Stan Against Evil Season 2 Premiere Review: The Black Hat Society
Carissa Pavlica
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There are so many possibilities afloat now that there is an active time portal in Willard's Mill!
The premiere had a little bit of everything, with Stan Against Evil Season 2 Episode 1 delivering the one-two punch of Evie burning at the stake (not that we saw her flesh sizzling), being dead and buried for 400 years and out of the hearts and minds of those in Willard's Mill.
Or was she??
Does anyone else kind of like the romantic possibilities between Stan and Evie, or am I alone in that world?
They are both such tough, snarky, driven, smartasses with a passion for doing the right thing. Their connection was never more tangible than when Evie disappeared, and Stan couldn't shake her even though he had no idea who she was.
Evie was permeating Stan's dreams through 400 years of history to tell her story. I don't know the laws of the time travel tale we were watching or how it was supposed to work since it was only one day Evie was there and the next she was gone, but it worked on Stan, so it worked on me.
The way he remembered her was funny with the nose boop and then the tender way he looked at her in that coffin. For not knowing who she was, he was kind of smitten with her. She wasn't just some woman he wanted to save, but a special woman he wanted to save, even if he didn't know why.
Awwww. Gruff, gooney Stan was acting all kinds of tender in his dreams.
And damn if Evie didn't need saving. She was put through hell on earth back in 1692. She was true to herself to the very end, though.
Thadeus: Evelyn Barret. Unholy viper!
Evie: I am not the viper. YOU are!
All that was missing were some nya nya nya nya nyaaaas to finish off how annoying she found the town constable and showed that even if she was tied to a wooden stake in the ground while he was holding a burning torch, she still wasn't afraid of him.
A lot was going on that connected the past to the present. Both Evie and Stan were represented in a book the local Black Hat Society had in their possession.
It's unfortunate for the constable that he needed to send his daughter to the future to get Evie at the same time Stan was alive and well. And how would he know how much things had changed over the years making his wraith in 2017 rather pathetic instead of the unstoppable monster it was in 1692?
Lara: This is a wraith. The ancients declared them invincible.
Stan: Well, the ancients didn't have the same shovel technology available to us now.
Then again, it didn't do much damage in either timeline when Stan was around. Maybe it had something to do with watching horror movies and being prepared for the enemy.
I'm sure there weren't a lot of wraiths back in 1692 or even anything similar so that people could practice their wraith-killing. Maybe they just hung around and waited to die.
Constance's arrival in Willard's Mill and her connection to the Black Hat Society opened up a whole new can of worms for Stan just at the time he was getting close to Evie. Come on. You saw it too, right?
Evie was so happy to be back she couldn't even properly thank him for going back in time for her. Their communication is on a level only they understand, but when you watch them, it's just more.
And it's going to come into play. I can feel it. Because there was a lot of talk about Stan's deceased wife, Claire, and there is a time portal in town.
I was married for more than half my life, and you think this is the only mystery I ever had to deal with? What about the hair curlers? Huh? Nobody uses them, yet they're under every single sink. One time I threw some away, and the next morning they were right back there just starin' up at me. What, did it breed? And those brown hairpins. I got one in my foot right now! MY WIFE WAS NOT A WITCH!
Stan
You know that phrase, you have to be careful what you wish for? If Stan didn't know his wife was a witch, what else didn't he know?
There's little doubt he's going to try to get Claire back from the dead, but with everything he discovered about his life without Evie in it, I think the price of exchanging the two out may be too high for him in the long run.
There will also undoubtedly be damage done to his relationship with Evie while he's on the hunt for restoring his life with Claire, and Stan isn't good with stress. To wit:
Stan: Keep talking. My legs are just starting to get warm. DENISE!
Denise: I'm right here.
Stan: There's a deer on the wall.
Stan: He's always been there. That's Gunther!
Who knows what else might be coming their way from the portal? Maybe Constance planted seeds that will be discovered later.
After all, look at what she did to the guys who offered her a ride. I hope they were lecherous to deserve this messed up (HA) ending.
The constable and Constance were a strange pair. I couldn't understand why the constable thought it was such a conundrum for Stan to decide whether he kept Evie or Constance around during Stan Against Evil Season 2 Episode 2.
If it came down to killing her or Evie ghosting out for the rest of her life, I would have easily chosen to kill Constance. But Stan is too good of a guy to do that. Instead, he got down on his knees and begged for Evie's life by asking Constance to go to any other time but this one so they could both live.
ON HIS KNEES. If he hasn't realized yet what Evie means to him, um, he was on his knees.
But then Constance left him that jar with the strange message in it about Gerhard Duhlette (I think). Was that a man who would someday have something to do with Claire's death? What else could it be in association with other than Claire?
My assumption is she took a side trip through time on her way to 1919. Why she would do that for Stan, I have no idea. They didn't seem particularly friendly.
Hell, I don't care. I'm excited to see what's next for everyone. Stan Against Evil delivered an impressive second season premiere that promises to build upon its earlier material with more emotion, more laughter, and more thrills. More, more, more!!
If you've been lax in your viewing, be sure to watch Stan Against Evil online for your fall fix of comedy-infused horror. It's well worth the time!
Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.
