This was a rough episode for MDR’s star refiner. Dylan G. has been equal parts comic relief, no-nonsense workhorse, and master of the quickest quips and most berating burns. As an awestruck Mr. Milchick points out at one point, Dylan G. has an ounce of sugar, alongside his regular salt. And you know what? For Severance Season 2 – Episode 5, we enjoyed a little sugar. It helped ease the pain of the added salt in last episode’s wound.
Now, what’s a review on The Indie Magazine without our trusty vibe check? And once again, this is as spoiler-free as it’s supposed to be. So, if you watch the episode after reading the review, don’t forget to check back in afterwards.
Weekly Vibe Check
Don’t let this get to your head. Or become your head. Or resemble your head. But hey, there’s worse guests at a party.
Swedish Royalty
Now look, there’s a term in this episode that most people outside of Scandinavia will not be able to pronounce. When Mr. Milchick does it though, it seems to come from a place of such familiarity. Do it. Try saying, “Gråkappan” five times fast. Now try saying it 10 times slowly, enunciating every syllable.
Either way, the story of King Charles XI of Sweden is an odd one to explain the actions of one key member of MDR’s team. Much like the King’s actions that earned him the nickname “Gråkappan,” one team member concealed their true intentions for the good of Lumon. But do we think it’s only for the company? Or…is there something more personal involved in the moves within the shadows?
And for the love of all that is sacred, why is Lumon looking to adapt self-help books for their employees?!?
There’s Another Apple TV+ Show You Should Try
In speaking of the team and some of their decisions, this is a great time to give a quick plug to another Apple TV+ series, Hijack. Idris Elba, stressful situations in the sky, and a whole lotta subterfuge and sly moves. Now, why bring this up? Well, much like Idris Elba struggling to retake a plane from extremist evildoers, there are some severed folks in Severance Season 2 that we’ve seen this season who might be hijacking the work.
Exploring the halls of the severed floor, visiting other teams, searching for alleged missing employees…all the work of someone less interested with the intended destination than they are the allure of a detour. Now, in Severance Season 2 – Episode 5.
Questions About the Writers
Now, I keep running into an issue this season. I know that writer’s rooms are often more rushed, sequestered, and less cohesive than they were say, five to ten years ago. I get that.
That said, Severance Season 2 – Episode 5 brings the uneven character decisions to the surface. Mark S., his personality, his dialog, his temperament, his priorities, and his worries are all out of whack. The Mark S. from episode 2 is a completely different character than we see in Episode 4. The end of Episode 5 feels out of whack when looking back at the end of Episode 3 or 4.
Does it make Severance Season 2 “bad”? No, not at all. Is it uneven, and recognizably so? Definitely. Hey, it’s a miracle anything gets written and produced at all, so I’m happy we have it. I just hope we get some answers soon enough as to why Mark S. feels so off-kilter.
On Dylan G.
As we saw earlier this season, Dylan G. has had a rough go at it. He’s great at being a refiner, he’s got a soured attitude about home life, and he seems to be a ball of stress in the outside world. So what happens when the severed floor gets dicey? What happens when questions arise that cause his domain to become a dungeon?
Luckily, we’ve seen friendships blossom and camaraderie grow this season between the team members. Yet, Dylan G. once again faces a hardship he didn’t ask for. As one team member tells him, ‘Hang in there,’ can we follow their instructions and find purpose once more?
Performances, Reviews, and Performance Reviews
Mr. Milchick gets called in by the board, and we’re on pins and needles. What will they say? Why are they choosing now to review his work? And why on Earth is that child-employee still going unexplained?!?
The hope of the board is that Mr. Milchick will tighten the ship to get Mark S. closer to completing Cold Harbor. Heck, he is already at more than 80%, so…why not bring him across the finish line? The audience sits in confusion and wonderment, just hoping we’ll know what Cold Harbor means soon enough…
Conspiracies and Daydreams
We’ve gotten all the way to Severance Season 2 – Episode 5. More than halfway there. So now, I have some half-baked conspiracies, outlandish theories, and daydreamt hypotheses:
- Lumon is taking recently deceased candidates or people who are in comas, and making them literally ‘cold harbors’ for other consciousnesses looking to live another life. Think Get Out on crack.
- Confidence: 40%
- Excitement: 60%
- Cold Harbor is proof that the Confederates won the Civil War in this universe, but it finally cracked in the 1980s. Hence, we see old cars everywhere, even through we saw Mark’s driver’s license and know it is modern day. Lumon is a holdover of old time thinkers, wishing to bring back the old guard.
- Confidence: 10%
- Excitement: 5%
- Lumon is actually snatching bodies of accident victims who have not yet died, done severance procedures on them, and brought them underground. Unaware of their past lives, they bring people in as employees who have outie connections to these almost-lost loved ones to test if they’re truly severed and separate entities.
- Confidence: 50%
- Excitement: 35%
Now, I could be totally off. In fact, I’m pretty sure none of those predictions are even close to being correct. But hey, after watching Severance Season 2 – Episode 5, it was time to stake our own claims and predictions. Take that Dan Erickson and Ben Stiller!
Final Thoughts
The road to reintegration is paved with whispers, warnings, and walls closing in. Will Mark shake this incessant cough? With all we’ve seen, will we be reunited with those dutiful employees who retired along the way? Will Dylan G. hang in there and make good on the challenge placed before him?
And what I wonder most of all is, will we see Harmony Cobel make a reappearance soon? Especially after Mr. Milchick’s recent meetings with the board?
Only time will tell. We can only hope, for all our sake’s, that time is kind to those who patiently watch and wait for all to be revealed.
Enjoy Severance Season 2 – Episode 5, and make sure you’re near a couch or bed. Wouldn’t want to be so shocked we fell and hit our head anywhere harder than that.
If you haven’t yet, check out our reviews for Severance Season 2 thus far:
- Severance Season 2 – Episode 1
- Severance Season 2 – Episode 2
- Severance Season 2 – Episode 3
- Severance Season 2 – Episode 4
SEVERANCE – SEASON 2
The highly anticipated second season of Apple’s Emmy and Peabody Award-winning workplace thriller “Severance” has made its global debut! From the unsevered minds of director and executive producer Ben Stiller and creator, writer and executive producer Dan Erickson, the first episode of “Severance” season two debuted on Apple TV+ Friday, January 17th, 2025, and one new episode will drop every Friday through March 21.
From Apple TV+:
“Severance” Season Two
In “Severance,” Mark Scout (Adam Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure, which surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. This daring experiment in “work-life balance” is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work… and of himself. In season two, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.
Season two of the broadly acclaimed workplace thriller from director and executive producer Ben Stiller, and creator Dan Erickson, reunites its ensemble cast of stars including Emmy Award nominee Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Zach Cherry, Jen Tullock, Michael Chernus, Dichen Lachman, Emmy Award winner John Turturro, Academy Award winner Christopher Walken and Academy and Emmy Award winner Patricia Arquette, and welcomes new series regular Sarah Bock.
“Severance” is executive produced by Ben Stiller, who also directs five episodes this season in addition to directors Uta Bresiewitz, Sam Donovan and Jessica Lee Gagné. The series is written, created and executive produced by Dan Erickson. “Severance” season two is also executive produced by John Lesher, Jackie Cohn, Mark Friedman, Beau Willimon, Jordan Tappis, Sam Donovan, Caroline Baron, Richard Schwartz, Nicholas Weinstock. In addition to starring, Adam Scott and Patricia Arquette serve as executive producers. Fifth Season is the studio.
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