Pluribus Is Sneakily Making A Case For The Borg
Wait. Maybe we do want to all be linked?
Within the mythos of Star Trek, the concept of the hive mind of the Borg is one of the best double-edged swords in all of science fiction. On the one hand, the Borg brutally deprive a person of their individuality and turn them into worker drones, working toward a vague idea of complete perfection for the Collective, and (sometimes) a Borg Queen. But, on the other hand, being part of the Collective is sometimes ephorphic, and is presented as the ultimate cure for loneliness. And while the Star Trek franchise has done a good job at exploring alternate takes on the Borg in recent years, one sci-fi show is doing the same thing, but in a new, very realistic way.
In the seventh episode of Vince Gilligan’s Apple TV series, Pluribus, “The Gap,” the series makes a strange case for why a Collective, shared hive mind might not only be desirable, but, shockingly, necessary.
Warning: Spoilers ahead!
Carlos Manuel Vesga in Pluribus.
Without a doubt, “The Gap” is the loneliest episode of Pluribus, following Carol (Rhea Seehorn) and Manousos (Carlos Manuel Vesga) as each tries to survive without going nuts. The contrast here is clear: Carol has no problem cynically calling up the Others and asking them to deliver her all sorts of things, from gas to a Gatarode. Meanwhile, Manousos refuses all help from the others, including gas and food. He even leaves money on the windshields of cars that he steals gas from, indicating his belief that humanity will return to individual minds at some point in the future. Carol glibly pretends like she’s not lonely, while Manousos defies the Others, telling them, directly, that they do not belong on this planet.
However, by the end of the episode, both Carol and Manousos literally can't survive without the Others, without the hive mind of the Joining. Carol desperately sends a message written in paint for the Others to “come back,” while Manousos is airlifted from a South American jungle, following a near-fatal collapse.
What is Pluribus saying with this ending? Well, if this were a Star Trek episode, the message would be clear: the Borg Collective can save your life. It’s a startling idea, but in a sense, both Carol and Manousos have to assimilate into the idea of the Others, or face insanity, or even a fatal, darker ending.
Do we want to be closer to the Borg actually?
What’s interesting about all of this is that Pluribus not-so-subtly makes the viewer question if this isn’t too different than the way a globalized society already works, minus, of course, the idea of suffering, poverty, and social class. In real life, like Carol, we get on our phones and order things for delivery, not worrying about the inconvenience. And, on that same token, those noble enough to try to live without the various systems of economic interdependence can find themselves close to the grave very quickly.
In Star Trek, the reason it's okay to resist the Borg, and the reason why resistance is not futile, is because there is a utopian humanistic collective that offers an organic, egalitarian way of life.
In Pluribus, there is no alternative society. In this sci-fi conceit, you can’t beat them, so you might as well join them. But if you willingly give up your individuality, have you admitted you’re deeply human? Or have you sold your humanity out to something else? Strangely, Pluribus may not be saying one way or another — which is why this show is currently one of the best science fiction narratives on TV.
