Pluribus Episode 6 might be one of the most anticipated yet after last week’s cliffhanger ending, and according to a new theory, things could be getting even worse for Carol (Rhea Seehorn). Warning: spoilers for Episode 5 ahead!
In Episode 5 of the Apple TV series, ‘Got Milk’, the hive mind decided it needed some “space” from Carol, and she used the time to investigate why the city’s trashcans are filled with so many empty milk cartons.
She discovered that The Others have been living off an odorless, neutral, amber liquid, which they’d been manufacturing themselves and pumping into milk cartons. Finally, Carol heads into one of the factories where she finds the source of this liquid.
She lifts up the tarp and appears confused before realizing what she’s looking at, causing her to gasp in sheer horror. But the episode ends there, meaning we’ll have to wait for Episode 6 to find out what was in that crate.
Pluribus Episode 6 theory points to Carol’s darkest moment yet
The leading theory is that it’s human remains – it’s the only thing that would create such a horrified reaction from Carol. But a new Reddit theory based on the writer and director of Pluribus Episode 6, ‘HDP’, suggests that the real horror will be the impact the discovery has on Carol, rather than the discovery itself.
You see, Vera Blasi – the scribe behind Sabor da Paixão, Tortilla Soup, and Emperor – is credited as the writer for Episode 6. And as the Reddit user pointed out, those first two movies in particular are about “food, bodies, intimacy, identity, family, memory, trauma.”
“She uses food the way some writers use religion or violence. It’s emotional. Cultural. Personal. Sometimes painful,” they explained.
“Now here’s the part that grabbed me. She didn’t just show up out of nowhere. She was in the writers’ room since Episode 1, shaping the season with the rest of the team. And the only episode she writes by herself is Episode 6.
“That is never random in a Vince Gilligan show. Usually that means this is the most emotionally loaded chapter. The one where the character breaks or transforms. The one you don’t hand to someone who doesn’t understand the emotional spine of the story.”
But, as they pointed out, “it gets even better when you look at the director.” The director of ‘HDP’ is Gandja Monteiro, who helmed Brand New Cherry Flavor. If you’ve seen this horror TV show, you’ll know that it has one of the most grotesque sex scenes ever seen on screen.
More significantly, the Redditor notes how Monteiro “doesn’t do cheap scares. She does psychological discomfort. Sensory pressure. Strange imagery that gets under your skin without ever going full gore.”
When combining these factors, you’ve got a writer who uses food for emotional storytelling and a director who specializes in intimate horror and tension, working together for an episode following up on a grisly food-related discovery.
“Everything about this combination screams that Episode 6 isn’t going to be about the surface mystery of what Carol saw. It’s going to be about what it does to her,” they continued.
“The emotional hit. The moral shock. The psychological fallout. A chapter that hurts in a human way, not through explicit violence.
“I’m not claiming to know the truth of what she saw. The show hasn’t confirmed anything. But this creative pairing at this exact moment in the story is way too deliberate to ignore.
“Honestly, the more I look at this, the more it feels like Episode 6 is designed to be the most emotional and uncomfortable episode of the season. Not because it’ll be gory, but because it’ll mean something.”
Episode 5 cliffhanger could tie to Carol’s past
If the liquid really is human, Episode 6 could go one step further: the remains might belong to someone Carol actually knew before the virus hit.
The show has already sprinkled in flashbacks of her old life and her unresolved grief over Helen, so imagine the impact if Carol recognizes a bracelet, a tattoo, or even clothing tied to her past.
Or, what if the bodies are of those who died during one of the meltdowns caused by her anger? The discovery wouldn’t just horrify her, but it would also collapse the emotional distance she’s tried to keep from everything she’s lost.
Plus, it would make her quest to find a cure to the virus all the more urgent.
The Redditor’s theory has sparked a lively discussion, with one writing, “The director worked on Agatha All Along too. I would guess it’s some trauma flashback and fleshing out about Carol’s internal world.”
“I love it when people bring the whiteboard out,” said another. “This is a brilliant post.”
Others have shared their own theories, with one writing, “There was a theory it’s babies. That the joining is incompatible with children under a certain age and that if you see a box of babies the first place your mind will go is dolls.
“Because frozen babies isn’t an image you would be expecting even if you were expecting bodies (and as a writer, how could Carol not expect bodies?). And the horror of a bunch of dead babies is so intense the mind fights to reject it until it can’t.
“So the theory is Carol saw the box and her thought process is thus: ‘What? Is that dolls? Why are there dolls here? Are-no-it’s babies? HOLY SH*T ITS BABIES.’
“It seems OTT for me but I just can’t see someone who writes bad fantasy romance to be shocked and surprised at bodies. She is jaded and writers read a lot.”
Some have pointed out that the TV show could delay the tarp reveal for another week. “Watch Vince make an entire episode about the Colombian character escaping Paraguay,” quipped one.
Another replied, “That might actually happen. There’s trailer footage of him driving along the coast and through a town that looks like South America.”
“I really like this theory,” added a third. “I only question if finding out what she saw and what would elicit that reaction may not pay off until later in the season. Feels like this episode will move back and hold off on the ‘reveal.’”
Taking this one step further, it’s been suggested that the Episode 6 title – ’HDP’ – could stand for “hijo de puta” in Spanish (translated to ‘son of a b*tch’).
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the next episode focuses on the other survivors. HDP means son of a b*tch in Spanish,” said one.
“HDP usually stands for ‘hijo de puta’ in Spanish (‘son of a b*tch’),” commented another, to which a third responded, “Which is what the survivor from Paraguay calls the pod people.”
It’s certainly food for thought, so to speak. Thankfully, there’s not long to wait, with Pluribus Episode 6 landing on Apple TV on December 5.
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