How ‘Severance’ is Redefining the Sci-Fi Genre

It’s no surprise that Severance has generated significant buzz online. With every new episode of Season 2, the ever-growing web of complex mysteries continues to unravel. 

While this series is often categorized as drama, Severance is a sci-fi series at its core. However, it differs greatly from the traditional space-bound narratives — like Star Trek.  

Instead of exploring distant planets or futuristic technology, this show delves into the terrifying possibilities of corporate control and mind alteration. It presents a world where employees go through a procedure called “Severance” that separates their work and personal memories. 

With its sleek and sterile aesthetic and eerie psychological depth, Severance redefines what a sci-fi series can be. As Season 2 unfolds, the show continues to push the boundaries of storytelling, captivating audiences with its endless questions and dilemmas. 

An Alternate Version of Reality

As mentioned before, Severance isn’t set in space or some far distant future where there are flying cars. In fact, outside of Lumon, the world of Severance seems eerily similar to ours. Still, something about the suburban streets and everyday businesses feels just slightly off. 

This is mainly reinforced by the show’s retro-futuristic aesthetic. The characters are often shown using bulky office computers and outdated technology like typewriters. These details help create an uncanny atmosphere, as if the show is trying to exist outside of any identifiable era. 

The architecture and setting of the show also contribute to Severance‘s unsettling atmosphere. The Lumon building is a windowless structure with endless white hallways that make the interior seem like a maze. The workplace feels both vast and claustrophobic. 

Even outside of Lumon, there’s something strange about the town. It seems strangely empty, and the minimalist, brutalist structures make the landscape feel almost artificial, like the entire world that Severance is grounded in a reality that isn’t quite like ours. 

This subtle distortion of a world that seems somewhat familiar to us is what makes Severance a compelling work of sci-fi. The show warps everyday life just enough to make us question the nature of reality itself. 

Inseparable Social Commentary 

Even though sci-fi can take place in a galaxy far, far away, many sci-fi works have some sort of social commentary. Take Star Wars, a franchise founded on the importance of political resistance. 

In a similar spirit, Severance focuses on critiquing capitalism—particularly how corporations gaining control over personal experiences and emotions can be detrimental. The show presents a world where work-life balance is taken literally. However, it quickly becomes clear that Lumon’s influence extends far beyond the office. 

From the very first episode, Severance addresses growing fears about surveillance. On Severance Season 1 Episode 1, “Good News About Hell,” Mark is shown to be living in Lumon housing. Furthermore, his manager-at-the-time, Harmony Cobel, is posing as his neighbor. 

So, even when the workers are not on the clock, Lumon is still watching them and blurring the lines between corporate and private existence. This mirrors real-world concerns about how companies are increasingly monitoring their employees beyond official work hours through methods like data collection. 

Additionally, Severance critiques the commercialization of emotion. In this show’s world, not even the workers’ family members are safe from Lumon. 

Mark’s sister, Devon, gets tangled up in Lumon’s schemes when she attends a birthing retreat. The retreat itself is also a clear example of how the company is trying to commercialize the personal and emotional experience of childbirth. 

Furthermore, Lumon seems to have specifically selected Mark and Gemma to work for them. As evidenced by Severance Season 2 Episode 7, “Chikhai Bardo,” this couple seems to have ended up working at Lumon due to Gemma’s pregnancy troubles and the company’s promise that they can help this couple. 

While it’s still unclear what Lumon’s end goal is, the psychological experimentation and exploitative programs that the company employs show that Lumon is clearly trying to gain control over emotional experiences. It’s a terrifying look into a world where corporations have power over what makes us human. 

The Precedent Severance Sets 

Ultimately, Severance is a masterclass in sci-fi storytelling. It uses an eerie corporate dystopia to explore the dangers of unchecked surveillance and emotional manipulation.

Unlike traditional sci-fi, Severance uniquely builds tension by playing with time, identity, and memory in a way that challenges our understanding of what it means to be human. 

Other sci-fi shows can learn from this show by embracing grounded storytelling that doesn’t rely on spectacle. Instead, world-building and psychological depth can be used to create compelling narratives that challenge how we think about the future.

After all, Severance proves that the most compelling science fiction doesn’t need to be about the distant future but about dystopias that we may already be living in. 

Severance airs Fridays on Apple TV+. 

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