Severance revolutionized the genre of science fiction in modern television in the same way Yellowstone launched a neo-Western renaissance. Both shows have had a major impact in the arena of pop culture entertainment, and a major aspect of the impact should be credited to the ingenuity of Ben Stiller and Taylor Sheridan – the creative powerhouses behind the creation of the shows.
However, despite how brilliant Severance might be, every great project often arrives at a crossroads where it is analyzed, questioned, and even dissected by varying public opinion. For Stiller’s Apple TV series, the crossroads came in the aftermath of a revelation in Season 1 involving the outie identities of Helly R. and Ms. Casey.
Now, as the series dives into a deranged Season 2 narrative, each episode leads to more questions than satisfactory answers.
Severance Season 2 takes a wild left turn
As elusive as Lumon’s true purpose is, its overarching influence over the innie “employees” is even more disturbing. From the very first episode of Season 1, a sense of foreboding terror shrouds the story like a fog, even through the eerie calmness of every character, their unmistakably artificial smiles, the deranged obsession of Ms. Cobel, and the forced utopia of Lumon.
However, Season 2 of Severance dials up the confusion by several degrees as fans get increasingly hooked on the storyline while still asking questions like: What the heck is this series even about? But the series finale finally delivers on the show’s long-awaited closure. For one, Mark and Helly’s relationship develops under a chaotic storm of potential dangers, possibilities, and a future.
The wintery world of Kier also takes a back seat as the show no longer breaks down its setting into the hyper-alive and merry workplace of Lumon and the bleak and desolate reality beyond its walls. The truth about the former Lumon zealot Ms. Cobel also comes to light while the particularly unlikable Helena Eagan gets a brief but effective redemption arc that works more to humanize rather than sympathize with her.
But most of all, the second season of Severance leaves the audience with a lingering question in their minds: Can innies truly exist as distinct individuals separate from their outie identities, and is a relationship between an innie and an outie truly possible? If so, what happens to Mark’s relationship with his wife, Gemma?
Severance might ask for a heavy sacrifice – Theory
No romance has truly ever been epic without the willing sacrifice of one or both parties involved. Although Severance is a far cry from Romeo and Juliet and Titanic, the series may as well be building up to a tear-jerking moment where one person will have to end up sacrificing their all to save the other.
Ever since the big revelation in the season finale, Reddit has been blowing up with fan theories regarding the potential of Mark having a future with Helly R. and the implication of his relationship with the latter on his already-existing bond with Gemma. The easiest possible route to solve the love triangle between Mark, Helly, and Gemma will be for one of them to die in the story.
With Mark’s reintegration making it infinitely more difficult for him to quantify and prioritize his love for Helly over Gemma, fans seem to think that there may be a way out of the convoluted romantic drama, with one Redditor even claiming:
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byu/niamhhhhv from discussion
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Others seem to think that it will be Mark who ends up sacrificing himself for both the women, although that seems unlikely considering a series can’t really exist without its main protagonist. If Ben Stiller chooses to end Severance on a dramatic note, he might kill Adam Scott’s character to drive home an emotionally powerful closure for the series.
Severance is currently streaming on Apple TV+.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
