Scott Pilgrim Inspired Dog Names

In his Scott Pilgrim series, Bryan Lee O’Malley spared little when bringing his varied interests to the page. Throughout the six editions the title spans, he was able to touch upon not only his love for storytelling and illustration but draw in his love for music and video games as well as his appreciation for various other works that acted as inspiration. Because of it, there are numerous references to bands both past and present, classic gaming consoles and even martial arts, which may have been influenced by his Korean heritage. 

The latter is best exemplified by both Scott Pilgrim’s main love interest, Ramona “Rammy” Flowers, who is a self-proclaimed “delivery ninja”, as well as her ex, Roxie Richter, whose character is not only a series villain, but a “half-ninja” herself, something that becomes apparent in their face-offs. 

But Bryan Lee O’Malley wasn’t the only artist to employ ninjas as a means to create more personal interest and depth in his stories. Another famed writer, Masashi Kishimoto, was doing much of the same around the same time period. The creator of the now cult classic magna series Naruto, Kishimoto centered much of his work around the shinobi arts, including an important character’s (Kiba Inuzuka's) doggy sidekick, Akamaru. 

Akamaru is described as being a nindog or ninken, both terms meaning a dog with heightened senses and abilities, much like those who have learned traditional ninja arts. Although the first meeting between Akamaru and Kiba wasn’t particularly cordial, the two quickly become inseparable, as Kiba worked his way through the Academy. 

But unlike many other series that feature a canine sidekick, Akamaru actually gets to tell some of his story from his own perspective. In Rai no Sho, one of the Naruto comics, readers actually got to experience his point of view, which helps to reveal deeper aspects of his character. Like many actual dogs, he is usually hopeful and upbeat but wrought with humorous inaccurate thought patterns he quickly corrects. Strangely enough, he has a bit of a scientific approach when it comes to humans, though his opinion is perfectly justifiable: he believes humans enter puberty too late, which offsets their interests when they should be focusing on their shinobi (ninja) practices. 

Through Akamaru, both fans of the series and young readers alike get to experience an outside perspective that is both funny and accurate, inspiring a bit of self reflection, much like Scott Pilgrim’s honest look at the slings of early adulthood.