’Malley sticks with the cartoony manga style so many young readers are accustomed to. But there’s a lot of detail and emotion in his drawing, and more importantly, in his writing. The relationships between each of the characters grow increasingly complex as the series moves along, a quality which no robot fights or hipster dance-offs could trump.

Michael Cera plays Scott in the movie, and I wonder how his presence will affect its success. On the one hand, he’s got a built-in audience, but on the other, let’s face it, we’ve reached the point of Michael Cera over-saturation, which wouldn’t be such a problem if he didn’t play the same damn character every time. Three years ago, he was a geek god, having been part of Arrested Development‘s amazing three-year run, Superbad, and Juno. Even then, you could’ve made the argument that all three of those characters were more or less the same, but I defended him. I said that George Michael Bluth, Evan, and Paulie Bleeker were all awkward dorks, but they all had distinctly different qualities. Then he just kept working the same shtick, and I was forced to rethink my position. But after a disappointing couple of years, what with the duds Year One and Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, he showed a little growth with Youth in Revolt. And Scott Pilgrim‘s a smart movie for him to do next, because on the surface Scott looks like one of his stock characters, but he’s a lot goofier, hyperactive, and just way more of a badass (in Vol. 1, after all, he was referred to as “the best fighter in the province”).

Plus, did you see just how batshit insane crazy awesome that movie looks?! Edgar Wright’s a fantastic director, and I have endless faith in him after Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, and Hot Fuzz, modern comedy classics all. It’ll be interesting to see how he pares down six volumes and around 1,000 pages of material into two hours, but regardless, I’m sure it’ll be brilliant. Why does August 13 have to be so far away?!