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| Bruce Campbell |
Welcome to a new column called Channel Surfing, in which I sporadically look at current TV shows and talk about them. These are not ones that I care to write weekly recaps for and are instead reflections either on the episode, the series, or particular moments. This will hopefully help to share personal opinions as well as discover entertainment on the outer pantheon that I feel is well worth checking out, or in some cases, shows that are weird enough to talk about, but should never be seen.
Few horror films have quite the esteemed cult as that of The Evil Dead franchise. Ever since its comedic sequel Evil Dead II, fans have been praising the series' central figure "Ash": a man who is best remembered as having a chainsaw for a hand and spouting silly catchphrases such as "Groovy." A lot of credit should be given to director Sam Raimi, whose mixture of gore-filled horror and tonally appropriate comedy made for a sublime pallet that reinvigorated the genre and has since become the basis for a lot of bad knock-offs. Even with such an iconic role, Campbell hasn't been able to top it, let alone find something as great. It only makes sense then why he would return to the role "30 years later" (the film's third entry, Army of Darkness, is mysteriously ignored due to copyright problems) with Ash still as distraught and rambunctious as ever.
It's a bizarre time for film-to-TV adaptations. For every Fargo and Wet Hot American Summer that makes its way onto TV, there's several bad ones, including Minority Report and Scream. Considering that the franchise itself lacking in reverence, Ash vs. Evil Dead has plenty of wiggle room to go as insane as it wants. In fact, Ash is arguably just as careless as he used to be. It's only that now he's living out of a trailer park and hooking up at random bars. It isn't until one strange encounter that he begins to speculate that the "evil dead" that he had outlived is coming back for him. There's no rhyme or reason. It comes back to him with a vengeance, and it's about as effective as you'd think a middle-aged man would take it. He may be bigger and less agile, but for what it's worth - Campbell is still great as Ash.
The story starts out a little rough. The lack of faith in continuity means that the erratic introduction feels a little sketchy and wild. In fact, it is arguably the least Evil Dead that the series has been, choosing raunchy comedy over the mixture that it's better known for. After a few minutes, things start kicking into gear, and the show finds its path. Even if this isn't as immediately gratifying as the movies, it does set up a promising world in which even the supporting cast, specifically "co-worker with a black arts relative" Pablo (Ray Santiago) - who is quick to assist Ash in his quest to kill the dead in any way possible. Even if finale is our first taste of the action to come, it's a glorious moment that feels like the series finding its footing again.
The one concern is that this is a TV series, and thus the direction may be different. For the most part, Raimi was in control of the movies. In this first episode, his camerawork impacts the vibe of the episode as a camera pans through a car, breaking its two closed windows in the process. Those are small details that are funny, but likely not instinctive to lesser directors. As much as the series has been about Ash being comical, Raimi's direction has been equally as important. I am unsure if he'll be involved with every episode (IMDb doesn't say), but I really hope that he is. If not, I at least hope that he's able to find directors as in love with mixing horror and comedy as he is.
The final question is more sustainability. On Friday, the TV series had a momentous launch by having a marathon of the three Raimi-directed Evil Dead movies. During intermissions, Campbell, in his deadpan ways, would comically answer fan questions. While this isn't the first TV series that Starz has picked, it's arguably the highest profile that they have done after the Michael Bay-produced Black Sails. In a time where every channel is getting their definitive programs, it feels like Starz has yet to find one that has any notice. Even series with household names like Patrick Stewart in Blunt Talk haven't become as noteworthy as anything that HBO, Showtime, or Cinemax has done. As much as I hope that this show gives Starz incentive for better programming (they're also doing a new series from Breaking Bad director Moira Walley-Beckett called Flesh and Bone, set to premiere next week), I do worry that the pilot was essentially an excuse to bring in an audience and that subsequent episodes will look less impressive.
But that is more a gripe against the network than the prospects given by this first episode. It's an impressive effort that keeps the tone alive. The only thing that really needs to change is a bigger emphasis on the action and comedy. The horror is there, but there's very little that immediately feels spectacular about it. I am willing to go along with a middle-aged Ash as he fights evil. I just want it to be for good reasons. The Evil Dead is a curious franchise, and one that can do anything and get away with it. I just hope that this series decides to be an innovative alternative to the droll horror series on TV, specifically The Strain and Scream Queens. If that's all that this show does, then it may as well have succeeded in its goal.
It's a bizarre time for film-to-TV adaptations. For every Fargo and Wet Hot American Summer that makes its way onto TV, there's several bad ones, including Minority Report and Scream. Considering that the franchise itself lacking in reverence, Ash vs. Evil Dead has plenty of wiggle room to go as insane as it wants. In fact, Ash is arguably just as careless as he used to be. It's only that now he's living out of a trailer park and hooking up at random bars. It isn't until one strange encounter that he begins to speculate that the "evil dead" that he had outlived is coming back for him. There's no rhyme or reason. It comes back to him with a vengeance, and it's about as effective as you'd think a middle-aged man would take it. He may be bigger and less agile, but for what it's worth - Campbell is still great as Ash.
The story starts out a little rough. The lack of faith in continuity means that the erratic introduction feels a little sketchy and wild. In fact, it is arguably the least Evil Dead that the series has been, choosing raunchy comedy over the mixture that it's better known for. After a few minutes, things start kicking into gear, and the show finds its path. Even if this isn't as immediately gratifying as the movies, it does set up a promising world in which even the supporting cast, specifically "co-worker with a black arts relative" Pablo (Ray Santiago) - who is quick to assist Ash in his quest to kill the dead in any way possible. Even if finale is our first taste of the action to come, it's a glorious moment that feels like the series finding its footing again.
The one concern is that this is a TV series, and thus the direction may be different. For the most part, Raimi was in control of the movies. In this first episode, his camerawork impacts the vibe of the episode as a camera pans through a car, breaking its two closed windows in the process. Those are small details that are funny, but likely not instinctive to lesser directors. As much as the series has been about Ash being comical, Raimi's direction has been equally as important. I am unsure if he'll be involved with every episode (IMDb doesn't say), but I really hope that he is. If not, I at least hope that he's able to find directors as in love with mixing horror and comedy as he is.
The final question is more sustainability. On Friday, the TV series had a momentous launch by having a marathon of the three Raimi-directed Evil Dead movies. During intermissions, Campbell, in his deadpan ways, would comically answer fan questions. While this isn't the first TV series that Starz has picked, it's arguably the highest profile that they have done after the Michael Bay-produced Black Sails. In a time where every channel is getting their definitive programs, it feels like Starz has yet to find one that has any notice. Even series with household names like Patrick Stewart in Blunt Talk haven't become as noteworthy as anything that HBO, Showtime, or Cinemax has done. As much as I hope that this show gives Starz incentive for better programming (they're also doing a new series from Breaking Bad director Moira Walley-Beckett called Flesh and Bone, set to premiere next week), I do worry that the pilot was essentially an excuse to bring in an audience and that subsequent episodes will look less impressive.
But that is more a gripe against the network than the prospects given by this first episode. It's an impressive effort that keeps the tone alive. The only thing that really needs to change is a bigger emphasis on the action and comedy. The horror is there, but there's very little that immediately feels spectacular about it. I am willing to go along with a middle-aged Ash as he fights evil. I just want it to be for good reasons. The Evil Dead is a curious franchise, and one that can do anything and get away with it. I just hope that this series decides to be an innovative alternative to the droll horror series on TV, specifically The Strain and Scream Queens. If that's all that this show does, then it may as well have succeeded in its goal.
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