Stan Against Evil Season 3 Episodes 1-2 Reviews: Hell Is What Ya Make It

"Stan Against Evil" returned with a new season on Halloween (of course). The show airs on Wednesdays at 10 ET on IFC. See my previous events here "Stan" hasnt gotten as much recognition as it should-- probably because I'm not sure how many people know IFC exists. Hopefully the show will get some much needed publicity.

One of the things I really like about "Stan Against Evil" is the episodes are only 30 minutes each-- so no time for filler. There are eight episodes per season so it's a super fast watch. The main includes: cranky retired sheriff Stan Miller, perky new sheriff Evie Barrett, Stan's clueless but loveable daughter Denise and even more clueless assistant sheriff Leon. There's also Denise's (sorta) boyfriend gravedigger Kevin (who is played by "Stan Against Evil" creator Dana Gould).

Another thing that makes the show standout is it's delightfully creative monsters. Check out Den of Geek's picks here My favorites include Murgatroyd the Demon Piggy and Daffodil the WerePony.

In "Hell Is What Ya Make It", Willard's Mill is facing the apocalypse since Stan went back in time to try to save dead wife Claire. Things did NOT go as he hoped. The portal between the Land of the Living and the Land of the Dead is open. It's now Hell on Earth.

Evie is confined to a mental hospital for killing who she thought was a zombie (but it looks like Stan to Leon). We find out from a visit by sorcerer Gerard DuQuette (remember he helped Stan go back in time last year) that everyone is in their own private Hell. Gerard tells Stan he has to find an even bigger evil to combat the current one. Evie escapes the hospital. We think she might have jumped to her death out a window. Turns out she's on the first floor. Too funny! The situation is temporarily halted as Stan and Evie kill each other at the same time. They wake back up where they started in the episode.

In "Hex Files" a "The X-Files" Mulder and Scully type duo show up in Wlilard's Mill unexpected. They're from the New Hampshire Bureau For Paranormal Phenomenon (NHBPP). Love the giant cell phone! All the members of the Black Hat Society have been charbroiled expect for one (and that's because Judy was home making a chicken sculpture out of butter). Her great-great-something was Eudora Bishop (founder of the Black Hats). A giant demon named Haurus wants to join in on the fun (and he needs a human body to do it). In the end, agents Fleming and Nesbitt are not what they seem. Haurus (who has surprisingly good CGI) burns them to smithereens (leaving two piles of viscera on the floor). Remember when DuQuette told Stan he needed to find a bigger evil to solve their current situation? This might be it. But you can bet the price will be high (and Stan also has to give Gerard his pound of flesh) .

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). "Stan Against Evil" continues to deliver what I'm looking for in a horror comedy-- snarky dialogue, pop culture references, and creative monsters. The episodes are super short so that's another reason to love them. I cant wait to see what other weirdness they have in store for us this season.