Warning! This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2’s episode 1.
Helly tells Mark they are not the same as their outies inSeveranceseason 2’s episode 1, making it hard not to wonder why she does not want to be associated with her outie at all.Severanceseason 2’s opening episodebegins where season 1’s ending left, marking Mark’s return to the Lumon office. Although it seems like Mark has directly returned after his Overtime Contingency stint inSeveranceseason 1’s ending, season 2’s episode 1 confirms it has been five months since the"Macrodat Uprising" incident.
After Mark learns he will have to work with new team members in theMacrodata Refinement department, he attempts to convince the board to bring his old friends back. To his surprise, the board listens, and Dylan, Helly, and Irving soon return to the office. However, Helly seems different and encourages Mark not to help the outies after he tells her about Ms. Casey.
Helly’s Innie Is Struggling With Her Outie’s True Identity In Severance Season 2
She Hates That Her Outie Is Promoting The System She Is Fighting Against
When Mark talks about finding Ms. Casey/Gemma and seeking the truth about what happened to her, Helly argues that their outies do not deserve their help. She attempts to convince Mark that they have separate identities and would be better off serving themselves instead of helping their outies. Dissociating herself from her outie, Helly also says that she is not the same as her outie, asserting she does not owe her anything. She does this becausea part of her is still in disbelief and denial that her outie is one of the frontrunners of the system she has been rebelling against.
To some extent, Helly also feels afraid that her fellow MDR workers will judge her or not trust her anymore after learning about her outie’s role in Lumon.
After learning that her outie, Helena, is the daughter of Lumon Industries CEO Jame Eagan, Helly feels a sense of dissonance about her identity. While the other severed MDR employees also learn some shocking truths about their outies' lives during theOvertime Contingency incident inSeveranceseason 2’s ending, none of their outside personas are stark contrasts to their severed identities in the same way Helly’s. To some extent, Helly also feels afraid that her fellow MDR workers will judge her or not trust her anymore after learning about her outie’s role in Lumon.
Why Helly Still Agrees To Help Mark Find His Wife
She Doesn’t Have A Choice
Although Helly is initially apprehensive about helping the outies, she eventually agrees to help Mark find his wife because, afterSeveranceseason 1’s events,she feels a sense of attachment with her fellow workers, especially with Mark. Her entire season 1 arc revolved around her consistent efforts to leave Lumon. She even resorted to extreme methods to get herself out. However, towards the end ofSeveranceseason 1, she finally feels like she belongs at the office and even hopes to return after she kisses Mark.
Severance’s “Macrodat Uprising” Video & Why MDR Is Considered Heroes At Lumon
Lumon shows a strange “Macrodat Uprising” video to the MDR workers in Severance season 2’s episode 1, raising questions about the company’s motives.
Therefore, for Mark’s sake, she agrees to help him find his wife, believing it would make him happy. ApopularSeverancetheoryalso suggests that Helly never made it back to the Lumon office. Instead, her outie, Helena, replaced her and is not trying to control the narrative by manipulating Mark and the other MDR innies. If this holds true, she seemingly agrees to help Mark because she does not want to blow her cover or raise any suspicion about her true motives.
Severance
Severance is a psychological thriller series featuring Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries who undergoes a “severance” procedure to separate his work and personal memories. However, as work and life personas mysteriously begin to collide, it quickly becomes clear that not all is as it seems. Created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle.
