Army of Darkness Vs. Re-Animator takes place immediately following the events in Army of Darkness: Shop ‘til You Drop Dead. After the rampage and slaughter at the local S-Mart, Ash is arrested for the murder of a store full of shoppers but is found unfit to stand trial by reason of insanity and ordered to be institutionalized in Arkham Asylum for the rest of his life.

While in Arkham, Ash comes under the care of one Herbert West, the ghoulish, self-styled re-animator who is continuing his bizarre experiments on the patients of Arkham in the hopes of finally conquering death. West is being aided and guided in his experiments by a deadite who is making sure West stays focused on the goal of opening a gateway to return the Great Old Ones to our dimension and wiping out all mankind.

As you might expect, Ash intends to have something to say about the manner and soon, and literally, all hell breaks loose in the hospital. The place is crawling with Deadites and zombies and Ash is left with few allies. And to make matters worse, he’s just ended up in some twisted Alice in Wonderland dimension with Sheila, and H.P.Lovecraft…who is sporting large bunny ears.

Army of Darkness Vs. Re-Animator continues the wild, over-the-top violence and slapstick humor of Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness. Arkham becomes overflowing with all manner of bizarre Deadite beasties and the living dead, all who want to make a meal of Ash. The story can get a bit confusing at times, especially with a doppelganger Ash running loose as well, but it’s a riotous ride that fans of the film will appreciate. Writer James Kuhoric has a great handle on Ash’s character write down to his mannerisms and trademark, smart-alecky quotes.

Sanford Greene and Nick Bradshaw handle the art chores aided by a talented group of colorists. The style is a more animated, cartoony style, that fits the subject matter quite well. A fantastic cover gallery backs up the main story. Oozy, drippy fun!

– Tim Janson