Review: Silo Shows the Perils of Authoritarian Hierarchies

Leaders depicted in the Apple TV+ series outlaw "relics" of the past, even including PEZ dispensers.

Ten thousand people living in a primitive 144-floor underground silo believe they are the last people on Earth. For over 100 years, they have been told by the powers that be that outside all is desolate and poisonous. They even have proof, thanks to cafeteria windows showing the surface wasteland. Apple TV+'s Silo, based on Hugh Howey's Wool book series, is a classic tale of the dangers of blindly trusting authority.

The first episode shows that the mayor, the head of I.T., and the head of the judiciary know more about the backstory of the silo than previously revealed. They enforce a mysterious pact—one that stifles communication by not allowing mechanized transportation within the silo and outlaws "relics" from the past such as books, watches, and even PEZ dispensers.

Many residents have never traveled farther than a few levels from the one they were born on. The authorities are secretly surveilling everyone and controlling who can reproduce. When someone shows doubt or suspicion, they are sent to "clean"—wiping the cafeteria window from the outside. Cleanings are a spectacle meant to remind every resident to fall in line and not ask questions. In such rigid hierarchies, the narrative shows, one courageous person can be enough to break the system.