Everyone you know is watching the new Severance episodes, a new hit for Apple TV+. If you haven’t seen it yet, here are five reasons why it’s worth a subscription.
Most of the reasons why people don’t watch Severance is simply because they don’t have the streaming service. This is understandable because no one wants to pay for another service.
Apple TV+ has struck gold with Severance, and I can tell you it’s worth $10 a month to watch. Since the season is almost done, you could pay even less if you binge it in one month.
The first season of Severance was released in 2021, leaving fans to wait three years until the second season came out. While you saved yourself the wait, now is the time to tune in with everyone else.
#1: It’s Similar to Black Mirror
Have you ever watched Black Mirror? Severance isn’t any different from the unsettling, near-future, science fiction themes.
Severance follows severed workers who work for a company called Lumon. Severed workers have two lives: their work life (innie) and home life (outie). Outies don’t share the same memories as their innies, which means they live separate lives in the same body.
With a third season in production, Severance is like an episode of Black Mirror that was so good that they decided to turn it into a show. If you liked episodes like “The Entire History of You” or “White Christmas” from Black Mirror, you would like Severance.
This is also to say that if you watch Severance, you should also watch Black Mirror. They both offer perspectives on the dangers in science fiction and future technology.
#2: It’s Visually Appealing
Most of the show is presented in a minimal style. The visuals are never over the top or too busy but are deliberately easy on the eyes. Sometimes, this evokes responses from viewers.
For example, most of the visuals, especially the use of colors, are neutral. Sometimes they can be white and bright, other times they can be dark and depressing.
At times, these visuals affect both the character and the audience. When visuals are bright, we feel at ease and “safe.” Other times, when visuals are hard to see, we’re put in a state of anxiety or despair.
At first, the show seems harmless, but you’ll realize that its visual appearance adds to the show’s creepiness and fear of the unknown.
#3: Criticizes Work-Life Balance
A real problem that many workers struggle with daily is getting a work-life balance right.
Humans crave a “perfect” balance that doesn’t exist. It’s such a struggle to maintain that an easy fix like the severance procedure seems beneficial. Severed people don’t have to deal with their work hours, so why not?
Without giving too many spoilers, the whole point of the show is to tell you why severance isn’t a good idea. Rather, the bigger problem lies in the stress of workplace demands and expectations.
Right now, theories are flying left and right about Lumon’s practices and why being severed is a requirement.
#4: Highly Underrated
Severance received massive praise in its first season, earning the show two Emmys out of fourteen nominations. However, that number has increased even more with season 2.
For loyal fans, the wait for Season 2 of Severance was long. Production delays, issues between showrunners, and the writer’s strike put Severance in a precarious spot.
However, with the release of Season 2, more people are becoming attuned to how underrated it is. Apple TV+’s unique marketing scheme in Grand Central helped to bring more eyes to the show.
In this upcoming season, the show could receive more nominations due to the overwhelming fan and critic responses.
#5: It Could Happen
While it sounds cool on paper, in reality, it’s much more sinister, and the technology isn’t as far off as we think.
The show doesn’t say exactly what year it is, purposefully confusing us with modern houses and technology, but cars and other businesses look like they’re from the past.
A severance procedure could happen in the future, even if the show tells us all the reasons why we shouldn’t take it. It might not require brain surgery like the show does, but some form of it can come into practice.
Realistically, the effects of the severance procedure would mean losing memories, eight hours of our day, and missing out on normal relationships as the show presents. That can be terrifying.
Want to know a little hack? Students can access Apple TV+ when they subscribe to Apple Music with a student discount ($6), so you can get music and television for less.
If that’s not what you’re looking for, I suggest subscribing to Apple TV+ for one month and binging the whole series so you can save your money.
Severance recently became Apple TV+’s most-streamed show on their platform, surpassing Ted Lasso, which previously held the title. (As someone who’s seen both, I think Severance is way better…)
I highly recommend watching the show. It’s not the typical television that you would find on a site like Netflix or Max. It might be a little slow at the start, but once it gets going, you’ll be hooked (or creeped out) to know what happens next.
