Finally got around to starting Severance last night, so finding your Substack today was super convenient! I hadn't thought much about the aesthetics of the 'outside dystopia' at all, but reading your thoughts here made me realize that the place with no sunlight is super bright, and then Mark never really gets to experience sunlight outside anymore where it's always dark.
I was also thinking about this moment from your stray observations: "Petey’s cryptic suggestion that he was Petey’s best friend but Petey wasn’t Mark’s." I had interpreted that scene to be a moment of accidental, implicit, or maybe subconscious connection. Earlier in the episode, Irv or Dylan had mentioned that they knew Mark must be sad that his best friend Petey was gone, given their shared, I think dry, sense of humour. Outside, we see very few moments of Mark laughing or close to happy - mostly just with his sister, where his sense of humour comes out a bit. I think Petey's comment was an inside (ha) joke of theirs, one that makes Mark almost start to smile, showing us he might be realizing he could be connected to this person he has no reason to trust or believe he has ever met before. And so it's interesting to see what might be intuition, what might feel familiar, or what might even be his inside self coming out subconsciously here.
Only 11 months late but started watching the show last night. Really enjoying it after two episodes.
I was also struck by how bleak things are outside the office in this premiere. I wonder if the lack of food is because Lumon invented some kind of pill that gives everyone their daily energy? I guess it could be a more dystopian reason too. (Of course this is probably explained later so no spoilers please)
Also, re: the backwards looking tech, it reminded me a lot of the offices in Archer. Lot of 80s vibes despite being set in the present.
Very excited to see you are covering this series! Even though I finished the season, reading the reviews is reminding me of how beautifully this world was built over each episode.
I haven't yet begun watching Severance, but I really like your review and it's making me more interested in checking it out. One question I have regarding reviews going forward: is there any chance you will start assigning grades to the episodes? I always appreciated the way AVClub episode grades and featured them on the images (though I know this wasn't always something writers did or preferred to do).
Finally got around to starting Severance last night, so finding your Substack today was super convenient! I hadn't thought much about the aesthetics of the 'outside dystopia' at all, but reading your thoughts here made me realize that the place with no sunlight is super bright, and then Mark never really gets to experience sunlight outside anymore where it's always dark.
I was also thinking about this moment from your stray observations: "Petey’s cryptic suggestion that he was Petey’s best friend but Petey wasn’t Mark’s." I had interpreted that scene to be a moment of accidental, implicit, or maybe subconscious connection. Earlier in the episode, Irv or Dylan had mentioned that they knew Mark must be sad that his best friend Petey was gone, given their shared, I think dry, sense of humour. Outside, we see very few moments of Mark laughing or close to happy - mostly just with his sister, where his sense of humour comes out a bit. I think Petey's comment was an inside (ha) joke of theirs, one that makes Mark almost start to smile, showing us he might be realizing he could be connected to this person he has no reason to trust or believe he has ever met before. And so it's interesting to see what might be intuition, what might feel familiar, or what might even be his inside self coming out subconsciously here.
Mark is a widower, not a widow. And Petey was Mark's best friend, but Mark wasn't Petey's.
Only 11 months late but started watching the show last night. Really enjoying it after two episodes.
I was also struck by how bleak things are outside the office in this premiere. I wonder if the lack of food is because Lumon invented some kind of pill that gives everyone their daily energy? I guess it could be a more dystopian reason too. (Of course this is probably explained later so no spoilers please)
Also, re: the backwards looking tech, it reminded me a lot of the offices in Archer. Lot of 80s vibes despite being set in the present.
Very excited to see you are covering this series! Even though I finished the season, reading the reviews is reminding me of how beautifully this world was built over each episode.
I haven't yet begun watching Severance, but I really like your review and it's making me more interested in checking it out. One question I have regarding reviews going forward: is there any chance you will start assigning grades to the episodes? I always appreciated the way AVClub episode grades and featured them on the images (though I know this wasn't always something writers did or preferred to do).