There really is no better time than the end of the year to catch up on all the series your coworkers spent the last twelve months flapping their lips about. Severance is one of those after the series’ S2 finale absolutely melted everybody’s brains back in March this year. And before you ask, yes, it has been picked up for a third season, meaning you won’t be left with a cliffhanger. Until 2027, anyway. We’re sorry about that.
Severance is otherworldly sci-fi cooked to perfection
Severance follows in the footsteps of The Twilight Zone and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which is certainly good company. The story centres around Mark (Adam Scott), a former history teacher struggling to get over the sudden and tragic death of the love of his life. He takes up a job at Lumon, undergoing a procedure known coloquially as ‘severance’, which separates a person’s work and home life memories. Mark doesn’t even know what his job is at Lumon. He clocks in at 09h00 and out at 17h00, seemingly instantaneously.
Of course, it’s still our hero, Mark, going to do… whatever it is he’s doing at Lumon. He’s assigned to the Macrodata Refinement team, consisting entirely of other ‘severed’ workers — all of whom can’t remember life on the outside, but instead the hours of 09h00-17h00 every weekday. This is their life, seemingly forever, with no way to retain those memories outside. It’s this eerily haunting note that Severance plucks at over and over again.
Mark S, as he’s called down in the bowels of the Lumon, is more than content with his life at Lumon. He’s got friends; Dylan and Irving — played by the remarkable Zach Cherry and John Turturro — and a love for following the rules. But when his best friend, Petey (Yul Vasquez), randomly quits without so much as a goodbye, only to be replaced by newcomer Helly. E (Britt Lower), it sets off a chain reaction on the so-called ‘innies’ winding journey to uncover the truth about their missing friend, their jobs, the goats (?), and most importantly… themselves.
What2Watch: Andor
We’ll leave it at that for now. Severance revels in its overarching mystery, which promises at least three-to-four packed seasons to fully uncover and wrap up neatly. Whether we’ll ever get all the way there remains to be seen, but judging by the soaring ratings and renewal for season 3, it seems likely that we will. One day, anyway.
But it isn’t just the decent sci-fi plot that sets Severance apart. It’s a culmination of some of the greatest minds coming together to create something special. There’s Dan Erickson, the mastermind behind it all — plus the star-studded cast we mentioned before (with special mention of Trammell Tillman, who steals every scene he’s in) — and even Ben Stiller, who serves as executive producer and, on occasion, director. That’s without mentioning the terrific production value, breakneck pacing, and superb score that elevate the experience.
It’s a series that excels in its clever writing that doesn’t attempt to spoon-feed answers, and basks in the stunned silence viewers are undoubtedly left in after every reveal. The mind-bending S1 finale may well be the greatest episode of television ever, or at least it was until the S2 finale came along to steal its crown. But without some solid ground to stand on, it just wouldn’t function. But Severance delivers, time and again.
