Furious Road is the newest in a long line of Army of Darkness titles. As a fan of the Evil dead and Army of Darkness I’ve often wondered if they would ever explore the future. In this issue I got my answer. This one is set 20 years into the future where the deadite virus has left the world a wasteland with the evil dead walking freely among the scattered living. The story follows a group of deadite hunters as they travel across Detroit looking for the Necromicon. At the end of the search they finally run into our hero, Ash. It’s full of your typical Army of Darkness fun and gore. The group of deadite hunters are all unique in ways that are slowly revealed throughout the story. Part of the group includes a trash-talking, gun-toting nun, who’s not afraid to get her hands dirty. Another character is an odd Frankenstein looking fellow. The other characters have their own surprises. All of them seem to be religiously motivated as they recite several bible verses during their battles. I hope their backgrounds are explored more in future issues. It was interesting to see characters who are out of the norm carrying most of the book.
The build up to their confrontation with Ash does not disappoint. He gives his normal snarky and sarcastic quips. It’s clear that 20 years hasn’t changed much about Ash’s personality. He also totes his trademark chainsaw hand and double barrel shotgun. If you’ve been watching the new Starz TV series Ash vs. The Evil Dead, then you’ll find this version of Ash familiar. He looks like he’s aged in real time although a little bit better than Bruce Campbell.
The artwork brings life to a city wasteland environment. Among the abandon buildings and empty cars, I was able to find a few Easter eggs hidden in the pages. It’s these little touches that added variety to the post-apocalyptic setting.
I think this issue is a good start for the newest series. I did find it to be a little short but I think that’s because Ash isn’t featured as much as I thought he would be and the story really picks up when he is revealed. I enjoyed the Mad Max: Fury Road reference with the title. Hopefully they’ll reference the film more as the series goes on. The Army of Darkness franchise is a recipe for fun in the hands of a good writer and artist. This looks like it’s going to be the start of another entertaining run.
Score: 4/5
Army of Darkness: Furious Road #1 Writer: Nancy A. Collins Artist: Kewbar Ball Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 3/2/16 Format: Mini-Series; Print/Digital