Every week since Pluribus’ premiere, I’ve presented a handful of burning questions I have about what’s coming next. And most of the time I really want to know the answer. This is a show where mysteries are baked into the premise, with a slow-burn structure that can make it very satisfying when the answers start rolling in. But I regret wanting to know what the hive mind are drinking in episode 5 — I now have the answer, and I really don’t like it.
Welcome to our weekly Verge-subscriber discussion of Pluribus, the new sci-fi series on Apple TV from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan. The show follows a woman named Carol (Rhea Seehorn), who is one of the few “survivors” on Earth after a virus of unknown origin turns the rest of the world into a connected, cheerful hive mind. Carol also happens to be among the most miserable people on the planet. Each week, I present a handful of questions from the latest episode to get a conversation started, so feel free to chime away in the comments with your own thoughts, theories, and questions. Obviously, spoilers follow for the first six episodes of Pluribus.
Three main things happened this week. The first is that, after quite the cliffhanger with Carol discovering the hive were consuming something that really grossed her out, we finally found out what it was. And yeah: it’s people. It’s maybe not the biggest surprise, but what led to it is actually fascinating. It turns out that the hive’s inability to cause harm extends to everything, even plant life, so they can’t even pick an apple off of a tree. This has created what John Cena described in a helpful PSA video has a severe caloric deficit. And part of the solution is what they call HDP, or Human Derived Protein, which means mixing a little meat from people who died from natural causes into their meals. Yum.
Second, Carol learns that the hive have indeed found a solution for bringing her and the other survivors into the fold. But there’s a catch: Doing so requires an invasive procedure, which the hive can only perform with consent. Obviously, Carol is not giving her consent.
Toward the end of the episode we also see that Manousos (Carlos-Manuel Vesga) is finally ready to step out into the world after watching one of Carol’s tapes in which she discusses things she’s learned about the hive. He’s one of the remaining human survivors, but he’s also pivotal to Carol because he seems to be the only one who shares her disgust with the hive, and wants to get things back the way they were. The snag is that he lives in Paraguay, but he’s gearing up for a road trip, so maybe the two will finally meet and conspire after all.
Anyways, here are my current big questions.
Is there a solution to the food crisis?
The whole cannibalism thing is clearly not a permanent solution for the hive. As Mr. Diabaté (Samba Schutte) tells Carol, the way things are going, most of them — which total over 7 billion individuals — will starve to death within the next 10 years. Which means that Carol’s attempt to “save the world” by getting rid of the hive mind might actually end up saving a whole lot of lives if she can figure it out. Otherwise, it’s not clear exactly how much of a future the hive has given their dietary restrictions.
When and how are Carol and Manousos going to connect?
OK, I’ve been asking some variation of this question for a while, but now that he’s actually headed out to meet her, the logistics seem particularly challenging. Once upon a time heading from Paraguay to Albuquerque wasn’t the biggest ordeal, but in a world without air travel, coupled with Manousos’ unwillingness to accept any help from the hive, it’s going to be quite the trek.
Will Mr. Diabaté ever wake up to reality?
Look, I understand the temptation to some degree. The world is in a weird place and he can do and get basically anything he wants. But how long can it really go on? In this episode we see him living it up in Las Vegas, while the hive around cosplay as extras in a James Bond movie. Given their current predicament with regard to food resources, it seems like an extraordinary waste. And part of what makes Mr. Diabaté so frustrating is that he’s often a thoughtful, sympathetic guy. When Carol gets angry that the hive are essentially starving themselves to death, he replies calmly, “They don’t see it that way.” Hopefully he wakes up soon.