Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 28, 2018

It might be a minor miracle that Ash vs Evil Dead made three seasons on Starz, and it's not because it's not a good show. What it is is based on the 1981 micro-budget Horror film The Evil Dead, which for Horror hounds was, and remains, a seminal piece of genre work, crafted with love and know-how and far less money than many bigger and mostly lesser films. Even if cast and crew, way back then -- names like Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi, and Bob Tapert -- knew they were on to something special, they certainly couldn't have imagined it would not only come to define their careers but live on for decades as both as a staple within the genre and spawn no less than two sequels, a remake, and three seasons of television more than three decades after the film's release. Minor miracle indeed, but from small beginnings come great things, particularly if those small things are works of passion rather than profit. While Ash vs Evil Dead is no more -- for now -- it's been a bloody, near perfect exclamation mark on the little franchise that could.

Peace. Short-lived.

Prior to diving into season three, even though it's a very soft reboot, newcomers should go back and begin with seasons one and two.

Ash (Bruce Campbell) has defeated the dead and has become a local hero and celebrity. He’s running his own hardware store and “slashing prices” with his chainsaw, not slashing demons. Pablo (Ray Santiago) is operating a food stand outside the store. But elsewhere, a young woman has found the Book of the Dead, and she’s brought it to be priced on one of those item valuation TV shows. The show’s host reads from the book -- he just so happens to be able to read ancient Samarian -- and summons a new round of demons. Pablo is amongst the first to figure it out when bloody demonic text suddenly appears on his stomach, but it quickly become apparent to all that a new round of bloody demon slaying is in store for Ash, Pablo, and Kelly (Dana DeLorenzo). And new demons mean new revelations. As soon as all hell breaks loose, Ash learns that he has a daughter, Brandy (Arielle Carver-O'Neill), who will have no choice but to fight along her father’s side in what might be the most gruesome, and most personal, clash with the evil dead yet.

Season three is sort of, almost, a soft reboot. Ash is the hero who has saved the world and all seems well, but evil is returning...duh! Of course it is! Who wants to watch Ash working the cash register at a hardware store? (though he makes a case for it in the opening minutes, pitching product with plenty of overt innuendo, proving that might just make for a pretty decent SitCom). And speaking of those opening minutes, the season opens without a drop of blood in sight for almost seven of them (the opening recap not withstanding) and there’s nary a shot thereafter without blood. A few here and there, sure, but it wouldn’t be Ash vs Evil Dead if the screen wasn’t slathered in blood and practical (and some digital) gore effects presented in such a way that’s as much a celebration of gooey prosthetics as a critical cog in telling the story within each episode, which usually means plenty of dismemberments, uniquely grotesque kills, and all kinds of nasty demonic mutations. From a nuts-and-bolts perspective, speaking of hardware, season three delivers as expected, never afraid to push boundaries, which includes demonic babies and three-year-olds running around soaked in blood and popping up from, and out of, host bodies.

Season three doesn't reinvent the wheel in terms of its narrative devices, either. Various demons pop up (and into various characters) and bloody battles ensue. It's honestly a little tiresome at times, because it's mostly just new window dressing on the same old storefront, but it's largely saved by Bruce Campbell and company. Campbell, ever engaged and fully buying into the series' and season's antics, remains ever cheerful, lending his signature vocal delivery to the character's endless quips while fully committing to the borderline slapstick comedy that offsets the gravity, and blood volume, of any given scene. His co-stars shine, both newcomers and series veterans alike, all of them unafraid of going with the flow (of blood) and immersing themselves into the ultra-bloody world that makes the show go 'round. This is the final season, and it was definitely time to pull the plug. There's a very distinct "been there, done that" vibe throughout the season, obvious even through the cast's commitment to carrying it through every demonic encounter and personal moment they share.

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season features a well-rounded 1080p transfer. Detail, as it has been through both seasons one and two, remains exceptional here. Clarity is amongst the best Blu-ray has to offer, and the complexity with which the image reveals every facial feature, the numerous splatters of blood and sweat, tattered clothes, beat-up weapons, and all of the gooey gore prosthetics only helps amplify the show's best qualities. Colors are nicely saturated and intense as necessary, with Ash's blue shirt and, of course, red blood the unequivocal standouts. Even in darker scenes, though, the palette pushes fairly intense, countered by well-rounded black levels. Skin tones are consistent and true, too, even if faces are often slathered in blood and wear. Noise is a fairly regular, but never significant, accompaniment, but other source or encode issues are of little concern.

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season's Dolby TrueHD 7.1 lossless soundtrack presents the season's involved sound dynamics with impressive stage presence and solid foundational clarity. The track plays large, which is critical to complimenting the show's over-the-top cadence and visuals. It's never shy about extending into the rears, whether that's considering music, intense action pieces, or chilling supportive atmospherics. Clarity remains a hallmark through it all, not quite reaching a sonic zenith but handling every crash, bang, chainsaw rev, gunshot, and squishy gore effect with pinpoint, precision detail. Bass is always quick to kick in with some authority in support of the track's most demanding moments. Dialogue presents with a firm front-center positioning and positive vocal clarity.

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season contains two brief bonuses on disc two and audio commentaries across both discs and all episodes.

Disc One:

• Audio Commentaries: For "Family:" Director Mark Beesley, Executive Producer/Actor Bruce Campbell, and Actress Arielle Carver-O'Neill. For "Booth Three:" Executive Producer Bob Tapert, Director Mark Beesley, and Actress Lucy Lawless. For "Apparently Dead:" Executive Producer Bob Tapert, Directors Diego Meza-Valdes and Andres Meza-Valdes, and Actress Arielle Carver-O'Neill. For "Unfinished Business:" Actors Arielle Carver-O'Neill, Dana Delorenzo, and Ray Santiago. For "Baby Proof:" Executive Producer Rick Jacobson, Stunt Coordinator Stuart Thorp, and Actors Dana Delorenzo and Ray Santiago.

Disc Two:

• Audio Commentaries: For "Tales from the Rift:" Executive Producer Bob Tapert, Visual Effects Supervisor Tim Capper, and Actors Dana Delorenzo, Lucy Lawless, and Ray Santiago. For "Twist and Shout:" Director Mark Beesley, Executive Producer/Actor Bruce Campbell, and Actresses Arielle Carver-O'Neill and Lucy Lawless. For "Rifting Apart:" Executive Producer Bob Tapert and Actors Arielle Carver-O'Neill, Dana Delorenzo, and Ray Santiago. For "Judgement Day:" Executive Producer/Writer/Director Rick Jacobson, Executive Producer/Actor Bruce Campbell, and Actress Arielle Carver-O'Neill. For "The Mettle of Man:" Executive Producer/Writer/Director Rick Jacobson, Executive Producer/Actor Bruce Campbell, and Actress Arielle Carver-O'Neill.
• Season Overview (1080p, 2:48): A rapid-fire overview of season trends, new characters, and the like.
• Inside the World of Ash vs Evil Dead (1080p): Episode-by-episode breakdowns which include plot details, recaps, character beats, working with three-year-old actors, and brief explorations of gruesome special effects. Included are Inside Episode 301: "Family" (2:02), Inside Episode 302: "Booth Three" (1:40), Inside Episode 303: "Apparently Dead" (1:55), Inside Episode 304: "Unfinished Business" (1:48), Inside Episode 305: "Baby Proof" (2:07), Inside Episode 306: "Tales from the Rift" (1:46), Inside Episode 307: "Twist and Shout" (1:42), Inside Episode 308: "Rifting Apart" (1:55), Inside Episode 309: "Judgement Day" (1:58), and Inside Episode 310: "The Mettle of Man" (1:36).

Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Fans will most assuredly be sad to see Ash vs Evil Dead take its final bow, but the truth of the matter is that the show was beginning to feel a little long in the tooth, innovating little beyond boundary-pushing gore. Season three does allow Ash a little more opportunity for character building with his daughter suddenly appearing in his life, but this is otherwise a fairly routine outing for the show that found its footing in season one and shined in season two. Season three captures the magic but it seems clear there was little room for growth beyond without fully devolving into repetitiveness or becoming a parody of itself and the franchise. Good idea to kill it while it's still on mostly beat. Ash vs Evil Dead: The Complete Third Season delivers the typical high end video and audio presentations. A nice assortment of extras are included, highlighted by commentary tracks for each episode. Recommended.