Severance Season 2 Is Just as Awesome as You Were Hoping

“She’s alive!” With those two words, fans of Apple TV+’s 2022 show Severance immediately clicked on the next episode only to find out it didn’t exist quite yet. The shocking season one cliffhanger left fans desperate to continue with the story—and when season two debuts on January 17 almost three years after the first season began, it dives right back in. Showrunner Dan Erickson, director/executive producer Ben Stiller, and the rest of the team waste no time dealing with all the big questions you have from season one. Simultaneously, the show also eases you back into this weird, wonderful world, while continuing to expand and keep things mysterious. It’s honestly kind of miraculous.

Severance, whose premise you may well have forgotten because it’s been so long, is about a company called Lumon where people can choose to sever their normal selves from their work selves. So, the person they are at work can’t access the mind of the person they are outside work, and vice versa. However, when we last left Mark (Adam Scott) and his friends at Lumon, the employees had figured out a way to access their “outties,” which was bad for basically everyone. For example, Mark realized that the wife he thought was dead in the real world is actually alive and is his co-worker, and Hellie (Britt Lower) learned that her outtie was one of the masterminds behind the entire plan of severance.

Mixing those two worlds was a bombshell. One that season two immediately and thoroughly deals with the fallout of. We’ll keep this review spoiler-free, but suffice to say, actions have consequences, both for the evil company Lumon and its rebelling employees. The first episode largely deals with the innies, episode two focuses a bit more on the outties, and by episode three, we think we have a very good idea of the new direction things will be heading. However, by episode four, we realize we have no idea all over again—in the best possible way.

Miss Huang (Sarah Bock) is a new character this season. Image: Apple TV+

New characters, like the nefarious Miss Huang (Sarah Bock), offer frightening possibilities. Returning characters, like Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman), have new roles. The show answers questions, but those answers just create more questions and, at every turn, we’re holding on for dear life. If anything, the biggest detractor to Severance season two is, much like season one, the show is almost maddeningly patient. A shocking turn of events in one episode will be largely ignored in the next, only to come back two weeks later. A new character or discovery in episode three will disappear for the next three. It all works, though, because the show is consistently tense and fascinating. There’s just so much to get to, and so much more added in season two, that it can feel overwhelming even as you’re watching it. (And especially if you haven’t watched the first season in several years. Apple will offer a pretty good recap, though.)

Again, it’s hard to get into a lot of what we love about Severance season two without talking about specific plot points. But, to get all Lumon on you, here are some teases. It’s wild that Mark begins to [REDACTED] his [REDACTED]. The reunion of [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] is both intense but also [REDACTED]. We can’t believe that [REDACTED]’s outtie starts to [REDACTED]. When [REDACTED] finally meets up with his [REDACTED], sparks certainly fly. And it’s so wild when we finally meet Gwendolyn Christie’s character in [REDACTED, REDACTED, REDACTED].

At the time of review, press was given the first six episodes of the 10-episode season so we can’t speak to where things end up by the end. But, we can say the way they start, and unfold, will make your Severance-loving mind melt. We are so happy it’s back. It was worth the wait.

Severance season two begins on January 17 with new episodes dropping each Friday on Apple TV+ through March 21.

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