Due to its balanced mix of soul-crushing exploration of capitalistic work and intriguing puzzle-like structure, Severance has become one of Apple TV+’s most popular series. Many of the show’s mysteries are yet to be solved, with each episode giving fans new clues they can try to fit together. However, what’s clear is that creator Dan Erickson has planned out the whole series right from the start, which allows the entire creative team to hide the truth in plain sight; every time something big gets revealed, we realize that clues were foreshadowing the twist since Severance’s first episodes. That leads us to Gemma (Dichen Lachman), aka Ms. Casey, Mark’s (Adam Scott) “dead” wife, who still has a working life as a therapist in the first season of Severance. And her name might be the key to unlocking the series’ biggest mystery.
Before diving deep into the rabbit hole, it’s worth noting how every detail in Severance is carefully designed. For instance, the time on wall clocks helps us put together the timeline of events, and a simple elevator ding could reveal a big twist in a character’s identity. The same goes for names. “Mark S.,” for example, reads a lot like Marx (as in Karl Marx), the economist who coined the concept of work alienation that’s so dear to Severance’s themes. So, it’s fair to assume Gemma’s name was also chosen purposefully.
It could be that “Gemma” was selected due to its Greek roots meaning “gem,” as in “precious,” given the character’s importance in the show. However, in biology, “gemma” is “a small cellular body or bud that can separate to form a new organism.” In other words, some fungi can use their spores to recreate their entire cellular structure into a new individual, which could allude to how Mark’s wife is still alive on the severed floor of Lumon.
At first glance, this theory might seem like a stretch. Yet, the first episodes of Severance Season 2 give more hints that point to this mind-blowing twist.
Gemma Could Explain Mark’s Importance to “Cold Harbor”
In the second episode of Severance Season 2, we learn that Mark is not like the other workers of the Macrodata Refinement department. While everyone is replaceable, Mark seems to be the only person capable of refining a file called “Cold Harbor.” The blink-and-you-might-miss-it image of the Cold Harbor file we get in Episode 2 shows a picture of Gemma. The lower-left corner of the image also has an image that closely resembles animal cells, like a sample of human tissue.
We know MDR’s work is essential somehow, as Lumon depends on the department’s results to advance its agenda. However, until now, we could only guess at the company’s true goals. However, if Lumon is researching immortality, they could be trying to clone Gemma and recreate her mind through the MDR department.
We’ve all noticed that MDR’s job consists of removing data from a complex digital structure and locking it inside four digital boxes. Not coincidentally, Lumon’s founder, Kier Eagan, developed a theory that humans should eliminate four “tempers” to become perfect: Woe, Frolic, Dread, and Malice. It would make sense that MDR workers are taming other people’s tempers by removing some data from the severance chip implanted in their brains. That would also explain why the MDR work is empathetic, as they feel the “dread” or the “frolic” of some numbers before correctly sorting them through Lumon’s computers.
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In that context, Gemma would represent a unique project for Lumon, as she proves that the company can bring the dead back to life and restore their mind (and/or “souls”). Just imagine how much money Lumon could make if Gemma were fully functional instead of the defective person Ms. Casey proved to be in Season 1. That would explain why Mark is so essential, as his subconscious connection to Gemma makes him the perfect candidate to filter her mind.
If proven correct, this theory would also explain why Harmony Cobel (Patricia Arquette) took a special interest in Mark. It would also be a good reason for Lumon to bury the investigation on Mr. Graner’s (Michael Cumpsty) death, even though Mark was obviously connected to the murder. Finally, if Mark’s connection to Gemma is that important for Lumon, the company would have every reason to go to extreme lengths to make him comfortable inside the severed floor, as they’ve been doing in Season 2.
Only time will tell what’s truly happening at Lumon. Yet, Severance has given us a lot to think about, and it feels like the pieces are starting to fall into place.
New episodes of Severance come to Apple TV+ every Friday
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