21 burning ‘Severance’ questions we have after the Season 2 finale

How are you feeling after Severance‘s brilliant Season 2 finale? Overcome with woe that it’s over? Full of malice and frolic at the episode’s many twists and turns? Dreading another wait between seasons?

Whichever of Kier Eagan’s Four Tempers you most identify with in this moment, I think there’s one thing we can all agree on: We still have many questions we want Severance to answer in Season 3, especially after its game-changing cliffhanger that saw Innie Mark (Adam Scott) save his Outie’s wife Gemma (Dichen Lachman), then choose to remain on the Severed Floor with Helly (Britt Lower).

From goat sacrifices to the MDR team’s shadow selves, here are the 21 questions we’ll be puzzling over between now and Season 3.

1. What’s next for everyone on the Severed Floor?

The most obvious question about Severance Season 2’s finale, “Cold Harbor,” is a simple one: What in the world is going to happen next? When last we leave it, the Severed Floor is in a state of emergency, with Lumon sure to crack down soon. Mark and Helly are still down there, along with Dylan (Zach Cherry), Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman), and an entire marching band from the department of Choreography and Merriment. Do they plan to fight off whatever enforcement Lumon throws at them? Or could Lumon just force them all unconscious from afar with a severance chip function, like the Overtime Contingency or Glasgow Block?

Perhaps most worrying is Dr. Mauer’s (Robby Benson) statement to Mark and Gemma as they escape the Testing Floor. “You’ll kill them all,” he tells them. Is he talking about all the Innies? Could their last stand have doomed them all?

2. Will Gemma escape Lumon by herself?

Dichen Lachman in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Gemma is free from the horrors of the Severed and Testing Floors, but she’s not out of the Lumon building just yet. As chaos rages in the Lumon basement and security measures likely increase, will she be able to escape and blow the whistle on Lumon’s many crimes? Here’s hoping Devon (Jen Tullock) and Harmony Cobel (Patricia Arquette) have a getaway car parked in the Lumon parking lot.

3. What is Ms. Cobel going to do with her notebook?

Patricia Arquette in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Harmony Cobel went on quite the journey this season, going from trying to get back in Lumon’s good graces to helping Mark save Gemma in the finale. Along the way, she stopped at her hometown of Salt’s Neck, where she picked up an important notebook full of her designs for the severance chip. She hasn’t done anything with it since then, but could Season 3 see her attempt to take credit for inventing the severance procedure?

4. What was going to happen if Cold Harbor went off without a hitch?

Credit: Apple TV+

Gemma entered the Cold Harbor room in Severance‘s Season 2 finale, where her Innie was forced to take apart a crib in a reference to Gemma’s traumatic miscarriage and unsuccessful attempts to have a child. To Dr. Mauer’s delight, the severance barriers held, with none of Gemma’s outside pain bleeding through. However, the test was not completed in full, as Mark (thankfully) crashed the party and saved Gemma.

But what would have happened if the test had proceeded as planned? Cobel made it clear they were going to kill Gemma and harvest her chip, but then what? Dr. Mauer told Gemma in episode 7 that once she was done, “You will see the world again, and the world will see you.” Would Gemma have been used as a figurehead or martyr for the next stage of Lumon’s plan?

5. What is Lumon’s endgame in Severance?

Credit: Apple TV+

Between all the unpleasant scenarios Gemma encounters in the Testing Floor rooms and the focus on the severance barrier, it seems like Lumon wants to create a way for people to sever themselves from any and all pain, including grief. That lines up with Mr. Drummond’s (Ólafur Darri Ólafsson) description of Kier’s “eternal war against pain” during the goat scene. Is Kier’s “grand agendum” creating a world without pain?

However, Severance being Severance, we could only be getting part of the story. There may be a much larger picture we’re missing out on. For now, though, the idea of making (and likely mass-marketing) a way to totally rid people’s lives of any unpleasantness is sinister enough. Especially since doing so would force Innies to live in loops of nonstop pain. Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of a painless world?

6. What was it about Gemma that made Lumon study her?

Dichen Lachman in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Based on episode 7, “Chikhai Bardo,” it’s clear that Gemma has been in Lumon’s sights for a while. Dr. Mauer was at the fertility clinic she and Mark went to, which led to Lumon sending her the ideographic cards from Optics and Design. Even before that, Lumon manufactured the medical equipment at the blood drive where Mark and Gemma met, so they could have had tabs on her starting then. So, what was it about her that made her the ideal test subject? Something in her blood? In her thoughts about the ideographic cards? A secret third thing?

7. How did Lumon know about the crib?

One of Severance‘s most heartbreaking scenes yet was Mark taking apart the crib he and Gemma built for the child they would never have, the very scene that Lumon recreates in the Cold Harbor room. Clearly, they surveilled Gemma for a long time, so it makes sense they know so much about her. But how did they come to know about this specific, private moment? Did they set up cameras in the Scout household? Did Gemma confide in someone with secret ties to Lumon? Or did it come up in one of her sessions with Dr. Mauer or nurse Cecily (Sandra Bernhard)? However it happened, I’m sure it was highly ethical and totally aboveboard.

8. What were the other MDR Innies working on?

Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, and John Turturro in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

As Cobel informs Mark in the Season 2 finale, the numbers he is refining correspond to Kier Eagan’s Four Tempers and serve as the building blocks of Gemma’s mind. Each new file builds a new Innie for her, so his 24 completed files (25 with Cold Harbor) map onto 24 new consciousnesses.

But while Mark was working on Gemma’s Innies, what were Dylan, Helly, and Irving (John Turturro) working on? Some of their file names — like Dylan’s Tumwater file or Helly’s Siena file — appear on the Testing Floor, so they could all have been working on Gemma, and she may have well over 25 Innies. However, the rest of MDR couldn’t have been working on other rooms while Mark was finishing Cold Harbor, as it was the last room for Gemma to go through. So, were they working on refining consciousnesses for other test subjects? Just doing busywork to keep up the illusion of work? Or does Lumon have more nefarious projects afoot that MDR has an unknowing hand in? (Lumon? Have nefarious projects? Never.)

9. What’s going on with Ricken and the Lumon edition of The You You Are?

Jen Tullock and Michael Chernus in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Oh, Ricken (Michael Chernus), you insufferable intellectual. We barely saw you this season, and dare I say that distance made the heart grow fonder? Fond enough for me to wonder, “Now where the heck is Ricken?” at the end of each episode, anyway.

The biggest development with Ricken in Season 2 was the fact that Lumon approached him about making a version of The You You Are specifically for Innies. (You know, by censoring it.) Perhaps that book will come into play more in Season 3, just like the Damona Birthing Retreat, a small part of Season 1 that ended up playing a major role in the end of Season 2. And remember, if Ricken now owes allegiance to Lumon, how do you think he’ll react to Devon collaborating against them with Mark? Will he celebrate Gemma’s return or tattle to Natalie (Sydney Cole Alexander) about it? Whatever the answer, we can at least celebrate Ricken by reading The You You Are, which is wonderfully real.

10. What’s the deal with the shadow selves and the watchers?

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Severance Season 2 introduced two strange forms of twins for the Innies. In “Woe’s Hollow,” the MDR Innies were guided through the forest by uncanny “shadow” selves. (Shadow Mark, played by Adam Jepsen, is also the figure who appears briefly behind him in the Season 2 premiere.) In “Chikhai Bardo,” we learned their work was being monitored by “watchers,” each of whom are styled to look fairly close to the Innie they’re watching.

By Season 2’s end, we still have no idea who these different sets of twins are, what their purpose is, or how they were made. The watchers seem like real people, but the shadows seem more artificial — not clones, but not totally human either. What infernal Lumon technology is at play here, and why am I having twice the existential crisis thinking about it?

11. Who is on the Lumon Board?

Sydney Cole Alexander in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

This question carries over from Season 1, but it remains as pertinent as ever, especially as Severance spends more time in the meetings between Lumon higher-ups like Helena, Mr. Drummond, and Mr. Milchick. Season 2 gave us precious few clues as to the faceless board members who lurk behind the trademark blue board speaker (or in Natalie’s earpiece). But after the catastrophic Cold Harbor test, could they step out of the shadows and show their faces?

12. What is the revolving?

This is another question that came up in Season 1, but given Jame Eagan’s (Michael Siberry) increased appearances at the end of Season 2, it bears repeating.

In the Season 1 finale, Jame told Helena, “One day you will sit with me at my revolving,” suggesting that the revolving is some kind of ritual every Lumon CEO must go through. Fan theories abound: Is it just a euphemism for death? Some kind of cloning or transfer of consciousness to keep the Lumon CEO line alive? Given that these are the Eagans we’re talking about, I’m sure it will be even creepier than our wildest nightmares.

13. Does Jame Eagan want Helly to be his new successor?

Michael Siberry in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

While we’re on the topic of Jame Eagan, what in the world was he talking about when he went to the Severed Floor to visit Helly? He started out by trashing Helena — “I do not love my daughter” — because he no longer sees Kier in her. He then drops the bombshell that he does see Kier in Helly: the very same thing he said about Cobel when he presented her with the Wintertide Fellowship. Jame seems to admire Helly’s fiery, spiritual resemblance to Kier. Could that admiration translate to him wanting to groom her as successor instead? Might he force reintegration on Helena/Helly so he gets an heir who’s loyal to Lumon but still has Kier within her? Or maybe he just wants to give Helly a Wintertide Fellowship. Now that Miss Huang’s (Sarah Bock) out of the picture, the Severed Floor does need someone to step up on theremin-playing duties.

14. Will Jame Eagan’s illegitimate children make an appearance?

One more Jame question, because that man keeps popping up! In his conversation with Helly, he reveals he has several illegitimate children, telling her, “I sired others in the shadows.” In episode 9, Severance also implies that the mothers of these children are taken to give birth at Damona.

So, who are these baby Eagans, and will they come into play in Season 3? Helena and Jame are already two Eagans too many, but I wouldn’t necessarily say no to a Succession-style struggle to be Lumon CEO. Alternatively, I hope for these illegitimate kids’ sake that they have no idea who their dad is or who the Eagans are. They deserve a chance to be normal and not Kier-pilled.

15. Will we see Miss Huang again?

Sarah Bock in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Severance Season 2 bade farewell to Miss Huang in episode 9, with Mr. Milchick sending her off to the Gunnel Eagan Empathy Center in Svalbard, Norway. That’s so far removed from the rest of the world that it’s nearly impossible to think we’ll see her again. A girl can dream though! Justice for Eustice!

16. Will we see Mark W., Gwendolyn Y., and Dario R. again?

Tramell Tillman, Alia Shawkat, Stefano Carannante, and Bob Balaban in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Introduced and promptly fired in the Season 2 premiere, Mark W. (Bob Balaban), Gwendolyn Y. (Alia Shawkat), and Dario R. (Stefano Carannante) were fascinating windows into severed life at other Lumon branches. It’s doubtful Lumon would bring them back after the total Innie rebellion of the finale, but I’ll never say never — especially when Mr. Drummond’s skeptical episode 2 reaction to Mark W. and Gwendolyn Y. coming from Branch 5X was so intriguing. What happened at Branch 5X to get it shut down? And more importantly, did Mark W.’s Outie recover after breaking his lease in Grand Rapids?

17. Where is Irving going? And will he be back?

John Turturro in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

If I have one complaint about the Severance Season 2 finale, it’s that it suffered from a grim lack of Irving. It’s bad enough we’ve been missing Innie Irving since his retirement in “Woe’s Hollow.” Why must you deprive me of Outie Irving too?

Of course, Irving’s absence comes down to the fact that Burt (Christopher Walken) sent him on a train far away from the town of Kier for his safety. But where is he going? And surely we’ll see him again, right? Right? The people yearn for Irv!

18. Who was Irving calling?

John Turturro in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Another Irving question that still has no answer: Who is the mystery person he was calling at the payphone? And how do they link up to Irving’s examining of Lumon employees and the links between accidents, settlements, and severance? Severance has hinted at Irving’s investigation since late in Season 1, so maybe we’ll learn more about his detective work in Season 3. Who knows, he may even be headed to meet up with his unknown ally as he departs Kier!

19. Will Dylan retire?

Zach Cherry and Merritt Wever in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

If the Innies make it out of their big stand alive, and if Dylan is even given a choice about whether to retire permanently or just keep working, what will he choose? He seemed pretty dead set on retiring in episode 9, but perhaps his Outie’s plea for him to stay got through to him, especially since he headed to the MDR office to help Helly instead of going back to the elevator to retire. Between that and his mic drop-worthy “Fuck you, Mr. Milchick,” it seems like Innie Dylan has a whole lot of fight left in him.

20. How many goats has Lumon killed, and for what?

Gwendoline Christie in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

The Season 2 finale finally revealed what Lumon does with its baby goats. It sacrifices them in order to “entomb” them with dead people — like Gemma, if all had gone to plan — after which the goat is meant to guide them to Kier’s door. I’m glad we have that answer, but like all things involving Severance, it only opens up more questions: What inspired this tradition within the cult of Kier? Why goats? Could other livestock do in a pinch?

However, most pressing of all is the question of how many times Lumon has carried out this sacrifice. Mammalians Nurturable head Lorne (Gwendoline Christie) seems horrified at the prospect of sacrificing her beloved goat Emile, asking, “How many more must I give?”

That question suggests that she has had to give up many more goats in her time — but what else was Lumon killing people for, and how often? Were these test subjects prior to Gemma, or part of their other frightening projects? Either way, let’s hope future seasons bring us more of Mammalians Nurturable fighting to protect their beloved goats.

21. What new weird food stuff will we get next season?

Zach Cherry in “Severance.”
Credit: Apple TV+

Season 1 of Severance brought us such cursed food-based perks as the egg bar, the melon bar, and the waffle party. In Season 2, Lumon leveled up its corporate snacking with new vending machine treats, Kier Eagan marshmallows, and a curious reliance on pineapple. Needless to say, I’m guessing Lumon will bring in some new strange food as the show continues — but what will it be? Will the company go through a berry phase? Incorporate more sweets into their snack selection? Get really into trail mix? Who knows! But one thing’s for sure: Pineapple, your days are numbered!

Severance Season 2 is now streaming on Apple TV+.