"Where, man? I don't see shit." |
- "You know, they're invisible. They can be right in front of you, and you don't even know it. I wish I could say that I don't belong here, but I do belong here. Back home, I'm a freak. But here? Among the monsters? I'm normal. You see, I can be invisible too."
- ―Edwin (from The Chosen)
Edwin was a doctor and serial killer who was kidnapped by the Super Predators and taken to the Game Preserve Planet in 2010. Together with the others dropped on the planet at that time, he attempted to find a way to escape and return to Earth.
Edwin died when he was paralyzed by Royce with a plant toxin and left as a booby-trap rigged with explosives, for the Berserker Predator to find.
Biography[]
Edwin was an American doctor who was suspected of numerous cases of malpractice. Knowledgeble in biochemistry, he had his license suspended.[3] In truth, he was a sociopathic serial killer[2] and cannibal[4] who murdered his patients. For this, he was chosen by the Super Predators to be taken to the Game Preserve Planet to be hunted.[2] After his disappearance he was reported missing.[3]
Hunted[]
After being dropped into the Game Preserve Planet, his parachute got caught in a tree, leaving him dangling upside down and yelling for help. Royce and a group of other castaways would eventually come across him, with Royce shooting him down. From this point on, Edwin feigned innocence in regards to why he was here among the other hardened killers, and masqueraded as a bright-eyed, naïve everyman. He would subsequently save Spetsnaz member Nikolai Fedorov from touching a poisonous plant, earning his protection.[2]
Eventually, after encountering a series of traps set by the now dead Navy Seal Drake, as well as discovering that they were on an alien planet, Edwin and the others were attacked by deadly quadrupeds known as 'Hell-Hounds'. Edwin was subsequently saved by IDF sniper Isabelle during the skirmish. The attack led Royce to conclude that the group were being hunted.[2]
Edwin and the group continued onwards and came across a campsite with a captive Predator bound to a monolith, before they were all suddenly attacked by three Super Predators - Berserker, Tracker and Falconer. Mombasa was killed, and the group fled, falling over a cliffside and into a lake, escaping the hunters. Isabelle went on to reveal that she had heard a report 23 years prior of an encounter with one of the creatures in Guatemala.[2]
After Edwin was used as bait to kill the River Ghost, he and the others would go on to encounter Ronald Noland, a long-time survivor of the hunt, and he escorted them back to his home - an Abandoned Alien Drill. Noland revealed to the group that the Predators had been kidnapping personnel they deemed worthy to hunt, and then transported them to the Game Preserve Planet to kill for sport and to improve their skills. He also noted a "blood-fued" between the Super Predators and the Jungle Hunters. After Noland attempted to kill the group via smoke suffocation, Royce created an explosion to earn the attention of the Predators. Noland was killed by Tracker, and Edwin inadvertently separated from the group. He begged the others not to leave him, but they all apparently left regardless. Alone, Edwin encountered Tracker, but was suddenly saved by Nikolai who returned for him. However, Nikolai was promptly incapacitated by the Predator, and Edwin fled. Nikolai detonated several of his M18A1 Claymore mines, killing himself and the Predator.[2]
Wounded[]
Edwin and the others continued to flee; convict Walter Stans was subsequently killed by Berserker, and Japanese assassin Hanzo willingly stayed behind to duel Falconer, leaving only him, Royce and Isabelle left. The three survivors retreated back to the Predator camp, but Edwin accidentally stepped into a maiming trap that crippled him. Edwin begged them not to abandon him and lied about having kids, showing them Nikolai's family photo. Royce desired to abandon Edwin or use him as bait, as he was now a burden. Isabelle refused the latter's proposition and catered to Edwin as Royce abandoned the two.[2]
"One of Them"[]
As Edwin and Isabelle made their way through the jungle, they were caught in a net and taken to a pit by Berserker. Believing they were now trapped on the planet for good, Edwin revealed his true colors to Isabelle. Lacing his scalpel with a neurotoxin, he slit Isabelle's skin, causing her to go into a paralysis. He revealed his intentions to kill her slowly, and stated that on Earth he was a freak, but on the alien planet, with the "monsters", he was normal and wanted to stay.[2]
Royce suddenly returned just before he could begin torturing Isabelle. Putting his façade of innocence back on, Edwin lied that the Predator had given her something to render her immobile. Edwin suddenly attempted to stab Royce behind his back, but Royce's superior reflexes allowed him to disarm Edwin's scalpel and plunge it into his jaw, paralyzing him with the same neurotoxin.[2]
Death[]
Fulfilling Royce's wish to use Edwin as bait, Berserker found Edwin bleeding heavily on the ground. He cruelly plunged his Wristblade into Edwin's back to see if he was still alive, causing Edwin to beg the Super Predator for mercy, telling it that he was one of them. The Yautja flipped him over, only to discover that Royce had strapped grenades to Edwin. They subsequently exploded, killing Edwin and blasting Berserker away.[2]
Legacy[]
When Isabelle Nissenbaum managed to leave the Game Preserve Planet and return to Earth, she reported that of the eight people, all proven killers, she was one of two who escaped.[5]
Personality and Traits[]
- "When the time comes, I'll do us both. I promise it'll be quick."
"No. It won't." - ―Isabelle and Edwin (from Predators)
Edwin embodied the traits of a true psychopath - putting on a façade of innocence and kindness to lull his peers into a state of security whilst masking his true colors as a cold, merciless serial killer. As a result, he was calculating, duplicitous and manipulative, and he only revealed his true character in moments where nobody beyond his victims could see him for what he was.[2] A cannibal[4] who took a perverse pleasure in watching his victims suffer - he was even more depraved than Walter Stans, a fellow convicted serial killer.[2]
Also unlike Stans, he was a coward, usually requiring others to save him, whilst not risking himself to help them in-turn. He would abandon Nikolai after the latter saved him from Tracker, and even went as far as to use a photo of his children in an attempt to sway Royce into not abandoning him.[2]
Equipment[]
Edwin carried a medical kit containing a scalpel. He later carried several blue-flamed flares for the dark.[2]
Trivia[]
- Edwin is ironically the only human in the film not to be killed by a Predator, but rather a fellow human Royce.
- In the Predators comic, Edwin displayed cannibalistic tendencies, slicing off a small part of Isabelle's flesh and eating it.
- Edwin’s status of being a sociopathic serial killer doctor makes him similar to Hannibal Lecter, which is even more apparent in the comic adaptation where he has cannibalistic tendencies just like Lecter.
Appearances[]
- The Chosen
- Predators/comic
- Predator: Hunting Grounds (mentioned only)
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Edwin's actor's (Topher Grace) height is 5ft 10 ½ (179.1 cm), so that is also how tall Edwin would have been.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 Michael Finch, Alex Litvak (writers), Nimród Antal (director). Predators (2010), 20th Century Fox [DVD].
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Chosen
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Predators: Beating the Bullet
- ↑ Predator: Hunting Grounds, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 version, Illfonic, 2020. OWLF Tape 37 "Agent Keyes - Isabelle"