3 Severance Theories That Are Keeping Me Up at Night

Maybe I’m in the minority here, but there is something special about a weekly release of a TV show that just hits differently. While I am as big of a fan of binge-watching an entire season in one sitting as the next person, being forced to wait a week in between episodes has a certain mystique to it that can’t be replicated. Take Severance, for example, the Apple TV+ original is a show that has such an addictive quality about it that it is almost painful to wait for a new episode to release. It is one of the 10 shows you need to watch on Apple TV+ right now. Similar to the folks on the severed floor, time just seems to work differently when watching a show like Severance. There have been episodes that have flown by so quickly that I thought I pulled an Irving and dozed off for a few minutes.

Despite the challenge of pushing my patience to its limit, waiting a week for new Severance episodes does have its perks. Not only does it create something to look forward to each week, but it allows for the obsessive and probably unhealthy discussion of theories that are often mind-blowing. Some fan theories are so wild that they sometimes keep me up at night while trying to digest. There are so many mysteries swirling around the Lumon campus that it would be a disservice to the show if we weren’t able to fully enjoy them.

The Truth About MDR

“The work is mysterious and important.” Since the first episode of Severance, the work that Mark S. (Adam Scott) and the rest of the MDR team do has been endlessly talked about and questioned. It is certainly one of the most prominent Severance theories out there and one that I often think about. Yet in the three years since the show debuted, we never really got any closer to figuring out what macrodata refinement does for certain or what it even accomplishes. While several characters have mentioned that it is designed to evoke certain emotions, we are still in the dark about how those emotions relate to what Lumon is up to.

According to Kier Eagan, the beloved founder of Lumon, every human soul contains at least some portion of what he called the four tempers. They are woe, frolic, dread, and malice. Some Severance fans believe that those four tempers are directly connected to the work of the MDR team. During the Season 2 premiere, we possibly received confirmation of this theory when Mark was shown working on his current file, which just so happened to be connected to Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman). Is the MDR team refining the chips inside severed people? If so, is it not particularly cruel to have Mark work on this specific file?

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The Innies Who Stare at Goats

Although it feels like we are slowly learning the (possible) truth about the work of the MDR team, there is still one thing that still feels as puzzling as ever and its purpose has so many possibilities that it can make your head spin: what is the meaning of the goats? When we first caught a glimpse of the goats in Season 1, it was almost too surreal to believe. It had to have been some fever dream. While some fans believe that the goats represent one of the four tempers, that idea is still wide open to interpretation. How do they directly tie into the tempers? Is it a reference to being able to tame your temper? But if that’s true, then why are the goats kept in relative secrecy?

We were also thrown a bit of a curve ball thanks to the Season 2 trailer. In true Severance fashion, they threw a lot of insane visuals at us in the trailer that may or may not even be what they appear to be. Severance has so many small details that will change the way you watch the show. The most incomprehensible of the visuals was a blink-and-you-might-miss-it shot of a shepherd inside a hilly room filled with adult goats. While we will soon find out if the shepherd is in fact real, it still opens the door to a million new possibilities. Is the shepherd a severed employee? Is the shepherd herding the goats the same mysterious man we saw in Season 1? While this character could tie into the “tame your temper” theory, it remains to be seen how it all connects to the overarching story.

Keep the Gaslight On

In the Season 2 premiere of Severance, we discovered that Lumon had supposedly learned its lesson about treating severed employees poorly. In an adorable claymation film, the MDR team finds out that their uprising was successful and their workplace will now feel like less of a prison and more like a home away from home. Narrated by a talking Lumon building, voiced by none other than Keanu Reeves, the video says that the company’s hand was forced when word of MDR uprising got out and was covered by the media. It’s a win for the MDR team, right? Well, as we have learned before, the board at Lumon isn’t exactly fond of playing by the rules or telling the truth. How do we know they aren’t manipulating the MDR team by telling them what they want to hear? Also, is Helly (Britt Lower) really Helena right now? We have so many questions that have yet to be answered.

We saw back in Season 1 that Lumon is not to be trusted when they attempted to keep the MDR team and O&D apart. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) planted a depiction of the war between each department, which was quickly debunked by Burt (Christopher Walken). It appears that every employee is being severely gaslit in order to keep them in line and prevent questions from being asked. If the severed floor has “won,” then why does it feel like the walls are still closing in around them? It’s all to keep the board of Lumon hidden. We know nothing about them and it feels like they are more than happy to keep it that way. Are they even human? It often feels like Severance has hinted that some otherworldly specters are the ones pulling the strings behind closed doors. Would that be too hard to believe? It is truly puzzling trying to figure out who the board members Lumon.

You can stream Severance on Apple TV+.