'Ash vs Evil Dead' Recap: 'El Jefe'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

'Groovy.'
- Ash Williams

I think it is safe to say that the greatest concern any fan from any franchise has when it comes to a long awaited sequel or update to the series, is whether or not this latest entry can recapture the magic that allowed said fan to fall in love with the whole thing in the first place. After all, magical moments are what we fans live for and that concern was at the top of my mind when I heard the announcement that the next official entry in the Evil Dead franchise would be by way of the cable television series, Ash vs. Evil Dead. 

Granted some of my worries melted away when I heard about the fact every single person involved in the franchise would be coming back to work on the series in some form or fashion, but the concern was still there. After all...it's been a looooooooong time since we enjoyed a fresh adventure with our favorite monster hunter/idiot in Ash Williams and time has a funny way of giving creative folks new perspectives on the people they have brought to life and that was really the root cause of my worry, since hey, it's been thirty-four years since the first movie came out, and someone could easily put forth the idea perhaps it was time to reinvent the whole thing for a new generation. 

Well, as it turns out, my worries were all for nothing because two wonderful things happened when I sat down to watch the series premiere of the show. First and foremost...they didn't change a damn thing about Ash and that was simply fantastic and second...the magic and wonder of the original trilogy is still there. In fact, I would venture to say that this episode, "El Jefe", was an absolutely perfect piece of television through and through. It had the right mix of everything last night. There were creepy scares abound, especially in the party house where Amanda is forced to put down her possessed partner and the laughs were there when we needed them. Plus we can't talk about an entry in the Evil Dead franchise without discussing the gore and there were plenty of buckets of it spilled in the premiere. 

But the best part of this premiere...has to be Bruce Campbell and hands down this is his best performance in the series to date. He's always done a fine job as Ash, but this go round...he brought new things to the role, specifically the fact we've never seen a weaker side to Ash on this level. He's truly afraid of what happened at the cabin so long ago, and for the most part he will do anything to avoid it. That little twist on the character makes the last fifteen minutes of the show all the more amazing when Ash reverts to the kick ass monster hunter we know and love and I can't thank Bruce enough for such a wonderful performance, and if Bruce was this good in the first episode, I can only imagine how much more incredible his performances will be as the series rolls on. 

Fact is, this show is going to be amazing, because of the fact everything we love about the Evil Dead franchise is here and I never thought this would be possible...but they actually managed to enhance it. The fact that the show is on cable T.V. allows for Raimi and Bruce and company to do things they never could have done in theaters and I am so thankful for it. This really was a fine Halloween treat and I certainly hope I wasn't the only one clapping and giggling when the one liners came out and I don't know about the rest of you, but I got chills with the final word that came out of Ash's mouth. Either way, all that matters in the end is that Ash is back, and the horror world is a better place for it. Hail to the king, baby.

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