ARMY OF DARKNESS Pits Ash Against Nazis!

You all know how geeked out I get when I get to read the adventures of our dramatically comedic hero Ash Williams. The constant search for the Necronomicon and the wonderful antics Ash takes to get into and out of certain deathly situations. You see in a world of super heroes and super villains there very little comical situations that somehow get the super hero out of these difficult situations. Ash Williams is the quintessential comedic super hero.

Ash Williams and Peter Parker have a similar sense of humor. Although in the new Amazing Spider Man, Nick Fury is trying to get Peter Parker’s sense of humor tamed…but that is another review for another time. When Ash gets into a tough situation with the Third Reich or Samurai Swordsmen not only does he “Kick Ass and forget the names” he does it with a Gallagher type “Style”. This certain disregard for your typical super hero style is exactly why I love the Army of Darkness series. In all honesty I used the same type of humor to get me out of tough situations as a young adult. Life imitating fiction, but it worked at times. As long as the person giving me a hard time didn’t understand what I was quoting…and majority of the time they didn’t.

As adults we gather with like minded people. We find comfort in groups that understand when we quote the great Ash Williams or bring up the Necronomicon. It is an instant bond that forms a friendship that will last a lifetime, think I am wrong, the next time you’re in a room and you are not feeling comfortable in a room full of adults find the right time to do an Ash Williams quote and there will be at least one person in the room that does a quote right back at you.

One of the bright sides of Ash Williams is he uses the best strengths of the people around him. He may not agree with who he is surrounded with or even the type of persons they are but he did use their talents to his fullest potential. Understand that Ash does not want to be in the situations he is put in. All Ash wanted to was the best job at “S” mart that he could do but he made a mistake, one fatal mistake that changed the course of his life forever. A regular Joe with a smart mouth, not particularly an extraordinary super power to have but it works for Ash.

Well unfortunately the Necronomicon is in the hands of the Nazi party somewhere in a U-Boat in the Pacific Ocean. This is where Ash uses the talents of those that surround him…remember Ash is our age (I assume you’re my age as you’re reading this, if you’re not just imagine you’re my age, it makes for an easier read) and there is no humanly possible way he was around when the American Armed Forces were fighting the Japanese Army in the Pacific and who knew that Hitler’s army would be in the Pacific Ocean at the same time. This is one of those times where an elderly Japanese person knows an ancient spell to place on Ash that allows him to time travel…again, using the best talents of those that surround him to get him what he wants and needs.

Ash didn’t use as much smart mouthed comedy to get him out of this situation, you see the Nazi’s didn’t have a sense of humor but much like Mel Brooks taught us, it was fun to make fun of them. And I personally enjoy the fact that something that could have changed the course of the war was taken away from them. Thank you Ash for traveling back in time to make that happen.

One good deed does not always warrant a good reward. Typical for Ash he gets out of one situation and right into another. I believe that is what gives this series longevity. Bruce Wayne has his billions, Superman has his powers from the Sun, Spider-Man was bitten by a mutated spider, The Hulk has low radiation gamma-rays living in his body keeping him alive and the Fantastic Four were exposed to space radiation that gave them their powers. Ash was at the wrong place at the wrong time and he has his quick wit and sharp tongue to get him through his impossible situations. Who else could get through an army of the undead with just a chainsaw and some quick jokes?

When Ash escapes the Nazi’s on a U-Boat in the Pacific Ocean he finds himself back in Japan, again unlikely but leave it up to Ash to find a way out. Again, this is not a super power but more of a superhuman ability. Over confidence we find annoying in every day situations, but maybe in the end this is exactly what we need to save us from a zombie apocalypse.

The Japanese situation isn’t much better than the Nazi situation, although it does take place in present day and not in the future, past or parallel universe. Ash finds himself in a more difficult situation. You see, I wasn’t sure that he would make it out of this one and I am still not sure. I guess I will have to find out how it ends in the next book. I do not know how I will spend my time waiting for the next issue?

If you are into comedy, action and SCIFI, then you must read the Army of Darkness series. I do admire the fact that you can start this series anywhere. It seems that some writers try too hard to create a complicated story that you need a thesaurus and map to learn where you are when you pick up a new book. Trust me when I tell you that Army of Darkness will not disappoint you.