If Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz has likable oafs as its protagonists, The World's End again challenges convention in this regard by daring to present us with a protagonist who actually isn't very easy to warm to at all. He's not a lovable a**hole in the same way Ed from SOTD is, either; while Gary is a funny sort, he frequently takes the p*** out of his buddies and shows little concern for them beyond their enabling his alcohol-fueled binge. This is a rare comedy with a protagonist who at times truly seems beyond redemption, and smartly, the film doesn't fashion an all-catch solution for his character, but instead, much remains left up in the air about how Gary decides to live his life. For a relatively mainstream comedy, this is all pretty brave stuff.