Vince Gilligan’s new sci-fi drama Pluribus continues to prove his excellence in creating TV drama that rewards your patience.
Gilligan stuck to his guns with Pluribus, utilising the same team that created arguably the best modern TV show, Breaking Bad, as well as the surprisingly excellent prequel and sequels El Camino and Better Call Saul. It’s set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and features returning actor Rhea Seehorn, who shone as Kim Wexler in Better Call Saul. By extension, Pluribus is familiar ground for both audience and creator, but puts his signature patient character-study style into new territories.
Pluribus centres on Carol Sturka, a ‘romantasy’ author (and all-around curmudgeon), who finds herself one of 13 people mysteriously unaffected by an alien brain hijacking consciousness. The rest of the world is suddenly transformed into a global hive mind that shares simultaneous consciousness, effectively destroying the autonomy of 8 billion humans aside from the unaffected 13. This global consciousness is unnervingly harmonious, going to great lengths to assure Earth’s survivors they mean no harm – their prerogative means they will go to any lengths to make the unaffected happy. Carol finds this disturbing and horrifying, and the show revolves around her exploration of the hive mind’s goals, limits and weaknesses with hopes of saving humanity.
The premise is fascinating. It uses hard sci-fi concepts that are fairly simple to understand, but deeply complex on a social and moral level – the latter being the prominent focus. There’s an element of wish fulfilment that’s fascinating and often wholesome to watch, as the hive mind completes large-scale tasks with expert competency and synchronicity. One of the survivors also takes full advantage, commanding the hive mind to indulge them in lavish company and wealth, which the collective happily obliges. On the other hand, the show explores the moral intricacies of human autonomy, consent, mass assimilation and the eroding of society and culture at large. As great sci-fi does, it inspires introspection – I often found myself wondering what I’d feel or do in Carol’s position.
One of the show’s most pertinent observations concerns instant gratification and overconsumption: the human survivors literally have the world’s wealth and knowledge at their fingertips, much like we do with ever-helpful AI. Both the fictional hive mind and modern AI are designed to indulge and validate their users. A conversation between Carol and the hive mind, where she tests its limits and realises it will give her anything – literally anything – effectively demonstrates why this type of resource can be easily misused. The show isn’t explicitly about AI’s dangers; it serves as one of many cautionary themes explored effectively. It also makes a compelling case for the positive side of the hive mind, making the moral dilemmas more complex and interesting – often leaving you wondering, “Is this really so bad?”
My biggest excitement was seeing Rhea Seehorn act again on a Vince Gilligan project. Kim Wexler became one of my favourite characters in the Breaking Bad universe, largely due to Seehorn’s superb acting. Her characterisation of Carol Sturka is just as impressive and entirely different. Carol is not a typical hero – she’s flawed, and this is entirely purposeful. She’s stubborn, struggles to be happy, has a short temper; simply put, she’s a glass-half-empty person. She’s not someone you’d want as a friend, but she’s the perfect antithesis to the sickeningly sweet hive mind. There’s considerable humour and relatability in watching this traumatised grump get convinced by 8 billion smiling faces that everything is better than ever. An excellent plot device has Carol unable to express too much dissatisfaction in front of the hive mind, otherwise there are devastating consequences. I thought this was a great mirror to micro aggressions and misogynistic reactions to loud voices in society. She’s certainly flawed, and makes decisions that will have you face-palming in front of your TV, but I found her to be a very relatable and sympathetic as her character arc progressed. Karolina Wydra’s performance as Zosia is equally impressive – she captures the serene contentment of the collective consciousness with remarkable restraint, creating a striking contrast to Seehorn’s volcanic intensity.
Gilligan’s production team improves with each project, and Pluribus is their most ambitious and impressive show yet. The scale is bigger – the plot involves the entire globe, so settings span multiple continents. The commitment to visuals is some of the best in television. Gilligan’s team constructed many locations from the ground up, including an entire cul-de-sac for Carol’s home. The cinematography and visual language are stunning – the show takes time to let audiences marvel in technically impressive shots.
This leads to what will likely be the main complaint: the show is slow or uneventful. The pace, aside from notable episodes, is methodical. It explores this new world on a day-to-day, grounded level, showing Carol’s exploration of newfound loneliness as a gradual descent into depression rather than an explosive one. I personally enjoyed this approach; it did wonders for Carol’s relatability and sympathy. I was sometimes let down by stretches that felt more straightforward, purely because other parts were so engaging. I certainly didn’t find the show boring, but if you’re not a fan of the slow mystery unfolding of Severance or Twin Peaks, this might not appeal to you.
Overall, this was one of TV’s most well-made shows of 2025, and if it weren’t for the similarly extraordinary Severance series 2, this probably would’ve been my favourite. The performances are top-notch, and the cinematography subtly magnificent. The plot engaged me in an introspective way I found addictive – I can’t wait for series 2.
Author: Elliot, Holborn Store
