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Ewww, no


* FanDisservice: Sarah spends a good deal of the last part of the film in her tight vest top after shedding her other layers, and covered in sweat. She also happens to be covered in blood from head to foot. (Others may see this as FanService, if you're into that kind of thing...)

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* FanDisservice: Sarah spends a good deal of the last part of the film in her tight vest top after shedding her other layers, and covered in sweat. She also happens to be covered in blood from head to foot. (Others may see this as FanService, if you're into that kind of thing...)

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** As soon as Sarah wakes up in the hospital the first thing she does is [[PullTheIV pull the IV]] out of her hand.

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** As soon as Sarah wakes up in the hospital the first thing she does is [[PullTheIV pull the IV]] out of her hand. It could possibly be hand waved as another part of her nightmare.



* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Sarah]], eventually.

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* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Sarah]], eventually.eventually goes off the deep end and fights the Crawlers violently. [[spoiler: She also injures Juno and leaves her to die]].



* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler:Sarah]].

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* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler:Sarah]].[[spoiler:Sarah is a nice mother at the start and the meekest of the group. You wouldn't expect her to leave her friend to die]].



* BolivianArmyEnding: [[spoiler:Juno gets one, wounded and outnumbered, but we are given her final screams to guess her fate. In the UK ending, Sarah awakens still trapped in the caves, making her chances of survival seem unlikely.]]

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* BolivianArmyEnding: [[spoiler:Juno gets one, wounded and outnumbered, but we are given her final screams to guess her fate. In the UK ending, Sarah awakens still trapped in the caves, making her chances of survival seem unlikely.]]]] The sequel however reveals both of them to have survived the encounters!
* BoyishShortHair: Holly having short, spiky hair, codes her as the ActionGirl and most tomboyish of the group.



* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: Irresponsibly take your friends to an uncharted cave system in the vain hopes you'd get to discover it? Of course you'll get trapped via cave-in, and then attacked by monsters living down there.



** [[spoiler:Juno's necklace]]. Also, [[spoiler: Sam's watch]].
** Also the climbing picks. In RealLife, those are only used to climb frozen waterfalls, but they're necessary to the movie as weapons.

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** [[spoiler:Juno's necklace]]. Also, Juno's necklace comes off when [[spoiler:she accidentally kills Beth, and it's used to incriminate her when Sarah finds it]].
** Sam gets a throwaway scene where she talks about a watch her boyfriend gave her.
[[spoiler: Sam's watch]].
The watch ends up going off when a Crawler is nearby, alerting them to their presence]].
** Also Holly's video camera is brought along at first just for fun, but its night vision setting comes in useful when the girls have to see around in the dark.
** The
climbing picks. In RealLife, those are only used to climb frozen waterfalls, but they're necessary to the movie as weapons.



* CoversAlwaysLie: One version of the cover is a fan servicey pose of all girls forming a skull while wearing tight revealing outfits, (an ode to Creator/SalvadorDali's Skull Women.) Most of the characters were wandering in the dark covered in blood and wearing full protective gear, anyone expecting hawtness to occur would be mildly disappointed.

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* CoversAlwaysLie: CoversAlwaysLie:
**
One version of the cover is a fan servicey pose of all girls forming a skull while wearing tight revealing outfits, (an ode to Creator/SalvadorDali's Skull Women.) Most of the characters were wandering in the dark covered in blood and wearing full protective gear, anyone expecting hawtness to occur would be mildly disappointed.



* EyeScream: Between this and ''Film/TwentyEightDaysLater'', killing an enemy by pushing its eyes in with your thumbs has apparently become the British horror symbol for "I've turned [[spoiler:psychopathic and metaphorically become one of the monsters."]]
** ...which would, in this instance, mean that [[spoiler:Sarah is '[[IncrediblyLamePun losing sight]]' of who she is.]]

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* EyeScream: Between this and ''Film/TwentyEightDaysLater'', killing an enemy by pushing its eyes in with your thumbs has apparently become the British horror symbol for "I've turned [[spoiler:psychopathic and metaphorically become one of the monsters."]]
** ...
"]]...which would, in this instance, mean that [[spoiler:Sarah is '[[IncrediblyLamePun losing sight]]' of who she is.]]



* {{Foreshadowing}}: Before they enter the cave, Becca reels off a list of things commonly experienced by cavers, such as hallucinations and claustrophobia, among others. Most, if not all of these things happen down there.

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* {{Foreshadowing}}: FiveTokenBand: Not so much with race, as Juno is the only non-white woman in the cast, but definitely with nationality. We have Scottish (Sarah), English (Beth), Irish (Holly) and Dutch (Becca and Sam). Juno is also [[TwoferTokenMinority American]].
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
**
Before they enter the cave, Becca reels off a list of things commonly experienced by cavers, such as hallucinations and claustrophobia, among others. Most, if not all of these things happen down there.



* GenreShift: From PrimalFear to SlasherMovie.

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* GenreShift: From PrimalFear to SlasherMovie.The first half is about the [[PrimalFear dangers of caving]], and the second is about fighting off monsters..



* GoryDiscretionShot: [[spoiler:Happens when Paul and Jessica are killed. We see a pole emerge from the back of Paul's headrest complete with blood splatter, and Jessica's death isn't shown at all - the only indication of her death is her blood seeping out from under the car.]]

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* GoryDiscretionShot: [[spoiler:Happens GoryDiscretionShot:
**[[spoiler:Happens
when Paul and Jessica are killed. We see a pole emerge from the back of Paul's headrest complete with blood splatter, and Jessica's death isn't shown at all - the only indication of her death is her blood seeping out from under the car.]]


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* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Beth in the opening. Sarah wants to stay back to help her and Juno pack up their gear. She says to go on and let the two of them take care of it. In the car ride home, Paul gets distracted talking to Sarah, leading to the accident and his and Jessie's deaths.

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* MirrorCharacter: [[spoiler:Sarah's brutality and extremely savage fighting towards the end is symbolic of how she's becoming more like the Crawlers.]]



* NotSoDifferent: [[spoiler:Sarah's brutality and extremely savage fighting towards the end is symbolic of how she's becoming more like the Crawlers.]]
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* ArtisticLicenseBiology: The Crawlers are evolved cavemen. Humanoid populations require thousands of individuals to maintain a healthy population, but that's not the problem here, as the Crawlers clearly have a lot of members. The artistic license comes from the fact that they're voracious predators who take animals from above ground to feed, which include humans. The sheer volume of animals and humans disappearing would be staggeringly high in this area. There's no way that someone wouldn't have noticed a pattern of disappearances around this area, and eventually discovered them.


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* ArtisticLicensePhysics: You can all relax. If you get into a car accident with a vehicle that has copper pipes on top of it, they won't kill you like they did Paul and Jessica. Real life copper pipes can't actually penetrate a car's windshield. They'll deform before they can. At worst, they'll crack the windshield badly.


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* DramaticIrony: [[spoiler: Juno kills Beth by accident, but Beth only tells Sarah that "Juno did this to me". As a result, Sarah doesn't know that the death was accidental even though the audience does]].


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* HollywoodEvolution: Less egregious than most cases. The Crawlers are cavemen who never left the caves and have since adapted to cave life. The evolutionary product is accurate, as the Crawlers are blind and losing their eyes, they have little pigmentation, and use echolocation. The problem is that this degree of evolution takes millions of years, not thousands.
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** [[TheMedic Sam]] decides to reinsert [[spoiler:Holly]]'s broken shin. She might be a medical student, but she's clearly not studying emergency medicine because any 1st year paramedic knows that you attempt to set the bone once before splinting in place & you ''never'' reinsert the bone protruding from an open fracture. Especially not in a muddy puddle in the middle of a cave with who knows what previously unknown deadly lifeforms crawling around.

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** [[TheMedic Sam]] decides to reinsert [[spoiler:Holly]]'s broken shin. She might be a medical student, but she's clearly not studying emergency medicine because any 1st year paramedic knows that you attempt to set the bone once before splinting in place & and you ''never'' reinsert the bone protruding from an open fracture. Especially not in a muddy puddle in the middle of a cave with who knows what previously unknown deadly lifeforms crawling around.
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* NotTheFirstVictim: The women believe that the cave they're in is totally unmapped and unrecorded, and that they're the only people who've ever been down there. Then Sarah finds the ancient helmet while they're investigating shortly after the cave-in that traps them inside.

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* CensoredChildDeath: Jessica's death is not shown, just Sarah seeing the pole sticking out of her seat.



* ChekhovsSkill: A rather odd aversion. Extreme-sports expert Becca is able, with a great amount of difficulty, to climb across the roof of a cavern using a long rope and several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carabiner carabiners.]] This is set-up for later when the much less experienced Sam has to do it with about three feet of rope, one carabiner, and no gloves to protect her hands. Realistically, she can't, [[spoiler:and then a crawler comes.]]

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* ChekhovsSkill: ChekhovsSkill:
**
A rather odd aversion. Extreme-sports expert Becca is able, with a great amount of difficulty, to climb across the roof of a cavern using a long rope and several [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carabiner carabiners.]] This is set-up for later when the much less experienced Sam has to do it with about three feet of rope, one carabiner, and no gloves to protect her hands. Realistically, she can't, [[spoiler:and then a crawler comes.]]



* {{Homage}}:
** The whole movie has ''many'' homages to ''Film/{{Deliverance}}'' peppered throughout the film, from scene shout--outs such as the rafting scene and Juno's red suit, to the premise of a same-gender group being trapped in an increasingly horrible situation in the rural Deep South of North America.
** The scene where the team climbs the rockface into the feeding chamber is an almost shot for shot replication of the scene in ''Film/{{Alien}}'' where Lambert and Kane climb up to meet the Space Jockey.
** The shot of Sarah rising out of the pool of blood is a replication of the ending of ''Film/ApocalypseNow'', where Creator/MartinSheen rises out of the water.



** The scene where the team climbs the rockface into the feeding chamber is an almost shot for shot replication of the scene in ''Film/{{Alien}}'' where Lambert and Kane climb up to meet the Space Jockey.



** There are many subtle references to ''Film/{{Deliverance}}'' peppered throughout the film, such as the rafting scene, Juno's red suit, and others.
** A possible (and less gruesome) ShoutOut to Neil Marshall's previous film, ''Film/DogSoldiers'', occurs when Sam has to push [[spoiler:Holly's]] splintered bone back into her leg - in ''Film/DogSoldiers'', Cooper has to push Wells' intestines back into him.

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** There are many subtle references to ''Film/{{Deliverance}}'' peppered throughout the film, such as the rafting scene, Juno's red suit, and others.
** A possible (and less gruesome) ShoutOut to Neil Marshall's previous film, ''Film/DogSoldiers'', occurs when Sam has to push [[spoiler:Holly's]] splintered bone back into her leg - in ''Film/DogSoldiers'', Cooper has to push Wells' intestines back into him.



** The shot of Sarah rising out of the pool of blood is very reminiscent of the ending of ''Film/ApocalypseNow'', where Creator/MartinSheen rises out of the water.
** The sight of Sarah wandering around dazed and covered in blood is very reflective of ''Film/Carrie1976''.

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** The shot of Sarah rising out of the pool of blood is very reminiscent of the ending of ''Film/ApocalypseNow'', where Creator/MartinSheen rises out of the water.
** The sight of Sarah wandering around dazed and covered in blood is very reflective reminiscent of ''Film/Carrie1976''.
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* MisplacedWildlife: Constant. The dead deer in the beginning is an European red deer, one of the dead animals in the cave is a brown or grizzly bear, and one of the animals painted in the cave is a woolly rhinoceros (which never lived in North America).


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* WeAllLiveInAmerica: A British movie, filmed in Britain, with British flora and fauna, and [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampire]]-like cave monsters typical of European folklore. The setting: North Carolina.

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* DeathOfAChild: Jessica, and the death of the child Crawler may also count.



* InfantImmortality: Averted in Jessica's case. The death of the child Crawler may also count.
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* ChromosomeCasting: Sarah's husband is the only male character in the film, who gets maybe one line of dialogue before being abruptly killed in the first five minutes.

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* ChromosomeCasting: Sarah's husband is the only named male character in the film, who appears onscreen, and gets maybe one line of dialogue before being abruptly killed in the first five minutes.minutes.
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** The sequence of the manic and desperate Sarah running to her car through the woods is reminiscent of Sally desperately fleeing Leatherface in ''Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre''.
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** The sight of Sarah wandering around dazed and covered in blood is very reflective of ''Film/Carrie1976''.
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** When she taps into her badass state, Sarah gouges out the Crawler's eyes with her bare hands reminiscent of Jim killing one of the soldiers and coming to resemble the dead in ''Film/28DaysLater''.

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** When she taps into her badass state, Sarah gouges out the Crawler's eyes with her bare hands reminiscent of Jim killing one of the soldiers and coming to resemble the dead in ''Film/28DaysLater''.''Film/TwentyEightDaysLater''.
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** When she taps into her badass state, Sarah gouges out the Crawler's eyes with her bare hands reminiscent of Jim killing one of the soldiers and coming to resemble the dead in ''Film/28DaysLater''.
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* CreepyCave: The primary setting of the film is a massive cave that just gets creepier the farther they descend into it. And it's not half as bad as the things living in it . . .
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* ActionGirl: Pretty much the entire group, with the possible exception of [[spoiler:Holly and Beth]], who are killed before they have the chance to kick some ass.

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* ActionGirl: Pretty much the entire group, group and especially Juno, with the possible exception of [[spoiler:Holly and Beth]], who are killed before they have the chance to kick some ass.
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** TropesAreNotBad, however, and [[spoiler:Beth]] was very likely either in shock or trying to avoid drawing the attention of the Crawlers, while [[spoiler:Holly]] was already well-established as a reckless sort.

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** TropesAreNotBad, Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad, however, and [[spoiler:Beth]] was very likely either in shock or trying to avoid drawing the attention of the Crawlers, while [[spoiler:Holly]] was already well-established as a reckless sort.
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* DownerBeginning: The first scene of the film ends with Paul and Jessica, Sarah's husband and daughter, dying by [[CruelAndUnusualDeath getting poles shoved through their heads]] in a freak car accident, and Sarah almost loses her mind right then and there as she collapses in Beth's arms at the hospital, suicidal.


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* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Three times to one character, so it isn't surprising that she borders on EmptyShell at the end of the film.
** When Sarah finds out her family are dead.
** When Sarah learns from Beth that [[spoiler:Juno killed her - although the audience know it was accidental]].
** When Sarah finds the necklace and realizes that [[spoiler:Juno and Paul]] were having an affair.
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* MomentOfLucidity: [[spoiler:Sarah experiences one of these after managing to escape the caverns- only to wake up back in the cave a moment later. As it turns out, the entire escape was just a delusion. For a few seconds, she seems to comprehend reality again; then she sees her daughter sitting across from her with a birthday cake. Sarah smiles back at her... and then the camera pulls back to reveal that she's alone, smiling vacantly at her torch.]]
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removing a misused trope


* [[FiveManBand Five Woman Band]]:
** TheLeader: Juno
** TheLancer: Sarah
** [[TheSmartGuy The Smart Girl]]: Sam
** [[TheBigGuy The Big Girl]]: Rebecca
** TheChick: Beth
** SixthRanger: Holly
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** [[spoiler:Juno, she lied and took her friends to an unknown cave system, as opposed to a cave system for tourists.]]

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** [[spoiler:Juno, she lied and took her friends to an unknown cave system, as opposed to a cave system for tourists. With an inaccurate "flight plan" no one will know where to look for them when they all go missing, meaning rescue is effectively impossible. Even worse, this cave system is ''completely'' newly discovered and utterly unmapped, so there's absolutely no way to know what dangers are in it, where another exit is, or even '''if''' there's another exit.]]
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* MatchlightDangerRevelation: It is only when [[spoiler:the night vision on Holly's camcorder is switched on]] that a Crawler is seen up close for the first time.

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* MatchlightDangerRevelation: It is Brilliantly subverted when Juno pulls out a lighter in a dark cavern, but finds nothing. [[DoubleSubverted It's only when when]] [[spoiler:the night vision on Holly's camcorder is switched on]] that a Crawler is seen up close for the first time.
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this is very unnecessary


[[caption-width-right:300:If you look at the light in the top left corner the right way, you can see a Crawler's face.]]

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[[caption-width-right:300:If you look at the light in the top left corner the right way, you can see a Crawler's face.]]
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* BatScare: The ladies startle a flock of bats into flight as they're first entering the cave.
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** When [[spoiler:Holly gets her throat ripped out]], Juno shines a light in her eyes giving us an extreme closeup as [[spoiler:Holly]]'s pupil quickly constricts. In reality, pupils dilate shortly after death as all the muscles in the body lose their natural tone.
** [[TheMedic Sam]] decides to reinsert [[spoiler:Holly]]'s broken shin. She might be a medical student, but she's clearly not studying emergency medicine because any 1st year paramedic knows that you attempt to set the bone once before splinting in place & you ''never'' reinsert the bone in an open fracture. Especially not in a muddy puddle in the middle of a cave with who knows what previously unknown deadly lifeforms crawling around.

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** When [[spoiler:Holly gets her throat ripped out]], Juno shines a light in her eyes giving us an extreme closeup as [[spoiler:Holly]]'s pupil quickly constricts. In reality, RealLife, pupils dilate shortly after death as all the muscles in the body lose their natural tone.
** [[TheMedic Sam]] decides to reinsert [[spoiler:Holly]]'s broken shin. She might be a medical student, but she's clearly not studying emergency medicine because any 1st year paramedic knows that you attempt to set the bone once before splinting in place & you ''never'' reinsert the bone in protruding from an open fracture. Especially not in a muddy puddle in the middle of a cave with who knows what previously unknown deadly lifeforms crawling around.




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* WorstAid: See the ArtisticLicenseMedicine open fracture example above.
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Artistic License - Medicine

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** [[TheMedic Sam]] decides to reinsert [[spoiler:Holly]]'s broken shin. She might be a medical student, but she's clearly not studying emergency medicine because any 1st year paramedic knows that you attempt to set the bone once before splinting in place & you ''never'' reinsert the bone in an open fracture. Especially not in a muddy puddle in the middle of a cave with who knows what previously unknown deadly lifeforms crawling around.

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* ArtisticLicenseMedicine:
** As soon as Sarah wakes up in the hospital the first thing she does is [[PullTheIV pull the IV]] out of her hand.
** When [[spoiler:Holly gets her throat ripped out]], Juno shines a light in her eyes giving us an extreme closeup as [[spoiler:Holly]]'s pupil quickly constricts. In reality, pupils dilate shortly after death as all the muscles in the body lose their natural tone.



** There's an even earlier one when Sarah has her nightmare in the cabin.

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** *** There's an even earlier one when Sarah has her nightmare in the cabin.
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** ...which would mean that [[spoiler:Sarah is '[[IncrediblyLamePun losing sight]]' of who she is.]]

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** ...which would would, in this instance, mean that [[spoiler:Sarah is '[[IncrediblyLamePun losing sight]]' of who she is.]]
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** ...which would mean that [[spoiler:Sarah is '[[IncrediblyLamePun losing sight]]' of who she is.]]

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