Severance is undoubtedly the biggest television series so far this year. Dropping three years after its first season, the Apple TV+ series has had audiences (myself included) waiting with bated breath for each week’s instalment. With all episodes now released, it’s safe to say that season two completely stuck the landing, and I’ll be surprised if it doesn’t become next year’s awards season darling.
Expanding on the world that was introduced in the first season — one that is seemingly outside of any singular time or space — the ten episodes this season take us places that are geographically and thematically further than anything else we’ve seen in the show. Whether it’s the uncanny ORTBO setting in episode four, Cobel’s glacial hometown in episode eight, or the terrifying fragmentation of the testing floor, Severance goes deeper and darker across the whole season.
We also got to see various other sides of each character, which both broadened the scope of the story and made the connections with these characters feel more intimate. Getting to see both outie and innie Dylan (Zach Cherry) interact with Gretchen (Merritt Wever) was fascinating, endearing, and heartbreaking all in one. I was particularly interested in the glimpses we got of Helena (Britt Lower) in the outside world (who we later learn had also been hiding in plain sight during the beginning of the season). Gaining insight into her personal, familial, and professional life was deeply troubling, both for how these things impacted her (and Helly), and for what it signalled about Lumon as a company.
Perhaps the most powerful theme to be developed throughout the season was that of personal agency. From the very beginning of the show, this is a core struggle: What does it mean, personally and morally, to undergo the severance procedure? Can the innies make a life for themselves? Is it even worth trying? Throughout this season, we gain a deeper understanding of the harm that severance can create in a life. Questions of bodily autonomy, consent, loyalty, duty, and identity are all brought to the front of characters’ and audiences' minds, and there is no easy answer for any of these things. It is the complexity of these themes that makes the show so interesting and moving, at least to me, and I’m extremely glad that this season doesn’t attempt to resolve its conflicts neatly. In particular, the struggles between the innie and outie versions of characters are fleshed out more than ever before, and we begin to see the serious emotional consequences that arise from trying to live out two lives at once.
The season finale is beautiful in how it addresses such consequences, ending with a final character choice that can only be described as bittersweet. The overarching presence of love — and the question of whether or not it (whatever it is) can transcend severance — is never felt more than in the latter half of this season, which explores such complicated character and relationship dynamics with an incredible degree of nuance. The show trusts that its audience is insightful and intelligent, prompting viewers to question their own assumptions about what love, life, or personhood might look like. Needless to say, I found myself extremely invested in the storylines that were explored this season. I was so moved by moments in which the innies choose to act on their own desires or longings, exercising agency in the context of a life that has been created for them without their consent, and without any serious regard for what they might experience (the good or the bad).
Ultimately, this season succeeded in cementing Severance as one of the most exciting series currently airing. Its technical choices, from music to cinematography (big shoutout to Jessica Lee Gagné) to editing,g all came together to create a truly one-of-a-kind viewing experience. With season three having just been confirmed, the only thing left for me to do is wait (impatiently) to see where it will take us next.
Photos : Apple TV+
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