| Dark Harvest | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Genre |
Cosmic horror Thriller Mystery Found footage |
|
Location |
New Jersey |
|
Seasons |
3 |
|
Entries |
71 (+ 9 KindVonDerRitter entries) |
|
Runtime |
1 - 27 minutes |
|
Network |
YouTube |
|
Release |
November 26, 2010 - Present |
|
Status |
Active |
Dark Harvest (stylized as DarkHarvest00) is a cosmic horror YouTube series inspired by the Slender Man internet mythos that debuted on November 26, 2010. It chronicles the lives of Chris and Alex, two friends in New Jersey and their encounters with the Egyptian god Gorr'Rylaehotep and a hostile cult who worships it known as the the Order.
The primary YouTube channel is DarkHarvest00, and its neighboring channel is KindVonDerRitter. As of March 18, 2020, the primary channel has uploaded 71 videos, which all combined has garnered over 2,300,000 views. The primary channel currently has over 26,000 subscribers.
Characters[]
† Indicates deceased characters
Protagonists[]
| Characrer | Description |
|---|---|
| Chris | The main protagonist, primary cameraman, and manager of the channel. He is a slender, shaggy-haired adult man (teenager in earlier entries) who has an open-minded, curious, yet impulsive approach to investigations. |
| Alex | The deuteragonist, and co-manager of the channel. He is Chris' best friend who is more cautious, calculating, and cool-headed than the latter, often approaching investigations with fear and reluctance. |
| Heather McComber | The tritagonist who is introduced in the second season. She is Marc McComber's granddaughter and an unwilling member of the Order who befriends Chris and Alex. |
Supporting Characters[]
| Character | Description |
|---|---|
| Greg Benson † | Chris and Alex's friend who joined the Order out of fear and was killed by Gorr'Rylaehotep when he attempted to leave. His death is a major driving force in the story. |
| Jesse Laurenzi † | A friend of Greg who joins Chris and Alex's investigation on Greg's homicide, but is later revealed to be a member of the Order who helped initiate Greg, and later left him for dead. After revealing vital information during his interrogation by Chris, Jesse went missing for several months before being captured by the Order and executed. |
| Jeff Benson | Greg's older brother from Hoboken, NJ who often helps Chris and Alex. He is mainly prominent in the second season. He takes the floppy disks Chris and Alex retrieved from Matt and extracts the files into a CD for them, and later watches hours of footage Greg filmed of himself prior to his death. When Chris and Alex face execution by the Order, he came to their rescue. In 2020, Chris reestablishes connection with Jeff, who helps him evade the Order once again. |
| Matt Sharky † | A friend of Chris, Alex, and Greg who worked for the Rainwood family. He later houses Chris, Alex, and Heather when they are on the run from the Order, but is later revealed to have been a reluctant member of the cult. Chris kills him following his betrayal. |
| Daniel Shipman | An anthropology student and devoted researcher from Providence, RI who manages the blog Project Egypt and helps Chris and Alex with their investigations. |
| Kind von der Ritter | A hooded individual with connections to the Order who originally stalked Chris and Alex, and is proven through a series of cryptic messages to be an ally. It is speculated by Daniel that his true identity is Marc McComber. |
Antagonists[]
| Character | Description |
|---|---|
| The Order | The primary antagonists of Dark Harvest. A secret society who worships Gorr'rylaehotep and goal is to reach the fourth world. |
| Gorr'Rylaehotep | The secondary antagonist, who is a tall, faceless interdimensional creature (or god) that often terrorizes Chris and Alex and is worshipped by the Order. It is the series' incarnation of Slender Man. It is also the confirmed murderer of Greg Benson. |
| Jacob Rainwood | The Chief Overseer of the Order, and debatably regarded as the central antagonist of Dark Harvest despite not making a physical appearance yet. According to Daniel, there is no public record of Jacob whatsoever, implying he might not exist. |
| New Jersey Chapter Overseer | An unknown man from New Jersey who is the overseer of that state's chapter in the Order, appointed by Jacob Rainwood. He is a stern individual who takes his practices to heart, and resorts to violent threats against those who attempt to infiltrate his chapter. His real name is Brian Holmes. |
| Red-Masked Executioner | A member of the Order's New Jersey chapter who carried out Jesse's execution with a wood axe and later wounded Heather with a handgun. Unlike most members who wear white masks, this individual wears a read one, which presumably signifys his namesake to "execute". |
| Suited Cultist † | A figure connected with the Order who resembles Gorr'Rylaehotep. He briefly stalked Chris and Alex in the earlier entries, one of the encounters resulting in a miles-long pursuit with Alex. He is presumed dead as of Log 19, having been intercepted by Kind von der Ritter. |
| The Assassin † | A member of the Order's New England chapter who was tasked to kill Chris and Alex during their attempt to collect Charlie McDowell's care package from a dead drop in Massachusetts. |
Minor Characters[]
| Characters | Description |
|---|---|
| Marc McComber | A former member of the Order, who was known as "The Oracle" and Heather's grandfather. He lived in Chris' house until his disappearance in 2001. It was later revealed that he was an assistant scientist during the Princeton Experiment and witnessed Gorr'Rylaehotep slaughter his colleagues, who resulted in his psychological deterioration over the years. Daniel Shipman believes he is the identity of Kind von der Ritter. |
| Noah Maxwell | The protagonist of Tribe Twelve, another YouTube serial inspired by the Slender Man mythos. He visits Chris and Alex from Florida to interview the Order on his aunt Mary Asher's whereabouts. |
| Charlie McDowell | A business associate of Daniel Shipman's who Chris and Alex contact in 2014. |
| Lawrence Rainwood † | Jacob Rainwood's father who founded the Rainwood Day Camp & Learning Center and was the Chief Overseer of The Order until his death in 1985. Like Jacob, Lawrence has never made any sort of physical appearance in the series, and has been only mentioned. |
| Detective Amsel | A member of the Amsel family and a police detective with ties to the Order, who led the investigation of Greg's homicide. Like both Rainwoods, Amsel has only been mentioned, and never seen. |
| Hans Freuhauf † | A Nazi scientist who was in charge of the Princeton Experiment and was killed by Gorr'Rylaehotep. |
| Heinrich Kaufmann II † | A German archeologist who discovered an ancient Egyptian tablet containing the origins of Gorr'Rylaehotep, and is considered by the Order as their "discoverer". |
| Chris' Father † | Chris' father who was a locksmith. He is murdered by the Order later in the series. |
Seasons and Entries[]
Season 1[]
Season 1 of Dark Harvest ran from November 26, 2010 to August 30, 2011. It chronicled Chris and Alex's first encounters with Kind von der Ritter and Gorr'Rylaehotep, their discovery of cult activity in New Jersey, and their investigation on their friend Greg's homicide, which is left unresolved.
Season 1 consists of 29 entries.
| Entry | Upload date | Runtime |
|---|---|---|
| Log Entry 1 | November 26, 2010 | 1:25 |
| Chris is startled out of his house when a door mysteriously slams shut. | ||
| Log Entry 2 | November 28, 2010 | 4:21 |
| Chris informs Alex of the events in Log Entry 1. | ||
| Log Entry 3 | November 29, 2010 | 3:20 |
| Chris finds three strange photos in his Email account. | ||
| Log Entry 4 | November 30, 2010 | 6:11 |
| Alex advises that Chris films himself sleeping. | ||
| Log Entry 5 | November 30, 2010 | 1:38 |
| The strange event that occurred while Chris was asleep. | ||
| Log Entry 6 | December 12, 2010 | 5:25 |
| Chris and Alex discover some old newspapers in the attic. | ||
| Log Entry 7 | December 13, 2010 | 2:42 |
| Chris searches his house for Alex, but encounters somebody else. | ||
| Log 8 | December 21, 2010 | 4:11 |
| Alex is attacked by Chris' stalker. | ||
| Update 1 | December 29, 2010 | 4:09 |
| Chris and Alex consult with viewer messages over the response videos of Kind von der Ritter. | ||
| Log Entry 9 | December 30, 2010 | 3:36 |
| Chris and Alex make a concerning discovery in the woods. | ||
| Log 10 | January 8, 2011 | 4:35 |
| Chris decides to move back home. | ||
| Log Entry 11 | January 15, 2011 | 6:43 |
| Alex pursues a hooded man across the neighborhood and Chris encounters an equally strange being. | ||
| Log 12 | January 22, 2011 | 10:06 |
| Chris and Alex hang out with their friend Greg and stumble upon Kind von der Ritter in person. | ||
| Update 2 | January 27, 2011 | 6:41 |
| Chris and Alex interview Greg about his similar experiences. | ||
| Log13 | February 5, 2011 | 3:04 |
| Alex walks home alone. | ||
| Log 14-1 | March 15, 2011 | 12:36 |
| Chris breaks in to Greg's house and discovers the worst. | ||
| Log 14-2 | March 15, 2011 | 10:21 |
| Alex's perspective of the events in Log #14-1. | ||
| Update 3 | March 24, 2011 | 5:52 |
| Chris and Alex update the viewers on Greg's murder case. | ||
| The black book.wmv | April 5, 2011 | 6:36 |
| Chris, Alex, and Jesse search the Rainwood Day Camp and find a mysterious book. | ||
| The Atlantic Test Site | April 11, 2011 | 14:43 |
| Chris, Alex, and Jesse search for leads at an abandoned research facility. | ||
| Log Entry 15 | April 24, 2011 | 4:53 |
| Chris and Alex spend the night at Jesse's house. | ||
| The Day Camp, Revisited | May 13, 2011 | 7:54 |
| Things get heated between Chris and Alex when they investigate the Rainwood Learning Center. | ||
| Update 4 | June 8, 2011 | 3:06 |
| Chris reviews a blog titled "Project Egypt". | ||
| Log Entry 16 | July 13, 2011 | 0:56 |
| Chris directs viewers to the next entry. | ||
| My final betrayal | July 13, 2011 | 4:52 |
| Footage of a sacrificial ritual held in the Rainwood Day Camp by the Order. | ||
| Log Entry 17 | July 18, 2011 | 3:48 |
| Chris and Alex return to the Learning Center during the day. | ||
| Log 18 | August 11, 2011 | 6:01 |
| Alex pursues a group of cultists into the woods. | ||
| Log 19 | August 13, 2011 | 5:56 |
| Chris and Alex are chased by Gorr'Rylaehotep. | ||
| Log 19.5 (Update) | August 30, 2011 | 6:11 |
| Chris and Alex decide to end their search for Greg's murderer. | ||
Season 2[]
Season 2 of Dark Harvest ran from October 28, 2011 to May 20, 2013. It chronicled Chris and Alex's continued investigation of Greg's homicide, with the help of his older brother Jeff. The two soon become targets of the Order who deem them threats to their goal. Chris and Alex also meet Heather McComber, the granddaughter of Marc McComber, and learn more on the latter's background.
Season 2 consists of 24 entries.
| Entry | Upload date | Runtime |
|---|---|---|
| Log Entry 20 | October 28, 2011 | 2:00 |
| Chris meets Marc McComber's granddaughter. | ||
| Interview with Heather McComber | October 28, 2011 | 12:39 |
| Chris and Alex interview Heather about her grandfather. | ||
| Log Entry 21 | November 18, 2011 | 12:56 |
| Chris and Alex have a second interview with Heather. | ||
| Update 5 | November 25, 2011 | 7:07 |
| Chris reviews the letters he found in Heather's chest. | ||
| Rainwood Memorial Elementary School | December 22, 2011 | 16:58 |
| Chris and Alex meet with the representative of the Rainwood Elementary School. | ||
| Log Entry 22 | January 20, 2012 | 6:11 |
| Chris and Alex review the contents of the floppy disks from the elementary school. | ||
| Unsolved Conspiracies Se1 Ep00 (Pilot) | February 2, 2012 | 5:08 |
| An excerpt of a documentary detailing the horrifying results of the Princeton Experiment. | ||
| February 24th | February 24, 2012 | 7:58 |
| Chris' home is invaded by the Order. | ||
| Log Entry 23 | March 2, 2012 | 10:57 |
| Heather reveals the truth about her grandfather. | ||
| Log Entry 24 | March 15, 2012 | 3:23 |
| Chris and Alex meet with Greg's older brother Jeff. | ||
| Greg's Log 1 | March 21, 2012 | 3:48 |
| Archived footage of Greg spying on an Order gathering in the Rainwood Learning Center. | ||
| Daniel | April 6, 2012 | 7:10 |
| The blog manager of Project Egypt visits Chris, Alex, and Jeff. | ||
| Greg's Log 2 | May 20, 2012 | 6:38 |
| Archived footage of Greg's frightening experience. | ||
| Greg's Log 3 | May 26, 2012 | 7:39 |
| Archived footage of Greg's initiation to the Order. | ||
| Log Entry 25: Meeting with Noah Maxwell | August 29, 2012 | 17:52 |
| Noah Maxwell of Tribe Twelve seeks assistance from Chris and Alex. | ||
| Log Entry 26 | October 5, 2012 | 14:48 |
| Chris and Alex attempt to capture Jesse for questioning. | ||
| Log Entry 27 | October 19, 2012 | 14:50 |
| Chris and Alex interrogate Jesse. | ||
| Greg's Final Log | November 11, 2012 | 8:22 |
| Archived footage of Greg's death. | ||
| Update 6 | November 26, 2012 | 4:09 |
| Chris and Alex reflect on past two years. | ||
| Daniel Shipman's Visit: First Day | January 8, 2013 | 13:36 |
| Daniel Shipman shares his recent experiences with the Order. | ||
| Daniel Shipman's Visit: Second Day | January 18, 2013 | 9:22 |
| Chris, Alex, and Daniel open a locked room in the Rainwood Day Camp. | ||
| Daniel Shipman's Visit: Third & Fourth Days | January 28, 2013 | 13:32 |
| Chris, Alex, and Daniel investigate a cemetery. | ||
| Update 7 | February 24, 2013 | 7:08 |
| Chris informs the viewers of the results of Daniel's investigation. | ||
| Log Entry 28 | May 30, 2013 | 11:09 |
| Chris and Alex receive a warning from the Order. | ||
Season 3[]
Season 3 of Dark Harvest began on September 6, 2013. It chronicles Chris, Alex, and Heather's life on the run from the Order.
So far, season 3 consists of 18 entries, with its latest update taking place on March 28, 2020.
| Entry | Upload date | Runtime |
|---|---|---|
| Log Entry 29 | September 6, 2013 | 11:47 |
| Heather reveals her true connections and pleas Chris and Alex for help. | ||
| Log Entry 30 | September 14, 2013 | 2:58 |
| Chris and Alex discover the gruesome fates of their families. | ||
| Log Entry 31 | September 20, 2013 | 12:56 |
| The Order forces Chris, Alex, and Heather on the run. | ||
| The last three months - part one | December 7, 2013 | 11:33 |
| Chris, Alex, and Heather stay with Matt Sharky and start new lives. | ||
| The last three months - part two | December 11, 2013 | 10:34 |
| The remaining events of Chris, Alex, and Heather's time at Matt's apartment. | ||
| Log Entry 32 | February 27, 2014 | 11:30 |
| Chris, Alex, and Heather infiltrate an Order gathering and find a shocking deception. | ||
| To Forget | March 8, 2014 | 4:44 |
| Chris channels his horror of the events in Log Entry 32. | ||
| Log Entry 33 | April 12, 2014 | 12:20 |
| Chris and Heather talk on the road, and Alex is attacked by Gorr'Rylaehotep. | ||
| 2014 - boiler room | July 14, 2015 | 4:40 |
| Alex is stuck in a catatonic state, Heather goes missing, and Chris finds shelter. | ||
| 2014 - Alex woke up | August 20, 2015 | 12:17 |
| Alex recovers and Chris acquires $5000. | ||
| The Massachusetts Footage (Nov. 4, 2015) | November 20, 2016 | 5:48 |
| Chris and Alex retrieve Charlie's care package, but encounter a mysterious adversary. | ||
| VID 20180419 | April 19, 2018 | 4:02 |
| Chris sends Heather a message. | ||
| Update 8 | April 21, 2018 | 6:44 |
| Heather responds to Chris' message. | ||
| Log Entry 34 | January 1, 2020 | 6:24 |
| Heather contemplates whether to meet with Chris or not. | ||
| Log Entry 35 | January 10, 2020 | 27:15 |
| Heather reunites with Chris and they plan their next move. | ||
| Revelations of the Sixth Enclave | February 7, 2020 | 25:06 |
| Chris reads from the brown book. | ||
| The East Coast Assembly | March 16, 2020 | 8:28 |
| Chris and Heather return to the Atlantic Test Site. | ||
| Log Entry 36 | March 28, 2020 | 25:23 |
| Jeff helps Chris and Heather evade the Order. | ||
Kind von der Ritter Responses[]
Starting on December 13, 2010, entries on the primary channel began to receive frequent response videos from a channel titled KindVonDerRitter, who was confirmed to be Chris and Alex's stalker. These videos contain strange imagery and cryptic messages that Chris and Alex used as leads in their investigations.
As of January 3, 2013, the channel has posted 9 (originally 10) response videos.
| Entry | Upload date / Status | Runtime | Response to |
|---|---|---|---|
| 218 | December 13, 2010 | 0:23 | Log Entry 7 |
| Freundliche fremde | December 22, 2010 | 0:29 | Log 8 |
| Nearer Still | December 31, 2010 | 0:16 | Update 1 |
| Trauer mein Verlust | January 22, 2011 | 0:12 | Log 12 |
| Colligari | February 26, 2011 | 0:42 | Log13 |
| Thefirstdusk.wmv | Privated | N / A | N / A |
| Legacy | April 2, 2011 | 0:39 | Update 3 |
| Trauen | September 30, 2011 | 2:12 | Log 19.5 (Update) |
| Rainwood | October 31, 2011 | 0:55 | Interview with Heather McComber |
| Memoir | January 3, 2013 | 2:00 | Update 6 |
Major Events[]
| Event | Date(s) | Entries Depicted |
| Princeton Experiment | 1956-1957 | Unsolved Conspiracies Se1 Ep00 (Pilot) |
| Disappearance of Marc McComber | 2001 | Log Entry 6 |
| Murder of Greg Benson | March 15, 2011 | Log 14-1Log 14-2 |
| Invasion of Chris’ House | February 24, 2012 | February 24th |
| Noah Maxwell's Meeting with The Order | August 2012 | Log Entry 25: Meeting with Noah MaxwellThe Order |
| Capture and Rescue of Chris and Alex | October 2012 | Log Entry 26 |
| Capture and Interrogation of Jesse Laurenzi | October 2012 | Log Entry 27 |
| Standoff at Brandt-Crater Cemetery | January 2013 | Daniel Shipman's Visit: Third & Fourth Days |
| Execution of Jesse Laurenzi | March 15, 2013 | Log Entry 28 |
| Murder of Chris and Alex's Families | August 20, 2013 | Log Entry 30 |
| Invasion of Heather's House | August 20, 2013 | Log Entry 31 |
| Atlantic Test Site Massacre | February 2014 | Log Entry 32 |
| Disappearance of Heather McComber | 2014 | 2014 - boiler room |
| Standoff in Massachusetts | November 4, 2015 | The Massachusetts Footage (Nov. 4, 2015) |
Reception[]
Viewership[]
As of 2016, the primary Dark Harvest channel has over 26,000 subscribers. All 67 videos combined, the channel has garnered over 2,200,000 views.
Top 10 Most Viewed Entries[]
|
Rank |
Entry | Viewership |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Log Entry 1 | 118,000+ |
| #2 | Log Entry 25: Meeting with Noah Maxwell | 70,000+ |
| #3 | Log Entry 2 | 62,000+ |
| #4 | Log 19 | 48,000+ |
| #5 | Log Entry 3 | 47,000+ |
| #6 | Log Entry 6 | 45,000+ |
| #7 | Log Entry 4 | 44,000+ |
| #8 | Log Entry 27 | 43,000+ |
| #9 | Log Entry 7 | 42,000+ |
| #10 | Log 8 | 42,000+ |