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Ash and Evil Ash | ||||||||||||
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n Army of Darkness Ash (played by Bruce Campbell), is transported through time to the 14th century, where he is immediately captured by King Arthur, who mistakes him for one of his enemy Henry's men. A wise man of Arthur's court, however, believes Ash to be the man who it was foretold would rid the world of the evil that haunts the land. He sends Ash on a quest to find the Necronomicon (the Book of the Dead), which is the only thing that can send him back to his own time. However, brash, obnoxious Ash neglects to correctly memorize the magic words that must be spoken before picking up the Necronomicon and flubs his lines, awakening an army of the Evil Dead.
The mixing of modern humor with a medieval setting of horror, and Bruce Campbell's over-the-top performance, made this film one of the most popular horror movies of the modern film era. Sideshow Toy commemorates the cult classic with a pair of 12-inch action figures: Ash, driven to near madness by the evil that fights to take him over, and Evil Ash, a figure formed from a mirror-copy of Ash, mutilated and buried until the Necronomicon raises him as the general of the evil army of the dead, which then marches on Arthur's castle.
Ash comes dressed as he appears in the film's climax—brown pants, hiking boots, with a blue period shirt. He wears a robotic right hand (made with the help of the local 14th-century blacksmith). He also features a wristwatch, his trusty "boomstick" (double-barreled shotgun), his chainsaw, a cape and several straps to carry his equipment. He comes with a figure stand imprinted with the film's title and the character name.
Evil Ash wears basically the same outfit as Ash, only covered in blood and damaged. Atop all of this are various pieces of bone and plate armor, a bloody sword with scabbard and a torn red cape with skull fasteners. He has rooted hair underneath a bone-and-skull helmet, and also comes with printed figure stand.
A morbidly beautiful army of two
Ash has a detailed head sculpt, but it has a kind of desperate, pleading look to it, rather than the almost-always-overconfident look Ash carries throughout the film. A better facial pose might have been the determined sneer he often sports as he faces greater and greater evil.
The head sits atop a Sideshow body, with around 30 points of articulation, including double-jointed elbows, knees and wrists. Ash's metal hand is interchangeable with the chainsaw he had attached to his stump in the film's predecessor, Evil Dead II. In that film, Ash's hand had become infected with evil, and he was forced to cut it off. Later, he used the chainsaw as a weapon against the undead.
Evil Ash's head sculpt accurately reflects that of the copy of himself that Ash completely mangled before burying in a shallow grave. When Ash botched the retrieval of the Necronomicon, the dismembered pieces of the Evil Ash reformed in a hideous travesty of its former self.
Evil Ash's armor is quite intricate. His chest is covered with a dark ribcage-like bone plate with sharp tassets connected by buckled belts. His skull-adorned pauldrons are multi-piece and are all attached through the use of small leather straps. He also has bracers and a tattered red cape with skull clasps fastened to real chain. His sword and scabbard strap on with yet another leather belt. The destruction of the clothing is depicted by jagged stitching. This could have been done better by careful ripping or cutting.
The weak points to these figures are few. It would be nice if Evil Ash's helmet were not attached permanently; Ash's face could better reflect the stubborn look of determination in the film. The biggest flaw of all—neither figure comes with the coveted Necronomicon as an accessory. This last is almost unforgivable!
Still, these figures are morbidly beautiful. Top-notch materials are used, placed on excellent bodies, with interesting features that should have Army of Darkness fans agog with admiration.
For years, many people I knew tried to indoctrinate me into the cult that is Army of Darkness. I just didn't get it. But after watching the movie in order to better review these figures, I believe I now understand the film's appeal. And I certainly understand the appeal of these figures! — Sean
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