(S1, E5) Picking Apart the Purge Franchise

This week’s Pop Culture Boner reviews the complicated world of the Purge franchise. Why did it get so big? What does it mean? Would we be lingerie-wearing murder bunnies with chainsaws, or would we be hiding in the house? Probably hiding in the house - let’s be honest. We’re not good with confrontation.

Articles and websites I referenced:

• Sonaiya Kelley (LA Times, 2018) - An oral history of ‘The Purge’ franchise: From micro-horror breakout to Trump-era cautionary tale

• blackhorrormovies.com - specifically, their Purge reviews, but the whole site is a great referece

• Peter Bradshaw (The Guardian, 2016) - The Purge: Election Year review – emetic, unsubtle grindhouse horror

Some plot summaries of the films and TV series, if you’re into that sort of thing:

• The Purge (2013)

• The Purge: Anarchy (2014)

• The Purge: Election Year (2016)

• The First Purge (2018)

• The Purge (TV series) (2019)

You can download the full transcript here.