History Series / TheBarrier

''The Barrier'' (''La valla'' in Spanish) is a Spanish dystopian series set in Madrid created by created by Daniel Écija. It was first released in Spain in January 2020 before seeing a worldwide release in September 2020 on Creator/{{Netflix}}.

* TheImmune: Considering the nature of her job, Alma is actively keeping an eye out for people who are immune to the noravirus. All she's been able to find is [[spoiler:children who have been exposed to it in the past and produce antibodies if exposed again]].

* LaResistance: This is a PoliceState dystopia, after all. [[spoiler:Emilia]] used to be part of it, and hence knows who to contact in pinch. Outside of the eventual [[spoiler:uprising]], they are mostly shown to be involved in smuggling people out of Madrid and warning people who are at risk of getting arrested for political reasons.

* LaResistance: This is a PoliceState dystopia, after all. [[spoiler:Emilia]] used to be part of it, and hence knows who to contact in pinch. Outside of the eventual [[spoiler:uprising]], they are mostly shown to be involved in smuggling people out of Madrid and helping people who are at risk of getting arrested for political reasons.

* PropagandaMachine: There is only one thing to watch on broadcast television. It's a government-controlled news channel.

* AssholeVictim: Antonio Mérida, the man Julia kills in the first episode, brought a minor into a brothel with the intent to rape her, drugged her, and responded to Julia trying to peacefully leave with her by attempting to stangle her. This makes it ''very'' hard to feel sorry for the man.

* ThePlague: The noravirus fills this role, complete with being a death sentence to those who catch it and not having a cure yet.

* FascistsBedTime: Madrid has a curfew, after which electricity is turned off in Sector 2 homes as part of the electricity rationing. It's a surprise to Álex and Marta, who haven't been to Madrid before the beginning of the series. The extent to which the main characters respect in varies greatly, ranging from a reason to spend the night somewhere to a good time span during which to have secret meetings. Considering the sort of government New Spain has, being caught breaking curfew is implied to be something that should be avoided.

* FascistsBedTime: Madrid has a curfew, after which electricity is turned off in Sector 2 homes as part of the electricity rationing. It's a surprise to Álex and Marta, who haven't been to Madrid before the beginning of the series. The extent to which the main characters respect in varies greatly, ranging from a reason to spend the night somewhere to a good time span during which to have secret meetings.

* NosyNeighbor: Emilia's neighbor Begoña is the block's government informant, so being far too curious and "just checking on her" right when things she souldn't be seeing are going on is her job.

Twenty-five years later, the consequences of the political upheaval, coupled with the circulation of the deadly [[ThePlague noravirus]], results in movement between different towns being limited. In Madrid, the capital, there is a wall, the titular barrier, separating Sector 1, which houses the government officials and other elites living in luxury, from Sector 2 and its population living on limited resources.

[[caption-width-right:360:One family. Two worlds. From left to right: Emilia, Julia/Sara, Marta and Hugo]]

[[quoteright:355:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/la_valla_portada_1.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:355:One family. Two worlds. From left to right: Emilia, Julia/Sara, Marta and Hugo]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/la_valla_portada_1.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:One family. Two worlds. From left to right: Emilia, Julia/Sara, Marta and Hugo]]

Sara recently succumbed to the noravirus and has passed down both her necklace and her microchip to Marta, her ten-year-old daughter. Fulfilling Sara's last wish, Marta, her father Hugo and her paternal uncle Álex leave the Asturias region to move to Madrid, where Emilia and Julia live. When asked about Sara at checkpoints, they claim she’s still alive and will join them in a few days to keep out of trouble. As the three of them are getting registered, Marta tests positive for an unspecified blood test given to new entrants and is promptly taken away. Hugo and Álex are told by the first person willing to give them answers that she's being taken to a colony for the children of unemployed parents, and that she’ll be given back if Hugo can provide proof that he has a job in Madrid. Emilia calls her former boyfriend Luis, now the Minister of Health, who is fortunately looking for house staff. The coverup of Sara's death backfires when Hugo finds out that his would-be employers are looking to hire a married couple for the job during the interview. Unbeknownst to Hugo, the obvious solution of passing Julia off as Sara has a big drawback: Julia just recently killed a high-ranking military officer in self-defense, the sole direct witness fled the scene before she could, and she's being part of the family reunion only for the time it will take for her boyfriend Carlos to arrange an escape for the two of them. To top things off, Marta hasn’t actually been taken to a colony for the children of unemployed parents, either; she was taken to a scientific institute trying to FindTheCure for the noravirus, headed by Alma, Luis' wife, who is willing to risk the life of children for TheNeedsOfTheMany.

Twenty-five years later, the consequences of the political upheaval, coupled with the circulation of the deadly [[ThePlague noravirus]], results in movement between different towns being limited. In Madrid, the capital, there is a wall, the titular barrier, separating Sector 1, which houses the government employees and other elites living in luxury, from Sector 2 and its population living on limited resources.

* ThePlague: The noravirus fills this role, complete with being a death sentence to those who catch it and not having a cure yet.
* IncurableCoughOfDeath: This is a symptom of the noravirus. Coughing at a checkpoint can ruin one's day.

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Alejo treats the fact that Marta and Julia share a very rare trait despite not actually being mother and daughter to be the sign that the trait isn't actually genetic. Julia and Sara play AlwaysIdenticalTwins straight, so Julia is actually more likely to share a rare trait with Sara than Marta is.

* NosyNeighbor: Emilia's neighbor Begoña is the block's government informant, so asking too many questions for comfort is her job.

* UncurableCoughOfDeath: This is a symptom of the noravirus. Coughing at a checkpoint can ruin one's day.

* ThePlague: The noravirus fills this role, complete with being a death sentence and not having a cure yet.

----