Vince Gilligan is a talented television creator. From his time working on The X-Files to Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, he’s created memorable and iconic series and characters. Now, he’s partnering with Apple TV on a new mystery box series, Pluribus. It’s first episode, “We Is Us,” dropped on Friday, November 7, and doubtless it’s bound to become one of the most talked about new series of the year. Let’s dive in. SPOILERS BELOW.
We begin with a counter: 439 days, 19 hours, 56 minutes, and 10 seconds. It lets us know something is coming. But at the outset, we simply meet a group of scientists who find a repeating message being broadcast from space. They don’t know what it means or where it comes from, but they’re excited. Still, we know this will be a longish process.
Flash forward to 71 days, 13 hours, 21 minutes and 01 seconds. The scientists still don’t understand the message. As they toss the ball, they’re talking about what it all could mean. Bob (Allan McLeod) hits upon a thought. It’s finally dawned on him what the message could mean.
Another flash forward brings us to 29 days, 23 hours, 49 minutes, and 54 seconds. We meet a pair of scientists (Blair Beeken and Karan Soni) who are arriving for the night shift. They figured out the message, but they haven’t figured out what it means. They’ve been experimenting on myriad species with no results. But tonight, seems different.
One of the mice appears dead. Jen (Beeken) pulls it out. It isn’t dead. It bites her. It breaks the skin. Her partner panics and removes her from the secure lab. She’s infected, and quickly she spreads it. Soon, the whole facility has been infected and sets out on a plan to help it all spread.
It leads us to 3 hours, 6 minutes, and 32 seconds. Two women get off a plane at an airport in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Their lives are about to change.
The world of Carol
Near the mid-point in the process, we meet Carol (Rhea Seehorn). She’s a renowned author on a book tour with her latest work. While it’s extremely popular, it’s not something Carol is proud to have made. She doesn’t seem to care for her books. It’s given her a somewhat bitter outlook on the world.
But her partner, Helen (Miriam Shor), is traveling with her, helping with the tour. She encourages Carol that it might be time to pursue her passion. They finally arrive home, landing in the airport. After fixing the display to put Carol’s book in a prime position, they head to a bar. They grab a drink.
As they’re outside, answering the message boards and sharing a smoke, Carol notices planes flying overhead. Soon, a truck crashes nearby. The driver seems to be in a state of a seizure. When she turns back to ask Helen to call 9-1-1, she sees Helen is also having a seizure. Helen collapses and Carol scrambles to get her help.
As she enters the bar, she finds everyone in the same state. She slides the driver over in the truck and uses it to get Helen aboard. As they race to the hospital, she sees a town in chaos. At the hospital, everyone is in a seizure state. Carol heads back out where Helen briefly wakes, then dies. As Carol scrambles to revive her, most everyone comes to and heads out.
But these people aren’t as they were. They move and speak in unison. They know Carol and Helen. Afraid, Carol hops in the truck and races away with Helen’s body. Her neighborhood is much the same. Finally, she gets inside.
Frantically Carol flips through the channels, finding the CSPAN feed where Davis Tattler (Peter Bergman), the Secretary of Agriculture, is at the podium. There’s a number. Carol calls it and gets a response that seems to be just for her.
Everyone in the world has undergone a change. Some, like Helen, didn’t survive. Some, like Carol, are immune. In fact, there are just 11 other people like Carol. The rest are now part of a hive mind. They want to ease Carol’s burden. But she quickly hangs up the phone, turns off the TV, grabs a bottle of wine, and curls into a ball.
There was little known about Pluribus before it aired. But the appeal of seeing a series from Gilligan starring Seehorn, who was a staple on Better Call Saul, seemed enough of a hook. Once you dive in, you get a mystery box you’re likely not expecting. The pilot was beautifully constructed, laying out a rich series full of possibility. I loved the hour, and I can’t wait to dive in for more!
Pluribus streams Fridays on Apple TV. We will be recapping the action of each episode here every week. Check back here to find out what happens in episode 2 and the rest of the season.