Ash vs. Evil Dead - El Jefe - Review: The Ash is Back!

I knew I was gonna love this show when Ash remembered reading from the book while stoned. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect or whether I would like it. For most of us, our taste and sense of humor change as we grow, so I generally prefer for the movies and TV shows I loved in my youth to remain the gems I loved then. I have not been enamored with previous attempts to revisit these stories. However, this creative team made a ton of good choices and left me a happy camper.

It helps that I love Bruce Campbell. Watching him prep for his night out was adorable. He grabs supplies (read that: condoms) but almost forgot his wooden hand. I know Ash is not a rich guy, but I can’t tell you how much I hope he has a set of hands. I’ve even got poses in mind. I’m trying to convince you guys I’m mature and sophisticated so I won’t mention which poses I am imagining.

Ash’s hook up in the bar and later scenes in the Value Stop draw Ash as a guy that makes me ask why does anyone like this guy? But you gotta appreciate a guy who, after being freaked out by a demon during sex, is willing to make sure he leaves his lady friend happy and satisfied.

Ash rushes home to make sure The Book of the Dead is where he left it. The baggie of drugs he finds inside it prompts him to remember doing something massively stupid. This is the one guy who should know you never read from the evil spell book! This, as I said at the beginning of the review, is the moment I fell in love with this show.

After realizing that the Evil has been released, we meet more of our series regular cast. The woman who read the book with Ash has had her own encounter with The Evil Dead. She lost. Two state officers are called to a house to check out a report of a woman screaming. Everything is quiet and the female officer, Amanda Fisher, points out that quiet is just as bad as all hell breaking loose.

The screaming woman is the Stoner that Ash read from The Book with. She’s dead and a demon. We learn that to kill these demons (I’m intentionally waiting to use the term Deadite until they use it in the show.) you have to blow their heads completely off. Partial head destruction won’t do it. I really liked the way they used the lighting to set the atmosphere of this sequence. There’s a nostalgic feeling to the monster design, but I like the fact that Sam Raimi isn’t afraid to embrace his growth as a director, or bring a little nuance to the party.

As expected, Amanda is the only one to walk out of the house alive. But she sees things that leave her questioning her sanity. And, it would appear, her co-workers are also asking themselves a few questions about her fitness for duty. Lucy Lawless’ introduction in the pilot is brief. She tells Amanda, in so many words, that she’s not crazy and it did happen. Amanda returns to the scene of the crime to find her own confirmation that it really happened. What exactly this means for her character, we will find out in future episodes.

Ash, meanwhile, proves that he may be an absolute moron when he’s stoned, but he’s not a complete idiot. Plan A: Run. Very wise decision, IMHO. Unfortunately, he has to pick up his paycheck first. (Which, sadly, he never gets.) His boss forces him to put in a full day before he can get his check, so we get to see Ash in his everyday world. I really want a job where I can’t get fired, ever. (Too bad I had to miss the Evil Dead marathon. I’m pretty sure this is related to the end of Army of Darkness. Please feel free to fill me in, in the comments.)

This sequence dragged a little for me more because it’s not my personal style of humor, than because there were problems with writing or acting. We do meet another regular, Pablo Simon Bolivar, who, for reasons I don’t get, considers Ash a mentor. (Ash lost several of the points he earned in the opening for hitting on the woman, Kelly Maxwell – another regular, that Pablo expressed interest in. I suppose they aren’t ‘bros’. Maybe that will come in future episodes.)

Pablo is quick with a shovel and saves Ash’s life. He takes Ash’s explanation of what’s happening with an ease born of growing up in a culture where the idea of evil manifesting in the real world is an everyday concept. He not only accepts that X-Acto® knife wielding dolls are normal, he sees it all as a sign that Ash needs to stop hiding and get back in the game. Ash is set on running and bails – without his paycheck.

When Kelly realizes that her dead mother just walked in on her unsuspecting father, Pablo takes her to the expert, Ash. Ash is on his way out of town, until the bad guys attack. And we discover that the hero is actually still in there. Ash’s trusty boomstick pops out of the floor! When Ash’s possessed neighbor pops out of the closet, Ash dons his iconic chainsaw. (And I do mean ‘dons’. The wooden hand is swapped out for the chain saw.) I am an extremely happy camper.

Great pilot. The production feels current. They made some very wise decisions when it came to how to meld the elements that fans loved about the movies with modern audience expectations. I am especially happy that everyone involved embraced their creative growth over the past decades and used the lessons learned to make the story better. The CG was not as seamless as I’ve seen it, but, for this show, it works.

I think Bruce Campbell is a better actor now than he was when those movies were made, and, because they didn’t try to drop young Ash into an old body, I found him to be a real character that I can connect with. Also approaching the story as a skilled warrior forced out of retirement was, for me, a very successful approach.

SideNote:

How does one handle the fact that your star has a beautiful set of teeth and the character has had a tooth knocked out in the pilot? Give the character multiple sets of dentures. LOL! I’m filled with hope for the extra hands!

I’m looking forward to hearing what you guys thought of this pilot. Please take to the comments and let me know.

About the Author - Prpleight

Prpleight is a screenwriter and senior software engineer with solid geek cred. When not writing code, screenplays, or watching TV (sometimes she does all three at the same time), she uses her broadsword Bessie to battle evil. She's been a frequent contributor to the SpoilerTV discussion boards for several years now.

Recent Reviews (All Reviews)