Now that I've finished the first season of Ash Vs. Evil Dead, I can finally give it the rating that I felt it deserved since the beginning. Overall, this show was definitely high value entertainment primarily for fans of the films as I was . Although, I'm not sure if people who never saw the films before was onboard with this show or not as they'd probably be completely lost from the beginning. Here are my thoughts on the first season of Ash vs Evil Dead.
Bruce Campbell is back as Ash and just as awesome as I remembered him to be and the show hilariously played on the whole age thing with him which I thought was brilliant. The awesomely over the top bloody and gory action makes its grand return with nothing held back as it should be feeling right at home with the films. Same goes for the constant one liners that Ash dishes out every now and then that I always enjoy hearing.
The practical effects are just as amazing to see here as they were back then and the addition of CGI are mostly welcomed in certain areas of the series. So, not only has Bruce made a grand return to the series but creators Sam Raimi and Ivan Raimi as well as their stamp on the franchise is seen scattered throughout the show. That classic POV shot definitely fed on my nostalgia.
The story is pretty decent overall as it does expand the world around the Ash character making this show significantly more adventurous in comparison to the cabin in the woods setting of the others (excluding Army of Darkness of course). My only problem with the series actually comes with the new characters introduced in this world.
Now, keep in mind that I do like the characters of Pablo, Kelly, and Amanda as these supportive roles to Ash's journey with their own significant moments attached, but some of the performances given by the actors do come off as a bit dead (no pun intended). It's strange speaking about performances in an Evil Dead property, but some of the one liners and even action packed scenes involving these three (although more towards Pablo and Kelly) do feel a bit off and forced at times.
This is something that can definitely be remedied in the second season as we've seen with other shows where the acting got more refined through every season. The new addition of Lucy Lawless had me a little excited especially due to recently seeing her as the main villain in another series entitled, Salem. It's ironic how both of her characters in the same year plays the main villain of a show who is hellbent on resurrecting some dark lord to rule over the world.
She does a pretty good job here, but I honestly couldn't say that I was compelled to learn more about her as her position in this universe (the one who actually wrote the famous book) felt a little forced as well. That's really the main theme involving the issues with the show for me is that the new additions to this universe aren't fully settled in with me as of yet.
However, I still had a really fun time watching one of my favorite movie characters make their way to the small screen this time and the entertainment value of the show was pretty strong in its action and comedy for the most part. Some of the new Deadites were cool to look at from a visual standpoint and there are some creative new and interesting new ideas showcased in the show keeping things fresh and interesting instead of just a constant bloody trip down memory lane.
I would definitely consider this first season a big success for the more significant things that it needed to get right. Now, all we need is some tweaking in the supporting character roles performance-wise and we'll have ourselves one of the greatest new shows on television if they continue to give us that perfectly carved over the top tone that we grown to love.
Season Rating: 9/10
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