# The Purge (2018)

> A mysterious savior helps a group of strangers in a small city survive a night of state-sanctioned violence in a totalitarian America.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/68837

## Facts

- Seasons: 2
- Episodes: 20
- Episode runtime: 43 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: horror, science fiction, thriller
- Created by: James DeMonaco
- Network: USA Network
- Cast: Gabriel Chavarria, Jessica Garza, Hannah Emily Anderson, Colin Woodell, Lili Simmons, Amanda Warren, Lee Tergesen, Paola Nuñez
- TMDB rating: 6.6/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6110648/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: brutal
- Tone: tense, paranoid, dread-filled, gritty

## What critics say

Critics find the dystopian home-invasion premise gripping but feel the series lacks real stakes because its central characters rarely appear in genuine danger.

## Synopsis

The Purge is a United States dystopian horror thriller series created by James DeMonaco for USA Network, spun off from the film franchise. Set in a totalitarian America where a sanctioned night of lawlessness is legal, the show follows several seemingly unrelated characters in a small city, including Miguel Guerrero, Penelope Guerrero, Jenna Betancourt and Lila Stanton. Tying their stories together is a mysterious savior who is impeccably equipped for whatever the night brings. The engine of each episode is the countdown: characters must confront their pasts while they make hard choices about how far they will go to survive until morning. The series runs for two seasons of ten episodes each, forming a single continuing story rather than a case of the week. Its tone is tense, paranoid and dread-filled, with home invasion menace and social commentary on power and class threaded through the chaos. Fans of The Hunger Games and The Walking Dead will find resonance in its survival-under-tyranny premise and its brutal, sometimes morally fraught ensemble drama.

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