This is about the ancient order of demonic beings. You might be looking for the similarly named human cult or the Ash vs Evil Dead episode The Dark One.
The Dark Ones are mysterious centuries-old creatures who once ruled the Earth using dark magic and their limitless legion of Deadites. While they were eventually cast into another plane of existence, they still managed to influence the acts of humanity in the world of the living through artifacts they left behind, such as the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis.
The Dark Ones were first mentioned in the opening sequence of the 1987 film Evil Dead II, but later appeared in various forms of expanded media before making their "canon" debut in the Ash vs Evil Dead episode Books From Beyond.
History[]
Origins[]
The Dark Ones are entities which exist in a myriad of alternate realities, though most (if not all) known iterations share a common background to a certain extent. One account claimed that The Dark Ones were the spawn of a realm beyond that in which humanity thrived, and that through means unknown, traveled beyond their home and took residence upon the Earth at an unspecified point in time.[1] Following their arrival, The Dark Ones proceeded to enslave humanity with the aid of demonic creatures known as Deadites.[2]
Banishment[]
Another key event shared by all incarnations of The Dark Ones was their banishment from the Earthly plane of existence.[2][3][4] Some sources have credited this action to the First Chosen One, a human selected by God and imbued with the power and skills to release humanity from the tyranny of their overlords,[5][4] while in one world it was the action of a rebellious Dark One and a human sorceress who were responsible for the exile.[6] Depending on the reality, the beings were then imprisoned in either the Mirror Dimension or the Deadlands.
It was following the banishment of The Dark Ones that humanity was now able to thrive and evolve their societies without fear, though the ancient creatures would still be observing and manipulating certain individuals from just beyond the barriers of human perception.[1]
Return of The Dark Ones[]
In the centuries following, many attempts had been made in several universes to bring The Dark Ones back to the world of the living. The first partially successful attempt occurred on Earth-818793 in the early 21st Century, where Doctor Herbert West and Wilbur Whateley temporarily opened a portal to the realm in which The Dark Ones were imprisoned, though the Ash Williams of that reality managed to seal the portal before any of the creatures could enter.[7] Another attempt on Earth-818793 was also partially successful, this time orchestrated by a mysterious Red Demon and the Four Horsemen of The Apocalypse. No sooner than The Dark Ones began to appear in the skies above Cleveland, Ohio, Ash Williams used his blood and the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis to alter reality to prevent the end of days.[8]
The only known successful return of The Dark Ones was in the "prime" universe. Here, the Dark One known as Ruby and the human sorceress Kaya summoned The Dark Ones to Earth in a bid to destroy them once and for all, but it was ultimately The Dark Ones who would destroy them first.[9] They soon acquired the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis and it's missing pages, and proceeded to summon Kandar The Destroyer to battle against The Prophesied One. Following this battle, The Dark Ones twisted the world into an apocalyptic wasteland, though what happened after this event remains unknown.[10]
Powers, Abilities, & Weaknesses[]
As The Dark Ones are beings shrouded in mystery, the full extent of their powers remain mostly unknown, though it seems to vary from individual to individual and universe to universe. In any case, even a single Dark One poses a serious threat to the world in which it is let loose upon with or without the Necronomicon in its possession.
Weaknesses[]
In the "prime" reality, the Kandarian Dagger was one of the only known weaknesses of The Dark Ones, as even just the lightest touch from the dagger's blade was enough to burn the skin of one of the creatures.[11]
In one reality where The Dark Ones were much more humanoid in their appearance, Team Ash was able to destroy the creatures using common weapons, such as firearms, chainsaws, and knives.[12]
In Other Media[]
Video Games[]
- The Dark Ones were mentioned in the Evil Dead: Hail To The King video game released in 2000. In the game, Ash Williams discovers the bones of a large creature said to be a Dark One while exploring another dimension. Ash is then told by Abdul Alzeez that if he had looked at the bones with his "true eyes", then he would have been driven insane.
- The Dark Ones (based on their appearance in the Ash vs Evil Dead television series) appear as the final boss of Evil Dead: The Game.
Comic Books[]
- The Dark Ones make their first appearance in the Earth-818793 continuity in the 2005 comic Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator #4, trying to escape a gateway opened by Yog-Sothoth and his son, Wilbur Whateley. In this continuity, The Dark Ones are based on the "Great Old Ones" from H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos.
- The Dark Ones, while alluded to in several subsequent series, would not be seen again in the Earth-818793 continuity until a brief cameo in The Long Road Home #8 in 2008.
- Space Goat's Evil Dead 2 line of comics focused on The Dark Ones and their mythology in two miniseries, Cradle of The Damned and Dark Ones Rising, both released in 2016.
- A new version of The Dark Ones appeared in the Death To The Army of Darkness series in 2020. The Dark Ones featured in the series are cloaked, grey-skinned humanoids, rather than the previously depicted Lovecraft-inspired creatures.
- The Dark Ones (inspired by their appearance in Ash vs Evil Dead) make a cameo in the 2021 comic Army of Darkness: 1979 #4.
Gallery[]
Ash vs Evil Dead[]
Comic Books[]
On Other Wikis[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Army of Darkness (Volume 3) #1 (February, 2012)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Evil Dead: Hail To The King (2000)
- ↑ Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator #2 (October, 2005)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Evil Dead 2: Cradle of The Damned #1 (January, 2016)
- ↑ Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator #3 (November, 2005)
- ↑ Ash vs Evil Dead: Tales From The Rift (Season 3, Episode 6) (2018)
- ↑ Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator #4 (December, 2005)
- ↑ Army of Darkness (Volume 2): The Long Road Home #8 (April, 2008)
- ↑ Ash vs Evil Dead: Judgement Day (Season 3, Episode 9)
- ↑ Ash vs Evil Dead: The Mettle of Man (Season 3, Episode 10) (2018)
- ↑ Ash vs Evil Dead: The Dark One (Season 1, Episode 10) (2016)
- ↑ Death To The Army of Darkness #5 (September, 2020)