***THIS REVIEW WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON THE NERD BLITZ PATREON***
Here we go, gang, our first ORIGINAL arc of Army Of Darkness comic bookery.
While I have read all of these stories before, it’s been quite some time so my eyes will be semi-fresh.
I can’t wait to dig in and have some groovy fun, baby!
This is your classic ***SPOILER ALERT***, stand up straight and act accordingly.
Covers by A Fuckin’ Shit Ton Of People!: I don’t think that I’ll be talking about covers much with these arcs going forward because there are just too goddamn many of them.
This series alone has 19 covers (6 of which are uncredited photo covers).
Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think you guys would be interested in me prattling on for 20 paragraphs about what I think of 13 covers, so for the sake of brevity I think I may drop that portion of these reviews.
At the very least I’ll take it case by case.
But let me know, if you want a shit ton of cover talk, I can definitely do it.
I’ll take a peek at these covers and give you a special review of those, if you’re down for it.
Art by Nick Bradshaw: When I think of Army Of Darkness comics, I think Nick Bradshaw.
He has such an over the top cartoony style that fits with the wacky Three Stooges vibe of this franchise.
So much so that it feels like it was meant to be, almost as if his coming was heralded generations ago in a long forgotten book created by a dead civilization.
Could Nick Bradshaw be the chosen o…nah, that’s ridiculous.
Who would ever believe some nonsense like that?
Story by Andy Hartnell: Picking up exactly where Army Of Darkness ends, in S-Mart, Ash is attacked by deadites and fights them off.
But he’s also visited by an old friend, quite literally, in the form of the Wise Man from 700 years ago, who tells Ash that he fucked up yet again…SHOCKER!
They soon set out on a journey together that takes them to the end of Evil Dead 2 and all the way to the demonic pit that the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis came from!
And there’s even a cameo or two from past friends and enemies.
Now if only Ash could remember those three pesky little words…
This story was a damn great way to twist the end of Army Of Darkness and set up new stories in the universe.
It also makes me wonder how they got away with playing around in Evil Dead 2.
You see, when Ash came back at the end of AoD, he actually came back before he left, that’s why deadites are still dicking around in the present.
Clever, innit?
This also acts as a bit of a road trip buddy comedy between ol Ash and the Wise Man, and it works incredibly well!
Which brings me to this: honestly, I’m just plain impressed with how many plates Hartnell was able to spin here, even if only genre wise, and not make this feel like an overstuffed, unfocused mess.
It’s a road trip buddy comedy, with horror, fantasy, adventure, and a dash of sci-fi!
Job well done here.
There is a lot to love in this 4 issue arc, including some fun pop culture references.
This is a prime example of taking a franchise in weird and different directions without straying from what made it in the first place.
It dives deeper into the lore, canonical status be damned, and expands it while setting up a future that seems to fit in perfectly with the broader mythology.
I can’t think of a reason why Evil Dead/Army Of Darkness fans would be anything but happy with this.
And I’m ready for more!
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