The suspenseful conclusion of “Pluribus” Episode 5, titled “Got Milk,” left audiences in a state of heightened anticipation. Carol (Rhea Seehorn) was last seen shrieking in horror at something hidden from viewers in a food packaging facility. With Apple TV dropping the episode two days ahead of Thanksgiving, fans have been on tenterhooks waiting to uncover the source of her terror. Episode 6, “HDP,” opens with a gripping scene that confirms viewer theories of a “Soylent Green”-esque plot twist.

Fleeing the plant in panic, Carol bravely reenters, now equipped with her video camera. What unfolds is a shocking revelation: the shelves are stacked with freeze-dried human body parts, integral to the hive mind’s “milk” beverage. This revelation is particularly jarring given the hive mind’s claimed vegetarian ethos and their apparent honesty displayed in Episode 4. Discovering their involvement in cannibalism horrifies Carol.

Determined to expose the chilling truth, Carol travels to Las Vegas to confront fellow survivor Koumba (Samba Schutte). To her astonishment, Koumba is already aware of the hive mind’s dark secret and responds with surprising nonchalance. His mild reaction is encapsulated in a simple, “It is troubling.” The explanation for this unsettling secret comes from a surprising source: the hive mind’s former celebrity member, John Cena.

As Koumba turns on the TV, “John Cena” appears, ready to unravel the mystery for Carol. He elucidates that the hive mind’s incapacity to harm living entities extends to plants, rendering them unable to cultivate crops. Consequently, their diet is restricted to fallen fruit, dairy, existing packaged foods, and meat from those already deceased. Although they expressed a preference for vegetarianism, this was sincere. However, the immense caloric needs of over seven billion individuals necessitate utilizing the deceased. The episode’s title, “HDP,” stands for “Human-Derived Protein,” which constitutes 8-12% of their drink.

Koumba turns on the TV, where “John Cena” is ready to explain everything to Carol. Turns out the hive mind’s inability to inflict harm on living things includes plants, and so they are incapable of farming vegetables or grains. This limits their potential diet to fruit that has already fallen off trees, dairy products, pre-existing packaged food… and meat of the already deceased. They’d prefer not to consume the latter, so their original language about preferring a vegetarian diet was honest, but the caloric demands of over seven billion people are impossible to fulfill without making use of the dead. The episode’s title is an acronym for “Human-Derived Protein,” which makes up 8-12% of the hive mind’s drink.

“Pluribus” has had a number of fun guest cameos so far, but Cena’s is both the hardest to miss and the most absurd. Getting a frank, apologetic explanation from a beloved wrestler/actor — even if his mind is no longer that of the original human John Cena — helps paint the “Soylent Green” twist in a more humorous light than Carol’s tense discovery. Having been satisfied with his explanation from “John Cena,” Koumba is less worried by the unorthodox ways the hive mind feeds themselves and more worried about whether they’ll be able to keep doing so — even with “HDP” in their diet, mass starvation is still expected to befall the hive mind within a decade.