This article contains spoilers for “More” season 1, episode 4.
During its first few episodes, Vince Gilligan’s sci-fi show “Pluribus” on Apple TV revealed that it was able to explore a surprising number of points of view for a show that turned almost everyone on Earth into a happy, interconnected hive mind. The series premiere, “We Is Us,” depicted this connection largely through the shocked eyes of Carol Sturka (the stunning Rhea Seehorn of “Better Call Saul”). However, Episode 2 (titled “Pirate Lady”) was quick to reveal that her justified but abrasive cynicism makes her a minority, even among the precious few humans who have retained their individuality.
However, there is one man whose opinion on the world situation was unknown until now. Manousos (Carlos Manuel Vesga, “The Luckiest Man in America), the Paraguayan man who is briefly mentioned in “Pirate Lady,” finally makes an appearance in “Pluribus” season 1, episode 4. Despite his self-imposed isolation, the episode also strongly suggests that he might be about to become Carol’s greatest and quite possibly only ally… thanks to a seemingly throwaway comedy spot from the previous episode.
In “Pluribus” season 1, episode 3 (“Grenada”), Carol attempts to contact the mysterious Paraguayan, who is about the only person left on Earth that she hasn’t managed to piss off yet. This proves just as unsuccessful as the hive mind’s attempts to communicate with him. However, when Carol loses her temper and impulsively throws a colorful insult over the phone (“F*** your mother, a ******!”), Manousos perks up his ears. Since he seems to know that there’s no way a “no one” hive mind would use such colorful language, Carol’s swearing is proof enough that Manousos isn’t alone in the world after all.
Manousos is as suspicious of the hive mind as Carol, but much more methodical about it.
Viewers knew that the mysterious and lonely Paraguayan mentioned by the hive mind in episode 2 would come into play before long – after all, we knew Vesga was in the series and her character is featured prominently in the trailer for “Pluribus.” When we finally see him, it’s immediately clear that he’s going to be a very important character in the future.
Not only does Manousos share Carol’s deep suspicion of everything around him, but he goes much further. He refuses any contact with the hive mind – which, you know, clever – and also seems to have understood that the root cause of the adhesion was some kind of signal transmission. Additionally, he also appears to be systematically investigating frequencies, likely looking for a way to eliminate the RNA virus from the hive mind. It’s not a conspiracy theory if the world is really there for you (as far as Manousos knows), so what would otherwise be pretty strange and obsessive behavior comes across as pretty sensible in the “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”-style world of “Pluribus.”
It’s unclear exactly how a guy who appears to operate a container business for a living was able to put all this together, let alone how he was able to figure out how the hive mind works since he seems to refuse any communication with them. “Pluribus” will undoubtedly soon provide answers to all these questions. For now, Carol’s swearing phone call seems to have finally brought this mysterious character into play, and the show has become more interesting again.
Season 1 of “Pluribus” is streaming on Apple TV.
