The Purge:
The Complete TV Series review by Bobby Blakey
When the first Purge film debuted in 2013 it was not only something fresh and cool, but it also opened obvious possibilities for a slew of franchise directions. Of course, success spawned sequels with The Purge: Anarchy in 2014, The Purge: Election Year in 2016 and then went back to the beginning with The First Purge in 2018. During this time, they also took the hit franchise to the small screen with The Purge: TV series, but can it bring the same intensity as the films, or will it not survive the night?
The Purge revolves around a 12-hour period when all crime, including murder, is legal. Set in an altered America ruled by a totalitarian political party, the series follows several seemingly unrelated characters living in a small city. As the clock winds down, each character is forced to reckon with their past as they discover how far they will go to survive the night. The second season begins just as the annual Purge Night of 2036 draws to a close and follows characters dealing with the consequences of that night and investigating conspiracies in the year before the next purge in 2037.
As much as I love this franchise, I was a bit worried with the TV version getting watered down but thankfully being on the USA Network they still pushed some boundaries to make it feel like it is right there in the existing universe. The first few episodes were decent enough as they introduced all the players for this year’s Purge, but then the show kind of starts to limp along. I think they had too many people to focus on, so it bounces around a lot and makes it hard to really invest in any of the characters. Once you get to the second half of the first season and the always great Lee Tergesen shows up things pick up.
It’s here you start to understand not only his story, but how the rest of the stories are going to connect. Along the way they showcase a variety of people acting out on the Purge for different reasons, with some so silly it’s scary. This continues even more so in the second season as it deals with the after math and of course the planning for the next year. One of the issues I have always thought of with the Purge idea is that eventually the violence will carry beyond that one night to an elevated level and they deal with that across the board.
It’s a franchise that works perfectly for the TV format, but the lore of the Purge itself expands the idea and elevates the films on some levels. The biggest issue is the focus gets shifted in too many directions and never feels like it really gets to dig deep enough into any of them. I really enjoyed the shows direction and time we were able to spend building this world. I would have preferred it streamlined a bit more and would have loved to see where it might have been able to go with further seasons. It’s a series for fans of the franchise but also is a standalone thing that isn’t required to watch if you would prefer to just stick with the films alone.
In addition to all 20 episodes of the series this release includes bonus content including deleted scenes, a conversation with the cast & crew and featurettes that take you behind bringing this series to life. Support the Purge and grab your copy of The Purge: The Complete TV Series available now on Blu-ray from Universal Home Entertainment.