JuicyTalk
This article contains major spoilers for Pluribus episode 7.
With a significantly slower pace than previous episodes, Pluribus episode 7 walks through the lonely journeys of Carol and Manousos in the new world.
Since the beginning of its runtime, Pluribus has established that Carol and Manousos are the two immune individuals who refuse to accept the infected ones. While others have learned to co-exist with the “Others,” Carol and Manousos do not even seek help from them. Manousos, in fact, goes to even more extreme lengths than Carol to avoid any contact with the infected.
The two characters from Apple TV’s Pluribus try to stand up for what they think is right and ensure they keep enough distance between them and the “Others.” However, to their dismay, this proves to be harder than they had anticipated.
Why Carol Cries & Hugs Zosia In Pluribus Episode 7’s Ending
After leaving Vegas, Carol initially has the time of her life. She tries to ignore the fact that both the infected and the immune want nothing to do with her. However, soon, loneliness starts creeping in, and she grows tired of her life in isolation. Deep down, she starts realizing that pushing the infected people away from her might have been a big mistake.
As a result, she starts craving their company. She even paints a “Come Back” message for them on her driveway, hoping that they will forgive her and give her a second chance. In the Apple TV sci-fi show, the “Others” finally listen to her, and Zosia shows up at her door.
One look at Zosia makes Carol realize how much she missed her. Even though she put her life at risk to “save” humanity from the virus and despised the infected people like her when they were around, she understands that she needs them more than they need her.
What Carol’s Change Of Heart Means For Her Pluribus Story
Carol’s change of heart towards the infected suggests that she might give them a second chance. Instead of trying to find a way to cure them and reverse the pandemic, she might try to coexist with them. This would be a major roadblock in her journey to restore humanity and individuality, as she knew it, in the world.
At the same time, though, this could also give her an opportunity to get closer to the infected. The closer she gets, the more she might end up learning about them. This, in turn, might lead her to new revelations about the ways in which she can reverse the pandemic and save humanity for good.
Who Rescues Manousos In The Woods?
Manousos, like Carol, refuses to accept the new normal. He seems even more hostile towards the infected than Carol and refuses to accept any help from them. Even when they approach him when he enters the woods during his journey to meet Carol, he establishes clear boundaries and even threatens to harm them.
To his dismay, Manousos almost ends up dead when he severely injures himself in the woods. Fortunately, for him, the infected seem to keep a close eye on him instead of completely leaving him alone. Therefore, when he falls to the ground and almost dies, they show up to rescue him.
With this, like Carol, Manousos might also be forced to believe that the infected are not as bad as he imagined. However, considering his previous hostility towards them, Manousos might still hold on to his previous beliefs about them and refuse to coexist with them.
How Pluribus Episode 7 Reveals Carol & Manousos Are Not The Same
Manousos goes as far as starving himself in the show’s opening arc. He even feeds on dog food just to ensure he does not even have to talk to the infected people and accept food from them. Even after he sets out on his journey to see Carol, he avoids all contact with the infected. And when he does talk to them, he delivers a brutal warning that he will never consider them normal.
Carol, in contrast, has never completely ignored the infected. She has, in fact, even accepted their help on multiple occasions.
It would be interesting to see how meeting Manousos would affect Carol in Pluribus, especially after her change of heart towards the infected in episode 7. It seems possible that Pluribus is also setting up Manousos as its main villain, given how much he hates the infected.
