Top 10 Things You Only Notice When Re-Watching Severance

The severed employees at Lumon know next to nothing about their outies, so they cling to any scrap of outside information they can get. In the second episode of the first season, Irving receives a wellness check where Ms. Casey recites a list of vague facts about his outie. At first glance, they seem meaningless, but on a rewatch, one detail might stand out. Fast forward to the season finale, and we find out that the name of his dog is actually Radar. Given his outie’s military background, this name could be a nod to the U.S. Navy, or perhaps the beloved character from the TV show “M*A*S*H.”

After Helly R. asks to leave, she is taken to an exit door, but finds herself returning to the same hallway. Initially, this might seem like Lumon is trapping its severed employees. However, the real explanation is actually laid out in the show, but it might take a rewatch to fully piece it together. Helly’s outie wants to stay at Lumon, so the moment she exits, she is greeted by Mr. Michick, who assures her that her innie’s resistance is just part of the adjustment process. Once she steps back inside, she immediately reverts to her innie self. From the innie’s perspective, this seems like an endless loop because her memory resets at the threshold, making it seem like she never left at all.

Innie Irving’s behavior might seem a little odd without context. He is the only one who snaps to attention when Mr. Milchick enters the MDR room, and he reads the time in military format, both of which hint at his military past. This only clicks into place once we meet his outie later in the season. But a rewatch reveals even more breadcrumbs. Innie Irving hallucinates black goo seeping over his computer and we even see black paint under his fingernails. These details take on new meaning when we learn that his outie obsessively paints the hallway leading to the Testing Floor. Some fans speculate that this could be his outie’s way of communicating with his innie, but for now, that remains a mystery.

On the show, it is quickly established that the elevators transporting employees to and from the severed floor are equipped with text detectors, ensuring no messages slip between innies and outies. For this reason, employees must swap their regular watches for stripped-down, minimalist versions with no numbers or labels, to avoid triggering the system. The same rule applies to the clocks on the severed floor, which are also plain and do not feature any numbers. When Mark clocks out for the day, he trades his minimalist watch for a Vostok Komandirskie 341307[b], a rugged Russian military timepiece. It is likely that this was a gift from his wife, Gemma, as it is later revealed that she was a Russian literature professor.

At Lumon, the office culture is quite cold, but that’s only rivaled by the equally cold nature of the weather outside. In the universe of “Severance” the world seems perpetually stuck in winter. Or at least, that’s how it has appeared since the show began. To be fair, the entire timeline so far has only spanned maybe a few weeks or months, so it’ll be interesting to see if future installments explore other seasons. The only real hint of another season comes from pictures of Gemma, which seem to capture a rare glimpse of spring. Perhaps this unrelenting winter is just a reflection of Mark’s grief, frozen in isolation since the loss of his wife.

At the birthing lodge, Devon strikes up a conversation with another expectant mother, Gabby Arteta, in her fancy cabin. Gabby mentions that this pregnancy, her third overall, is made possible with a little “help.” However, when Devon runs into her again after they’ve both given birth, Gabby doesn’t recognize her. This suggests that the “help” Gabby referred to was the severance procedure, allowing her to forget the pain of childbirth. Devon later discovers that Gabby is married to a State Senator who actively supports legalizing severance. She also finds an interview with Gabby, where she talks about her home undergoing major renovation. Perhaps, this was not just a simple kitchen upgrade, but the installation of severance technology in their home.

“Severance” returned for a second season with a gripping premiere that raised more questions than answers. Early in the episode, Mr. Milchick informs Mark that after the innies’ revolt, they became champions for severance reform and were hailed as heroes. He even shows Mark a front-page newspaper featuring the group being celebrated in a street parade. However, the image is laughably fake. It’s just their group photo from Helly’s first day, photoshopped into a 1960 picture of Dwight Eisenhower. Later, when the team regroups, Helly is seen working on a file labeled “Santa Mira,” an apparent reference to the 1956 sci-fi horror “Invasion of the Body Snatchers,” about humans being replaced by alien duplicates. Could this be a hint at Lumon’s real intentions?

The show never outright states it, but the MDR team actually has a dress code, as laid out in The Lexington Letter, a companion book by the creators. Refiners are required to stick to a monochromatic wardrobe, limited to white, black, grey, navy, or pastels. Everyone follows this rule… except Helly. She alone wears vibrant shades of green, blue, yellow and red. On the surface, this makes sense, considering she is the rebellious one of the bunch. But it takes on even more weight after it is revealed that she is the daughter of Lumon CEO, Jame[d] Eagan. In fact, the show hints at this connection much earlier in the season, when her outie is seen wearing a strikingly similar coat as Ms. Cobel.

There are many cryptic symbols associated with Lumon sprinkled throughout the show, and one recurring motif is water. Not only is Lumon’s logo a water droplet, but there is a massive water tower in the company’s parking lot. Even the famous painting, “Kier Invites You to Drink of His Water,” shows the Lumon founder standing by a valley overlooking lakes below. But that is just the tip of the iceberg. Nearly all MDR file names, including Tumwater, Siena and Allentown, are references to dams, reservoirs and other man-made water structures worldwide. So what exactly does water symbolize for Lumon? One theory suggests that the company might be seeking to gain control of the world’s water resources as a way to wield power over people.


Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

The Sounds Each Refiner Hears in the Break Room Are Personal to Their Outies

Helly Is Given the Answer to This Orientation Question Before She Is Severed

The Protesters Hint at the Likely Purpose the Baby Goats Serve

Cobel Steals a Candle From Mark’s House, Which Shows Up During His Wellness Session

In season two of “Severance,” it becomes apparent that Mark is no ordinary employee. Following the MDR uprising, he is the only one to not be fired from the company. Clearly, Lumon still needs him, and we quickly find out why. Mark is reinstated to work on a critical project called Cold Harbor, which, as we learn at the end of episode one, has something to do with Ms. Casey. A brief glimpse of Cold Harbor reveals her picture, alongside other details like her vitals and Kier’s Four Tempers, which keen-eyed viewers might only catch on a rewatch. While its exact purpose remains unclear, Mark’s involvement suggests it could be connected with reviving Casey’s outie, Gemma, which may tie into Lumon’s larger goal.