A review of this week's Pluribus, "The Gap" — with spoilers — coming up just as soon as you get me an ice cold Gatorade...
Alan Sepinwall
"The Gap" is the story of two solo journeys — one physical, one emotional — separated by 5,000 miles, but linked by the dispositions of the two people going on them. Carol and Manousos are the only Old-Schoolers that we know of who dislike the new state of the world. They want as little as possible to do with the Others, and would do anything to undo the Joining and restore humanity to its factory settings. And each spends their half of "The Gap" doing everything they can to prove that they don't need these smiling weirdos around, only for each to fail utterly at this goal.
Though the hour is bookended by Carol trying to enjoy having all of Albuquerque and its surrounding environs to herself, it will most likely be remembered best for its riveting middle chapter, where Manousos attempts to complete the solo overland journey from Paraguay to New Mexico. It's a gorgeous travelogue(*), but also a riveting portrait of a man with a hardcore code of ethics, determined to stay true to it no matter the personal risk or cost. It's a testament to how richly conceived Manousos is as a character, and how deftly Carlos-Manuel Vesga embodies his steeliness, that a man we've only gotten brief glimpses of in previous episodes could carry such a long stretch of time where he goes out of his way to not interact with anyone else.