To the uneven extent that Amazon’s The Bondsman works, it’s thanks primarily to Kevin Bacon’s effortlessly winning lead turn as Hub Halloran, the titular country musician turned bounty hunter turned undead demon killer.

The star is able to land the show’s humor with a well-timed grunt, and its emotions with the perfect hangdog expression. He looks damn cool when he’s lighting up monsters with his trusty shotgun, but also slightly, endearingly pathetic when he’s not. Such is his charisma that he’s nearly able to make this whole strange jumble of tones and tunes and supernatural gore sing, through sheer force of will.

Nearly, that is, but not quite. Outside of Bacon’s performance, the horror dramedy is more of a mixed bag — fitfully amusing but rarely as funny or heartfelt or surprising as it wants to be, and never as memorable as its...