They have to return by sundown lest they be trapped in the maze. Each boy’s identity is determined by his task (building, animal husbandry, etc.), and some of them are “runners,” that is, those who explores the surrounding maze to find a way out. The boys refer to the people watching them as the “Creators.”īasically: It’s their job. Roaming around the maze are Grievers - half goopy spider, half machine creatures - which can kill you. In The Maze Runner, a group of 50 amnesiac boys live in a clearing (called the Glade they’re called Gladers) that is in turn surrounded by an intricate maze. The Maze Runner is based on a book by James Dashner of the same title published in 2009, and it’s your typical “young people trying to outwit an authoritarian regime” story. ( Mild spoilers in the service of trying to figure out what the hell is going on.) Understandably, he’s pretty freaked out, and every time he asks one of the other boys what’s going on, they just reply, “I don’t know.” The disorientation isn’t necessarily bad, though: Our critic Bilge Ebiri wrote, “Not knowing anything about The Maze Runner … isn’t a bad way to see The Maze Runner.” But for those of you who like to know what’s in the pie before you eat it, I took the liberty of reading The Maze Runner, its prequel The Kill Order, and watching the movie to give you the lowdown on what to expect.

In the opening scene of The Maze Runner, our uniquely special protagonist Thomas wakes up on a zooming elevator with his mind wiped clean of memories.

The maze runner in order books