October 2019 AvED run-through

Surtur

Loud Mouth Braggart
Joined
Mar 11, 2018
Now that the show has been gone for a bit and the dust has settled, this year leading up to Halloween I am going to watch one episode of Ash vs Evil Dead per day, in order. I want to get a good feel for each episode again and see how it holds up so far, plus taking my time to gather thoughts on each episode instead of binge watching. I understand many fans had gripes with the show, as did I, but I am trying to pick out the positives of the show and appreciate what we did get.

I wish I had more time daily to do a small write-up of my thoughts, but it will be tough. Hopefully a few others can join and also share their thoughts, good or bad.

Happy Halloween month.
 

MaidOfKandar

I May Be Bad But I Feel...Good....
Staff member
Joined
Mar 31, 2013
Excellent! Looking forward to your posts!
 

Surtur

Loud Mouth Braggart
Joined
Mar 11, 2018
Was a rough week time wise but I did manage to watch one episode per night. Through six episodes so far-

Episode 1 and 2 were magnificent. Episode one of course had the Raimi touch, while also hitting the ground running. A few minutes were a bit hokey, sure, but I appreciate them trying to introduce new aspects to Ash and the universe. I can understand how some are upset with his characterization, but to this day I find it neither all that funny nor harmful to the Ash legacy. Solid start with episode two giving us some great horror and fun scenes, even if not an entirely necessary episode.

Episodes 3-5 felt a bit dated. I have watched season 1 maybe 5 times now, and I just felt like I had seen these too recently. I did really enjoy Ash being his old self in a few scenes though, particularly when Eligos was in Kelly. Easily the weakest stretch in all of season 1, while still having enough to keep you entertained.

Episode 6 and from memory 7 were always my favorites from this season. It was great seeing civilians gettin g dragged into this fight and watching the horror on their faces in the diner. Admittedly I was never a huge Pablo or Kelly fan and their acting here leaves a bit to be desired. Watching AvED now and knowing we are very likely not to see Ash ever again, I’m soaking up every second Bruce has of screentime, the others are hit or miss. I will admit Ash trying to seduce the waitress felt a little off. I’ve been an Ash apologist since the show started but there are a few moments that feel out of place.

Just about a week in and looking forward to more. The show isn’t a masterpiece but still highly enjoyable
 

Surtur

Loud Mouth Braggart
Joined
Mar 11, 2018
Through episode 9 now and I forgot how much fun the cabin episodes were. I’d be interested in seeing someone/myself editing these three into a film format. Once again the flaws are evident now that the newness and excitement has worn off from the first few watches but one thing I will say is this show was WELL MADE from a technical viewpoint. Writing was an issue but everything else seems top notch

Season one thus far through 9 episodes, was a ton of fun with a little faltering from episodes 3-5. Again I’m trying to be mr positive here and not get too hung up on things, because there are a ton of cool Ash moments to be found in this first season.

Also from memory, I enjoy Kelly and Pablo the most this season as young and altruistic sidekicks who lend a helping hand and provide character foils to Ash. I don’t want to comment too much on episodes I haven’t seen recently but by season 3, Pablo is the deistic Brujo and Kelly thinks she’s King Leonidas.

I likely won’t be able to check in for a few days, but I highly recommend season 1 for all, even those that had their doubts on the show. You could really watch episodes 1-2 and then 6-10 and not skip a beat. This is making me fall in love with Evil Dead all over again after taking a bit of a break last year following the crushing news of its being cancelled.
 

Surtur

Loud Mouth Braggart
Joined
Mar 11, 2018
I typed a very long mid-season 2 recap that never got posted apparently, but now that I'm into season 3, I can comment on it as a whole. Season 2 was a mess overall. The comedy was either too silly and Three Stooges-esque, or gross-out colon humor, very little inbetween. I've said it many times before, one of my favorite gags on the whole show was S2E1 where Ash cuts the deadite's arms and head off, while the corpse slips in it's own blood on the floor. Classic. The colon sequence didn't gross me out or offend me, but just didn't really feel necessary other than "look how far we can stretch on this." I liked Baal as a villain, although I would have liked him to be a bit more menacing. I don't even want to go into timeline and story issues as that has been discussed way more thoroughly than I care to get into now. Episode 3 and 4 were some of my least favorite in the series.

Keeping with my goal of trying to focus on the positive aspects of this show, I enjoyed the darker aspects of season 2 vs 1. The setting, the mood of Elk Grove, the asylum episodes, and the minor villains. Obviously I loved the Ashy Slashy puppet, and I got a good laugh out of Ash in the cabin with the tiny demon he extracted from his leg. I enjoyed seeing Henrietta again, perhaps sans milk. Lots of fun to be had in these 10 episodes, provided you can suspend your disbelief heavily.

Season 3 however, feels like a standalone show so far. I only saw it once when it aired, and once on blu-ray last year, but this all feels fresh to me after 2 episodes. Kelly and Pablo are on my nerves this season in particular, but Brandy feels much more human and like-able this time around. In fact, they could have just made season 3 as is with a few extra episodes before to get you up to speed on Kelly and Pablo and how they got to Elk Grove, and I believe the show would have been phenomenal as a 12 or 13 episode series start to finish. Even the gross-out episode of the season, in the sperm bank, had a purpose for Ash to be there. This is the reason the show's cancellation hurt so much, because season 3 was the closest they got to the original trilogy and it leaves one longing to see what could have been, especially over the last 5 or so episodes. I'm only on episode 3 today, but I would have loved to have gotten THIS Ash, still a bit of an idiot, but with purpose and determination.
 
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