The Halloween premiere of the Starz television series Ash vs. Evil Dead is so close you can almost taste it, but to help fans handle the wait until Saturday, Starz has released the first four minutes of the debut episode online.
The clip can be viewed below and features Bruce Campbell reprising the role of iconic hero Ash Williams for the first time on screen since ARMY OF DARKNESS in 1992 (he has voiced the character for a few video games in the interim). Directed by Sam Raimi and scored with Deep Purple's "Space Truckin'", these four minutes are fast and funny and drop the viewer head first into the life of Ash thirty years after the events of THE EVIL DEAD, EVIL DEAD II, and AoD. The man is clearly still very much in the "Hail to the King" mindset.
It's incredible to see Campbell make his long-awaited, long-overdue return to his greatest character (New Line tried very hard to make it happen a decade ago with a FREDDY VS. JASON VS. ASH crossover, but it wasn't to be), and it will be a joy to watch him carry this new series.
By the time Ash vs. Evil Dead's ten episode first season has run its course, it will already have allowed us to spend more time in Ash's world than the three films combined. If that thought doesn't warm your horror-loving heart and put a smile on your face, I don't know what will.
The series' official synopsis:
Ash, the stock boy, aging lothario and chainsaw-handed monster hunter, has spent the last 30 years avoiding responsibility, maturity and the terrors of the Evil Dead. When a Deadite plague threatens to destroy all of mankind, Ash is finally forced to face his demons –personal and literal. Destiny, it turns out, has no plans to release the unlikely hero from its “Evil” grip.
The premiere episode will air on Starz at 9pm EST on the night of October 31st. Our own Chris Bumbray gave it an 8/10 review.