Episode 2 of The Purge aired September 11, on USA Network.
A mysterious masked man, a new ride for Miguel, and rules—lots and lots of rules—on episode 2 of The Purge.
The episode starts off with a masked man, packing his lunch box, collecting his ammo, and driving out into Purge Night, all while a Voice Over over a scanner plays in the background: “… the Purge is America … “ the voice says, “ …be an American and Purge.”
Miguel & Penelope
Miguel continues his search for his sister through the chaos that is Purge Night, but first he gets captured and forced to participate in what is known as Otis’s Annual Purge Night Gauntlet, brought to you via live feed by Otis’s Classic Car Autorama—if Miguel makes it around the block without getting killed, he wins a classic Chevy SS. Otis promises spills, chills, and thrills, and there are only two rules: #1, they don’t accept volunteers, only live catches, and #2, you live, you win—you die, you lose. Makes sense.
The gauntlet begins and Miguel races through obstacles, attacked by Purgers with guns, machetes and axes—but our guy is a Marine, he kicks ass, crosses the finish line in one piece, and drives off in a shiny red Chevy. Can’t beat that.
Later he arrives at Pete’s Cantina. They have a rule, as well: no politics, and no violence. Miguel meets up with Pete the Cop. Hopefully Pete is going to help him find Penelope.
Meanwhile, Penelope is still on the bus. Good Leader Tavis leads them all in their weird little chant: “Purify my flash, prepare my soul, the giving is near, the invisible awaits.” One girl, Melissa, is getting cold feet about this “Giving”. Penelope tires to encourage her with some crazy talk about “pain is temporary”. When the bus stops and Melissa is selected (I kind of wish someone would throw Good Leader Tavis off the bus), the girl freaks out, starts screaming, she doesn’t want to die. Penelope tries to take her place, but Good Leader Tavis isn’t having it, and they drag Melissa screaming from the bus. A horrified Penelope watches through the bus window as Melissa is killed by a group of Purgers.
Jane
We get a series of flashbacks this episode in which we learn of the sexual advances the creepy David Ryker has made toward Jane and how he passed her up for partnership, presumably because she didn’t play along.
Alison sneaks into Jane’s office while she’s out, snoops around and reads something on her laptop, then later she hints at Jane that maybe she has David on her “Purge Night Wish List.” Alison knows. And Jane knows she knows.
In the last flashback, Jane meets with Rocco to set her Purge up. Rocco has a rule, too: no turning back. Jane tries to explain why she’s doing it, but Rocco isn’t interested in why, she only needs to know who and where.
Rick and Jenna
Back at the Purge Party, we finally meet Lila, the woman in Rick and Jenna’s flashbacks. Turns out she is Stanton’s daughter. She talks to Jenna and Rick both, assuring them that she’s not going to make any trouble, and of course there’s some awkwardness. But then later, Lila meets Jenna by the pool, one thing leads to another, and they share a pretty passionate kiss.
In a full circle, Episode 2 ends back with our masked man. He arrives at a house where Purgers are going in after someone. The voice over continues–“…take whats yours…make this night work for you…meet those curve balls with the swing of your bat…the mighty swing of your bat”-– as he gets out with his gun and heads toward the house.
My take on The Purge so far: I like it. Yes, it is moving slow, some of the story lines more so than others, but this is a tv show, it’s not a movie. In the movies, it’s all about the action, but in a show, it’s more about the characters.
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Who do you think our masked man is? What’s Alison up to? Does she know Jane’s secret? Is Penelope gonna get the hell off that bus?
The Purge returns September 18th, 10/9 C, on USA Network.
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