Pluribus (2025) Review: The Sci-Fi Series I Wasn’t Ready For (But Now I’m Obsessed)
I’m going to be honest: when I first saw the trailer and the social media buzz for Pluribus, I scrolled right past it. Didn’t look like my thing. I had zero plans to watch it anytime soon. But yesterday I needed something short, clicked episode 1 “just to try”… and two hours later I’m here writing this review because I’m completely hooked. Vince Gilligan did it again. 9/10 after only two episodes, and I can’t wait for more.
Pluribus (2025): Ep 1-2 The Premise (No Spoilers Beyond Ep 2)
One day a mysterious signal arrives from 600 light-years away. Next thing humanity knows, almost everyone on Earth gets infected by an alien RNA virus. But this isn’t a zombie apocalypse. It’s way weirder—and way scarier.
The virus turns people into a single, peaceful hive mind. They share memories, feel the same emotions, communicate telepathically. No arguments, no war, no sadness. Everyone is… happy. Like, creepily, constantly happy. They call it “the Joining.”
Except 13 people on the entire planet are immune. One of them is Carol (Rhea Seehorn), a fantasy-romance author who hates her own books. Suddenly she’s one of the last real humans left, surrounded by billions of smiling, perfect “Others” who think they saved the world—and gently insist the remaining 13 will join them soon… whether they want to or not.
What Blew My Mind
- Starts with a killer mystery (alien code? what is it?) and then flips into full post-apocalyptic sci-fi that feels totally fresh.
- The “Others” are terrifying because they’re nice. They’re polite, calm, always smiling… and 100 % sure they’re doing the right thing. That’s way creepier than any monster.
- Episode 2 shows the real cost: 886 million people died during the transition. The Others barely mention it because, well, the rest are happy now.
- Rhea Seehorn is incredible. Angry, lonely, stubborn, broken Carol is already one of my favorite characters of the year.
- The hive mind glitches when emotions get too intense—people freeze, crash, even die again. Their “perfect” world isn’t perfect at all.
- Reminds me of Asimov’s Gaia from Foundation: a planet-sized shared mind that thinks it’s utopia… but from the outside it looks like the end of individuality.
Episode Ratings
My episode ratings (for now only watched 2 episodes):
- Episode 1 → 8/10 (great pilot, strong hook)
- Episode 2 → 9/10 (post-apocalyptic world reveal + Carol meeting the Others = chills)
- Overall after two episodes → 9/10 and climbing.
As of today, the show is sitting at a rock-solid 8.4/10 on IMDb (45,000 votes) and an almost unheard-of 98 % on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer with 68 reviews, while the audience Popcornmeter is at 68 %. Critics are calling it everything from “Gilligan’s boldest swing since Breaking Bad” to “the most original sci-fi premise in years.” The gap between critic love and the slightly cooler audience score feels like exactly what you’d expect: some viewers are already frustrated that it’s slow and weird, while others (like me) are eating it up. Either way, those numbers scream “don’t sleep on this one.”
Final Thoughts (For Now)
This is the most thought-provoking show I’ve started in ages. Is forced happiness still happiness? Is a world without pain worth losing free will? And what happens when the last unhappy person on Earth refuses to play along?
I’m already dreading and excited for what comes next. Vince Gilligan + Rhea Seehorn + “the most miserable person on Earth must save the world from happiness” = instant classic in the making.
What did you think of the first two episodes of Pluribus? Are the Others the good guys or the ultimate nightmare? And should I keep reviewing episode by episode? Let me know in the comments—I read everything!
And please drop your next show or movie suggestion. After this I need more smart, twisted sci-fi (or anything Gilligan-level good).
If you’re sleeping on Pluribus like I almost did, wake up and start watching. Thank me later.
