I’m going to talk a little bit about something I don’t really talk about normally. For quite some time I’ve suffered from mild depression. Undiagnosed, of course, because I’ve never really brought it up to a doctor – or most anyone really. I’m caught in that Catch-22 where my life isn’t that bad and I don’t have much to complain about, but most days I struggle to engage with the people around me and if I could, I’d stay in bed, curl up on the couch, or just not leave the house at all. I feel stupid as hell even mentioning it. Here, especially.
But here’s the thing. This past Saturday, instead of writing, editing the reviews I’d gotten in, or really doing much of anything, I instead spent the day lying on said couch in my bathrobe, feeling like a failure and like everything I do is meaningless. Maybe you know what I’m talking about. Maybe you don’t. Doesn’t really matter.
The point is, I was in a funk, boys and girls. A funk that I couldn’t kick (not that I really even wanted to try, if that makes any sense). One of those days where you’re not suicidal in the least, but being dead would probably be best for everyone you know.
Again, maybe you get that. Maybe you don’t.
Doesn’t really matter.
Because when Dr. Girlfriend asked if I wanted to watch Ash vs Evil Dead, I didn’t really care one way or the other. But I needed to watch it to write a review, so I said sure.
And Ash vs Evil Dead saved my weekend. I laughed until I cried and felt better all through the rest of the weekend. There’s always been something about over-the-top exuberant gore that lifts my spirits. Not the torture porn Saw-type stuff, but the stuff that winks as insanity explodes in chunks on the screen. The Japanese have just about cornered the market on this sort of thing over the past few years, but aside from a few brief bits in ABCs of Death, that venue has kind of dried up. The Evil Dead “reboot” film reached these heights, too. It was glorious.
So when the Deadites attack the diner where Ash (Bruce Campbell), Pablo (Ray Santiago), and Kelly (Dana DeLorenzo) are grabbing a stack of hotcakes and all hell explodes (literally) all over them, it was just what I needed. And when Kelly works out her hostilities on the Deadite in the kitchen (no spoilers, but HOLY HELL!) I was cackling and all was right in the world.
I realize this didn’t turn out to be much of a review, but this was one of the best episodes yet, if you ask me. Plus, after a very intriguing twist with Ruby (Lucy Lawless) that leads to Officer Fisher (Jill Marie Jones) discovering the truth about Ash – and joining the fight – I can’t wait to see what happens when the gang gets back to where it all began.
The cabin in the woods.
So yeah, I guess what I’m saying is Ash vs Evil Dead is better than anti-depressants. I think. Something like that.