{"id":135325,"date":"2025-11-15T21:20:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T21:20:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/135325\/"},"modified":"2025-11-15T21:20:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-15T21:20:10","slug":"what-would-you-do-in-the-world-of-pluribus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/135325\/","title":{"rendered":"What would you do in the world of Pluribus?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pluribus<\/a>, the new sci-fi series from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul creator Vince Gilligan<\/a>, is addictive viewing. But it\u2019s also addictive discussion fodder. Once those of us at Polygon who\u2019ve seen advance screeners started talking to each other about the show, we realized we\u2019d all immediately started either thinking about what we\u2019d do in the world of Pluribus, or asking other people in our lives about it \u2014 and we also learned that we had radically different answers.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a long time since we\u2019ve encountered another piece of media that lit up our collective imagination this way. So we decided to put some of the discussion in print, and poll our readership for responses as well. Initial teasers for Pluribus<\/a> were deliberately coy about the show\u2019s inciting incidents, but there\u2019s a brief summary below.<\/p>\n

[Ed. note: Basic Pluribus setup spoilers ahead.]<\/p>\n

\"Diamant\u00e9
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

In Gilligan\u2019s new show, Earth receives a signal from outer space that turns out to be a recipe for an RNA molecule. Scientists build it in a lab, but it inevitably escapes contamination and spreads through humanity like a virus, linking everyone into a blissful, pacifistic hivemind state \u2014 except for around a dozen immune people worldwide, including protagonist Carol (Rhea Seehorn), who\u2019s terrified and angry at what she sees as an alien invasion and the destruction of humanity.<\/p>\n

The hivemind, speaking indiscriminately through the mouths of anyone who comes into contact with Carol and the other immunes, tells them it loves them and just wants them to be happy until it can figure out how to absorb them. The hivemind repeatedly tries to keep them healthy and content, whether that means monitoring Carol when she\u2019s working in her yard and offering her bottled water and a sun hat \u2014 or procuring Air Force One and a staff of sexually pliant hiveminded supermodels to convey another immune character around the world to wherever he might want to go.<\/p>\n

Gilligan has said the initial idea for the show came from a mental image of a character \u201cwho everybody suddenly, inexplicably was very, very nice to,\u201d no matter how unpleasant he was in return. \u201cEverybody suddenly loves this guy,\u201d he told Polygon in an interview<\/a>. \u201cThey will do anything for him. No matter how mean he is to them, he can never hurt their feelings. He can never shake their enthusiasm for him as a person.\u201d<\/p>\n

The hivemind insists that everyone it\u2019s absorbed is still alive and still themselves, and some of the immunes accept that claim at face value \u2014 but it\u2019s hard to believe when the hivemind is using language like \u201cThis individual is named Todd\u201d to refer to parts of itself, and when no one\u2019s unique personality has survived the merge. So what would you do in a world where nearly everyone was fanatically devoted to your well-being and satisfaction, but all your friends, family, and loved ones had been absorbed into a single placid, homogenous personality? Let\u2019s talk about it.<\/p>\n

\"Carol
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

Tasha Robinson, Entertainment Editor: The \u201cYou can have anything you want until we absorb you, probably soon\u201d aspect of the hivemind changes the math on this a lot from how I\u2019d feel about it if it was clear that I was going to spend the rest of my life as a hivemind pet. That deadline means I\u2019d feel a lot freer to go for broke.<\/p>\n

Mostly, I\u2019d just want to travel to places I haven\u2019t been \u2014 to see the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and New Zealand and the Pyramids. Sure, I could do that in real life, but the Pluribus setup makes it a lot more appealing \u2014 I could go touch Stonehenge instead of seeing it from a distance (because too many tourists were taking chunks of it home<\/a>!), see the Mona Lisa without waiting in line for two hours, and travel to countries that hate Americans, tourists, and women without fearing for my safety.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s odd that I\u2019d want to expand my personal sense of the world, since if the hivemind gets me, I\u2019ll have access to all those things through other people\u2019s memories. But I\u2019d like to experience them as me first. That said, I think traveling alone would get boring pretty quickly, and I\u2019d never feel comfortable treating hivemindees as casual travel friends, since I\u2019d always be too aware of them regarding me as a kid who needs placating and amusing. I don\u2019t think it’d take long before I\u2019d want to know what their goals were, and how I could use my individuality and non-hivemindedness to help, solely to feel like I had a purpose. Sorry for selling out the human race, Carol.<\/p>\n

\"A
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

Claire Lewis, Games & Entertainment Writer: I\u2019ve always been obsessed with space, so I\u2019d want to visit the ISS. I can never sleep on flights because I love aviation so much, and know that commercial airline flights are the closest I\u2019ll likely ever get to outer space. If possible, I\u2019d spend months undergoing the physical training required to visit the moon. Also, I\u2019d enlist a member of the hivemind to help me get my pilot\u2019s license.<\/p>\n

Once back on the ground, I\u2019d likely ask the hivemind to take me to a fancy spa for a lash lift & tint. I do my hair, nails, and lashes at home to save money, but in a world where there\u2019s a giant hivemind that claims to care deeply about my happiness, I wouldn\u2019t feel too bad letting them foot the bill for my beauty treatments. Heck, I might even ask for a personal trainer. Of course, I wouldn\u2019t really have any real humans around to show off my fancy new lashes to, but that\u2019s not really a problem. Like my tattoos and piercings, my hair, nails, and makeup are styled for my own happiness \u2014 not for the approval of anyone else.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d also start a cat rescue. Given how many people die once the hivemind arrives, I have to assume there are a lot of lonely felines out there who could undoubtedly use a can of tuna and some affection from someone who isn\u2019t a pod person.<\/p>\n

Aimee Hart, Entertainment & Games Writer: I won\u2019t lie, I\u2019m worried about all those animals. So I\u2019m teaming up with you, Claire. I don\u2019t discriminate; I\u2019m saving all these animals and making sure they\u2019re well cared for. Because what do you mean that the hivemind has set all the zoo animals free? You haven\u2019t met my 13-year-old blind Shih Tzu. She\u2019s cranky, she\u2019s mean, and I do not think she has the mental or physical fortitude to go up against a pack of wild elephants. <\/p>\n

Honestly, I\u2019d take it a step further. Is the hivemind able to gel with animals? Why not? If you\u2019re going to make everyone like you, you might as well go the extra mile and turn animals into pod people (pod animals?) too. Let\u2019s get on that, people. I need to know what my dogs really think.<\/p>\n

Also, I\u2019d want to join the hivemind just for the gossip I\u2019d know simply by going through other people\u2019s memories. It\u2019s a shame there wouldn\u2019t be anyone left to gossip with or write expos\u00e9s for, but at least I could explore everything there is to know about Hollywood drama. Nice!<\/p>\n

\"A
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

Chris Hayner, Senior Editor: My initial reaction was aimed at hedonism. After taking my meds, because clearly I’m going to have a panic attack, I would ask for an expert tattoo artist, two pounds of the finest cannabis the hivemind can get its hands on (to start), the cast of the new Paddington musical performing the show in my living room, and Gordon Ramsay as a personal chef, because I’d like his Beef Wellington for dinner.<\/p>\n

After that initial phase of just finding reasons to not leave the house, I’ll remember there’s an entire world out there and I have dreams to see a bunch of it that I haven’t gotten to yet. The top of the list is Japan. Going there is important for so many reasons, but most of them are theme-park related. I need to see Tokyo Disney Sea for myself, and finally ride the Jaws ride at Universal Studios Osaka. I’ll probably have to operate the ride myself, but it\u2019d be worth it. And while I’m there, I’ll also be visiting Sanrio Puroland and Tokyo Dome City.<\/p>\n

Like my colleagues, I’d also be worried about the pets left behind, and would probably take on a bunch of new dogs and cats. I’m going to need a farm for that, though, so I’m moving. And while I’m moving somewhere with land, I’m going to have the hivemind help me with some projects, like a golf course in my giant yard so I can learn to golf better, or building an exact re-creation of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. The world is basically over, right? Nobody can blame me for cosplaying as the kid from Blank Check.<\/p>\n

Tasha: Point of order here, Chris: Any reason you\u2019d want your chef to be actual Gordon Ramsay, and not just any random pod person channeling his memories and skills?<\/p>\n

\"Carol
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

And Aimee, I really hope the hivemind doesn\u2019t include animals. I already get too much nagging from my cats about my tragic failure to feed them in quantities they deem sufficient. I don\u2019t need those reminders coming from human hivemind members as well. \u201cTasha, your cats are hungry. Tasha, your cats are hungry. Tasha, your cats are soooooooo hungry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris: It has to be Gordon, because if it’s anyone else, regardless of hivemind, my mind won’t allow me to say Gordon cooked for me. Plus he’s got a rad accent, and I also want to quiz him about his hair routine. <\/p>\n

Aimee: I totally get where you\u2019re coming from, Tasha. But look at it this way: you wouldn\u2019t have to feed your cats by yourself anymore! We\u2019re all feeding your cats. Teamwork makes the dream work.<\/p>\n

Jake Kleinman: Chris, forget Paddington the Musical, I\u2019ll do you one better. If I was in Carol\u2019s situation, the first thing I\u2019d do is reassemble the cast of my favorite TV show that got canceled too soon, Freaks and Geeks, then have the hivemind tap into Judd Apatow\u2019s memories and find out what should have happened in season 2 and beyond. Production of new episodes starts immediately. And that would just be the beginning of a new Hollywood studio devoted to reviving everything from Firefly to Better of Ted. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, I\u2019d also have some other pod person harness the comedic skills of Matt Groening, Al Jean, John Swartzwelder, Conan O\u2019Brien, and everyone else who wrote The Simpsons back when it was in its prime, and have them start work immediately on new episodes that are actually good.<\/p>\n

While this is all happening, I\u2019d embark on a world tour, flying by private jet with all my friends and family (or at least, their pod-person equivalents), plus a supergroup of all my favorite musicians to keep us entertained, on a quest to see, touch, and eat everything I possibly can. That last verb is particularly important. The hivemind might be vegetarian, so until the last moment before I get subsumed into the Borg, I\u2019m making the most of it, with steak, sushi, and fried chicken for every meal.<\/p>\n

\"Koumba
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

Chris: Jake, I love this idea of bringing back shows that ended prematurely. That said, sign me up for season 4 of Sports Night. It’s not like Aaron Sorkin will have anything else going on.<\/p>\n

Tasha: I\u2019m not going to waste pod-person resources on actually having them cast, perform, shoot, edit, and broadcast the other four planned seasons of Carnival\u00e9. I\u2019ll settle for having the hivemind summon up Daniel Knauf\u2019s memories and walk me through a point-by-point plot summary. <\/p>\n

Claire: Can\u2019t believe it took me this long to think of this. I\u2019d start a game studio! I want to see what kind of games the pod people would make if given general directions like, \u201cMake me a fantasy RPG,\u201d and left to their own devices. Without a ton of corporate nonsense resulting in a whittled-down budget, crunch, and poor writing, I bet we\u2019d get something good. I\u2019d also ask them to make me that Twilight Princess sequel we never got.<\/p>\n

Isaac Rouse, Entertainment & Games Writer: If I found myself in this predicament, I\u2019d demand the finest cannabis (good call, Chris), sit down, and ask the hivemind to tell me the truths of the world. Everything in Area 51, everything the highest authority knows, every little secret. And after I learn all the dark deeds of humanity, I\u2019d take a plane and go to Disney World, just to cleanse the palate. <\/p>\n

Then I\u2019d do what Carol does, and inquire about the other people unshackled from the hivemind. Before meeting them, though, I\u2019d ask the hivemind to tell me everything they can about these people before we meet. Are they dumb? Malleable? Selfish? Na\u00efve? Dangerous? I\u2019d have a gun, and we\u2019d meet, and depending on how they feel about the hivemind taking over humanity, and what I learned about the world\u2019s secrets, that would determine whether I\u2019d leave them (and the world) to their own devices, or kill everyone in the plane and try to fix humanity myself. I feel like I\u2019d be that guy, unfortunately.<\/p>\n

But I also think I\u2019d be akin to Shane from The Walking Dead, coming to the conclusion faster than others that anybody who isn\u2019t part of the solution is part of the problem. I can see it now: the other immune humans \u2014 under the delusion that joining the hivemind is a good thing and that their family members are still alive despite being part of the collective \u2014 trying to stop me from saving the human race. There\u2019s only so much time before the hivemind figures out a way to take our autonomy, and before the food supply rots and only vegetation is left; there\u2019s no time to dilly-dally!<\/p>\n

\"Carol
\n Image: Apple TV<\/p>\n

Deven McClure, Games & Entertainment Writer: First of all, I second Isaac and Chris \u2014 if it\u2019s the apocalypse, I\u2019m going to be securing the good kush. Once that\u2019s taken care of, I think it would let me fully indulge my deep love of being nosy. I\u2019d be asking about true-crime mysteries \u2014 what really happened to JonBen\u00e9t Ramsey? Who was the Zodiac killer? What\u2019s in Area 51?<\/p>\n

And like Aimee, I\u2019d want to secure tons of gossip. I\u2019d be asking for all the most embarrassing secrets of government officials, checking in with Taylor Swift\u2019s memories about when she knew Travis was the one, asking about the final straw in the Kimye divorce \u2014 I would basically be treating the hivemind as my own personal Google for anything and everything I can think of. <\/p>\n

Then I\u2019d ask the collective consciousness to make me The Sims 5 to my exact specifications. Who wouldn\u2019t want their favorite game rebuilt the way they\u2019d always imagined it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pluribus, the new sci-fi series from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul creator Vince Gilligan, is addictive viewing.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":135326,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[146,85,46,411],"class_list":["post-135325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135325","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135325"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135325\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135326"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}