It's been well over two years since we last checked in on Mark (Adam Scott), Dylan (Zach Cherry), Irving (John Turturro), and Helly (Britt Lower), four "severed" workers toiling away in the basements of Lumen Industries, doing they know not what. For reasons we have yet to fully understand, the foursome underwent a procedure that made it so they remember nothing of their outside lives while at work, and vice versa. They've basically been split into two people: their work selves and their home selves, and their work selves have gotten pretty freaking tired of devoting the whole of their existance to labor.
The first season ended with a thrilling cliffhanger where the work personalities escaped into the real world, if only briefly. What happens next? Well, in the trailer, Mark S. finds himself back in the bowels of Lumen, racing through the eerily samey hallways until he bursts back into his old workspace to find a trio of new colleagues waiting for him, played by Alia Shawkat, Bob Balaban, and Stefano Carannante. Sinister smiling middle manager Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) walks in with a bunch of balloons. “Welcome back, Mark S. Been a minute." Yeah, it's been quite a lot of minutes.
We also see glimpses of the other characters in the trailer, so we know they're coming back. Cast members Jen Tullock, Michael Chernus, Dichen Lachman, Christopher Walken, Patricia Arquette, and Sarah Bock will also return. Overall, the trailer is mind-bending and strange in the way you'd expect from this sci-fi show. When we spoke to Severance writer Mohamad El Masri, he assured us that showrunner Dan Erickson has a master plan for everything. What are the severed workers refining? What's the deal with Mark's wife? Why are there goats down there? All questions will be answered, sooner or later.
Severance is the kind of mystery box show that inspires lots of speculation and conspiracy theorizing among fans. To indulge in a bit of that, I can't help but notice that the first official image from season 2 features Mark holding a bunch of blue balloons, just like the ones Mr. Milchick is holding in the trailer. What do the blue balloons mean? WHAT DO THEY MEAN, SHOW? We'll get more insight when the second season kicks off on Friday, January 17 on Apple TV+.
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