ASH VS EVIL DEAD SERIES OVERVIEW PART 3

And so it came to pass that the legend of El Jefe - The Promised One, The Hero From The Skies - Ashley J Williams, came to an end.

Ash Vs Evil Dead entered its third - and final - season. Ratings and audience appreciation figures had fallen (possibly in part due to season two's rushed ending), more importantly though Bruce Campbell had decided that it was time to hang up his trusty chainsaw once and for all.

You can hardly blame him really - Campbell had been playing Ash since his early twenties and was now hitting his early sixties. That's most of his adult life so far playing the same character off and on for decades. It was probably pretty difficult even for Campbell himself to tell where Bruce Campbell ended and Ash Williams began by this point. Also, as noted, Campbell wasn't getting any younger - Ash was a very physically demanding role, Campbell has gone on record as saying he was taking longer and longer to recover after filming each series. The mind was willing, but unfortunately the ageing process had other ideas.

Whatever the specifics, in season three Campbell gives what is probably his very best performance not just as Ash but of his entire career. Season three sees Ash meet up with his long lost, illegitimate daughter Brandy (Arielle Carver-O'Neil), a daughter he never knew he had. 

It's this father/daughter relationship that forms the core of season three and subtly transforms Ash. He's still the same old thoughtless, loudmouthed, badass Deadite slayer we all know and love, but in season three Ash has more to worry about. He's more care worn, more burdened by his responsibilities. It's safe to say that being a father brings out the best in Ash and a side of him we've never seen before.

The stakes are raised considerably in this series - not just on a personal level but on a worldwide scale - as the Dark Ones return, bringing with them the father of all evil - the arch demon Kandar. The apocalypse is set in motion and Ash must face his final destiny. There's a brilliant scene where Ash takes one look at the giant rampaging monster that is Kandar and absolutely shits himself. He totally loses it and refuses to fight until some stern words from Brandy cause him to face up to his responsibilities. It's a great moment that shows how flawed and ultimately human Ash is, but also what a true hero he is deep down. It's both Ash - and Campbell's - finest hour.

Arielle Carver-O'Neil is quite possibly the best person they could have found to play Ash's daughter. The fact that she physically resembles Campbell enough to convincingly pass for his daughter is just the icing on the cake. Brandy is initially scornful and resentful of her new found dad's bizarre lifestyle, she spends much of the season being manipulated by Ruby against her dad (a splendidly evil turn by Lucy Lawless this time round), before finally coming round to his way of thinking and forging a loving bond with her dad.

Like her old man Brandy eventually gets to do some Deadite killing of her own. Following the family tradition she gets drenched in gore and even gets to utter some of Ash's more well known one liners. Carver-O'Neil completely nails these scenes - apeing just enough of Campbell's mannerisms to seem like genuinely inherited traits rather than it just being an impersonation. She's great. Hats off to whoever decided to cast her - she was an inspired choice.

All the other regulars are present and correct and all get a good send off. Pablo powers up even more, steps out of Ash's shadow and FINALLY (in a true punch the air moment) gets together with Kelly. Kelly gets the torch passed onto her by Ash as he appoints her to be the leader that people will need in the hard days to come following the apocalypse (you just know she's going to be great at that). The final scene where Ash says goodbye to his daughter and faithful friends as he heads into battle for seemingly the last time is incredibly touching. You realise just how much these characters have come to mean to each other. You also realise just how much you're going to miss them when the series ends. It's not just great horror, it's also great drama. Great television full stop.

Of course this being the Evil Dead it's not all high drama, series three still retains it's fun side. If you thought the morgue scene in season two was pushing the bounds of good taste then season three goes even further with a very messy battle with Deadites that takes place in a sperm bank. I promise you that after watching this you'll never see Aha's "Take On Me" and porn magazines in quite the same way ever again. It's utterly foul and absolutely hilarious.

We also get some very cool Deadites this time round. My favourite being the one that's composed of three people all merged together (an idea that the producers ran with even further in Evil Dead Rise a few years later). 

Also good are the Grim Reaper-esque Dark Ones (who finally nail Ruby once and for all).

We also get a Deadite possessed high school mascot...

 

Most impressive of all is Kandar The Destroyer, king of the Dark Ones - a massive Kaiju style demon that stomps the town of Elk Grove to the ground. No wonder Ash has a bit of a wobble going up against this fella.

Against all odds Ash manages to defeat Kandar but ends up in a coma. He awakes - after being cryogenically frozen - in the far off future, to a post apocalyptic world where he's needed once more. Joined by a sexy female cyborg and a souped up Mad Max style version of his trusty Oldsmobile, Ash is poised to go on new adventures in this shattered world taking the fight to the Deadites of the future. As the final seconds play out the lady cyborg asks Ash how he's feeling. Ash responds with his catchphrase - "Groovy !" It's ABSOLUTELY the perfect ending and I'm so glad they went with it. Ash lives to fight another day, in another time. We're sad to see him go but thrilled that his legend will never end. 

 

But is it really the end ? Campbell has retired from physically playing Ash but he has since returned to voice the character in an Evil Dead console game, he also made a small vocal cameo as Ash in Evil Dead Rise. Already there's talk of an Evil Dead animated series being in production that will continue Ash's story in the far off future with Campbell again providing voice over duties. I'm guessing that so long as Campbell remains with us that Ash will never truly be away for long. Hail to the King !!!!