'The Purge' Season 2 Episode 4: Marcus' paranoia hints at a deceased daughter, is Michelle at fault?
This article contains spoilers for season 2, episode 4: 'Grief Box'.
Last week on 'The Purge's season 2, episode 3, the possibility of Marcus Moore's wife, Michelle being the one to target him on purge night was solidified. And with this week's developments, things are finally starting to appear clearer.
The private investigator Marcus had hired mentioned how common purging is among spouses and suddenly fans' speculation about Michelle raising the bounty over Marcus' head on the dark web seems quite plausible. But on tonight's episode, we are taken back to 14 years ago in Marcus' life, when he was still married to his ex-wife and mother of his son Derek, Tonya. The presence of a little girl in their household where the family was huddled up seeking refuge on purge night 14 years ago leads us to believe that Marcus and his now ex, Tonya, could have had a daughter who lost her life to the Purge.
In the flashbacks, we see how Marcus and Tonya - wholesome and couple goals at the same time - broke up. Marcus wanted to move to the suburbs with a fancy big house in a predominantly white neighborhood - something that leads to the first clash between the two. The timeline of these events are a point after the fateful purge night flashback where the little girl can be seen at Marcus and Tonya's house. They also already have their son, Derek. But while it's not official if Tonya and Marcus break up right after she refuses to move into the new house, citing that they are safer amidst their own existing community, it's also not entirely implausible to speculate that the supposed little daughter died in the next purge or sometime later - spurring the fallout between Marcus and Tonya, leading to their eventual divorce.
Back in the present-day, Marcus' investigator is able to track down the killer who had attacked him on Purge night, to the same neighborhood where Tonya lives currently. And even though Marcus tells Michelle the information, she's almost too quick to point out how there's always been friction between the former couple. There has to be a reason strong enough to validate their fallout, but at the same time, what is even more suspicious is the shifty glances Michelle offers from that point onwards. It's obvious she knows something big, but what could she be hiding under the pretext of therapy for PTSD?
It is also quite possible that Michelle had to do something with the little girl we meet in the flashback from the past, back when Marcus wasn't this affluent at all. Is she secretly responsible for a loved one of Marcus getting purged in the past? Maybe it was deliberate to build up suspicion over the character, but something is clearly off about her.
'The Purge' season 2 airs on Tuesdays at 9 pm only on USA Network.
