The plague of locusts starts in the second aliyah. Never before or since have there been locusts like these in Mitzrayim. They ate absolutely everything that remained after the plague of hail.

Next, the plague of darkness. It was so dark, it could be felt. Those that were standing at the beginning of the darkness couldn't sit, and those that were sitting couldn't stand.

Rashi says another reason for the darkness is that the Jews who didn't want to leave Egypt, who were complacent with life there, died in the darkness to hide that source of shame of the Jews from the Egyptians.

Now, as we are on the brink of the final redemption, let's all want Moshiach now. A story is told of a Mashpia - Chassidic Mentor - in Russia having a secret farbrengen with his students in a darkened basement. Another student was looking for them and was invited in, but when he started down the stairs, he complained that the darkness in the basement made it difficult to progress. One of the students that was already in the basement called out to him that he should proceed down, because once you sit in darkness awhile you get used to it. The Mashpia heard this and said that that's the trouble with the darkness of exile too; the longer it goes on the better it looks.