Severance (Apple TV+) is a darkly witty, visually stunning, social critique of modern work culture. Unmissable.
What if there was a way to achieve absolute work-life balance? Severance takes place in a world where a company, ‘Lumon’ can implant chips in their employees’ brains so they can completely disconnect from their work personality and vice versa. This process is called ‘severance’. Are Lumon’s employees happy as a result? This and many such burning questions will keep you hooked on this masterpiece on Apple TV+.
To cope with the unbearable loss of his wife, Mark (Adam Scott) decides to get ‘severed’ so that for eight hours a day, he won’t have to deal with the grief. At work though, he has a cheerful and fun personality. Life is going fine for him in the office until his best friend, Petey (Yul Vasquez) gets fired and is replaced by Helly R. (Britt Lower).
You see, Helly R. hates the job (which is dragging numbers instinctively and dropping them in a box; sound familiar?) and wants to quit. But, that’s a decision only her outside personality can make, called in the show ‘Outie’. Since her Outie refuses to quit the job, Helly R. has no choice but to be on the severed floor of Lumon.
The office is not so bad though as there are several employee benefits and perks like the Wellness Center where a counselor, Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman) provides a wellness check to help you relax and focus at work; and a 5-minute ‘Music-Dance Experience’ when you achieve a work target. The terminology is different but the alternate world the show presents has many similarities with our world.
The satirical take on work culture gives another level of wit to the show adding to Severance’s entertainment value. The show even takes shots at current societal concerns by showing that the process of ‘severing’ employees is not positively seen by the media and smaller factions of society. Some believe Lumon is hiding sinister motives by having employees who have no recollection of the activities they perform at work.
The brilliance of the writing doesn’t stop at the deceptive simplicity of the clever premise. It includes the characters and their journeys too, as Helly R’s distrust for Lumon continues to grow. The earnest and loyal Irving (John Turturro) believes his colleague will benefit from knowing she’s part of a rich tradition as a Lumon employee and her work is important. Dylan (Zach Cherry, one of Severance’s secret weapons) on the other hand, joins in with Helly’s suspicions that he never trusted the place but he works there because it’s his job.
Harmony Cobel (a fascinatingly crazy Patricia Arquette), in charge of the severed floor, does nothing except watch the employees on her computer screen all day, whereas the dubious Deputy Manager (Seth Milchik) has a plastic smile reserved for his subordinates, while he continues to deliver on Lumon’s agenda.
‘Innie’ Mark has a new problem on his hands with Helly since as her immediate supervisor, it falls on his shoulders to ensure she achieves the quarter’s quota. Things get complicated for Mark’s outie too, with Petey’s sudden appearance when he’s out having dinner alone. The show takes us through many mysterious alleys, exciting our imagination, and having us dive into a world that nails the absurdity of modern human society.
Severance is a rare sci-fi show that smartly avoids looking too ‘sci-fi’. Instead, it looks like a graphic novel come-to-life with its long shots of right-angled set pieces, pastel colours plus precise and amazing lighting. So beautiful are the frames onscreen that you may lose sight of the plot. The scenes in the office, for example, are burning with bright white lights giving a familiar yet surreal impression.
The show’s creator Dan Erickson and director Ben Stiller have pulled together a team of craftsmen full of talent. And the show stars Christopher Walken! Watching Walken say ‘raising baby goats’, in his classic style alone makes Severance a worthy watch. Filled with more delight than an adult-size container of nuggets, this satire is full of amazing concepts that raise two more questions with each one it answers. Not only is Severance a must-watch, but it is the definitive show of the post-COVID era.
Helly – ‘Hey.’
Mark – ‘Hey.’
Helly – ‘So, it’s tomorrow now?’
Mark – ‘Uh, yeah. Well, it’s Monday.’
Helly – ‘A weekend just happened?’
Mark – ‘Yeah.’
Helly – ‘I don’t even feel like I left.’
Mark – ‘Yeah.’
Helly – ‘I don’t even feel like I left.’
Mark – ‘Yeah, that’s how nights and weekends feel here.’
Helly – ‘Like nothing?’
Mark – ‘Well, you get used to it. I mean, I find it helps to focus on the effects of sleep since we don’t actually get to experience it. You may feel rejuvenated or happy. Less tense in the shoulders. Spry.’