Ash vs Evil Dead: El Jefe
November 1, 2015 1:15 AM - Season 1, Episode 1 - Subscribe
Ash is back, baby. Groovy.
30 years after his last Deadite fight, badass blowhard Ash Williams unleashes the Evil in an act of stoned stupidity, bringing Deadite mayhem into his life again.
The Starz Ash vs Evil Dead page. Series trailer.
30 years after his last Deadite fight, badass blowhard Ash Williams unleashes the Evil in an act of stoned stupidity, bringing Deadite mayhem into his life again.
The Starz Ash vs Evil Dead page. Series trailer.
From the A. V. Club's recap:
Unfortunately, Raimi doesn’t have the rights to use Army Of Darkness for this new series which explains why S-Mart has been changed to Value Stop. Or why Ash’s steel glove is missing. Or why Pablo didn’t hear about that time his co-worker fought against his evil doppelgänger alongside Lord Arthur. This doesn’t appear to be a problem whatsoever.posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 1:21 AM on November 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
I loved it. I still wish he could bring Army of Darkness stuff in, but whatever. It has the absurdity of the franchise firmly in place by the end, so I am sure fun stuff will happen. Glad we are getting at least two seasons of it as well.
posted by weretable and the undead chairs at 1:15 AM on November 1, 2015
posted by weretable and the undead chairs at 1:15 AM on November 1, 2015
I watched it, and I think it is the best first episode of a series I have seen in a long time.
It perfectly redid everything it needed to, it was gory and hilarious.... and I felt the same joy I did seeing Ash on screen as I did when we saw him on the big screen last time.
But was he always that much of a dick?
posted by Mezentian at 5:11 AM on November 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
It perfectly redid everything it needed to, it was gory and hilarious.... and I felt the same joy I did seeing Ash on screen as I did when we saw him on the big screen last time.
But was he always that much of a dick?
posted by Mezentian at 5:11 AM on November 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm going to go with "yes". A lovable dick, but a dick.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 5:32 AM on November 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 5:32 AM on November 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
It has been.... 22 years since I watched an Evil Dead movie, so I will assume you are correct.
posted by Mezentian at 5:44 AM on November 1, 2015
posted by Mezentian at 5:44 AM on November 1, 2015
I've watched Army of Darkness at least twice in the interim since the first time I saw it in 1994. Probably more than twice. But just because of this show I got the remastered HD version and put it on my home media server last night.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 6:02 AM on November 1, 2015
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 6:02 AM on November 1, 2015
That was great. The CGI gore was underwhelming at times (but, some of the practical effects in the original Evil Dead movie were overwhelming to me, so, I'd be grateful if it stays cheesy).
I agree that Ash has always been kind of a dick. What was it Raimi once said about the Evil Dead movies, something about how it all boils down to torturing Bruce? If Ash was purely heroic, there wouldn't be such a great comedic element to the franchise. Like, that sex scene at the bar was such a great mix of creepy and funny.
From The Mary Sue Interview: The Women of Starz’s Ash Vs. Evil Dead:
TMS: The character of Ash is a strange one, because he isn’t likable but he is lovable.
Lawless: That’s exactly right!
TMS: And we see that even at this age, having gone through everything since the first movie, he hasn’t grown or matured at all. He’s a bit misogynistic….
Lawless: He’s mildly racist.
TMS: Why do you think such an un-PC character is still appealing to audiences?
Lawless: I think he’s a bit of a relief because the convention is to not be like that. Maybe it’s that lack of polish and awareness that we’re kind of attracted.
Jones: And I think that if this were a serious show, his flaws would be topical. But the show is so ridiculous, and he’s ridiculous, that it’s funny. No one on the show or watching can take him seriously.
TMS: And, he’s pathetic.
Jones: And I was thinking about that, too. I think the reason people love the character, is his childlike way. He’s the child that never grew up, so you almost feel sorry for him. He’s the grown man in the family that would be sent to eat at the kids’ table.
TMS: He’s the man-child uncle?
Jones: Yeah! So you can never take him seriously.
posted by oh yeah! at 6:15 AM on November 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
I agree that Ash has always been kind of a dick. What was it Raimi once said about the Evil Dead movies, something about how it all boils down to torturing Bruce? If Ash was purely heroic, there wouldn't be such a great comedic element to the franchise. Like, that sex scene at the bar was such a great mix of creepy and funny.
From The Mary Sue Interview: The Women of Starz’s Ash Vs. Evil Dead:
TMS: The character of Ash is a strange one, because he isn’t likable but he is lovable.
Lawless: That’s exactly right!
TMS: And we see that even at this age, having gone through everything since the first movie, he hasn’t grown or matured at all. He’s a bit misogynistic….
Lawless: He’s mildly racist.
TMS: Why do you think such an un-PC character is still appealing to audiences?
Lawless: I think he’s a bit of a relief because the convention is to not be like that. Maybe it’s that lack of polish and awareness that we’re kind of attracted.
Jones: And I think that if this were a serious show, his flaws would be topical. But the show is so ridiculous, and he’s ridiculous, that it’s funny. No one on the show or watching can take him seriously.
TMS: And, he’s pathetic.
Jones: And I was thinking about that, too. I think the reason people love the character, is his childlike way. He’s the child that never grew up, so you almost feel sorry for him. He’s the grown man in the family that would be sent to eat at the kids’ table.
TMS: He’s the man-child uncle?
Jones: Yeah! So you can never take him seriously.
posted by oh yeah! at 6:15 AM on November 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
Were you whooping and cheering when the chainsaw flew across the room and clicked right into place on his stump?
I sure was.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:34 AM on November 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
I sure was.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:34 AM on November 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
Were you whooping and cheering when the chainsaw flew across the room and clicked right into place on his stump?
I was still whooping and cheering from the moment we got the blue shirt, and that remained until we got the "groovy", including Chekov's Convenient Shotgun.
Sheer, glorious fan service.
posted by Mezentian at 6:37 AM on November 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
I was still whooping and cheering from the moment we got the blue shirt, and that remained until we got the "groovy", including Chekov's Convenient Shotgun.
Sheer, glorious fan service.
posted by Mezentian at 6:37 AM on November 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was supposed to be hilarious when Fisher shot her derringer five times, including four times in a row without any possibility of reloading in between.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:32 AM on November 1, 2015
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:32 AM on November 1, 2015
Raimi and Campbell always do a great homage to The Three Stooges by adding physical comedy/slapstick into their horror, and that scene with him fighting the Murderdoll attacking his face was just perfect.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:55 AM on November 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:55 AM on November 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Were you whooping and cheering when the chainsaw flew across the room and clicked right into place on his stump?
I was at a Halloween party where in one room this was showing (Followed by Dead Snow: Red vs Dead). When this happened, everyone cheered. It was great.
posted by miss-lapin at 11:17 AM on November 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
I was at a Halloween party where in one room this was showing (Followed by Dead Snow: Red vs Dead). When this happened, everyone cheered. It was great.
posted by miss-lapin at 11:17 AM on November 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Man, that was beautiful.
posted by rodlymight at 6:04 PM on November 1, 2015
posted by rodlymight at 6:04 PM on November 1, 2015
They didn't seem to make a thing of it, but without knowing about the rights situation I would've taken the change in shop name to be some corporate consolidation thing that went sideways and left this shoddy store around...
But it didn't matter. I dunno about further episodes but this one NAILED the tone and logic you'd want from this, and they did a perfect job of showing why Ash is still relevant while not excusing how much of a dinosaur he is in modernity.
If they can keep this up, I am going to be so happy.
posted by sparkletone at 3:01 AM on November 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
But it didn't matter. I dunno about further episodes but this one NAILED the tone and logic you'd want from this, and they did a perfect job of showing why Ash is still relevant while not excusing how much of a dinosaur he is in modernity.
If they can keep this up, I am going to be so happy.
posted by sparkletone at 3:01 AM on November 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was supposed to be hilarious when Fisher shot her derringer five times, including four times in a row without any possibility of reloading in between.
Considering the multiple times Ash's weapon switched from snapping open to being pump-action in AoD that is probably a safe bet.
posted by phearlez at 9:31 AM on November 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Considering the multiple times Ash's weapon switched from snapping open to being pump-action in AoD that is probably a safe bet.
posted by phearlez at 9:31 AM on November 2, 2015 [1 favorite]
Now streaming for free on Starz.com!
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:50 PM on November 3, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:50 PM on November 3, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was supposed to be hilarious when Fisher shot her derringer five times, including four times in a row without any possibility of reloading in between.
Because in the midst of neighbors-turned-zombies being fought by a guy with a chainsaw on his arm, the thing that bothers you is the unreality of the firing of a gun too many times. It's escapist fantasy, just roll with it.
posted by scalefree at 5:11 PM on November 3, 2015
Because in the midst of neighbors-turned-zombies being fought by a guy with a chainsaw on his arm, the thing that bothers you is the unreality of the firing of a gun too many times. It's escapist fantasy, just roll with it.
posted by scalefree at 5:11 PM on November 3, 2015
So, is it just me or does aged Bruce Campbell look a lot like Mitt Romney?
posted by wabbittwax at 6:30 PM on November 3, 2015
posted by wabbittwax at 6:30 PM on November 3, 2015
Wabbittwax, you're not the only one.
When I look at Bruce, it's like he got extra layers of his own face applied like makeup on top of his actual face, like it's thickened up and become more square-jawed and exaggerated over the years. This is something I notice with lots of aging actors, though. Still fiercely good-looking nonetheless.
Mitt Romney's not nearly as handsome as Bruce Campbell, though, and I'd say that even if I didn't know anything about their personalities or lives. Something in Bruce's eyes, his expressions, and especially that little dimple just make me giddy when I look at him.
I have swooned in front of the man on two different book tours, though, so I may be biased.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 9:03 PM on November 3, 2015
When I look at Bruce, it's like he got extra layers of his own face applied like makeup on top of his actual face, like it's thickened up and become more square-jawed and exaggerated over the years. This is something I notice with lots of aging actors, though. Still fiercely good-looking nonetheless.
Mitt Romney's not nearly as handsome as Bruce Campbell, though, and I'd say that even if I didn't know anything about their personalities or lives. Something in Bruce's eyes, his expressions, and especially that little dimple just make me giddy when I look at him.
I have swooned in front of the man on two different book tours, though, so I may be biased.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 9:03 PM on November 3, 2015
The pilot's also streaming for free on the Starz app for Roku, for those of us (like me) who HATE watching TV on something that isn't a TV.
This was a lot of fun! I'm willing to wait until it hits normal streaming, or can at least be purchased on DVD, but this was a solid entry in the ongoing saga of the Campbellian hero.
posted by Strange Interlude at 5:31 AM on November 4, 2015
This was a lot of fun! I'm willing to wait until it hits normal streaming, or can at least be purchased on DVD, but this was a solid entry in the ongoing saga of the Campbellian hero.
posted by Strange Interlude at 5:31 AM on November 4, 2015
I just watched this, and it was glorious.
posted by Literaryhero at 8:09 PM on November 7, 2015
posted by Literaryhero at 8:09 PM on November 7, 2015
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posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 1:16 AM on November 1, 2015 [8 favorites]