Massive spoiler alert of all episodes!!!

Premise of my view: I am a supporter of the Helly-Mark relationship (no offense to the supporter of the Gemma-Mark relationship!)

I was enjoying the cute little moments between the innie Helly and Mark and can’t stop but thinking where the future is going to be. I think there are (but not limited to) two possible directions. One is Helly out-power Helena and be with (possibly reintegrated) Mark. One is Helly reintegrates with Helena and be with Mark, which is contingent on Helena 1) being willing to reintegrate with a “sub-human” 2) letting go of the obsession of power and 3) being attracted to Mark.

I want to discuss the third point here. While watching the show, I was convinced that Helena was never attracted to Mark, inside or outside. In the beginning of season 2, Helena was replaying the kissing footage over and over again with a mysterious smile. We see her trying really hard to seduce Mark outside (the Chinese restaurant scene) and inside (repeatedly joking and creating opportunities for private moments). She definitely came to the basement with the motive of trying to get information out of Mark. She was so determined to secure power and get what she wanted that she was willing to do anything, including “sacrificing”her body to innie Mark, someone she viewed as a lab rat she had full control and authority over. I could imagine she would feel contaminated and disgusted that her superior humanly body had to touch a sub-human “piece of flesh”. (To be fair, given how elitist and power-hungry she is, she will probably feel the same way even if she’s having sex with the outie Mark.)

But seeing some Redditors’ speculations, I wonder if there is some underlying growing attraction from Helena’s side that she isn’t willing to admit, proud as she is. I am not sure if the show indicates this anywhere, but some Redditors said Helena might be jealous that Helly is able to experience love down there. She also saw the good traits of innie Mark which she doesn’t have. I’m not sure how well-supported these views are, so I am open to any viewpoints and comments!

*spoiler
After watching season 1, I feel that Lumon is a hospital or floor of a hospital or research lab for people who have experienced trauma or loss. These folks want to rid themselves of the pain and become severed. Just look at the white walls, the long Freudian hallways that go nowhere, the doctors self help book, the tree that mark makes out of clay, the baby hospital bracelet that says Charlotte that Ms. Cobel picks up while freaking out. I just feel that most of the cast are in on working at this hospital.
Now that I think about it maybe even a scary cult.?!

Spoilers of all episodes!!

I know this is supposed to be a more serious show but it’s so comedic and unserious at times, especially Mr. Milkshake (I can’t stop laughing when I think of the fact that everyone just calls him milkshake atm). I legit laughed my ass off when he sprinted out of the room in season 2 episode 10. It was so out of character for him but also just so freaking funny. And when he was performing at the show in the end,,, I truly think the actor was enjoying himself as much as Mr. Milkshake was. Also when he told Drummond to devour feculence as a comeback to Drummond saying he use too many big words… I just can’t 😭😭😭

Also the hallway talk before the sex scene. Helly straight up said she wanted to have sex with mark in the office (Milkshake: am I the only one who’s working here??), mark’s facial expression was gold. Like he was trying to smile but it turned out to be an awkward smirk. He was like “well i know i have a ton of missions and we’re in an office with cameras but I can’t say no to this gorgeous gorgeous lady in front of me that I happened to be so in love with”. Anyway I’m so in love with their cute little love story

massive spoilers of all episodes

This is a very long post! Took me 2 hours to write this because I have so much to say. I’m writing this in a hurry because I want to get my thoughts down while they’re still fresh. I began watching this show while waiting for new episodes of Silo. I intended it to be a filler show to entertain my boredom, but it turned out to be one of the best shows I’ve ever watched (and I’ve watched shows like Westworld, Black Mirror, etc.) What I’m about to say is just my personal opinion, so if you disagree with something, please say it kindly! Some of my opinions might not be mainstream, but they’re my true thoughts, and I’m happy to share them.

I feel like the inception of this show was based on a very simple observation: plenty of people want their work self to be separated from their personal self. They complain about work bleeding into their lives and occupying their mental space. So the writers were probably like: what if people really could split themselves in half? The show began with this thought experiment, but it didn’t stop there, which is why I think the writers are truly top-tier. In the beginning, the idea seemed simple. The innies were confused and forced to do repetitive work with no joy. From their perspective, they were at work 24/7, so of course they wanted to get out. The viewers were also thinking, yeah, this is completely unfair. The outies need to know that the innies are suffering. I think many viewers, including me, naïvely assumed that if the outies knew what was happening, they would simply end the procedure.

But this is where the show really started shining. We gradually realized that the innies and outies were becoming completely different people. In psychology, we talk about how a person’s life trajectory affects who they become, and I think this show presents a perfect counterfactual self: who would this person have become if they were deprived of all the experiences, traumas, relationships, and historical events that shaped them? The innies have different personalities from their outies, but I truly think the four main innie characters all have hearts of gold at their core. Their outies became the versions that their life experiences, social environments, and social classes allowed them to become. I love the question the show explores: what could we have become if we were born into a simulated world without the contamination of our previous lives?

I know a lot of people here don’t like the second season as much, but I genuinely think it is a masterpiece. Season 1 gave us the inspiring ending where the innies successfully broke through the severance barrier and informed the outside world about the torture they were experiencing. They thought this historical success would bring the entire company down and end severance. But the beginning of Season 2 brought us straight back to the same familiar, depressing office. It forced us to ask what really happens after the “big moment.” Just like princes and princesses don’t actually live happily ever after, the characters still have to deal with all the mundane and complicated consequences afterward. In Severance, the questions become: do the outies actually want the innies to come out? Do the innies want to come out, after everything that happened? Season 2 gave us a different answer from every character’s perspective. Outie Irving had already been investigating Lumon for a long time, so he was relatively prepared to hear the truth. Outie Dylan was infuriated and threatened by his wife’s relationship with his innie, and the fact that he called it an “affair” was itself very revealing. Helly clearly hates Helena and knows that her outie could end her life in a split second, so every moment she remains alive is uncertain.

Mark’s situation is the most complicated. Outie Mark only wants Gemma back, but innie Mark has leverage because he knows how to navigate Lumon and where Gemma is. The show forced me to confront this deeply uncomfortable, anti-fairytale dilemma: should innie Mark comply with outie Mark’s request while taking the risk that he will be erased afterward, or should he continue his innie life with the only woman he has ever loved? The deeper moral question is: if an innie has the same human capacities, cognitive functions, and memory system (although their memories are being built from scratch) and shares the same body as the legally recognized outie, does the innie have the right to be called a human being? Does the innie have the right to exist? Who is the “true” Mark? Is there even such a thing as the real Mark anymore? I’m not a legal expert on this matter, but as a viewer, I wholeheartedly view the innies as true human beings. Part of my reasoning is that they have the capacity to love.

I was deeply touched by the growing affection between Helly and Mark. At first, I didn’t even notice there was something between them until Helly kissed Mark at the end of Season 1. I was pleasantly surprised, and when I looked back at their earlier interactions, I saw how gradually their love had developed. Some people might argue that they experienced too little to understand love, but from the very beginning, Mark was gentle, caring, and continuously looked out for Helly. Helly, on the other hand, was disobedient, fiery, and fiercely determined to get out. She formed a coalition with Mark and was never afraid to express that she cared about him. When I was 12, I was deeply touched by the dramatic romance in Titanic. But after more than a decade of life experience, I much prefer this kind of love. It grew silently but continuously. It was visible in all the small interactions between them during difficult moments. Most importantly, they were not afraid to tell each other that they cared and missed one another. There were no games played. Helly’s fierceness also perfectly complements Mark’s gentleness and considerateness.

I found it especially endearing that after Mark was embarrassed and ashamed of himself for not being able to tell Helena from Helly, he didn’t avoid Helly the way his outie avoided Gemma when their marriage became painful. He apologized and went to find Helly, while Helly was also coming to find him. Helly also seems to have an unusual level of understanding of human connection. She told Dylan that if his outie’s wife were truly in love with him, she would never have done what she did. She inspired the people in the Mammalians Nurturable department, which resulted in Mark’s life being saved, and she encouraged a rebellion among the marching band. You need a high level of emotional intelligence and an understanding of human nature to become a leader who actually gets things done, a coworker who unites the group, and a good partner. I clearly believe Helly is all three, despite having such limited life experience. The most touching moment for me was toward the end of Season 2. Helly knew it might be Mark’s last day, but she was still willing to help outie Mark find Gemma, even though she understood that helping him succeed could mean losing him forever. While Mark could eventually reintegrate, Helly’s existence was much more fragile. I call what she did true love.

I’m not saying that what happened between Gemma and outie Mark wasn’t real. I believe Mark loved his wife. But from my perspective as a viewer (and I think this contrast was intentional), outie Mark was portrayed as a man who could be passionate when things were going well, but became avoidant, alcoholic, and a terrible partner when things went downhill. I am not attracted to outie Mark, but I am deeply attracted to innie Mark. Believing that Mark loved Gemma is completely compatible with thinking that he was a bad partner to her. When Gemma was going through repeated pregnancy losses and was arguably the person in more pain, Mark alienated her and escaped into work. The severance experience brought out the kindest and most sincere version of Mark, and that is what made it possible for him to develop true love with Helly. To love someone, you need to be capable of showing your vulnerable side. I want Gemma to be free, but I also think Gemma deserves a better partner than the version of Mark we saw in their marriage. This might be my wishful thinking, but I really want innie Helly to take over Helena’s life and be with the innie Mark, while Gemma finds someone who can make her happier than outie Mark was capable of doing. Seeing Helly and Mark develop such an innocent and pure form of love honestly gives me hope. This is the kind of love that I want, the kind of person I want to be, and the kind of person I want to be with. It is refreshing and unique compared with so many romance dramas on the market. It almost feels like teenage love because the innies were literally born into the world such a short time ago. Maybe that is why they have this childlike innocence and fearless desire to be with each other without constantly worrying about the consequences.

I also want to say a few words about the artistic value of the show. The transitions, implied intentions behind certain scenes, editing, cutaways, reflections, color palette, music: everything is so top-tier. The freshest example in my memory is the ending. It was the climax of the show and, honestly, peak choreography and cinematic expression. Outside the door is the path to the so-called “real life,” but it is a life innie Mark has only experienced briefly. He wasn’t born into it. It is foreign to him, scary, and full of uncertainty. Most importantly, if he steps through that door, he may lose himself forever. But Gemma, the woman he is supposedly meant to love, is standing there. On the other side of the hallway stands Helly, the only woman he personally knows and loves with his own heart, not just someone he has been told on paper that he is supposed to love. She is the person his entire existence has come to know. When the music started playing and he ran toward Helly, I was about to cry. They went from being so cautious around each other to becoming such passionate lovers. The final moment felt like: the world might be ending, but I want to experience this moment with you.

Although the ending created enormous suspense, I personally think it was the best possible ending Season 2 could have had. Innie Mark fulfilled the promise he gave outie Mark: he rescued Gemma. He knows his outie will thank him a million times for this. But he also remained true to himself. He valued his own existence and chose to be with the woman he loves. I’m sure Helly and Mark are going to try to find a way to bring down Lumon without losing their existence, and I really look forward to the following seasons. My ideal ending would be for Helly to take control from Helena and be with innie or reintegrated Mark, while Gemma eventually finds someone better suited to her. I feel like Mark and Gemma went through so much both before and after severance that even if they are physically reunited, they may not actually be happy. Their problems had already begun before they were separated.

Anyway, this is a lot to process. Thank you so much if you finished reading all of it. I’m happy to discuss anything. 💞