Apple TV +‘s hit TV show, “Severance,” is halfway through its second season and naturally, there’s a lot to unpack. 

Season one began as a slow-rolling snowball that gained speed and weight with every episode until its climax. In the finale, the once snowball revealed itself as a full-blown avalanche, destroying any previous conclusions made thus far. The jaw-dropping ending seemed almost impossible to match. However, creator Dan Erickson and director Ben Stiller have delivered once again.

Off With A Bang

Season two picks up with equal force and velocity, sweeping us back into the world of our four favorite Macrodata Refiners. While Dylan G. continues to be a source of comic relief and comfort, his storyline is rather insignificant outside of being helpful to our team of protagonists. Irving B., without his intimate relationship with Burt, is left with less of an individual storyline and is instead concerned with how he’s going to uncover the Lumon secrets. 

The true driving force of “Severance” is our two main characters, Mark S. and Helly R. Both have integral backgrounds and complicated storylines, which we, as the audience, are most keen on keeping up with. While Mark continues to unveil the mystery around his “dead” wife Gemma, Helly tries her best to help him while swallowing the guilt of her Outie’s identity. It’s no secret that Helly R. or Helena Eagan has the most groundbreaking storyline of the show. She is a direct descendant of Lumon’s founder and messiah-like figure, Kier, and brings us closer to fully understanding what’s happening at Lumon Industries. 

Commentary and Mystery Collide

“Severance” is not-so-subtly a commentary on late-stage capitalism and the proverbial tug-of-war that is a corporate work-life balance.

When asked what inspired the script, writer Dan Erickson said, “I was literally walking into work one day at a job I really hated and caught myself thinking, ‘What if there was some way to just disassociate, and for my body to do whatever it needs to do over the next eight hours to earn this paycheck — to not have to consciously experience it?’”

While these themes stay consistent as a necessary piece of subtext, the sci-fi, dystopian element keeps the audience hooked. It is the unknown, what hauntingly looms over our protagonists’ shoulders, that gives this show the legs to run. That menacing door at the end of the dark hallway deeply resembles what is so unsettling about the world of “Severance,” and why we continue to watch. With every episode, we come one step closer to finally opening it. 

A Streaming Titan

As the halfway point of Season two comes to an end, you begin to understand that Severance has the plot and the deep mythology to carry it for the long haul. There is simply too much to uncover for this to be a soon-forgotten fad. While most of the streaming platforms are busy trying to pump out as much content as possible for our short-form addicted brains (save for “White Lotus,” “The Penguin” and a few thrilling documentaries), “Severance” truly has something to say.

It’s not outlandish to say “Severance” is a true masterpiece of the streaming service era, a giant amongst men that might even condition your brain into being able to pay attention to something for more than the length of a conspiracy TikTok.

That being said, HBO’s “White Lotus” has reemerged with season three, which might carry the heavy hands to knock “Severance” out of the immediate public eye for a while.

b.leibforth@dailyutahchronicle.com