#aod2

[popculturebuffet]

Evil Dead Rise: Mommy's with the Maggots Now (Comission for WeirdKev27)

Hail to the king baby! It's halloween, it's this blog and that mean's it's time for me to pull out my volume of the Necronimcon Demento and review another chapter of the evil dead.

So for those new here

I'm Jake, I review stuff and things, and two years ago I did an evil dead retrospective, covering all 4 films. From that stupid bitch scotty to ash laughing madly, to the film of a thousand catchphrases to that one that had Jane Levy, some good gore and little else, it was a fun ride.

So naturally with a new evil dead film out, it's only natural that I returned to review the latest film in the franchise: Evil Dead Rise. It's also a special review as it's my belated reviewversry with friend of the blog and over time of the me, WeirdKev27.

Kevin was my first client and the one who made me able to make a living doing this, and while he has zero interest in ever seeing Evil Dead Rise, he's more an horror-action and horror-comedy kind of guy, this gives him a chance to see what it has. Plus really after covering the last 4 even if he didn't agree to sponsor it, I'd be doing this anyway as I both love this film and hate not having the complete set. It's thanks to kev I have all I do now, so thanks man.

Evil Dead Rise is the franchises second attempt at a soft reboot after Evil Dead 2013. The plan after that one was to do two sequels: Evil Dead 2, which would follow Mia, Jane Levy's final girl from the requel and the only character who wasn't huffing paint thinner the whole film, and Army of Darkness 2. This ended up falling through, with Alvarez moving on to other projects and AOD2 being retooled into Ash Vs the Evil Dead, a three season tv series on stars that sadly got cancelled but from all accounts fucking rocked and I definitely want to cover at some point.

From there Ash's story was seemingly done on screen. While Dynamite will likely publish army of darkness comics till the end of time, Bruce Campbell had decided he was aging out of the part and wanted to pass the chainsaw on. That said while Campbell was seemingly done playing Ashy Slashy, he wasn't done with the franchise, staying on as a producer alongside Sam Rami and Robert Tapert. Rami and Campbell were done MAKING the films, but still wanted the franchise to live on.

So in 2019 a new film got the greenlight, with Rami handpicking rookie director Lee Cronin for the part, having impressed rami while working on the short lived quibi series 50 States of Fright. Cronin easily took to the cast and once filming COULD kick off in 2021, he hit the ground running. The result is a fresh take on the franchise that was so well done that WBD decided it was too good to just pop on streaming and much like Blue Beetle, bumped it up to theaters. The result was a 19 million dollar film.. scoring nearly 150 million in the box office, a huge success that , unlike most films only GREW it's audience as the weeks went on, always a great sign.

As a result the franchise's future seems secure, with Cronin not only already having 4 ideas for a sequel, which i'll get to later, but the results were so Groovy Bruce decided he wasn't finished yet, meaning an ash film is also in the cards.

So the question is how groovy is this film and how does the franchise fair without it's iconic cabin setting or iconic catchphrase spewing chainsaw man? The answers to all of this is under the cut. So turn the page, wash your hands, and prepare for 1717 Gallons of Bloodshed as I look at Evil Dead Rise.

Evil Dead Rise starts off a day after the main plot, with three 20 somethings having gone to a cabin in the woods woooooooooooooo not realizing what franchise their in. They are Jessica, Teresa, Jessica's cousin and Caleb, Jessica's douchey boyfriend. Caleb annoys Teresa with a drone, nearly clipping her with it and mansplaning after she says it nearly clipped her head off that it would've ground her face up instead.

Teresa proves to be just as obnoxious as Caleb, berating Jessica for leaving her alone with him, fair.. but then also being mad at her for being sick, laid up in bed and thus unable to give her the keys.

Thankfully this is an evil dead movie so Jessica quickly ends our suffering as she wants to swallow souls, taking off Teressa's scalp in a gory, horrifying and awesome practical effect before putting the drone to her own face and jumping into the lake. Caleb proves he's both not a COMPLETE asshole but still a complete idiot by diving in after her and we get the films awesome opening shot: Jessica rising from the lake, drenched in water and blood as the title rises behind her.

While I do like that TITLE CARRRD and scalping, overall i'm not a big fan of this opening. While it's well shot like the rest of the film, it's too short to really make me care and feels like it was thrown in there because the main plot ran a tad short and was too tightly paced to add to. It's a how we got here sort of thing that dosen't really work and feels like i'ts just there so we can have a sequel.. depsite the film having MULTIPLE other valuable sequel hooks dangling around. It's unnecessary in a film that otherwise really dosen't DO unnecessary. It also feels tonally off, feeling like a 2000's era "Kill the douchebags" sort of film than the tightly paced well characterized film we get after.

Thankfully we soon meet our actual protagnist, Beth. Beth, played by Australian Actor Alyssa Sulivan, gets a great introduction that does a lot of nice exposition without actually saying any: we quickly find out from her being sick in a stall and having some douche she works with who can't do his job himself and just let her go to the bathroom for five minutes knock on it that sh'es a roadie, her hiding it tells us she's pregnant and doesn't want anyone else to know, and Suilivan's awesome facial acting tells us she has no idea how to process this.

We soon cut to LA in a high rise, a setting change I utterly love. Before this most evil dead works were in a rural setting: a cabin in the woods for the first, second and fourth films, artuhrian times for the third, and some small towns for ash vs the evil dead. We haven't seen the deadites in an urban setting before this and LA was a great set.

The choice of setting within is also great: an old crumbling high rise in the middle of a busy city no one would give two shits about or really investigate in the middle of the night. It keeps the isolation of the cabin but puts a new spin on it that allows for new set pieces.

The main one of these is Ellie's Apartment. Ellie is played by the stunning and talented Alyssa Sutherland, previously known for Vikings, which I haven't seen. Sutherland is the easy breakout of the film, the center of most of it's marketing and the most terrifying part about it... eventually.

Part of that terror is we see her first as a fun, responsible mom and tattoo artist dealing with three children, all creatives themselves in some way: Bridget (Gabrille Echoles) is an activist, her brother Danny (Morgan Davies) is a dj and their young sister Cassie cuts up her dolls to create staves to body check her sister with.

This family, which doesn't have a last name, is the core of the film and the first 20 minutes are really just setting them up as people: Beth is a tad snarky but clearly loves her kids and is tough but fair with them, Bridget is sarcastic to just about everyone but her aunt, Danny is a bit of a reckless fuckwit but has a good heart, more on the former later, and Cassie is a sweetie pie. Their not super deep characterizations, but the talented actors give them a lot of character simply by action, and one of the films best asset is how great these people are at facial acting.

Beth flies in and after scaring the shit out of Ellie. The two actresses have great chemistry and you can feel the tension as the two clearly haven't talked.. and Beth missed a lot as Ellie's ex husband abandoned the family and this high rise is condemned, with the family only having a month. So naturally Ellie isn't that excited to see Beth, both for Beth dodging her calls, despite getting her messages, and showing up at the worst possible time.

That said the film also does a really good job with the sibling dynamic: like me with my own brother Ellie may be annoyed with Beth.. but she's there for her, getting this visit wasn't just out of the blue and her sister really needs her and waits till the kids have left to pick up pizza to ask, but does so gently yet firmly. These characters feel like family and building up this empathy and character is key to everything being as horrifying as it is. It's something many horror films, including this very film in it's opening and the previous film fail to grasp: just because

Dosen't mean we should WANT them too. It's fine to throw in a few assholes to kill so not EVERY death is a downer, depending on the film, but when you can't empathize with most of your cast it makes the wait for the bloodshed tedious. It's why the previous film REALLY didn't work for me: outside of mia NONE of these idiots were likeable and as such having to spend a film with them being stupid and waiting for them to die while the only likeable one was turned into a deadite wasn't fun. Here by making everyone we encounter likeable, grounded, and interesting.. it makes the horrifying slaughter we're about to witness that much more tragic. It makes us WANT these characters not to be dead by dawn.

Anyways we're soon reminded this is LA as we get an EARTHQUAKKKEEEE, with the bathroom set our sisters are in having been rigged to shake really well. The kids thankfulyl weren't driving at the time and instead are trying to take the pizza back up when it hits. They drop it, but do live.

Sadly for them and everyone else on their floor Danny suffers from a terminal case of dumbass and upon seeing a giant crack in the ground leading to a mysterious old bank vault just HAS to investigate in the dark. He finds some old records, which.. fair enough, it's some neat historical stuff, could be fun to paly with soundwise and could help them fincally. Him taking stuff romt he hole is mildly stupid.. but I get it and I probably would. What I wouldn't do is upon finding a room guarded by a bunch of hanging crucafixes and seeing a book with teeth and bound in human flesh, take it with me. And I mean teeth as this Necronomicon has a nasty but awesome set of chompers. I praise the set design here on this, it's iconic as the original, still recognizable as being it's sibling, but the teeth give it it's own flair.

Anyways the kids get back to the apartment and Danny decides the best thing he can do during a dark night with quakes a poppin.. is to pry open his new book. Which granted is what i'd do, but my recent book is about a trans woman's first year post transition and is damn good...

Highly recommend it and it's sequel, which I got first. Also guarnateed not to summon the evil dead.. which I understand is a dealbreaker for some of you. Good news i'm pretty sure that manga about Joker raising a baby batman does, so have at it if that's what your after.

Sadly Danny is not taking my book recommendations and opens the things finding a bunch of spooky pictures and... being genuinely horrified. He's a LITTLE fascinated but it's clear his reaction is "shit this thing isn't good is it. Not hleped is that when he pricks his finger on the books mighty jaws, it drinks some blood Audrey II styles. Bridget sees this and has the right reaction.

Or rather chuck it back down the hole they got it from. Danny can't because their mom won't let them out of the apartment after the quake which is fair.. what's less fair is that he dosen't wrap the book in something or hide it. Keep it from trying to nible on some face. You have 4 other people in the house Dan be considerate!

That said Dan still takes the darwin award winning step of playing the wax records he got. NOw on paper Danny being this dumb shoudln't work.. but in practice Rise does an excellent job showing why Danny would be like this: we've seen he's an audophile, that he's reckless as he went down a crevice in an earthquake, and that he's curious to a fault, willing to take the book in a first place. So he's being stupid.. but it's in a way where it's a character flaw and not just bad writing.

It also helps that while playing the records is risky.. you can kinda see why. He found a creepy vampiric book in the basement. He probably gets he might not be able to just chuck it in a hole and have it not come back or have already infected them or something. it didn't, but he can't know that. So knowing what the FUCK this thing is might be a good idea.

As it turns out we get some exposition from a preist long ago: he found the book and proposed to his fellow preists to explore it. His Fellow preists didn't want to die today and loudly decired it as blasphemous.

So he decided to take it and study it because that's never gone horribly wrong and lead to about a dozen deaths in this franchise, along with cameo Bruce Campbell and some other guy. He also decides to read it and to Danny's credit, he tries to stop the record there... only for it to keep playing. The Evil Dead have come baby.

Before we move on I need to talk about the danny thing a bit more, mostly because not only was this whole inciting incident well done, being rooted in character stupidity instead of just bad writing.. but it also feels like a direct response to the last film. For those who either haven't seen it, you blessed people you, or need a refresher, in Evil Dead 2013 the Necronomicon was found in a basement full of rotting corpses and next to a shot gun. it was packed in a garbage back, covered with barb wire, and had bright red writing implicitly from ash telling you NOT TO FUCKING READ IT OUTLOUD.

So enter Eric, full time teacher part time fuckwit who hears about the corpses, sees all of this and not only cuts the barbed wire but READS THE BOOK.

So it's nice the followup decided to use the same plot device.. but actually use it instead of making a character brain dead.

So with that the evil dead has risen and the nightmare time has arrived. And the first victim of the Evil Dead is Ellie, whose experincing some ELEVATED horror while taking the elevated when some cables grab her.

The sequence is quick horrifying and also has her trying in vain to fight off the possesion before the evil dead kills her, and she returns as a deadite.. and as the real breakout of the piece. While Beth is the lead and Lily Sullivan does greath, it's Sutherland whose the main attraction.. and not just because a good half of the audience's reactoin to Deadite Ellie was

Which isn't me, but I entirely get. It's also intresting to have a horror film where the deadite is the real hammy star instead of our hero. Sutherland is iconic in this roll, from the creepy smiles to how unsettling she plays possesed elly: the pitched down voice HELPS.. but it's the unceasing smile, creepy grins and offputting behavior that make Deadite Elly so awesome and so electric to watch. There's good reason her possesion was spoiled int he marketing: She's the center of this film's horror. She's not the only deadite, we'll get a few more, but she's the main threat, the main focus and the main thing fucking with our heroes heads, starting with the brilliant egg sequence where Cronin and Sutherland make simply making eggs fucking unerving.

She's also the main source of black comedy in the film, from calling her children titty sucking parasites, to her game of eeny meeny miney you, to later making her daughter repeat the eyeball gag from 2, her haminess is well played: enough to keep the film from getting TOO bleak but not so overplayed it takes you out of how horrifying thigns are.

Deadite ellie is the biggest symbol of the films tone: Cronin keeps it pitch black like the requel, but unlike that film Cronin realizes that too MUCH bleakness overrides everything else. But giving us characters to root for and want to live through the night and some dark humor, it helps contrast the utterly bleak situation. It gives us something to go what the fuck at with the humor and something to cling on to. I hate that I keep making this review "Whyt his one works and why the remake didn't" as Fede Alvarez seems like a genuinely nice person. This film is good on it's own, not just because I like it more than the other... but it's also impossible to not bring up the two as they tried to do the same thing: bring back the franchise without ash, without contiuing the original story. I don't WANT to keep using the 2013 film as a punching bag... but it's hard not to when this feels like the better version of it, making an evil dead that's closer to straight horror.. but still gets what the franchise is. It keeps the frantic pacing of 2, it just makes it less of an over the top comedy and more an over the top nightmare our heroes can't escape. it's frantic out of urgency rather than out of throwing weird, hilaroius or horrifying shit at y ou constantly. Well except the last part.

Anyways at first everyone just assumes Deadite elly is sick, and they turn to their neighbors, Gabriel (Jayden Daniels) and his father Mr. Fonda (Mick Michelson). Gabe is a kind man implied to have a thing for elly while his father is very mildly crotchety but a kind cat owner , both helping: Gabe tries to treat Elly while his pop pop tries to figure out HOW to get her to help. As it did with the bridge, the Evil has taken out the stairs and already trashed the elvator, leaving a fire escape through a conedemed apartment as thier only escape.

So while gabe and his dad plan to run through, everyone else is left with Elly. We also get a really nice use of modren tech: in most films they usually have to do the "cellphones out" dance, which I understand but got old. Here... what we know about the evil dead from other films provides a nice way... they get no signal.. because it can control that because it can control anything in it's radius. If it can posses a moose head working the wifi shoudln't be that hard.And it thus has Ellie, trapped inside her deadite counterprat clal her sister for help before convulsing.... and whne put inj a tub crawwling out of it

Mayhem ensues as the family has to ward off Deadite Ellie, and we get a lot of nice iconic bits of violence: Ellie's now iconic line of "mommy's with the maggots now", going "eeneie meanie miney you" and using a CHEESE GRATER on her daughter while attacking her in the kitchen. Which while Cronin overhyped it before release, it's a nasty wound but in a film caked in blood, it's still a very creative gore moment in a film packed with them. The gallons of blood I listed before the cut were how many it actually took to make this film. It's another way the film works: it keeps the over the top nature of the series, it just emphasises the horror more, a way to keep the series fredsh but not ignore what made it good.

Our heroes are barely able to lock Ellie out and we get one of the best sequence sin the film: our heroes look in the peep hole.. and we see bits and pieces as Ellie masacres Mr. Fonda, gabriel and two local teens I didn't mention because they literally just hit on Bridget once and then die horribly here. Even Mr. F having a boomstick dosne't save him. And it's stuff like this that works: the high rise on paper is safter, less isolated... but in practice our heroes are nwo trapped in a cramped space, no way out with a bloodthirsty monster wearing their loved one's face. It's a brilliant take.

Naturally as is Evil Dead tradition, the group falls apart a bit: Danny is in tears taking the blame for this and it's again why I like him: he may be stupid.. but while eric just kinda hid we see the toll casuing this put on Danny. Bridget rips him apart for it and normally you'd think one would go outside and die.. but in a nice twist on the old formula Beth stops them: Danny MAY of caused this but they CANNOT turn on each other. It's what's out there that they need to fight.

Speaking of which Deadite Ellie prays on her youngest, gaslighting cassie by pretending to be "all better now"

Though i'll give them points for style. This force Beth and Danny to save her.. and thus leaving them open for Bridget as in a horrifying sequence we see the dead slowly flow thorugh her before she startsb leading black blood out her nose... and becomes the dead.

Another horrifying scuffle insues with her targeting danny and barfing blood on him and nearly killing him before cassie FUCKING IMPALES HER. God damn kid.

They tie bridget up in a sack and Beth finally gets Danny to spill about the book and comes up with a plan: since playing the record got them into this, playing the record will get them out of this.

It's a desperation move.. but like Danny's earlier shenanigans that lead to this blood party.. it makes some sense: they can't read the book, and frankly trying to may just make MORE deadites, and if the guy actually survived long enough to make a third album, it means they MIGHT have a way out. We also get a nice ash style montage of her getting the DJ equipment to work as at this point the power is out. It also nicely makes her music career into a hell of a chekovs gun.

Tragically.. they don't. HIs album simply outlines the horrors idiot priest man faced, what he's lost and how only complete and total dismemberment works. Granted we knew from the intro they probably wouldn't' make it but by this point, the film's got us too invested to care. I still dont' LIKE the intro making it clear this doesn't work from the get go, but at least the films well paced enough to compensate.

Things then get somehow worse as Bridget rises and stabs danny to death, coughing up blood and everything. It's brutal as it is amazingly designed. He does manage to fire her out of the impartment... with fire, while Ellie sneaks in through the vents, something set up by the old man's lost cast earlier.

Ellie attacks Beth and in a VERY unerving moment detects she has a baby inside her, mocks her as deadites do then tries to rip it out.

But before she can get that fetus, kill that feetus and before I can go to hell for that joke, Bridget saves her. And props to Gabrille Echoles for her excellent child acting, an alex vincent level performance.

With our party down to 2 1/3, our heroes ventur eotuside and now EVERYONE'S a deadite. Highlights include Mr Fonda grabbing Ellie's leg as she grabs his boomstick

And my favorite bit.. the two deadite children hovering over a seemingly prone deadite ellie, seemingly crying for thie rmom.. before it turns into dark.. piercing laughter. It's one of the most effective scares in the film and all the deaddites joining in is just chilling. It's a scaled back but effective version of the entire cabin laughing from evil Dead 2

The final girls hide in the elevator as what's left of their family fuses into The Marauder, our final deadite for the evening and a grotesque combination of their family, a grim reminder of what's happened and just a gross thing to look at. As is standard for this film, it's awesome and I love it.

SPeaking of awesome and I love it we then get another destined to be iconic bit: the elevator fills with BLOOD. What's more impressive is they got the scene in one: had they failed they would've had to clean up and start again, which given this scene involves a GIANT pool of pracitcal blood and leaves both characters drenched in it for the rest of the film, is a LOT to as and is a LOT of moving parts to nail on your first try. But they did and the result is a horrifying sequence as the elevator fills, our heroines barely survive..a nd then get tosse dinto the parking garage drenched.

The good news: now they can escape. The bad news is Deadites love final boss fights, so The Marauder is there to oand stalking them. The final fight is a tense sequence as Elly ducks it but thankfully noticces some landscaping equipment. You know what that means... CHAINSAW BLOOD MOTHERFUCKERS

So Elly takeas a fucking chainsaw to it, which gives her an edge, and later uses her fucking boom stick and tells it to "come get some". I like these little nods, obvious enough to notice btu not distracting enough if you haven't seen the other films.

What finally does it in is fucking aawesome though: a goddamn woodchipper. look is a woodchipper being here convient? yes. is the fact the deadites only sent one convient? yes. is Ellie putting a deadite through a goodamn woodchipper with her niece and now adopted daughter turning it on fucking glorious and goryious?

It's a great finale and with that Ellie, her unborn child and her niece head off into the sunset.. while our opening deadite comes into being.

Evil Dead Rise is a glorious new chapter in the franchise: still very much evil dead, but with a darker and somehow even bloodier spin on things. It's a worhty sucessor and very worthy of being the highest grossing film in the franchise, and with that acolade a sequel is hopefully inevitble.

LIke I said Cronin had four ideas, all of them brillian 1. Returning to the Cabin: While admitely I dont' care about those characters, a new cabin in the woods would be neat. This is my least faviorite as the NEXT one.. but I woudln't mind it eventually. 2. Focusing on Ellie: Seeing where she goes next, which I badly want. 3. A prequeL: focusing on the preist. another solid idea. And my faviorite 4. The cleanup crew: returning to the high rise to ask "how the hell would people react to the leftovers of the carnage we just saw".

their all great and with Bruce wanting to return now after this entry, the future is bright and this will likely not be the last time we read from the book of the dead. But it was a great return of it and I can't wait to read the next chapter. Until then hail to the king baby.. and thanks for reading

[dailydishonored]

There’s an interesting gap between the austerity of Dunwall and the sheer amount of rich, ornate detail you’ll see in Karnaca. 

— Pencil studies of Karnaca by Laurent Gapaillard

[the-tiktok-rogue]

first chapter is up on AO3!

[tombraiderfan900]

Murti's notes, part IV

Image provided by @positivelyamazonian​ made by Murti Schofield. Previous notes can also be viewed here.

Tomb Raider Checkout

Check out:

Previous games files (5 folders).

Check out dialogue guides

Ruff ideas, todo lists.

Treasure locations (maps)

Character name list (Russian, French, Czech, Scandinavian, German, Turkish)

The 'greys' / the 'ancients', (Dark guild) 'the old ones', 'shadow watchers'

The checkout was needed to focus on the new game (Tomb Raider - Next Generation). What strikes me is that Russian & Scandanavian is in the name list. Maybe in the AOD2 / AOD3 games some of these names would be used.

The greys/the ancients/the old ones/shadow watchers are probably the Nephili race. "Shadow watchers" reminds me of the book The Shadow histories by Murti Schofield. "The ancients" reminds me of a level in AOD: The Tomb of the ancients, but that is a reference to the Lux Veritatis. It might not be a good idea to mix them together.

Post Egypt

Lara drawn to Paris, called by Jean-Yves in trouble. He is fallen in fear for the 'greys' , digging for things that should remain hidden.

The fact that Lara is drawn to Paris called by Jean-Yves is well known. Because of conflict with Jean-Yves Emperreur, Core Design changed his name to Werner Von Croy. Strange enough the French police officer who speak in the intro FMV of TRAOD has the same voice as Jean-Yves. It is still unknown who he is.

Possible titles for the game

"An occult legacy of the blood"

"The mysterium of Legend"

"The blood chalice"

"The legacy of Race"

"The legacy of Blood"

"The chalice of souls"

The "Blood" and "Chalice" has something to do with the Holy Grail and thus the Knights Templar. There are more titles for the game, these are published on the tomb of ash website.

Tomb Raider VI

Present day Paris (locations: Louvre, Excavations, Catacombs, Eiffel tower)

The one that didn't make into the final game is the Eiffel Tower. It would be a great location if you think "anything would be possible". It's the same time as Jugendstil/Art Nouveau style came in.

Extinct race of Nephilim (are they?)

No they are not. But that's the whole point of the game :-)

Lara takes on John Dee. Elizabethian alchemist and raiser of the dead.

John Dee is a real person and model for Eckhardt, see my previous analysis (part I).

'El Spectro' (the ghost),

Could that be Karel?

'El Hawa'.

"El Hawa" reminds me of Kiko's documents there is a file: "Lara of Arabia". I have downloaded it sometime. You can find it on the Tomb Raider Forums.

There is a time period between the events of TR4 and the events of AOD that Core Design named 'Lara of Arabia'. This period of time was never meant to be shown, explained or playable in AOD. You would only catch glimpses in cutscenes and things that link to it.

Somehow Lara had escaped the pyramid. A nomadic tribe called Bedouin was passing by and took her into their village. There she met a shaman, a woman called Putai. She was a healer, she had gifts and she would use them to heal Lara. She gave her an Amulet of healing powers. Lara would have traveled with them along the ancient routes of North Africa, she had become one of them despite her name remaining unknown to them. Then one day she disappeared somewhere in the coastal areas of the Mediterranean.

Von Croy actually followed the trail of this tribe when he was still looking for Lara in Egypt. While he didn't learn anything about the shaman, he did hear about the Legend of El Hawa (which means desert wind). It was the story of a mysterious woman that would appear in appropriate times to fight the aggressors and protect the nomadic tribes. Von Croy followed the traces of the legend and found himself in a desert oasis. There he found Lara. She appeared different, much stronger but she wasn't angry at him for leaving her. It seemed to Werner that Lara had been traumatized by her near-death experience.

The friendship she had found among the people of the desert gave her an insight that was missing in her life. In here she could use her skills for a greater purpose than her days of sporting for artifacts. Von Croy was unable to convince her to return to her former life. The Lara he once knew was dead. He gave her her backpack and left.

One day the tribe that saved her life was attacked and massacred. Lara left Africa and returned to England. Lara did not attempt to reconnect with old friends. She couldn't get over the fact that she had failed to protect the tribe and had lost the meaning in her life she once found in the desert. Then she received a call from Paris..

It is unsure if it really means the desert wind. "El Hawa" could also be inspired by the place "El Hawara" in Egypt, in the Fayoum. It has a pyramid of pharaoh Amenemhat III and more. But I think it is a nickname for Putai.

Young James Dean type 'stranger' - spin off hero. Occult abilities - gifts.

Also known as Kurtis Trent.

[kingkcofficial]

A O D 2 My brother @iam_djbuka showing love on the “Africa On Demand 2”, Live Session, yesterday. ❤️💪🏾 • • - “AOD2” link in @iam_djbuka bio *May 17th* - “Cairo to Soweto” (@OfficialDjDon refix) link in bio - “New York SiSi” (Music Video) out now link in bio • • #AOD #AOD2 #KingKC #Amapiano #Refix #King #Afrobeats #Nigeria #Igbo #Africa #Music #TheLionKing #NewMusic #Chopdaily #oneafrica #theshaderoom #balleralert #Worldstar #King #NewYork #independent #working #blackexcellence #blackbusiness #independentartist #Singer #quarantine #Djbuka #Thefourthcoming #Southafrica #Soweto https://www.instagram.com/p/CAQtNX8Ho6E/?igshid=3q2t7smc773t

[stylesatchel]

#miumiu #resort #fashionillustration #inspiration #watercolor #painting #sketchbook #figure #model #beauty #illustration #design #color #makeup #dress #accessories #paris #style #outfit #daily #art #create https://www.instagram.com/p/BrUI8J-Aod2/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=7qpntsy5pr1a

[animecracks-id]

Update Anime Sub Indo Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken: AOD2 http://bit.ly/2Ld8kg1 #anime #animeindo #animesubindo #nontonanime #nontonanimeonline #indoanime #streaminganime #downloadanime #subindo

[randybenedict]

Amsel Medical wins FDA nod for Endo Occluder

Amsel Medical said today that it won FDA 510(k) clearance for its Amsel Endo Occluder device intended for occluding blood vessels during endoscopic procedures.

The Cambridge, Mass.-based company touted that the clearance is the third the company has received from the FDA so far for its portfolio of occluder devices.

The Amsel Endo Occluder is a mechanical occlusion clip delivered through a fine needle intended to be deployed to transfix a target vessel while clamping it shut. The device is composed of an endoscopic litigating clip applier and clips which the company said are intended or use on tubular structures or vessels.

“We are thrilled to expand the Amsel Occluder family of single-use, site-specific vascular control devices into the endoscopic and minimally invasive surgery market with this recent Pre-Marketing Notification (510(k)) by the US Food and Drug Administration. The Amsel Occluder possesses the ability to transfix and ligate a selected vessel or duct. We anticipate significant clinical interest for this innovative technology in the markets where the Amsel Occluder device is cleared for commercial distribution,” founder & prez Dr. Arnold Miller said in a press release.

Last November, Amsel Medical touted the first-in-human clinical use of its Amsel AOD2 occluder device, which took place at the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York.

The post Amsel Medical wins FDA nod for Endo Occluder appeared first on MassDevice.

from MassDevice https://ift.tt/2P6GX4M

[tomb-of-ash]

KURTIS KAREL LARA MORGAU and ANTARCTICA

We continue to publish exclusive Angel of Darkness documents from Murti Schofield, the writer of the game. This one reveals more details about the second game in the Angel of Darkness trilogy.

Game II kicks of by revisiting the ending of AOD, after events at the Strahov, where we all thought we knew the fates of Lara, Kurtis and Karel. Well think again. (See document which revisits the final scene of AOD and puts a new light on the entire concluding scene between Lara, Kurtis and Karel).

KURTIS survived and managed to crawl into the relative safety of the Vault of Trophies. There he went into a protective toxic coma and later, much much later, escaped making his way back to the place of his birth at Utah Salt Flats where his mother & family tribal elders took him in whilst he convalesced.

Later, onboard a Nato transatlantic convoy, he met up with an old buddy from the Foreign Legion and heard disturbing rumours about disquieting events in the Languedoc region of southern France. Kurtis had once followed a trail which led him to believe that a Lux Veritatis Bloodline Room might be located there. There had been some possibility that it might also have been located in Castle Kriegler, hidden away beneath its ruins in extensive catacombs and tunnels but Kurtis’ money was on the ruins of Montsegur.

Kurtis decides to go and check out the rugged region around Carcassone first. This blood soaked landscape is where the Cathar/Albigensian ‘heresy’ was so brutally suppressed around the time that the Knights Templar were also persecuted and scattered. Beneath the fortress of Montsegur, deep in the quarried subterranean quarters, is a massive vaulted door protected by occult seals and slumbering, deadly guardians. Inside there are vital clues to where the Lux Veritatis hid the last two Nephilim Sleepers.

There were always three Sleepers and Karel wants the remaining two Nephilim Uyuyanlar to continue his unchanged dream of reviving his near extinct race and set it in dominion over the dark age that is looming. Everywhere on the planet there is war, slaughter and strife and amidst such all consuming chaos his great shadow-plan has every chance of gaining ground before coming to anyone’s attention - until it is too late of course.

LARA meanwhile, has been recuperating with her once-mentor Putai in the heat and isolation of the desert landscapes of North Africa (El Hawa, Lara of Arabia). She too picks up rumours and signs of Nephilim-Karel’s survival and has begun tracking his moves as tries to recover his strength and powers.

Karel is in action again. He has hunted down the only other living descendant of a Lux Veritatis initiate, Vasiley, and tortured her into translating the unbreakable LV code of the Sleeper Scrolls. The name rings a bell, Morgau Vasiley. It emerges that Mathias Vasiley, the murdered dealer in Prague, was a rogue Lux Veritatis initiate expelled from the Order in the 1950’s for degenerate behaviour. He should have been terminated by the Order but disappeared and re-emerged decades later with a new identity and a daughter tutored in basic LV skills. The unfortunate Morgau never had the true training that made Kurtis unique and when she came to Karel’s attention she suffered terrible treatment, which left her mutilated and unhinged. Whatever, the end result was now that Karel had the Sleeper Scrolls at least partially translated and subsequently knows where the last two Sleepers are hidden – or are likely to be hidden. Lara has to go after Karel and scupper the Nephilim Shapeshifter’s plans, again.

For Kurtis the clues at Monsegur seem to indicate that the Sleepers are back at one of the ancient original sites in Anatolia, Turkey and Karel, along with the pain-slaved Morgau, hightail it to the Cappadocian plains and the Gőrėme valley.

LOCATION CAPPADOCIA – TURKEY.

Eckhardt planned and built a base here once on an ancient site but never got to use it before he was incarcerated beneath Castle Kriegler. (It’s weird, deep and scary and of course ideal for our heroes to bash the living daylights out of creepy abominations). Time for intense subterranean action in the underground cities of Anatolia -  Nevşehir, Kayseri, Kaymaklı Derinkuyu and Niğde along the Gőrėme valley.

[ See other documents on possible final scenarios.]

THE NEW CABAL

Gunderson and Rouzic the Illusionist are reassembled by Karel posing as Eckhardt. The Cabal survivors presume Karel perished at the Strahov and have no idea he was a Shapeshifter or a Nephilim. They get introduced to the three replacement Cabal members by Eckhardt who explains to them all about the two remaining Sleepers and why he needs them.

The LV Scrolls that were part translated by Morgau put the site of the last Sleeper in a sunken Nephilim complex in a huge underground lake. Cabal forces are sent ahead to secure the location and assemble a massive submersible platform (a huge lunking steam punk contraption) to access the Sleeper at the sunken site. It also comes to light that the other Sleeper was destroyed in a Lux Veritatis action decades ago, so this really is the last one. No mess ups this time.

Gunderson and Rouzic are antagonised by the new Cabal members. Bitter rivalries are blossoming already. This is not a collection of easy going personalities and mutual venom and infighting is rife. The newcomers are mocked as inadequate and Gunderson says that running the Anatolian-Sub operation is what Karel used take care of so well. Pity he’s dead.

Not so, says Eckhardt and morphs into Karel giving everyone the conniptions, especially the newcomers. Shit! What have they let themselves in for? They are all pretty scary individuals in their own right but this takes some adjusting to.

Karel goes on to explain how things are going to be, promises them wonders and victories and gives them their orders. He’s lying of course but what do they know.

LOCATION - ANTARCTICA  BASE

Towards the close of WWII, when the misdirected Allied bombers were bombing Castle Kreigler and unknowingly setting the monstrous Eckhardt free the Nazi Kommand was looking to re-establish its power base in places as far flung as Argentina, the Himalayas and remote Scandinavian regions. But the most ambitious bunker base was located in Antarctica. (imagine what fun could be had with Nazi-Nephilim….wow!)

Various branches of what had once been Eckhardt’s breeder programme back in the 1300-1400’s have survived and have continued in various remote parts of the world. Some of these obscene experimentations were carried out under the guise of the 1930’s and 1940’s concentration camps. As the thousand year Reich began to implode large shipments of equipment, research data, materials and personnel were shipped off to their remote Antarctic base in the ice-locked mountain ranges far beyond reach. This had been under construction since the 1930’s and by the end of the war was complete, ready to receive the results of the Dunkle Welten Programme (Dark Worlds) into its bunker complex.

So, guess where Lara and Kurtis are going to end up…? Yep.

For precedent see:

Genesis by W. A. Harbinson.

At the Mountains of Madness by Lovecraft

[hajimemashitakamisama]

¡¡SPOILERS!!

[the-tiktok-rogue]

as a treat have a little snippet from chapter 2

I was starting to feel frustration, but where was it coming from? "Hey, if

you're so high and mighty Obi-Wan Kenobi, why don't you just dump this

ring into mount doom yourself?!" I asked in a demanding voice.

"Because I would not be able to resist the ring Mr Williams!, and if I

were to put it on my finger, I would be more powerful than you or a

thousand hobbits combined!" Gandalf fumed, his anger more held back than

before.