"Gordon Smith said that the ending originally ended on a "much subtler" note, describing it as "a secret handshake between [Carol and Manousos], like her way of saying, ‘I’m with you.’" However, executives at Sony Pictures Television and Apple TV felt that this ending would not sit well with the series' ambitious scale, which is what led to the writers deciding to place the atom bomb in Carol's house.[3] On the ending, Vince Gilligan said, "we think we know why she did it. Where it goes, we'll see, but she is a character who likes a bold gesture. Which is one of the things I love about her." this kinda shit really bums me out, maybe Vince Gilligan knows how to tell a story better than some Apple exec? who can say
prestige tv pod mentioned the atom bomb being written into the plot the same way the machine gun was in walter whites trunk in the final season of breaking bad where they put it there without having a resolution in mind and knowing they would have to figure it out later.
After a very slow season this finale felt oddly rushed? Monousos is a great character though. Mad Carol shot at him before we could see if his plan would work. Curious what she could do with an atom bomb with no real way to launch or deploy it. Felt very out of character for her to fall for Zosia so easily and is so selfish she was willing to sell out the entire human race until it affected *her* directly. Idk, I enjoy this show but it isn't perfect
I think it does a good job at contrasting how difficult and clumsy human interaction and collaboration can be, even when people have relatively similar goals, to how smooth and effortless it is for the hivemind. But it's also pretty effective to show how the moment Kusimayu is assimilated at the beginning, all of the life and music in the scene just ends, leaving everything feeling so strange and sterile. I think Carol falling for Zosia makes sense, and that whole section goes to show how easy it would be to be seduced by them, even for someone like Carol. They can take you anywhere, give you anyone, and the only alternative she has is sticking with Monousos who admittedly seems a little unhinged and aggressive from her perspective. She clearly became exceptionally lonely after her long period of isolation and I think since then it's been harder for her to keep herself in opposition to them. Her shooting at Monousos was probably the first time in the season I have been annoyed at Carol's actions although again I do think it makes sense from her perspective. Overall I thought it was a pretty fantastic season, and I'm very excited to see where it goes.
I enjoyed the finale a decent amount, but there wasn't exactly a "wow" factor that justifies waiting at least 2 years for the next season. I mean, I'm super excited for more, but it's such a bummer to have to wait that long for more of a show like this. All the more reason that a show like the pitt is a breath of fresh air.
This season 1 was a slow burn and the finale was the first "payoff" (for me) I felt all season, really enjoyed the finale Coming off BB/BCS I know to let things kinda marinate with Gilligan, I'll give him some more leash and see what he has in store for S2
Since Breaking Bad Vince Gillian is like now that I have your attention I will be taking things slow thank you
Just wrapped this up last night, enjoyed this season overall, but the pilot was so good. I felt like the remainder of the season didn’t quite live up to those expectations. Still very good and I trust Vince so I’m looking forward to what comes next, even if it’s in two years, lol
Severance is the only Apple show that’s taken forever in between seasons. Most of the other shows are yearly releases.
Binged the entire season yesterday. Good stuff. First episode is one of the best ever. Then the rest just felt like a VG paced show but still excited to see where it goes. Like that it took her 40 days or whatever to turn into Will Forte on day 1 in Last Man on Earth.
Just wrapped up. I thought this started only pretty good and by the end I was fully onboard. A seriously great finale with Manousos as the highlight, and I hope we get a lot more of him next season. Beautifully sad piano piece during the montage of Carol traveling with Zosia. I really enjoyed the AI / cultural complacency satirization throughout the season, and I hope the show expands its commentary more as the world gets built.
What’s crazy is there was zero intention of an AI critique. Which, to me, how could it not be? Curious if that’ll shape the writing of season 2
Maybe Vince just meant that in his initial idea of the story but then as it became more developed and fleshed it out, he brought more inspiration from current events into it idk
This season felt like an artistic exercise more than a television season, IMO. It was 2-3 creative choices—1) dedicate 90% of screen time to 1 actor’s performance, 2) show benign action and repetitive activity that would be cut from every other show, and 3) do not let the plot twist or heighten in any way that may distract focus from the previous two artistic creative choices. It feels like season 2 of the show will essentially be the beginning of the actual dramatic story and action of Pluribus. Season 1 was an An-Occurance-at-Owl-Creek-Bridge-like season-long exploration of an internal struggle that most shows would convey in 5-25 minutes of screen time without losing any depth needed to tell a story like this. If we get halfway through season 2 and it’s just more purposefully anti-plot, anti-pacing spinning of wheels disguised as an anti-sci-fi sci-fi character study, instead of showing an actual consequence of Carol and Manousos teaming up to be a proactive opposition, I’m out. I don’t think Gilligan is crushing the cinematography and score and character exploration and critique of human nature and acting direction enough to be this slow and purposefully non-engaging with the plot of an alien virus that takes over the world.
I see the sterility and quiet as a stylistic decision to express how empty Carol’s world has become. Yeah, there’s a vacancy in everything, making it a unique television experience, but why would I want it to be like everything else? The repressed, stark nature of it is the intent. I believe it’s a commentary on AI. I don’t want an alien-invasion type thing where there’s constant action and a twisty plot. We’ve already seen that before—even from Gilligan himself. Also surprised you don’t like the visuals or the acting.