Review by James, Berkelouw Mona Vale.

This is the first part of a six volume series chronicling the life of Scott Pilgrim. The Canadian writer and cartoonist O'Malley has created a quirky, humorous and refreshing graphic novel.

23 year old slacker, Scott Pilgrim has just met the girl of his dreams, Ramona Flowers. However he  has two problems.  Firstly he is already dating a high school student. Secondly he must defeat Ramona's seven evil exes in battle in order to keep dating her.

Beneath this humorous if absurd premise lays a genuinely enjoyable and  affecting dissection of young adult life. The art style is boldly simple and O'Malley is able to convincingly depict his characters often complex emotions through their expressions alone. The writing is another strong point with believable dialogue and an exciting, funny and poignant  narrative. Effectively this story is an exploration of the hopes, trials and responsibilities of the twenty-something year old.

However it achieves this in combination with eccentric humour, exaggerated comic action and a playful attitude.

Simply put, this is a highly rewarding graphic novel  which can be enjoyed on many levels.