Severance returns with a propulsive, punchy premiere

Welcome back, Severance. It’s been a minute. After keeping everyone on tenterhooks for three long years, Apple TV+’s hit series is back. It’s safe to say that during this time, thanks to plenty of awards and word-of-mouth, the show’s acclaim has ostensibly increased—and so has the pressure to deliver a sophomore run that lives up to the first. But there’s a big problem facing a puzzle-box drama such as this: Can it successfully build on its suspense, characters, and setting without getting lost in its labyrinthine milieu? If this premiere is any indication, season two is about to pack a brutal, massive punch.  

“Hello, Ms. Cobel” is a weighty hour about the MDR crew’s confused, emotional headspaces after they’ve experienced the finale’s distressing events. Taking place entirely on the severed floor, the episode reflects on how they’re coping individually and as a group. Despite getting caught for activating the overtime contingency, the core four eventually reunite in the hallowed, eerie Lumon hallways. It takes a while, but Mark S. (Adam Scott), Helly R. (Britt Lower), Irving B. (John Turturro), and Dylan G. (Zach Cherry) exchange warm hugs, swap stories, crunch those puzzling numbers, and make a big decision by the time credits roll. 

Severance’s team takes a risk by telling us nothing in this episode about how their outies are dealing with what the innies pulled off. But we’ve waited so long for the consequences, what’s another week to see how Mark Scout is coping after learning that his wife might be alive or how Helena Eagan feels about her counterpart’s on-stage declaration? There’s also Burt (Christopher Walken) opening the door to a maniacal Irving screaming his name. I know these big questions go unresolved, yet it’s impressive how “Hello, Ms. Cobel” offers other answers. 

Let’s begin with Mark S., who was yelling “She’s alive!” to his sister right before OTC was shut down. And now the elevator dings, and he’s back at his nine-to-five. This episode opens with two whole minutes following Mark under the fluorescent lighting, but unlike the series premiere, he isn’t casually strutting to his desk. He’s hastily running to Ms. Casey’s (Dichen Lachman) waiting area only to learn the Wellness Room is gone. (Side note: Ben Stiller’s stellar direction as the camera pans to follow him around adds to the tension.) Even Mark’s coworkers are gone. Instead of the usual team, waiting for him in the green cubicles are Mark W. (Bob Balaban), Gwendolyn Y. (Alia Shawkat), and Dario R. (Stefano Carannante).

There are other shocking revelations: Ms. Cobel/Mrs. Selvig (Patricia Arquette) is fired for her “erotic fixation” on Mark, per the obvious lies of promoted floor manager Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tilman). He also tells Mark that MDR’s rebellion “five months ago” has given them global fame and they’re the face of severance reform. As if. We later learn the company’s latest efforts to keep employees happy include snacks like fruit leather and salsa, a mirror room, pineapple bobbing, and hall passes. If there’s one thing Severance aces at emphasizing, it’s the disconnect between corporate minds and its laborers. The dark satire doesn’t feel like a joke as much as a depiction of a sad reality. 

At least Mark isn’t swayed by dumb things like a gift card or balloons with his face on them anymore. Spending time with a determined Helly has influenced his compliant personality. It’s no wonder he breaks rules to get what he wants. Mark doesn’t try to bond with his new colleagues or answer their questions about the outside. (Gwendolyn asks how the sky was and how the wind felt.) He wants his people back to the extent that he tries to frame Mark W. for breaking Lumon’s rules before rushing to Milchick’s office (like when Helly ran in threatening to cut her arm off in front of Cobel) and sending a message to the Board. 

His wish is their command because the next day Mark enters the lobby to see a massive painting of founder Kier blessing four heads with a message of forgiving betrayers. I’m relieved Severance continues to use artwork and its color pallet to tell a deeper story. One by one, his besties roll out of the elevator, and the MDR crew is taken to the Break Room. But it’s not to be punished; it’s to watch a video titled “Lumon Is Listening,” reminiscent of Succession’s “We Here For You.” Milchick gives them the option of deciding if they want to continue their day jobs. The innies, not outies, are responsible for their fates.

It’s an interesting dichotomy that forms the crux of what Severance is shaping up to be in season two. One of the show’s big themes already is identity and how your experiences define you. The outies have gone through good and bad to shape who they are up until this point. The innies have barely been alive. Their waking hours have amounted to meeting quotas, praising Kier, and earning waffle parties. But that changes when curiosity sparks up. They’re finally, truly beginning to live, even if it’s in a claustrophobic, indoor environment. Giving that up—along with their friendships and crushes—would mean dying. Are they ready for that? 

A quest for independence puts them on a warpath with their other selves more than ever. Helly, the most mutinous of the lot, has to contend with being an Eagan. A classic example of nature versus nurture, she has to cope with being part of the family that has orchestrated her torment. Lower gives a moving performance in “Hello, Ms. Cobel” as Helly internalizes her demons, not sharing her discovery with the others. Instead, she falsely states that she was alone in a boring apartment in her sweatpants and rushed to a gardener to ask for help. Helly doesn’t want her pals to know who she is yet. A popular theory online is that Helena might pretend to be Helly, and while I think it’s possible, props to Lower for toeing the line and keeping me guessing, especially with the ferocity in which she tells Mark, “We don’t owe [our outies] anything.” That’s after Mark S. says he wants to look for Ms. Casey/Gemma because he owes it to his outie to save her. Helly promises to stay and help. 

Meanwhile, Irving can’t cope with Outie Burt having a partner. He’s willing to end his life, so to speak, and quit. It’s Dylan who convinces him to stay for the sake of the friendship they’ve nurtured. Irving telling Dylan “I’m your favorite perk” after listening to his friend’s speech is easily one of my favorite Severance moments as it depicts true character development on both ends. Irv decides to stick around and bear his pain, even if he's whispered about his outie's truth regarding the paintings. I hope he doesn’t regret this choice, especially considering the secret Milchick asks Dylan to keep. 

Yes, a new perk that Dylan is privy to is that Lumon is opening a visitation center where an innie can meet their outie’s families. Dylan G. might see his spouse and kids at some point as long as he doesn’t tell anyone else about this. It’s blackmail, plain and simple, but it works. So for now, MDR stays intact and happily gets back to work as The Allergies’ “God Walked Down” plays. But the loud beats are juxtaposed with a jaw-dropper of a cliffhanger. Mark S. is happily sorting the mysterious numbers into four categories when a different screen somewhere flashes images of Gemma and what looks like her brain scans changing depending on Mark’s accuracy. His mission, dubbed Cold Harbor, is marked as 68-percent complete. Yikes. 

It’s not shocking at all that MDR’s work relates to the Four Tempers established by Kier: woe, frolic, dread, and malice. But this brief glimpse of what Mark’s data sorting directly corresponds to is disturbing. Without realizing it, is he aiding in erasing her memories and feelings? It explains why the couple is important to Lumon and why Cobel was dedicated to observing Mark. It’s a particularly cruel experiment to see if a husband can’t tell what he’s doing to his wife and she ultimately might never recognize him because of it. Whenever the truth comes out, and whatever it will be, it’s going to take a toll on both versions of Mark. It’s a heavy revelation Severance expects us to sit with, making for a crushing, exciting return. 

Stray observations

• • As far as fake reasons go, the writers couldn’t have come up with a funnier one than Ms. Cobel wanting a throuple with Mark’s innie and outie as a reason to get rid of her.
• • Severance introduces Sarah Brock as Ms. Huang, the very young deputy manager following Milchick’s instructions. She makes a terrific first impression as a strict rookie adapting to her circumstances. 
• • We learn this is branch 501, whereas the new MDR folks are transferred from branch 5X, which had animatronic Eagan statues and purple/puce carpets. 
• • Poor Mr. Milchick hilariously earns the nickname Mr. Milkshake and gets called a shambolic rube in this episode. 
• • Severance is a comedy because Milchick referring to Irv as a “tall glass of water” got me laughing. As did this exchange:
  Mark W.: “Why are you a child?”
  Ms. Huang: “Because of when I was born?” 
• • Sarah Sherman is the voice of the water tower from the Lumon Is Listening animation. Love that for her.
• • For an episode titled “Hello, Ms. Cobel,” I’m bummed Patricia Arquette wasn’t in it at all. Although it’s funny that the title comes from Milchick’s lividness at his computer’s welcome message not changing to his name.