SEVERANCE Season One

All work and no play

- Ian Berriman

UK/US Apple TV+, Fridays

Creator Dan Erickson

Cast Adam Scott, Zach Cherry, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, John Turturro, Patricia Arquette

EPISODES 1.01-1.09 Imagine how it would feel if you spent every waking moment working; if you felt kept in the dark by your employers; if you were bombarded with trite slogans; if they tried to make up for all this with the sop of tatty treats and “wellness” sessions. By now, many of you are probably muttering, “Huh, tell me about it.” Which is one reason Severance is so effective: its satirical take on office culture may be built on an outlandish premise, but it feels very close to home.

The near future. Instead of improving the work-life balance, industry has found a way to veil it. Certain employees of Lumon Industries have agreed to a surgical procedure called severance, which involves inserting a chip in their brains. Once they enter the “severed” floor they lose all access to memories of their personal lives, effectively cleaving their personalities in two.