This article contains spoilers for Pluribus episode 6.
What started out as a rather unconventionally courteous and polite overtaking of the human race has taken a big turn for the dark in Pluribus. Not only are the hive people eating dead bodies, we’re also starting to get a much clearer picture of what they’re capable of and what they could get away with in the future.
But first, let’s start off with the obvious. At the end of episode 5, we got a painful cliffhanger with Carol seemingly discovering something in the freezer room that caused her to jump back in horror. I’d made the obvious prediction that she’d found dead bodies and that the hive people were processing them into a liquid that could help sustain them. That, in itself, is pretty scary. But in my view, what’s even scarier is the fact that, as I expected, the hive was also able to come up with a perfectly rational explanation for this.
Featuring a lovely cameo appearance from John Cena, the hive explains that they’re literally unable to harm animals or plant life, which severely limits their options when it comes to food. Thus, their only option is to consume human-derived protein, or HDP for short. First, can I just say that the sheer act of talking about cannibalism like it’s a completely normal and reasonable thing to do is terrifying? And second, the fact that the other survivors have accepted this so quickly is more than just a little disturbing.
I can’t help but draw parallels to the metaphor about the frog in boiling water, where the temperature gets turned up ever so slightly to the point where the frog doesn’t realize the danger it’s in until it’s too late. First it was, y’know, the destruction of the human race. Then it was turning off all the lights and emptying out all the residences and grocery stores. Not to mention the overstepping of boundaries, with the hive monitoring Carol with drones and using Helen’s memories and thoughts to make a point. Now, it’s eating dead bodies for sustenance. And even that has been explained away with an affable John Cena. What’s next for the hive?
Episode 6 also provided a huge revelation with the hive’s progress with the virus. We learn that in order for the hive to infect the remaining survivors, they would need to tailor the virus to their individual stem cells, and those stem cells cannot be acquired without injecting a needle into their hipbone via an invasive procedure. And without the survivors’ consent, the hive simply cannot collect the stem cells. Needless to say, Carol was quick to inform the hive that she does not consent to them collecting the stem cells from her body, and the hive acknowledges that.
However, if you were paying attention, there’s a possible loophole here. The hive said they’d never collect the stem cells from her body. They’d never touch her. But what about the eggs that Carol had frozen all those years ago? Now I’ll admit that I’m not exactly armed with a lot of scientific knowledge and biology has never been my strong suit, but couldn’t it be possible that the hive might use her eggs to create an embryo or something and get the stem cells that way? The hive agreed that they wouldn’t touch Carol, but they certainly don’t need her consent to infect her with the virus once they figure that out. It’s their biological imperative, after all.
While the hivemind cannot tell a lie, they’re not above lying by omission or wording things carefully to give themselves a loophole. Stylistically, Pluribus has also gone back to evoking the terrifying imagery from its first episode by framing the hive people in shadow to make them look just that little bit creepier. While the show has leaned more towards its comedic side in the last four episodes, watching Manousos’ plurbed out mom step out of the shadows might be one of the creepier things we’ve seen so far this season.
With episode 6, Pluribus is once again reminding us that we’re the frog in the pot. When is enough going to be enough?
Pluribus is now available for streaming on Apple TV.
