81 Hidden Clues & Details You Missed In Severance Season 1

[@ThinkStory]

What were your favorite clues and details? If you liked this video check out my Severance Season 1 Ending Explained with lots of theories for season 2: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fIrXZ2SkpbmXnKs

[@theshecreature]

Please see my comment in your previous video for an explainer about the colors and goats.

[@nathanielbecker7324]

ALOHAS and 38:39 Episode 2... SSooooooo... as he hits the BUS window...!!! hello Mr. KNight... i will be your TAXI DRIVERS... that was i nice PUNCH... my U TURNS... and tries too PULL HIS BESTEST Rock and R.O.BIN DiNOOOOOROOOs...!!! ARE yous TALKING ta ta TAAAA ME...!!! are yous TALKING TOOO MEEEEEE...meow

[@TheJankyTank]

episode 8 @40:49 Dylan G has a large fly buzz behind him, I cant help but think that must be something eventually, Goat room? also were told where they are and where they are going so all the hallway cutscenes could be stitched together to make an accurate map, the fly being a clue on what room was near

[@ygbgforever]

When Mark asked Helly what Mr. Eagen's favorite breakfast was. That was the first clue she was an Eagen.

[@garylibero4270]

@@ygbgforever May have to disagree with that. He asked that question by mistake. I think the first clue is when Milchick leans in and says to Helena "it's amazing what you're doing".

[@braydendukes6633]

I also think that by sleeping, the innies can somehow make connections to their outties. Like how irving sees paint when he starts getting really tired. And maybe that's a hidden reason as to why their not allowed to do it. Because sleeping allows you to bypass consciousness

[@natalia-jk1wl]

Maybe Irving’s outtie sleep deprived himself so his innie would sleep on the job and figure that out!

[@bassesatta9235]

@@natalia-jk1wl thats exactly what hes doing, Oirving has been to the test centre (as evident by the painting hes drawing). Its also why Oirving is doing research on the possible severanced workers in his town. And we know Oriving has been to the testing centre because hes painting The same elevator that lead casey back to the testing centre). Its also possible irving has an older chip more prone to error

[@Yousadclownofaman]

I realized later in the series that the black goop was representative of Irving’s waking habit of painting, but I still think of it as a symptom of Irv’s worsening condition. His ‘paint episodes’ seem to be presented as a new occurrence to the MDR team; Mark seems surprised at Irving’s spacey attitude and comments on it a couple times. Maybe the Severance implant has the ability to burrow its way deeper into the mind to activate different parts of the brain on its own, as a dead man switch when someone’s Outie gets too close to putting any useful pieces together? (Irv seems to have quite a lot of dirt on Lumen & to have established Burt’s home address is preeeetty significant. Closing the loop between Outie & Innie experience might have irreversible effects! Who knows!)

[@matheustran8009]

That makes a lot of sense, also this would explain why Mark would talk about the effects of sleep in the first episode, to set up this idea

[@gofastboatmojitogofast]

what i dont get is the goo in the intro that mark is battling. How would he see it if he does not paint

[@desmondfromlost]

How am I supposed to just keep living like nothing happened after this show? I crave more severance

[@vikashmahabir]

I just finished and the cliffhanger was insane! I know season 2 isn’t coming any time soon. It’s horrible 😭

[@xShankz96x]

Just got done watching it. Amazing

[@vionna2432]

Me too 😢

[@AppIeOfficial]

lol 2025 is when next season coming

[@heavesh3177]

​@@AppIeOfficialsource ?

[@maxcovfefe]

I liked how Helly's wardrobe reflects her outtie's attempts to steer her attitudes. She starts out with one skirt and her color scheme is blues and greens, the same colors as the original design for Severance too. She's in the same skirt and shoes for almost half the season, like Helena got Helly a skirt, a pair of neutral shoes, and a few tops for all her work attire. She gradually gets a new skirt and shoes (both exact same style, just a new color). A while after the suicide thing she's in a yellow dress, as if her outtie keeps attempting to perk her up with clothing. It's a beautifully shallow effort showing how easy Helena thinks it should be for Helly to improve her mental health.

[@user-dc7um4pr3f]

That's really great that you notice that. It's true. Almost like she put on her like "marketer" hat and decided the psychology of color might make her innie not want to kill herself lolol. It just goes to show how little she values that part of her. Makes sense she records a video and talks to herself like that. Pretty crazy.

[@maxcovfefe]

@@user-dc7um4pr3f Yeah, it's kind of the equivalent of saying to someone with severe depression, "Smile more!" LOL, I was once out to eat with some family after a funeral, and the waitress approached and actually said, "Aww, what's with all the frowns? Let's see some smiles!" A smile is NOT the cure for grief or for depression. I see Helly's clothing in a similar way, like her outtie is saying, "Just get over it! Hey look, new clothes! Smile!!!"

[@Whistler-007]

@@user-dc7um4pr3f particularly when in that video to herself, she growls "You are nothing!"

[@Joe-mz6dc]

1:26 your avatar is red and blue LOL

[@maxcovfefe]

@@Joe-mz6dc Red and blue were kinda intended like old-timie 3d glasses.

[@jackcravford8744]

This show is something i was waiting for my whole life. INSANE architecture of small details. Each episode is so mentally exhausting, how brilliant it is.

[@rikkmode]

have you watched Raised By Wolves?

[@memento81]

if you haven't already, give Mr. Robot a try. Same incredible attention to details in writing, directing, sets, cinematography and also a very mindbend-y story.

[@jackcravford8744]

@@memento81 no thanks, i found robot boring

[@legendemperor9150]

You should watch DARK, it is amazing!

[@memento81]

@@legendemperor9150 ...unless you are german. As a native speaker you will be distracted from the (very good) plot by the janky, unorganic and convoluted dialog. If you follow the story in a dubbed or subtitled version, you propably wouldn't even notice, but many viewers in Germany disliked the show for it. I think this is why Dark is so much more popular outside Germany. Because it is more enjoyable if you don't understand the language. Still a good show, but an odd case for me as a German.

[@Poshriel]

Having watched many horror movies in my day, and being generally unfazed by them anymore at this point, I have to say this show is scarier than any of that to me. This is real horror, the idea of being trapped and psychologically tortured, and knowing that the only person that can stop it is yourself. That the other you willingly walks into your hell every single day, and when you finally get to leave that hell, the other you won't know to stay away. Damn is this show good.

[@nananarc]

imagine how scary if this were to happen irl! ..oh wait....

[@10downTrent]

I agree. I have probably seen a bit scarier things. However, this shit really unnerves me. It reminds me of the back rooms in a way if you’ve ever heard of that. It gave me chills many times watching this show. It really does seem like hell living like that. It’s also scary because it seems that something like this could actually happen.

[@FractalCodex7]

What you never heard of reincarnation? This is a spiritual show disguised as a psychological thriller. Stiller and co know exactly what's going on here on purgatory er I mean Earth, but they ain't gonna tell you upfront, you need to figure it out for yourself. Angels = blue, Demons = red, Green = matrix.

[@TheLetterH111]

The more obvious and less unhinged interpretation is that it's about capitalism and the relationship between workers and their jobs. Go off though

[@Poshriel]

@@TheLetterH111 Ah yes, it's only been two months since the last reply on a year old comment thread. Time for someone to come in and act intellectually superior by talking about, *checks notes* the surface level symbolism. Didn't work though, turns out it's really easy to see past someone intellectually masturbating themselves. Even worse when their kink is putting other peoples thoughts and ideas down.

[@Kristine_202]

1:32 I was hoping you'd talk about the fish more. I'm horrible at noticing symbolism, but that's the one thing I caught. Yes, they're red and blue, which you pointed out, but they're also betta fish. Betta fish (if they're both male) can't live together or else they'd fight to the death. Mark's aquarium has a divider in place, so the two fish are kept separate. That's what that line down the center is. The blue fish is confined to the left side, while the red fish is confined to the right.

[@TheUnicornMoe]

I noticed this too and it a lot like the fish symbolism in Moon Knight!! There’s so many similarities in the two shows

[@ljmac22]

Great catch!

[@eylulmus]

Damn

[@JulieRoseCook]

Fish have only short-term memories?

[@kikib8434]

I didn't catch that when I watched the show (I am easily distracted and can have a hard time focusing fully on a show or movie 😋), that's awesome!

[@Panyc333]

It’s interesting how Helena living her corpo life as an outie contrasts her innie Helly being more her true self. Typically you have your work persona being the innie but with Helly she is herself with out the pressures of career and legacy.

[@dwhite-mann5399]

Yup that's because we have always seen her Outti in the office she is against severance so her family wiped her memory and trained her Inny to be exactly how they want on the outside. It adds up and in season 2 we will learn she was against severance at some point then just changed her mind... Before someone says it she was a little girl when she said everyone should have a chip she didn't know what they really meant just they had pretty lights ☺️👍

[@OGPurdy]

​@@dwhite-mann5399 We literally see Helly get the chip on her first day, so that isn't possible.

[@dwhite-mann5399]

@@OGPurdy maybe she got a updated chip ? Because we know they had multiple designs idk it just seems strange she is way more Outti than the others anyway i hope they break the machine when she is the nice Helly ha next season we will see some more settings being used

[@8698gil]

@@dwhite-mann5399 I highly doubt that an Eagan family member would have had her memory wiped. Helly is totally pro-severance. Her going in as an employee is a PR stunt to "prove' to the outside world that severance is safe and that the innies are happy. They are trying to get severance legalized everywhere. At the gala she was supposed to say how wonderful it was being an employee there. Milchick took all those pictures of her laughing and smiling to support that. There are no pictures of the break room, or any pictures that would give severance a negative image. But Helly's innie gave the speech instead, telling them what it is really like, and the idea that the innies are happy is a lie.

[@dwhite-mann5399]

@@8698gil yeah everything u said is just what the show has shown us u don't have to figure that out it's obvious but i like a twist and if Helly is just Helly no twist to her character then that's weak they missed out tricking us with a switch up instaed of the simple her Outti is pro her Inni is against 😑 no twist there

[@SilverSpade92]

One thing I haven't seen anyone bring up, maybe because the significance isn't clear yet, is that Dylan is very proficient with knots. He uses his tie to buy himself some time in the penultimate episode, obviously. But he also used this skill in an earlier episode to seal Burt inside a meeting room, and later to bind Burts hands behind his back. It seems to be second nature to him, and it's highly unlikely it something Lumon taught him how to do! *Some other observations:* * He loves to collect finger traps. * Dylan's innie theorizes that his outie lives in a riverboat. * One of his caricatures features him surfing. * In ep 2, Dylan is working on a file called Tumwater. * In the same episode, Dylan theorizes that their refinery labour is helping clear out the sea for human settlements.

[@Jorizzle22]

Great observations! I did notice the knot theme but not all the other stuff you mentioned! Awesome!

[@waynerackley]

Probably captains a sailboat IRL

[@xShankz96x]

Dylan just got done watching this show and it's great

[@ladyrough96]

Also tumwater was the working title for this show

[@31animafan]

I'v not finished the show but in one of the trailers or youtube vids i saw it had him saying he thinks his outie lives on a house boat.

[@dankdude5615]

Two things I noticed but weren't mentioned: 1. When Mark was taping together the picture of Gemma, he described all the things he liked about her, and how said that he liked her traits all "equally", a reference to the wellness sessions that she did at Lumon 2. This one may be less important, but I like to think that the burger with a crown illustrated on Petey's map depicts a burger king restaurant that he saw while severed.

[@Will-en6gw]

Irving is forsure former military working in some sort of comms/ intelligence role. I think his dogs name radar and his ability to quickly navigate the map of his town as an innie gives some foreshadowing.

[@nadezhdaru5495]

Oh wow. Your comment has brought me to the idea that may be Irv was placed to the department intentionally in order to test if it is possible for a well-trained person to hack the system from inside. And it looks like he has already hacked the place couple of times since he is painting this retirement hallway. It means that he walked through this hallway already and may be not once. This (I assume) was imprinted in his brain as near-death experience and that is why he paints this over and over again trying to heal somehow this traumatic experience. And remember how lady said 'we had some bumps on the road' - may be Irv was one of them.

[@nadezhdaru5495]

Looks like Mark & Gemma are placed in order to test whether divided couple would remember each other. And it looks like Dylan is a relative to Milchick since Milchick is very well aware of his private life and it is not something extraordinary for him to be in Dylan's storage room and to be good with his son.

[@AldaLima]

@@nadezhdaru5495 I bet Milchik is Dylan’s brother in law!

[@pzaikis]

@@nadezhdaru5495 Milchik is their manager / HR rep as both innies and outies so it's understandable that he would be able to visit his employee's in a work-related emergency.

[@hcroussette]

​​​@@nadezhdaru5495 the outies know Milchick. He is the one they contact if they are sick, for instance.

[@Jay_0605]

After watching episode 9 it made total sense why Helena outrightly refused the resignation of Helly R

[@AA-yo6yg]

why?

[@masondam168]

@@AA-yo6yg Spoiler!! She’s from the Eagans

[@AA-yo6yg]

@@masondam168 Oh right yeah, thanks. Definitely does. Those PR people probably advised her how to threaten the innie too

[@Andrew-ww1hz]

More than anything it explains why Lumon allowed Helly to see a video from her outie at all, since normal workers wouldn’t be given that luxury.

[@kelzakdub]

@@Andrew-ww1hz Burt also gets to see his outie video too though

[@madprophetus]

Check out the scene where Helly is severed. The container for the Severance chip reads "Stop living to work. Work to live." Working to live is work or die. It's brilliant.

[@EmmanuelRobinson]

That’s so sick. Work or Die. And that’s why they’re trying to get it legalized. Crazy if in the show it did and they start using it in prison

[@EmmanuelRobinson]

Also Ik most of y’all understood without the explanation

[@eliza-wy6jo]

what exactly moment is that? I'm gonna use it for my essay if u don't mind :)

[@reinajalana]

All of the snide references to corporate office culture -- the (dumb) "perks"; the "break" room (😭); the little office parties and rewards for meeting goals; the "we are a family," "we do important work," and other patronizing, "loyalty to company" talking points: the "wellness checks" (when they pretend to care.. but only for benefit of the company); the importance of knowing her company's history and big emphasis on the founders; and I could go on and on and on. ALLLLLLL of these, chef's KISS. 😘👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾 As someone who's worked in Corporate America for nearly 20 years, I can say a lot of this tragically isn't exaggeration. I almost felt traumatized and personally attacked!! It was so real. Many kudos for this great, eerily realistic, pitifully relatable treat!! 👌🏾

[@EsteraN24]

I hope you can escape someday! Or if you already have, you go girl!!

[@4estGimp]

I get multiple corporate emails every day from "ask me anything", "quarterly results", "AI advancements", "innovation", "appreciation/month/week/day"...etc. The feel good corporate emails drive me nuts. Also, not too long ago I brought up an issue with a manager who then later used a company value/core principle to throw blame on me. It immediate made me think of the Lumon tempers and core principles. We also have Individual Development Plans and Performance Development with monthly/quarterly/yearly meetings. Somehow none of the personal goals are MY goals..... Also, if a person does something which was not liked by management, that item is brought up in every development meeting for the rest of the year. I suppose somebody sold the system as a form of employee engagement which makes us feel appreciated. No, the system is simply a creative writing exercise and it makes me feel directed like livestock.

[@thatJAWNraps]

doing my first rewatch rn and so many good easter eggs - one slick one in ep 2 is when 'mrs selvig' comes in and points out Mark hasnt fixed a lightbulb - it a 3 bulb ceiling light but only 1/3 bulbs is out - if u think about it they mentino a few times that its an 8hr work day meaning 1/3rd of his life his darkness as he doesnt know about it (ironically its those 8 hrs he seems most at peace forgetting the stress of his wifes death)

[@KennyVert]

Nice catch. I’m on my second go around right now. This show is bananas.

[@kiwipalace]

i wonder if its a hint that (possibly) there is a third life that isnt shown in the show, where the outie isnt their true/final self

[@Red_Groke_plans]

It's interesting how people who had clear connections to the company like Helly and Dylan (his outie & outie's son seem to know Milchik ) are those who doubt it the most as innies. While those who are suspicious of it as outies (Irving seems to be a private investigator or a conspiracy theorist) were more loyal to it as innies.

[@bassesatta9235]

They all know milchik. Including mark. He supervises the procedure and is the HR rep for severanced employees. As for irving, his outtie has probably seen the testing centre considering hes painting the same elevator that took casey back down. Hes probably been there due to his chip being older and more prone to error. Remember the wellness check is for the chips, not the humans. Its there to see if the chip is starting to show signs of memory crossover (which is why casey deducts points whenever irving preferring some of the facts) but its also why casey was sent back to the centre when she admitted to preferring mark. Theres a lot to it and a lot of viable theories, hopefully theyre answered in season 2.

[@ivpt]

Milchik is his boss

[@Thebuird]

@@bassesatta9235 thanks-I never put together what the “wellness” checks truly were

[@Z_Snowball]

@@bassesatta9235 boom! thanks! I didn't catch that the wellness checks were for the chips when I was watching it but it makes perfect sense. Like Dark, I'm definitely gonn have to watch S1 again before starting S2.

[@firstenforemost]

@@bassesatta9235 I don't think the wellness check is just for the chip. I think it's precisely to make sure that Innies are behaving and those that are showing aberrant behavior are given soothing experiences and non-specific information about their Outies to calm them down and keep them working. Employee turnover is expensive.

[@8698gil]

Harmony Cobel's bedroom is probably modeled after the bedroom she slept in at the Myrtle Eagan School for Girls. It looks like a strict boarding school dorm room. No doubt Harmony was heavily indoctrinated in the Eagan philosophy since she was a small child. It would explain her cult-like devotion to the Eagans.

[@seanmcd72]

I just want to know why she drives a mint condition 80's VW rabbit.

[@8698gil]

@@seanmcd72 I can never tell what year a car's make is. I don't know the difference between a 70's and an 80's car, only that one looks "newer" to me than the other.

[@seanmcd72]

@@8698gil Most every car you see is from the 80's-mid 90's. Her car is a MK1 VW Golf (Rabbit) built from the mid 70's to 1983. Quite odd considering the very modern cell phones seen and other clues making you think it should be close to 2020 wherever they are. Mark S's car is from maybe 1995. Not sure I could spy any car newer than Mark S's.

[@bassesatta9235]

She also had the feeding tubes, with her sister/mother/relatives name printed on it. If u read the lexington letters (canon minibook that gives more idea onto lumon) theres an expose part on feeding tubes produced by lumon being toxic for kids. She might be extracting revenge? Who knows. Theres so much possible theories i cant wait for season 2

[@tyrgoossens]

It looks a lot like a cell at a monastary or convent to me. Fits with the cultish-religious tone.

[@megan_pinkerton]

I just realized something! The main colors are red, green, blue also known as RGB which are the primary colors for light and are the colors used in screens. This also ties back to the name Lumon, which has several meanings itself, but "lum" is a prefix for light!

[@Dubya3030]

Also like the matrix. Take the red Or blue pill

[@Gangularis]

Nice insight!

[@nekrataali]

@@Dubya3030 And the Matrix is tinted green for when they enter the Matrix and leave reality.

[@elifkaf7524]

It could also tie with the surnames of Mark S, Helly R, Dylan G and Irving B: sRGB! Which is a specific type of RGB developed by HP and Microsoft.

[@FractalCodex7]

Mon = moon hence Monday. Thus Lumon = moonlight. Cubicle is from cube = Saturn. = Saturn Moon soul recycling. 👽

[@nutranger]

The fish separation was genius. The fish are divided signifying separation while also playing on the old myth that fish forget everything the moment they turn around.

[@maxcovfefe]

The opening credits could be unpacked all on its own, but the use of red/blue in the animation, *is the outtie or the innie the one in the red pajamas?*

[@toriwashington5436]

@@maxcovfefe and the pajamas look very much like a prison jumpsuit (here in America anyway) it is truly thought provoking.

[@FractalCodex7]

​@@maxcovfefeblue = angel/outie, red = demon/innie. Black goo shadow person = AI. Something not right about that place. For starters no such state as "PE". Weird names, weird people. Probably somewhere isolated away in a simulated world for testing purposes. Seems to be about taking people over. Similar to the movie Bliss.

[@KiltOfIron]

They're also beta fish IIRC and they can't be kept in the same enclosure if they're male because they'll kill each other.

[@cliftonixs]

The shot compositions are almost always squares for Innies and circles for Outies. One particular scene was the no-food dinner at the Brother in-law's house, Mark is surrounded by square framing while the others are not. The dinner placemats are also Hexagons, signifying the conversation about weather severance is good or bad for that scene. It really needs to win best cinematography, or some really cool Emmy awards. Tip top show all around.

[@isabelmartin8427]

Yeah, what was up with that no-food dinner? They seemed to have abundant food, snacks, and coffee in all other scenes? Another thing that was weird was when Mark was at Pip's and hung up on Cobel/ Selvig saying "they've cooked the food and are bringing it out." Very strange relationship to food. I also think Lumon has something to do with controlling agriculture, like Monsanto, because of the goats, the watering cans, and all the green rugs and chairs.

[@cliftonixs]

@@isabelmartin8427 I remember there was a reason they weren't eating food during that dinner. Something to do with like, no food dinner or something with his brother-in-law's book. It was like a one liner. But yeah, funny how there's a melon party, and waffles that lead to social conditioning rather than satisfaction.

[@chewiewins]

Great spot. O for Outie also makes sense, whilst [] is box Innie is in!

[@frog212whyd4]

@@chewiewinsnice catch!

[@FractalCodex7]

Hexagons are often a symbolic reference to a hive. Octagons often reprent control or gateways. Nobody so far mentioning the cannibal painting? The black goo shadow person in the credits trying to grab the keycard? Do you remember how you got here? Or do you think you have no soul? Indeed you have been severed from your Higher Self. So hurry get your Neuralink brain chip the demons from Testing are waiting.

[@Stannyhand]

My theory for the Break Room voices Helly heard.. When she says to Dylan about them, he says “Oh the crying baby”. I think something about that room let’s the Innie hear things that the outtie does. The grumbling old man that Helly heard would be her Father. And the crying baby Dylan heard, I’d assume was 1 of his other 2 children that Milchick told him he had.

[@rogermazuca4582]

That's true. That's their way to see if it triggers anything. And Casey's comment to Irv about Radar is another trigger.

[@ateheszter6455]

I think the crying baby Dylan heard are the baby goats...

[@conservativestrawman9837]

@@ateheszter6455 they're not ready yet!

[@busterbluesun]

@@ateheszter6455 all I know is, if the baby goats get hurt I’m going to be so angry, I won’t watch it anymore!

[@franmartinez3317]

Maybe they are hallucinations similar to Irv's black paint. He seems to see it when he's tired and I imagine u get exhausted from reading the same words over and over.

[@maclean525]

I believe the "four tempers" are the key to everything. The origin of this could be from the "four temperaments" theory of psychology. There are four personality types. Sanguine, temperament of blood (red) - Dylan. Choleric, temperament of yellow bile - Helly R. Melancholic, black bile - Irv. Phlegmatic, calm and unemotional (water) - Mark.

[@thvtsmvni]

Genius!

[@thedukeofnuts]

I had this idea as well: Four employees in this office, each with different personalities/temperaments.

[@AF-dn2bz]

very astute. always keep dreaming Joseph, but beware your brothers will always resent you.

[@DisappearingBoy2010]

That's rad dude (taking a hit)

[@RockieJ3]

I thought this too! That would be soooo cool

[@JuliaNineteenEighty-Four]

Not only is this show absolutely fresh and brilliant but it also resonates a lot with me on a personal level, and I think it'll resonate with many other people too. Not because of the main memory plot line, but because of the work environment theme. I worked in so many toxic places/offices where people just disappeared overnight (like Petey) because they didn't kiss asses or followed the rules when these didn't make any sense, places where I felt so unhappy I really wished I could be severed instead of having severe anxiety because of my job. Aside from the psychological meaning of the show, I see a deep analogy with our society and the way any work environment is expected to be perceived. The way your work life can take over your "outie" life and make you so unhappy that it'd be almost best to lose any memory related to it. Lumon is so very corporate. Anyone who has worked in such strict environments will recognise the familiar dynamics depicted in the show, with Mark's brother-in-law's book being the type of mindfulness that gets promoted so often to find some peach to just carry on.

[@jaredpeterson3983]

Anyone note the symbolism of finger traps? If you pull both fingers away from each other, you get trapped. It’s only when you put both fingers closer together and work as one can you escape the trap. Could be the same for innies and outies. Only way to escape is to come together as one.

[@InQuickWeTrust]

or the departments?

[@michaeldeats328]

@@InQuickWeTrustdoubtful

[@InQuickWeTrust]

@@michaeldeats328 they were trying to turn the departments against eachother for a reason

[@thatJAWNraps]

I posted this on Reddit around when ep8 came out but im convinced Irv joined to intentionally take Lumon down and he uses the painting and lack of sleep as an outtie to force himself to fall asleep at work and 'bridge the memories/consciousness' so warn him about that door - i thought it'd play out in the finale but i think in S2 we'll see more of his plan to deprive his outtie of sleep to make his innie tired - the irony being he's SO devoted to being a good worker as an innie and gets in trouble which he hates, for nodding off but his outtie is the reason

[@ElderStatesman]

9:51 I noticed the "PE" when I read the articles speaking about the State Senator who wanted to promote the "Severance" procedure. Of course, there's no state with that abbreviation. It's totally possible that Lumon Industries carved out their own district or territory/state and called it the "Province of Eagan." Hence why there's talk of the police being bought out because the police force is completely owned by the company.

[@magicmulder]

Or simply "Property of Egan". Kinda like embassies are considered soil of the respective country. Since we don't know much about the world outside (pun intended), it's possible that it's become the norm that large powerful companies are as independent as actual states or even countries. (Kinda like in Snow Crash.)

[@Edser9]

Which would explain why the town/city is called Kier as well. I was thinking they made their own town because of their size and influence, but a whole province is a completely other level for sure.

[@MS-ep2cq]

Real area code for NJ

[@kellymorris6497]

​@MS-ep2cq I am from NJ and yes, it is a northern NJ zip code. Could be that PE is an island off the shore and is totally isolated from everything.

[@user-bd1bl8ue9g]

the fact that Ms. Casey is next to a tree in the whole setup and that there is a weird log piece thing we can see next to her in one scene is, worth a wonder?

[@digdug1489]

Mrs. Casey constantly being surrounded by trees is just so horrible :( it's almost like they're testing her memory to see if trees trigger anything, also testing Mark too. Imagine only being alive for 107 hours and the whole time you're surrounded by reminders of a horrible, life-ending accident that you don't have the privilege of remembering.

[@squidgig]

upon my rewatch, i noticed a morbid little detail -- when ms. cobel is poking around mark's house while he's at work (and petey's also hiding out in his basement), she ends up stealing a homemade-appearing candle from a box of what we can presume are gemma's things. then, during the first wellness session between ms. casey and mark that we see, the same candle is lit on the table, ALONG WITH the tree... ouch

[@LemonMerigueTie]

By far, Severance is the greatest piece of art I have ever experienced. The science fiction, the symbolism, the mystery, the subtle humour, the world building, the absolute control that the creators have over every millimetre of its existence. There isn’t much that makes me giddy these days but Severance does it. I truly have faith that a precise, intentional and cohesive vision is being unraveled here with care, and it will maintain its essence until the undoubtedly mind blowing conclusion. Which is about a million times more than I can say about 90% of the absolute trash that’s been getting green lit these past few years. Season two is so far away but I will gladly pay to watch it until it’s over and then I’m gonna buy the full series once it’s all over because I feel compelled to support the creators and producers of this show and give them as much money as I can because it’s just that fucking good oh my god.

[@ThePhatFilosopher]

When I realized ep 9 was the last one of the season I knew Apple TV had me by the balls 😭

[@nevan2201]

Lmao

[@araborn812]

Try using free streaming services, apple will not get more of my money

[@AHMED-99996]

@@araborn812 Come on it’s too cheap Only 4.9$/ month And you can share the subscription with 5 people

[@katwashere194]

It’s the best rate though at 4.99 and they are adding better and better content

[@TANuclear]

@@AHMED-99996 apple is a scummy company and doesnt deserve my money. I'm borrowing it from my buds at sea

[@billbaggins1688]

Petey's map very much reminded me of the Westworld maze, with both being like maps of the brain, with different areas of the brain being responsible for different tasks. The whole set up in the building is also like a rat's maze. And all during the season I was reminded of the video game Portal. With a protaganist trying to escape a company built maze, while being moniotored constantly.

[@angxl2023]

That map also made me feel like it could have been made by Jean Michel Basquiat... The whole show it's just so f aesthetic omg

[@DepressedHandsomeSpaceCop]

The Stanley Parable is also a clear inspiration.

[@thisismyalias]

@@DepressedHandsomeSpaceCop Yes! Had the same thought!

[@RettyBoop]

The cake is a lie.

[@FractalCodex7]

Mind looks like the All Seeing Eye with a microchip.

[@rlh1984]

The four categories of numbers are the four tempers: WO is woe, FC is frolic, DR is dread, MA is malice. I think MDR is part of a way to make severance even more comprehensive. No only should one’s memory be severed, but their temperament and personality would be severed.

[@MorbusTechnicus]

Exactly, since the whole Lumen is a kind of scientology sect, they want to clear your mind of all this false feelings. So each file represents a person I think. Maybe one of the workers themselve but more like someone else which is of importance for the company, maybe one of the Eagen family. My first thought was, all the Eagens are loaded up into a super computer after death.

[@busterbluesun]

@@MorbusTechnicus yes, they are uploaded to the “mind”!

[@TheHmmer4]

There are 5 categories of numbers.

[@duderama6750]

@@MorbusTechnicus You're one of the few who gets it. Stiller did another expose of Scientology, Tropic Thunder.

[@FractalCodex7]

​@@MorbusTechnicusyep, Eagen means "bright eyed one" or "fire" = Lucifer = god of technology who the elites worship. On Peteys map next to the word mind it has a chip. Lumon = moonlight In Moonfall the moon contains an AI. Kier means "dark one". Thus Kier Eagen = dark lord Lucifer. Who is trying to create his perfect world, his utopia, where free will and individualism is subjugated in favour of the collective. No one else noticed he looks like Karl Marx? Capitalism up top, Communism down below. But really its about losing your soul to technology via trauma. Its how the Archons control humanity. You don't remember your past lives because they blank you out. Then sever you from your soul to operate from a lower ego self formed out of survival instincts. So that's why when nutters like me try to tell people Convid is a hoax and the jabberoo contains gene editing mRNA and nanotechnology its not received. The severed matrix mind is programmed to reject the truth. We have been trapped here by negative entities the same way the Innies have been trapped. Its another Gnostic/Matrix false reality type concept.

[@joelgilby]

Something I noticed: when outie Mark talks about Gemma, it is in the same simple sentence form as when Ms. Casey talks to innies about their outies. ‘Your outie is/likes etc. …’ ‘She was…’

[@nicocba2007]

The absurd rewards for the employees at Lumon are clearly parodying absurd rewards at many pseudo-cult mega corps in real world , like having the 'honor' to be named the employee of the month at McDonald's lol!

[@KerbalFacile]

These are almost all rewards I've seen given in one job or another. The only missing is indoors karting sessions.

[@maxcovfefe]

I want to see what's really on the Severed Floor, and I hope in Season 2 we can finally see an outtie wake up down there. I have a feeling that all the freaky paintings, rewards, computer monitors, melon parties, etc may not be what the innies think they're seeing.

[@travispeayarlal1485]

@@KerbalFacile thats.... disturbing info but a welcomed one! man we live in a fucked up world

[@tocov]

Being the employee of the months is an example of how you can be a winner and a loser at the same time.

[@deez9318]

I work in a kitchen at a retirement home. The other day the maintenance department asked for our help in lifting a new fountain to be placed outside. I couldn’t help but feel like mdr going to help Optics and Design. And 𝘯𝘰 𝘫𝘰𝘬𝘦, for helping them, I was brought up to my bosses office to select 1 thing from this prize box. There were little rinky dinky key chains, small flash lights, and small kids games. I couldn’t help but think man this is exactly like severance.

[@marietailor3100]

I’m still of the opinion that the green is an oblique reference to Emerald city/Oz. Our heroine wakes up looking like she was dumped out of a tornado in a strange land where nothing makes sense. On the way, she makes friends it’s a man who needs to find his courage, another searching for love, and a third seeking knowledge. Together, they journey forth to find a way to leave this land and find answers for what is going on at the heart of the thing. Who is the magic man at the centre of the Emerald City? Who is The Wizard of Oz/Kier Eagan? Along the way, their quest is aided by a innocent witch who wants the best for them, but she ends up being thwarted by the wicked witch and her Helly even ends the season by revealing that the wizard is a fake in a way. What will this mean? I have no idea. But the red hair and everything doesn’t feel like a coincidence.

[@AnCoSt1]

Wow - I really like that a lot

[@tocov]

Throughout the entire season I kept saying to my gf that Kier Eagan is a Wizard of Oz of sorts. And one day they will pull the curtain to see it was just a sad man, not a wizard at all. Also another thing Lumen reminds me is the church of scientology, where people are also given strict jobs under strict rules and get disciplined for not following them, all because of some ramblings by a weirdo.

[@beq343]

This is brilliant

[@lettersandpoims]

woah! astute observation

[@Z_Snowball]

dude, that is some next level observation skills. hot damn!

[@thisischris8451]

Also the show has great cinematography! I love the very subtle dolly zooms when switching between innies and outies. Going from a longer focal length for the outies to a shorter one for the innies, it feels like the elevator is warping around them, encircling them, sucking them in. They are now being trapped in this world they cannot leave. The exact same camera move when it's done outside the elevator has the opposite effect at the beginning of episode 9. Now, going to a wider angle, thereby revealing more of the background, kind of opens up the world for the innies. Anyone else notice this?

[@GlennaFitch]

There’s a good video that interviews one of the cinematographers on severance and she goes over this technique in detail, super interesting

[@thisischris8451]

@@GlennaFitch Thanks! I'll look it up.

[@thisischris8451]

@@DanFeldman Thanks Dan! Correct me if I'm wrong, the Dragan effect is about contrast and saturation. My comment was about changing the relation between foreground and background through the variation of focal length. So I think we are actually talking about two different things.

[@TheUnicornMoe]

I also appreciate the dreamy blur around the edges of the shots in the office

[@SuperHydz]

It’s called the Hitchcock technique

[@ugoeze7360]

Wasn’t blue and green also the color of the badges in the competing paintings of the office uprising?

[@ThinkStory]

It was!

[@jenwalld2800]

Blue = MDR, green = O&D

[@maxcovfefe]

Helly was wearing blue and green for most of the season. Also - I was wondering why Milchick kept taking photos of her, like who are all these photos for? ...Until that ending where they show all those pictures throughout the gala. He was setting up moments to make her smile even when she was miserable. Milchick seemed even more sadistic during my second viewing.

[@kdhoward83]

That’s not a feeding tube. I work in anesthesia. That’s a ventilator circuit (the part with the white connector) - but it just seems like they’re using this equipment to symbolize death at a hospital of some kind. A breathing tube isn’t show, but It’s 100% not a feeding tube.

[@Apryll.]

Interestingly enough a lot of people think a feeding tube is through the mouth, I guess they think people are blending up sandwiches in the hospital or something and it has to be that large.

[@kctyphoon]

I just posted this on another of your videos. Lumon’s Building is actually the former Bell Lab’s building in Holmdel NJ. The water tower you see in the show (which actually exists but not with Lumon’s logo on it) was designed the symbolize the transistor, which was invented by Bell Labs. The inventions that came out of that building have transformed the world. It could almost be called the birthplace of modern technology. The entire complex (which is huge) has recently been redeveloped into a housing and business center, (almost its own little town inside a town) and was reopened under the name Bell Works. The building still exists, the water tower still exists, and the surrounding grounds have been developed into homes with the former Bell Labs building at the center of it all.

[@RapscallionReviews]

My grandfather worked at Fort Monmouth and collaborated at Bell Labs a lot. He worked on communication technology during world war 2.

[@kctyphoon]

@@RapscallionReviews I'm sitting in Fort Monmouth now.

[@paulettemoore47]

My father worked there. I spent a lot of time there as a child. I no longer live in NJ and seeing the outside grounds reminded me of my childhood. Great show too!

[@ErinP79]

I discovered Bell Works after watching this show. I love it there 🤩

[@kctyphoon]

@@ErinP79 I drive past it every day on my way home from work, to avoid driving up Rt 35. Been inside a few times since it's reopened. It's very nice. What amazes me the most is how they get such a huge volume of air to smell so nice and clean when you go inside. It was a sight to drive around the grounds before they started any construction. It's was a time capsule of experimental structures with all the old buildings that were away from the main office. We'd go in there sometimes on motorcycles and just do laps around the place.

[@danielhoogkamp1703]

I thought the board room Helly woke up in reminded me of a womb which makes sense seeing how as "innies" they enter Lumon as basically newborn children which is evident in much of their behavior (Helly throwing intercom) but also how they are treated by Milchik.

[@Lukethesavior]

The way Milchik treats them is like a caretaker to kids.

[@8698gil]

@@Lukethesavior Not really. The innies are scared of Milchick. Mark alludes to that when he tells Helly that "Milchick is a nice man. Except when he's not". He also tells Helly that it's Milchick's job to extract any messages that the innie may try to sneak out of the office. That doesn't sound like a caretaker, but a prison guard.

[@maxcovfefe]

@@8698gil I agree with both of you, it's more like a juvenile prison due to how they infantilize the innies with prizes like finger traps and caricature art, 5 minutes of dancing, etc. It's all like kid stuff. I'm also fairly certain that innies on the Severed Floor may not be seeing reality. The paintings, the computer monitors, the melon parties... I'm not convinced these things are as they appear to the innies. I wanna see an outtie wake up on the Severed Floor to see what they see.

[@lorrmarie7281]

@@maxcovfefe It may not even be a reality at all. They may be communicating in a coma state. The innie world may be a matrix. Or, the false world might be the outtie dimension, with planted stories, and there is no escape. No matter which way, it is mind control, and a damaged psyche. But which damage came first? Is this a rebuilding of a human consciousness after centuries of freezing their brain, and cloning bodies? Perhaps it is a biologically sterile world where no one can reproduce anymore due to all sorts of wars and medical interventions from the past, and this is the only way to create humans, and has to be in adult form. The interaction with 'kids' may be to curtail a secret longing to reproduce naturally. The strange dancing may be a sexual ritual that in disguise and how the innies are permitted to see it, since tempers are prohibited. Why 'waffles' as a reward? What is the signifigance of such a mundane food? It doesn't look like that much of a treat. Maybe food isn't that desirable in the innie world because they keep removing these desires from the numbers on the screen. Maybe the numbers on the screen are those from the general population, being programmed to gravitate toward Kier. Perhaps there is an element of population reduction as Kier, the orchestrator of life, wants everyone to be his child (made in his image?), and literally, to be his 'kid'. Many ways this can go.

[@sarahschmidt6486]

@@maxcovfefe I love this idea.

[@slowitdown5893]

It's quite a simple one but always overlooked. The extreme symmetrical cinematography going on all the way through the season represents the duality of severance. Was an awesome watch. P.s. The dancing scene made me laugh so much :) Tramell Tillman (Milchick) is awesome in this!

[@thisismyalias]

Agreed!

[@thedukeofnuts]

When he's around the four of them, his whole posture and movement changes. And the dancing is just freaky!

[@VictorHarderHesel]

Yet the symmetrical framing is always off by a few degrees. It's never entirely level, suggesting that something is off or out of balance.

[@andrewpiercegodwin2259]

Mark wears a Soviet era made watch when outside. Gemma’s education and the watch is an interesting tie in

[@zooweemama3620]

This show was great and I remember reading somewhere that all the computers keyboards have no escape button which I thought was also great symbolism

[@jamessum825]

Just finished the finale…what an amazing show. WE NEED SEASON 2 ASAP!!!!

[@paulabroussard1824]

We need for seasons to be like they used to be -- 15 - 20 episodes, not 8-10!

[@RGBEAT]

Don’t really rush them though, you need the writers to have the time they need or else you end up with a second season that sucks

[@damnboy2.047]

@@paulabroussard1824depends on the show, you Probly wouldn’t have gotten this quality if it lasted longer

[@simonhughes-king]

Just finished watching this. It was one the best shows I've ever seen. Loved it. The insane premise. The excellent plot. The production design and look. The little details. The wonderful quirkiness. The green tinge....the red and blue...... I haven't been so enthralled for a long time. WELL DONE to everyone involved.

[@AmarezMusic]

Oh man this TV show will go down in history. Its the best one I've seen personally

[@markycypress8484]

Acting and casting also top notch

[@lorrmarie7281]

perhaps all the characters are inside a computer as Ai is trying to become sentient. Ai is the innie. The outie is wired into the system to train Ai, but has too many emotions for Ai to process, so the innie is designed as a workhorse to remove undesirable emotions and lusts until the computer can handle it. This explains the distorted reward system. From the mundane waffle, to the computers rendering of a muddled dance ritual that cannot comprehend carnal desires. The colors RGB are the computers manifestation and do not represent the real world outside.

[@nicocba2007]

In the visual aspect, there are lots of takes showing perfect mirrored symmetry meaning duplicity, like the parking lot and roads views, or the two light bulbs where one is on and the other is off, representing dual persons but only one is conscious.

[@mattgilbert7347]

I always liked the line from Dylan when he's ranting about Burt's department: "duplicitous to a one"

[@jakehorsburgh2878]

I think that the 3 lightbulbs actually signify that there’s more than one Severing that takes place

[@fernandarubio5343]

and that long-shot of Helly looking herself at the mirror (and her neck marks) ending with turning herself

[@zombiewithhat]

My theory with Ms Cobel is that she is the illegitimate love-child of Kier, or one of the previous Eagen CEOs. Her work at Lumon is a way for her to become a true Eagen and 'join' the family, hence her obsessive worship of Kier and the items from her childood that surround his photo in the shrine. She seems to have gone to some event in the past called the Kiernival, maybe her early fangirling for anything Kier or Eagen-related, OR where her mother met her father (and ticket belonged to her mother.)

[@alansmithee183]

Knowing this show she's probably Helly's mother

[@baraka99]

This show not only has great premise and moral questionings, it has great plot and dialogues. Top tier writing and art direction. Great director of photography and use of symbolism and color. Love this show.

[@carlosrsolrac]

Great video! I might have missed it, but I do not think you touched on the different system functions that Dylan scrolls across during Episode 8, around the 44 minute mark. Aside from Overtime, there is Beehive, Branch Transfer, Freeze Frame, Lullaby, and Open House. I would bet they use these other functions to control Gemma

[@jonsaboe2019]

Gotta give props to the props people. Insane detail. Maps, newspapers, notes, letters, and pictures in Irving's locker. Ms. Selvig's shrine. Just insane.

[@JWickyJr13]

I'm convinced there's a third level of severance that the outtie doesn't even know about.

[@Salsa_Shark]

One of the funniest lines is when Dylan is holding the overtime protocol (while Milchick is trying to cut the belt) and he yells “F you, Mr. Milchick!” I thought keeping Mr. in there was funny!

[@kellerm67000]

i was just rewatching severance and i feel like irving has some kind of medical history. when dylan bit milchick, the first thing that irving said about the situation was the injury that dylan inflicted, how serious it was, and how to heal it. he said something like “he needs a full tetanus wrap” (definitely wasn’t that but it was smth close). what i love about this show is that it includes so much sub context in the writing - why was that the first thing that was said after this malicious event? after their coworker attacked their boss, somethjng that these people have never seen before? and on that note - why does irving have any knowledge on anything medical when he’s probably never read a book apart from the “word of keir”in his innie life? in this show you see a lot of situations where innies still have the same vocabulary and language as their outies. when they don’t think directly about what they’re saying - like in a high stress environment, or relaxed and talking to others - they say things that they shouldn’t know or reference outside the office. again the writing in this show is genius, because the little details go over the audiences head as well as the innies who are saying them. we both don’t process how they KNOW that, and the conversation continues in the story like it should be normal that they say things no one else should really understand if they’ve never been outside. like, irving with his medical history knowledge. if it was the first thing he noticed and cared about in that situation, (rather than the fact that dylan bit milchick) i feel like it’s an instinctual response to something he knows must be dealt with right away, bc he knows human bites can get incredibly infectious and lethal. and it makes sense because if he has a military history, he could have been a medic or something. i also think it’s worth noting the other details Ms Casey might have hinted at during Irving’s wellness session. she complimented him on being a good swimmer when he has all of this navy stuff around his house.

[@AlexDRohmat]

After rewatching Severance this week, one thing I caught is that the local paper that we see Devon reading towards the end of the season is "The Kier Chronicle" so even the local rag is named after him

[@Pinkflamingo138]

As a David Lynch fanatic with a sleeve of tattoos dedicated to his work, this show is one of the best things to grace television since Twin Peaks. I’m obsessed and love everything about it.

[@ekzoX0]

I hate how much i love this show. I dont even hape apple tv. (Yes I used other methods) but when season 2 arrives i make go through and subscribe. The twin peaks comparison is also true for me. Cant remember being so engaged in a tv series.

[@seanmcd72]

My wife keeps bringing up Lynch while watching it but I keep telling her, this show would be off the rails NUTS if Lynch was in charge. It would be very different. It is still fantastic.

[@Pinkflamingo138]

@@seanmcd72 the camera shots, the aesthetic, the dialogue… Lynch-esq

[@Timessormarble]

You'll have to fill the other arm with a sleeve of Severance references as well now.

[@AldaLima]

I love Lynch too, I’d love to know what he thinks about if he ever watches it. (Maybe we fans can ask him on his KZbin weather channel 😉) The creator hosted an ask me anything on Reddit and did say he’s a huge Lynch fan.

[@southendonseaarts]

I absolutely loved this show and the finale episode was superb.

[@iamtheiceman]

Yeah the finale had me shouting at the tv for them to hurry up and tell everyone ! Just spit it out, people ! Waiting for season 2 is going to be painful.

[@Thebuird]

I watched that last scene 5 times-Adam Scott’s “She’s Alive!” was sooo good

[@hue.main1]

Something i noticed is, why did outy Irving already have stuff about trying to find Burt? He had the list of employees, and Burt's location and name was already written on the map.

[@hitmanhowie1965]

Okay, we know that there's different protocols to severance, and there no doubt many or most people in the town are severed! The guest at the book reading that say childish things. The fact that every car in that town is 30 years old. People in the town are experiencing different protocols of the chip.

[@snoopymccloud1875]

The woman who said she had some injury at the back of her head from her birds...

[@twelvechimesitsmidnightpod]

Love all the details!!! It's so satisfying to get deeply into a show/story that is created with the care and attention to detail as this one. You feel the creators really care about your experience and have an enthusiasm for the material that is infectious. I saw the connection with the black paint in the credits and Irving's work, but totally forgot about his hallucinations. And the detail about Hell... is fantastic! Just love this show and appreciate all the work that went into making it great!!

[@poogissploogis]

Just a tiny insignificant detail, Mark's birthday on his license at 8:08 is the same as his actor's birthday in real life!

[@dremunoz2600]

Love this show!! I found Severance terrifying because you can see it as (1) the imbalance of work / life and how it ruins people (2) in a dystopian future any corporation thinking this would be a good idea. My favorite character has to be Dylan, he's hilarious and defiant. I felt so terrible for Irving because his outie is trying to burst through...he was so loyal to Lumon. My favorite scene with Irving is when he layed into Milchick at Bruce's retirement party...just glorious. So damn cruel how they separated Mark and Gemma (Ms. Casey) what a gut punch. Seeing Helly being an Eagan was a crazy reveal...seems her outie hates the company deep down which is why her innie tried to kill herself. Not sure what to make of Kobel just yet, she seems loyal to the company and was racing to expose Mark and the others. Can't wait for season 2!

[@alexandersiver]

Also Ms. Cobel is upset when Ms.Casey and Mark don't recognize each other after the candle was lit for that wellness session. It is proven when Milcheck assures her saying "them not recognizing each other is proof that it works", while Ms. Cobel was watching the wellness meeting. Ms. Cobel being the good guy also reinforces why the book she stole was just left there in plain view for them to take.

[@MattTaylor512]

Then why does she try so hard to keep it all together and working after she gets fired?

[@alexandersiver]

@@MattTaylor512 because she is trying to destroy the company from the inside.

[@KerbalFacile]

I think Harmony is trying to divert the company from its reliance on severance, by proving that the procedure does not hold and is not sustainable. She probably thinks they are veering away from Kier's doctrine, and believes herself "holier than thou" in this regard. This would match her indoctrination, eagerness to meet with the Board to talk to them, and covert efforts to collect all the possible evidence against the procedure.

[@8698gil]

@@alexandersiver If she were trying to destroy the company then why did she try to stop Helly from making that speech? Why did she tell Helly that her friends would all suffer? She was insane with rage.

[@8698gil]

Cobel is trying to gather information that the chip may not be entirely reliable, so that she can present it to the board.

[@dybcreations]

I noticed that the four employees in the beginning are an embodiment of the four parts of a human soul: Irving - Woe - in awe of Lumon and revenge for Kier Mark - Dread - grieving his wife’s death Dylan - Frolic - excited about perks and work Helly - Malice - hates her outie and being there

[@digdug1489]

I would switch Irving and Mark. I think the definition of woe more closely fits grief than dread does. Mark is grieving his wife so he's woe. Irving is dreading the hallway, the visions of black goop/paint, Kier's judgement if he breaks the rules, Burt "retiring" aka dying. He's a very anxious character imo.

[@madlang478]

Mark is woe; he begins each day weeping for his dead wife. Dylan, yes, frolic; he truly enjoys the job snd perks. Helly is dread; she was clearly instructed to look for numbers which made her feel fear. Irving is malice; he severed in order to bring the company down. I expect we will see more reasons why these humors correspond in S2. My question: is Mark’s job to look for numbers which make him feel woe? Dylan, happiness? Irving, malice? There are four of them.

[@nicholasleemarks]

When Ms. Casey (Gemma) conducts a wellness session with Irving and reads him facts about his outie, she repeatedly instructs him to enjoy each of the facts “equally.” As Mark’s outie tapes his picture of Gemma back together (after having torn it to pieces), his inner monologue narrates all the things he loved about her, concluding that he loved all of those things “equally.” He really emphasizes that word too, and then immediately after saying it, he finishes taping and the camera reveals that Gemma is Ms. Casey. I don’t know what to make of it (could have been just for dramatic effect as the big reveal unfolded), but I found the parallel really interesting

[@zeking3844]

I also think that the names like Mark S, Helly R and so on is a reference on Franz Kafka`s work as he used to name his characters like Josehp K. Plus the whole plot is so Kafkaesque

[@urgamecshk]

I don't recall seeing any beatles

[@leonbarrottphotography8590]

I'd also suggest that Irving's dog being called Radar (a palindrome) is yet another example of the 'back-and-forth' nature of the show; two sides of the same coin, if you will.

[@BPFACTS88]

lol

[@m_christine1070]

Same as the waffle party. Two sides

[@mwood341]

I love that sly trick Cobel pulled on Mark with the atheist/Catholic mother thing. By doing this, she’ll be able to detect which version of Mark she is speaking (severed or non-severed) based on the response he gives when she brings up her mother 🤯

[@360Fov]

Only just watched this...'only just' meaning the whole season in one session. Dog damn I need season 2!!!! The cinematography is sublime...like INSTANTLY super gripping.

[@afshinrohani]

Based off of the final flawless episode of the first season I now have my own theory about MDR and what the team do (potential spoilers): I have a feeling that Mark's team train the AI behind the chips. And through the data sorting/entry tasks they carry out they help make the severance chip/software more accurate; in creating two separate identities that don't conflict. Refining its quite literal neural network. Just my own current thinking on the subject! Maybe others have felt similarly. For me the way that the series ends with looking at how the people within their department are more of a petri dish for the whole brain neural-link project the more it makes sense that there's a feedback loop.

[@matthewstephens3852]

That’s a solid theory! It would explain why they innately know why some numbers are “scary”. It could be due to the compatibility with the chip in their own heads.

[@camilosalas8827]

Amazing theory!

[@alexp601]

You'd think they'd have a lot more than just 4 people on this task, if it was that important. Even if they have 4 people across a few branches, that's still not that much. I like the theory but seems they would have dozens and dozens of people on that task.

[@matthewstephens3852]

@@alexp601 after reading the Lexington report it seems much more likely they really do possibly do terrible things like murder (MDR). There might be more to it, though

[@MorbusTechnicus]

@@alexp601 Yes but maybe not everyone i capable of this task. It seems all the people in this department have a problem in their real live. So maybe they know these feelings better.

[@pearlkohler5422]

I feel pretty certain in saying that the outdated technology shown throughout the show is just canon for the reality they’re in, and not an intentional design quirk on the part of the company to invoke nostalgia within the boundaries of the office. Rather, the timeline and reality they’re in is so foreign to ours that none of the contextual signs we’d normally seek out to determine a time based setting actually help it make sense to us. We do most of that somewhat subconsciously since we’re spending more conscious effort (here especially) keeping up with the plot of the story as it unfolds. So even though much of their reality is familiar enough for us to relate strongly to the characters and larger themes, something about the world they’re in still just doesn’t seem quite right, which fits neatly into the themes themselves. It’s a creative choice that I really love and think is effective - though I’m sure there are countless more, Maniac and It Follows are a few of my favorite examples of this creative strategy being employed. And now this!

[@halifaxhiker]

Yah the show creator is on record as saying that mainly they just wanted us to feel disoriented on the severed floor, so there is nothing there that is an obvious reference to anything we’d recognize… like an Eames chair for instance. Also the computers are based on 1970s Data General terminals but they added a trackball which is more modern and something they didn’t originally have. The idea was just to give it a vibe that is wholly unique to that place.

[@TheUnicornMoe]

I agree it could be a creative choice about making it feel uncanny. But this gave me an idea that maybe its to emphasizes how they’ve spent so much energy and time advancing medical technology at lumon and everything else is still behind. I don’t remember well what other technology exists outside of lumon so I could be wrong.

[@AmarezMusic]

Petey said in one of the episodes that the time and relativity is messed up between the innie and outie. The retro workplace vs the modern outside world symbolizes that concept. Just food for thought

[@taddy_mason4197]

Interesting that the security office has outdated computers as well

[@evolv.e]

Great breakdown. Also: 10:04, elevator splits Helly’s head in two when it opens.. In the episode where Marc goes to the hospital after answering Petey’s cell phone, waking in the dark he’s asked “Who are you?” So many great Easter eggs cleverly placed throughout the series here and there. Such smart and engaging storytelling. Hats off to all those involved in making Severance. I applaud you 👏🏻

[@efdesign]

When they visit the Perpetuity Wing with Helly, Dylan us talking about how handsome Jame Eagan is '...look at those eyebrows' cut to Helly raising her eyebrow.

[@DLSacks]

There's a 1st Season Twilight Zone called, "A Nice Place to Visit" where a gangster dies and is guided around the afterlife (presumably heaven) by an elderly man named Pip. In a shocking twist, the gangster is actually in hell and Pip is likely the devil himself. It's the first thing I thought of when I saw the diner called Pip's. Yes, it's a reference to the former CEO, but it also evoked another reference to hell for me because of TZ.

[@duderama6750]

In Hellywood, everyone comes to Pip's.

[@chuck3ful]

So the fish in the tank are bettas, aka Siamese fighting fish. Mark has to keep the tank divided or else the fish will fight with each other. Also, the tank is pretty empty. Most people keep plants/rocks/other ornaments in their tank to keep their fish mentally engaged. I'm also waiting for one of these recap videos to touch on the irony of this show being an Apple original series. Steve Jobs had messiah complex and a cult-like following, much like Kier in the show, and Apple was one of the first brands (that I can remember in my life time, at least) to purport themselves to be more than just a company, but a lifestyle. Similarly, Lumon is very much invested in invading the identity of its people. Even the company name Lumon, which can be interpreted as a play on the word 'illuminate' (also ironic because of the show's heavy using of shading and the company's practice of keeping its employees 'in the dark'), is also tied to Apple because of the biblical allegory of biting the Apple of knowledge, I.e. becoming intellectually illuminated.

[@tamarmanigault7298]

There actually is a city called Kier, Pennsylvania named after Samuel Martin Kier an American inventor and businessman who was the first one in the U.S. to refine crude oil into lamp oil. Remember Helly’s drawing of the lamp.

[@hallm3lbp]

I think the comment from Ms Casey about “the longest she’s been awake” was just because earlier they said she worked part time. So her office hours are usually probably way less than 8. I like the coma thing though, specially if the implication is she never leaves the place.

[@AF-dn2bz]

I am guessing she is in a coma because of the crash, and she is activated for wellness sessions. she's a virtual innie. if so there is a whole other virtual layer to this that hasn't been revealed. I could be totally wrong though.

[@htwa]

9:57 it's interesting that there is this fictional "PE" state when Helly R was able to recall Delaware during her initial questioning.

[@AbandonedMines11]

OMG! I just binge-watched the first season of Severance over these last few days. I really enjoyed your video because you caught a lot of details that I did not pick up on. It really is amazing how much detail went into the production of this show. Already looking forward to season 2!

[@thomasjones2925]

My favorite was that the book that liberated them is red with yellow letters.

[@DEricKesler]

“DO NOT LIE IN KIER EAGAN’S BED” is how the sign actually reads. It does not state that one shouldn’t sit on the bed. Most museums and historic homes in our reality have signs that simply state, “Do Not Touch.” Lie is a word with a few meanings. It is the position in which a golf ball comes to rest, especially as regards the ease of the next shot. A lie is the lair or place of cover of an animal. Of course, a lie is an assertion that is believed to be false.

[@evolv.e]

Good insight. Love the possible alternate meanings. Thanks for sharing!

[@hotcheetosgirl08]

I thought the wording was off.

[@airdailyx]

So you can lie on his bed but not in it? 😂

[@KaritKtana]

Every little thing in the show seems to be symbolic. The terrible little perks given to MDR employees can all be interpreted in relation to the show's themes: erasers (but no pencils!) - their erased identities ; finger traps... Well, Traps; and best of all, caricatures... A good caricature has to distill something of a person's essence, not just surface appearance. How could that mean anything to an Innie who's supposed to be left in the dark about their outie?? Or to the corporation that keeps them in the dark?? It's so messed up. And who even draws them??? Also: Who paints the paintings that go to O&D??? I love a show that so rewards attention to detail, but I NEED ANSWERS DAMMIT 😫

[@reelstellar]

Severance is damn near perfection, I just finished it and I can’t and probably won’t stop thinking about it, I love everyone’s insights. So cool.

[@jakobmercier3]

When marks wife gets fired the grey haired lady said bring her down to the test room, as she gets in the elevator you see exactly what Irvings outie keeps painting the black elevator with the red light, I think Irving started out as a test “test room” that’s why he remembers so vividly the test room elevator and that’s why he’s investigating luman, you see Irving paintings first in the episode and 10 minutes later you see the black elevator when she gets fired and goes to the test room.

[@jeanharoldmagnait8928]

5:57 in the end, Gemma/Ms. Casey might actually be in a comma or worst already dead in a sense that the Gemma part or her Outtie is gone due to amnesia from the car accident, considering how her Innie acts weirdly and probably because she does not have the outtie part of her anymore. The outtie part of her might actually be dead.

[@aynrandish9106]

What if the sleepers are in cryosleep rather than a coma. What if the board is actually all of the ancient Eagans who live most of the time in cryosleep?

[@m_christine1070]

Yes!

[@raym4311]

In one scene outside the building part of "friend of severance" is covered up to read "end of severance" while the team plots to take down the company.

[@mwhite212]

This show is arguably the best on Apple TV+ and probably a contender for the best show of 2022. I've watched the series 3 times, which I generally don't do. It's rich with detail and constantly has you pondering the moral questions posed by it.

[@havenless3551]

Silo is a close contender imo

[@mwhite212]

@@havenless3551 Yeah, it's a great show. I'm looking forward to Season 2.

[@fawazalshammari4580]

What an amazing catches!!! All thanks to you, I’ll have to rewatch the show all over again.

[@mr.dude1338]

Apple TV might have very few movies but WOW the amount of detail that’s present is mind blowing, Apple TV truly is a quality subscription

[@edwardboiling4111]

This show NEEDS more hype

[@mrrandiom]

My theory is lumons purpose is to essentially transfer consciousness and achieve immortality through transferring consciousness between bodies or by creating some sort of clone/bot version with all the perfect traits and memories of an original person. This would also explain why mark has a bunch of clones of himself in the intro. They never really explain what the MDR team is doing other than deleting some sort of code. Thats is where the whole essence of their job starts to kick in because they are essentially programming a bot version of themselves or someone else. If it is someone else the most logical thing would be the Eagen family doing all this to become virtually immortal and then bind themselves to a severed person or version of themselves potentially. Thats probably why they get scared too from the numbers because its triggering some bad memories which they then delete.

[@TerryManitoba]

I must be sleepwalking when viewing videos - :) because your attention to detail is 10-fold of how much I pay attention to the numerous nuances you point out in this and your previous video on Severance. So many clues & details❗❗❗ I now am now even more at the edge of my seat for season #2 I will certainly be watching a few more of your Ending Explained videos. You should do "Episode Explained" on Severance for season 2❓ THX Again. U cnd?

[@hado33_]

I think the "outie" world is still part of Lumon.

[@ChiaraIcel]

😳

[@woody9965]

A big thing you missed as well is the paintings Burt shows to Irving and Dylan. They also wear green and blue pendants almost to distinctly tell which department they belong to which makes you wonder. But it seems as if Mrs. Kobel was trying to make them turn on each other at Lumon because she showed two different paintings based on their departments with the same meaning. Don’t trust another department.

[@markmeyerson9354]

Nobody seems to comment that Mark's sister is the only normal person in this universe...maybe outie Mark as well...and that makes me fear for her. WHY IS SHE NORMAL AND HOW IS SHE MARRIED TO THAT GUY?

[@andresalba34]

How is her husband not normal?

[@georgiaaa6789]

@@andresalba34 do you think buying several different sized beds for your baby so they don’t have to go through the “trauma” of outgrowing a bed is normal?

[@millystars]

@@georgiaaa6789it’s not like he’s a creep or anything, he seems a bit weird but well meaning, it’s not a complete shock that marks sister married him

[@josephj5161]

This show is a masterpiece and I bet there are things we are missing

[@daniellean5769]

I have absolutely NOTHING to add but... ...KUDOSSS TO BEN STILLER AND THE SEVERANCE CAST AND CREW. 🎉🍾🖤. This is what I and so many others have been waiting on. We need more shows like this! (and shout-out to Think Story, too!)

[@airdailyx]

FINALLY!!! A proper breakdown of this show. Please do this episode by episode next season. You kinda snubbed this one.

[@abc-pn2eb]

I don't understand how Lumon could post the pictures from the office at this event. They're not supposed to know who their co-workers are. But if this event is being broadcasted, Dylan, Helly, Mark & Irving's outties would be able to see who they work with and potentially track them down on the outside.

[@serenushka]

This event seems pretty private and exclusive for Lumon VIPs to me. I think its more about convincing politicians and stuff to support severance in the real world. But you're right, at least Helena would see her coworkers.

[@AF-dn2bz]

or the outties may become overnight celebrities which could stroke their egos and encourage them to continue their engagement with Lumon.

[@starmorpheus]

@@serenushka I think Helena already knew of her co-workers seeing as this whole thing was a PR stunt for her and her father's company.

[@jodiegillespie1679]

I’m curious to see the artwork, paintings, employee manuals, and even petie’s map scrutinized for Easter eggs and clues. I’m so interested in the history of the company, the family, ms. Corbel’s history, and the Peggy character.

[@MotorCityMob]

LOVE the Severance Content! Fantastic job on the finale breakdown! Praise Kier.. lol