In Pluribus, Monousos is likely the only person left on Earth who shares Carol’s opinion about the alien virus. In episode 7, “The Gap,” he set out to find her — but Carol may have already lost her will to fight. Manousos received Carol’s videos and, remembering her as the lady who was mean to him over the phone, thinks she must be different.
Yet while Manousos embarks on a perilous and trying physical journey, Pluribus main character Carol is going on an emotional one. They both share a stubborn insistence that what’s happened to the world is not right — but their commitment to this idea just might be the very thing that prevents them from fixing it.
Manousos’ Pride Might Stop Him From Saving The World
Carlos Manuel Vesga as Manousos in Pluribus
In “The Gap,” Manousos is determined to reach Carol without an ounce of aid from the hive. Like when Carol insisted on digging Helen’s grave in the burning sun with a sweater on, the hive is concerned for his well-being, offering him water and pleading to simply take him where he wants to go. But Manousos won’t do it, finally abandoning his car entirely for a dangerous hike.
In previous episodes, it seemed like Manousos refused to engage with the hive because he was afraid or mistrustful of them. In “The Gap,” though, he revealed that it’s more about his principles than fear: “Nothing on this planet is yours. Nothing. You cannot give me anything because all that you have is stolen. You don’t belong here.”
He may not be wrong, and his ability to stick to his guns even when it forced him to eat canned dog food and siphon gas out of cars is, in some ways, commendable. But it also jeopardizes the mission that he cares so much about.
For starters, his refusal to engage with the hive in the slightest prevented him from learning what Carol had learned. Without her videos, he would never have known that saving the world was even a possibility. He then had the opportunity to hop on a plane and reach Carol almost instantaneously, which would certainly be in their best interest long-term.
Yet he insists on risking his life to travel alone, potentially ending his mission before it even really starts. The hike is truly dangerous, as the hive warned, and he ends up needing their help whether he wants it or not. And while all of this is happening, Carol’s will to fight is fading fast.
Will Manousos And Carol Ever Join Forces?
While Manousos takes his trip, Carol struggles with the mental and emotional effects of what has essentially become solitary confinement. She can do whatever she wants, but no one — not the hive, not Diabaté, not the other survivors she’s met — wants to engage with her. “The Gap” reveals that after leaving Vegas in the previous episode, Carol spends 36 days completely and utterly alone.
Throughout that time, it’s clear that Carol has lost the will to live, much less probe for a solution. She goes out to eat, whacks golf balls at buildings, and finally sits in the middle of a ring of fireworks, not even moving out of the way when one tips directly towards her. Despite having every physical comfort, the lack of human connection has taken a toll.
She and Manounos share an uneasiness regarding the hive, believing that the forced “joining” was wrong. Yet in “The Gap,” the isolation breaks Carol. She finally asks the hive to return, and collapses in tears into Zosia’s arms when they do.
When Manousos gets to her, will the Pluribus protagonist still want to “save the world?” Even if Manousos can get her anti-hive spark back, they will both be in a significantly weakened state — a direct result of their stubbornness.
Release Date
November 6, 2025
Network
Apple TV
Directors
Adam Bernstein, Zetna Fuentes, Melissa Bernstein
