‘Severance’: Every Time Helly Wasn’t Herself in Season 2
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Severance Season 2 Episodes 1-4.]
Severance‘s second season is well underway at Apple TV+ and something has been a little off about Helly R (Britt Lower), as fans continued to point out peculiarities in her behavior leading up to the pivotal episode, “Woe’s Hollow.”
Since the premiere episode, a theory about whether Helly is herself or her outie counterpart, Helena Eagan, has loomed large, but what signs pointed to the possibility? Quite a few, actually. While this was merely a theory until it was proven true in the fourth episode, there was definitely a lot of clues to fuel your journey down a rabbit hole.
For those less acquainted with the series, Helly is one of the employees of the show’s mysterious company, Lumon, where she works in MDR (Macrodata Refinement) alongside other severed workers, who have chosen to undergo a medical procedure that separates their consciousness into two. Their “outies” who have personal lives know nothing about their day-to-day at work as “innies,” and vice versa.
But after Season 1’s finale twist, which saw the innies activated outside of working hours, it was revealed that Helly R was really Helena Eagan, the daughter of Lumon’s current CEO, Jame Eagan (Michael Sidberry). Taking her moment to reveal the monotonous and torturous lives of innies, Helly began vocalizing the dangers of severance as a procedure before the switch was flipped back, reactivating her outie, Helena.
While Season 2 introduced Helena outside of Lumon’s severed floor in some new scenes, fans were rightfully suspicious of Helly R’s behaviors within MDR, noting some peculiarities that hinted at the possibility she was not who she claimed. Again, this concept was proven true in “Woe’s Hollow” when Irving (John Turturro) finally pieced the puzzle together, forcing Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) to have Helly R reactivated.
Although the signs surrounding Helena’s role were there for fans to pick up on, we’re breaking down the moments when Helly R wasn’t quite herself in Season 2. Let us know what you thought of the Helly twist in the comments section, below, and stay tuned for more Severance as Season 2 continues on Apple TV+.
Severance, Season 2, Fridays, Apple TV+
Helly Doesn't Immediately React to Helly
When Helly exits the elevator onto the severed floor at Lumon in Season 2’s premiere, Mark (Adam Scott) shouts out her name, and she’s slow to turn her head. While this hesitation could be seen as a form of shock, this also hinted that Helly was not exactly who she claimed to be. Additionally, when Mark goes to hug Helly, she wasn’t initially receptive, only closing her arms around him a few seconds after making contact. It’s a weird reaction for someone who initiated a kiss the last time they saw each other.
Helly's Observation of Lumon's Security
Shortly after reconvening with the MDR crew on the severed floor, Mark mentioned needing to be careful because you never know who is listening. Helly made an off-handed comment wondering out loud what happened to the security cameras. While it could have been seen as an off-handed remark, it also seemed to be a way of easing tensions among her colleagues, allowing them to be more loose-lipped with their thoughts if they don’t think they’re being surveilled.
Helly's Explanation
When the innies are sharing their different experiences of the outside world with one another, Helly chose not to disclose her outie’s true identity as Helena Eagan, and instead told the group that she woke up in an apartment and shared her story with a night gardener. That detail of the night gardener catches Irving’s attention, but was it merely a slip-up from an innie who is scared she’d be rejected by her friends if they know her outie’s ties to the company they’re rebelling against or was it a mistake made by a mole? It would seem like the latter.
No Elevator Beep
In the second episode, viewers saw the outies reporting to Lumon, reflecting their arrival from the season’s premiere in a different perspective, but sly fans made one interesting observation, and it’s the fact that the elevator never beeped when Helly took it down to MDR. Unlike her coworkers whose elevator rides make a beep, indicating their arrival on the severed floor, Helly’s elevator seemingly arrives without the noise. While it was never indicated that this is a mandatory aspect for innie activation, it did set her apart from her cohorts.
"We've Got You"
In the third episode, Helly and Mark plan to search for Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman), while Irving was going to explore O&D (Optics and Design) for any clues. The department is a bit of a sore spot for Irving as it once was run by his workplace love Burt (Christopher Walken). But when Helly goes to convey support to Irving over the endeavor, her language is rather corporate as she reaches out and says, “We’ve got you.” Irving’s pause over the comment isn’t so receptive as it appears to be suspicious.
The Belly Button
When Mark and Helly visit Mammalians Nurturable in search of Ms. Casey in Episode 3, the staff in that department asks to see their bellies believing they’d have pouches. When Mark and Helly lift their shirts, there are no pouches, but while Mark’s belly button is visible, Helly’s is not, and one fan theorized that perhaps the choice to not make Helly’s belly button visible is a nod to keeping viewers in the dark about which version of her is occupying the severed floor. Adding to that concept, Mark’s belly button is an innie, without Helly’s visible, we can’t tell if she’s an “innie” or an “outie.”
Cruel Helly
In Episode 4, there is more than one occassion where Helly is cruel to her colleague Irving. The first is when she mocked his suggestion to eat a rotting seal carcass by gifting him a mini snow seal she made. The second example is when he continues to push for more information on the “night gardener,” and she points out that Irving is just upset and frustrated because he’ll never get to see his former work love, Burt. It’s the tipping point that allows Irving to make the important discovery about Helly’s deception, meaning that of Helena’s.
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