HBO Max's Pure is a better illustration of OCD and its debilitating effects than it is a portrait of a young woman who has it

The Hollywood Reporter

"The latest in HBO Max’s burgeoning selection of British imports, the six-part half-hour comedy Pure, a BBC Studios show that aired on the UK’s Channel 4 early last year, is notable for its rare and compassionate depiction of a young woman struggling with the triple challenge of a mental illness (obsessive-compulsive disorder), its social stigma and accepting the probability that she’ll never be completely cured of it," says Inkoo Kang. "But the series, despite taking its name from Rose Cartwright’s memoir, is also a disappointingly formulaic stumble through youthful London, stuffed with bad sex, awkward flirtations, professional humiliations and fights with friends that feel more ripped from other TV shows than real life." ALSO: Pure is a compelling series showing how Charly Clive's Marnie is beset by her own imagination — subliminal flashes of face-licking, wayward fingers, and strangers in throes.