TV Review: Ash vs Evil Dead: Season 1 – Episode 4

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Season 1, Episode 4: Brujo

SUMMARY: Pablo (Ray Santiago) convinces Ash (Bruce Campbell) to consult with his Brujo (a type of shaman) uncle.

REVIEW: We’re now almost halfway through Ash vs Evil Dead’s ten-episode first season and despite me being one of more skeptical fanboys about the series, I have to say I’ve been unequivocally won over so far. Granted, a lot of that has to do with Bruce Campbell’s enormous charisma and the fact that he absolutely dominates the show, but even beyond him this has been an A-effort all the way. Starz has been very good about giving Evil Dead fans what they want without screwing up the tone, with part of that being the largely practical gore effects, which pretty much always beats CGI – no question about it.  

 

This week’s episode is probably the least action-packed so-far, but in the end that ends up being not such a bad thing as it gives us viewers a chance to catch-up on a bit of character development, something which is easy to lose in a series were each episode runs under thirty minutes. Significantly, we get some insight into what Ash has been up to the last thirty years (mostly porn and weed), with it seeming that the series follows the events of EVIL DEAD 2, but ARMY OF DARKNESS is non-canon (well, maybe).

This is one of the more comedy-centered episodes so far, with Ash’s drug trip with Pablo’s Brujo father revealing Ash’s ultimate fantasy – a life of ease in Jacksonville, Florida or all places. Why? Because apparently that’s where Ash was heading before making that ill—advised stop at the Evil Dead cabin with his girlfriend for a little fooling around.

This week’s installment bring Lucy Lawless’ Ruby into the fold. Many fans figured she was the daughter of the cabin owners, and they turned-out to be right, with her assuming that Ash is somehow responsible for her parents dying and is bent on making him pay, leading to an alliance with Amanda (Jill Marie Jones).

This week’s episode – while largely centered on Ash’s vision quest as opposed to any battles with Deadites, also reveals that Kelly (Dana DeLorenzo) is now possessed by the same demon Ash helped release last week. If her interactions with Pablo – who’s busy building Ash a new hand out of his old Power Glove – are any evidence she’s going to seduce Pablo and get him to turn on Ash, although we’ll see.

While slightly less action-packed than the last few episodes, ‘Brujo’ is another solid thirty minutes of fun. Ash vs Evil Dead is really turning out to be a great little show and the fact that they can keep the momentum going in a relatively dialogue-heavy episode is a very good sign indeed, although I’m still not sure how the show is going to go beyond one season. Knowing Ash though, he’s got a few tricks up his sleeve.