‘Gen V’: Why Does Dean Shetty Wants to Make the Virus Contagious?

In Episode 5 of ‘Gen V,’ we learned that Doctor Cardosa was working on a specific virus that was supposed to control the supes. Dean Indira Shetty was aware of that the whole time and was behind the whole project as she seemingly had an interest in the virus being developed as soon as possible. In Episode 6, Carodosa delivered, and Shetty wanted him to amp up the virus even more, resulting in the death of supe, which both she and Cardosa considered extraordinary. The last question that Dean Shetty asked was, can you make it contagious? Why would Shetty want to make a virus lethal to supes contagious? 

Shetty was the main mastermind behind the virus, even though Dr. Cardosa developed it 

Early in the series, we learned about the existence of “The Woods,” a special underground facility where unstable supes that “no one would miss” were held. At first, we assumed that this was merely a mental facility for unstable supes to protect the general society from them, but as the course of the series went on, we learned that there is something far more sinister about it.

Luke’s brother Sam was held there and experimented upon often by Dr. Cardosa. Cardosa’s main job was to cut up supes, see what makes them tick, and develop a virus meant to control them by making them sick and blocking their powers somehow. 

Shetty was aware of all that, and she managed to keep the whole thing hidden by having Cate mind-wipe everyone associated with it, including Luke, Sam’s brother who committed suicide in the first episode after he likely discovered that he was also used as a test subject. Due to having his mind wiped so many times, Golden Boy’s psyche was irreparably damaged, and he blew himself up at the Godolkin University Campus. 

Cardosa also wanted to do tests on Marie due to her unusual blood-related powers. Still, Shetty refused, claiming that Marie had a secret benefactor with a vested interest in her. 

Cardosa developed the virus, and it’s lethal 

At the start of episode 6, we see Cardosa delivering the latest results to Shetty. They visited a supe named Betsy, who seemingly had the powers to manipulate electrical energy. 

Betsy was coughing violently, and her powers were damped. She was also chained to a wall, able to move only so far away from her bed. 

Cardos asked Betsy how she was feeling with a mocking tone, while Shetty looked pleased that they finally had some kind of concrete results. 

Cardosa revealed that he injected the virus into Betsy two days ago and that the results were almost immediate. Shetty also asked whether the thing that Betsy had was contagious, and Cardosa told her that it wasn’t. The virus bonds itself to Compound V in someone’s blood, and as long as Compound V is not present in the blood, the virus will have no effect whatsoever. Cardosa presented an obviously dangerous virus to “compassionately” control supes. 

He also claimed that the report for Vought would be ready “today,” however, Shetty told him that they were not ready yet and that no report should be submitted. This is the first clue that Shetty has her own agenda regarding this virus and that she is likely not following a plan placed in front of her by Vought.

Shetty then made a controversial statement. She told Cardosa that he should up the virus dosage to see how sick they could make her. 

What happened to Betsy after the dosage was increased? 

After Cardosa “concernated” the dose, Betsy died. Instead of getting the usual symptoms associated with viral sickness, Betsy started hemorrhaging from every hole in her body. 

Cardosa was shocked and claimed that he only gave her 5 milliliters of the virus more, and he was horrified that they managed to kill a super. Shetty wasn’t mad or disappointed; her face quickly turned to the face of resolve, and she asked Cardosa whether he could make the virus lethal. 

Shetty likely wants to get rid of the supes 

Nothing so far in the series was confirmed, but Shetty likely has her own agenda regarding supes, and she wants to see them culled from the general society. At least, this is my theory, and my first clue was Shetty’s interaction with Tek Knight. 

During their brief exchange, Tek Knight was fairly rude toward Shetty and seemingly demeaned her for not having superpowers, implying that she is worse than him and the supes altogether. 

I would believe that this is something that happens fairly often to Shetty. Supes constantly surrounds her despite not having superpowers. You are bound to start suffering from an inferiority complex at one point. 

It’s also likely that Shetty has seen too much s*** over the years, which has gotten her radicalized. It’s possible that by dealing with teen supes she became aware of what kind of catastrophic future awaits us if they are not eradicated completely.

It’s also quite possible that Shetty experienced supe-related tragedy in the past, and she never forgave them for it, which would explain why she could be so sympathetic toward Cate and Marie, who hurt their families by accident.

Is Vought aware that Shetty is making a supe-killing virus? 

Vought is behind the virus, but to control the supes, not to kill them. They have no idea what Shetty is asking Cardosa to do, and this is why she told Cardosa not to submit the report. Shetty is likely doing this as a lone operative and using the original Vought experiment as a cover. 

It makes no sense for Vought to want to develop a contagious lethal supe-killing virus since supes are their primary source of income. 

In any case, we will learn more about Shetty’s motivations in the next episode, which drops on October 27. 

Why do you think Shetty wants to make the virus contagious? Let us know in the comments below!