Vince Gilligan’s new Apple TV+ series has dropped two mind-bending episodes, and that cliffhanger has everyone guessing what happens next. Carol planted herself in front of Air Force One, and now we’re left wondering how this standoff resolves. Here are my predictions for where episode three takes this story.
Carol Will Successfully Retrieve Zosha
That dramatic runway sprint wasn’t for nothing. Episode 3 of Plurbius Season 1 will open with Carol confronting President Kumba directly, refusing to budge until Zosha comes with her. The confrontation will get heated. Expect Carol to finally unleash her anger about how Kumba’s been exploiting women in the collective for his own benefit.
Kumba will likely back down. The collective can’t cause harm, which means forcibly removing Carol could create problems. Plus, Zosha originally chose to go with Carol anyway, so she’ll agree to return to Albuquerque. This sets up the core dynamic for the rest of the episode: Carol and Zosha alone together, forced to actually communicate.
We’ll Get Carol’s Origin Story Through Flashbacks
The show’s been teasing Carol’s past without showing it. Episode three will finally deliver flashbacks revealing how she became “Earth’s most miserable person.”
Expect to see a younger Carol, probably passionate about writing, maybe freshly out of college—struggling to make it as an author. We’ll likely witness a traumatic event or series of failures that pushed her toward alcohol. The breathalyzer in her car suggests a DUI conviction, so perhaps we’ll see the incident that led to it: maybe she was driving drunk after a particularly devastating rejection or personal loss.
The flashbacks will probably also show her decision to write commercial fiction instead of the authentic queer love story she wanted to tell. We’ll see the moment she compromised her artistic vision for financial success, planting the seeds of the self-loathing that defines her now.
Helen’s Death Will Trigger Carol’s Emotional Breakdown
Carol’s been operating on autopilot since Helen joined the collective. She hasn’t processed the loss yet; she’s been too busy surviving. Episode three will force her to finally grieve.
I predict a powerful scene where Zosha gently pushes Carol to talk about Helen. The dam will break, and we’ll see Carol vulnerable for the first time. She’ll confess her regrets about hiding their relationship, about never publishing the book that mattered, about wasting years afraid to live authentically.
This emotional honesty will create a genuine connection between Carol and Zosha. It’ll be the first time Carol’s been real with anyone in years, and it’ll change their dynamic completely.
Zosha Will Reveal Her Individual Personality
Up until now, Zosha’s been mostly a vessel for the collective consciousness. Episode three will peel back those layers to show who she was before the merge.
I’m predicting we’ll learn Zosha’s backstory. Maybe she was a college student, or worked a dead-end job, or was struggling with her own demons. The collective remembers everything, so she can share her pre-merge memories if Carol asks the right questions.
This revelation will humanize Zosha in Carol’s eyes. She’ll stop seeing “the collective” and start seeing a specific person who lost her autonomy. That shift will deepen Carol’s determination to find a cure.
Carol Will Discover a Potential Weakness in the Collective
During her conversations with Zosha, Carol will stumble onto crucial information about how the collective works. Maybe Zosha will mention something that seems insignificant but sparks an idea in Carol’s mind.
My guess? Carol will realize that strong positive emotions might affect the collective differently than negative ones. We’ve seen anger cause seizures, but what about overwhelming joy or love? Could flooding the collective with positive feelings create a different kind of disruption that preserves individual consciousness?
Carol will start formulating a plan, though she won’t act on it yet. This episode will be about gathering information and building relationships, not action.
We’ll Meet Another One of the Twelve
The show’s established that twelve people remain unassimilated. Carol’s one of them. Episode three will introduce us to at least one other.
I’m predicting this person will be Carol’s opposite. Maybe someone who’s ecstatic about their immunity, celebrating their autonomy while everyone else has lost theirs. Or possibly someone who’s desperately trying to join the collective but can’t, feeling isolated and left out.
This meeting will challenge Carol’s perspective and add another dimension to the central question: Is resistance worth it? The new character will either strengthen Carol’s resolve or make her question whether she’s fighting for the right reasons.
Pluribus Episode 3 Will End on Another Cliffhanger
Gilligan loves keeping audiences hooked. Pluribus Episode 3 will probably end with Carol making a dangerous decision based on what she’s learned.
My prediction? Carol will voluntarily expose herself to the collective in a controlled way, maybe asking Zosha to try assimilating her to test her theory about positive emotions as a weapon. The episode will cut to black right as Carol’s consciousness begins to merge, leaving us terrified about whether she’ll retain her individuality or become absorbed permanently.
Alternatively, the cliffhanger could involve one of the other immune humans doing something catastrophic that forces Carol to act. Maybe they’ll try to destroy the collective entirely, threatening to kill billions of connected people in the process.
The Bigger Picture Will Start Coming Together
While the episode stays focused on Carol and Zosha’s relationship, we’ll get hints about the collective’s true nature and origins. Maybe Zosha will share memories that aren’t from Earth, visions of other planets the entity has consumed.
These breadcrumbs will set up the larger mystery: What is this thing, where did it come from, and what does it want? Episode three won’t answer these questions definitively, but it’ll give us enough information to start forming theories.
Carol will also begin to see the moral complexity of her mission. If she finds a cure and forces billions of blissfully happy people back into their miserable individual lives, is that actually heroic? The episode will complicate her motivations and make us question whether we’re rooting for the right outcome.
Bottom Line
Episode three will be a character-driven installment that deepens our understanding of Carol while advancing the plot in subtle but crucial ways. Expect emotional revelations, the beginning of Carol’s strategic planning, and at least one shocking twist that changes everything we think we know about the collective.
The rescue of Zosha is just the opening move. What follows will be an intimate exploration of two people trying to connect across an impossible gulf. One woman contains billions of minds, the other so isolated she’s forgotten how to truly care about anyone. Their relationship will become the emotional core of the series and possibly the key to understanding whether humanity deserves salvation.
