S2E37 - REWATCH10-PT01 - Cold Harbor - Severed: The Ultimate Severance Podcast

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Severed The Ultimate Severance Podcast.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
Hey the Refiner, Welcome back to the Severed floor. Our
full rewatch of season two is almost complete. This is
part one of the Severed breakdown of the season two finale,
Cold Harbor. This may be the end of the season,
but I've still got a stern spoiler warning for you. You
must have seen all ten of the season two episodes
before you begin this podcast. There are spoilers everywhere, possibly

(00:36):
even in the season finale. This is Severed, the Ultimate
Severance Podcast. I'm your host, Alan s. It's time to
finish up our full shot by shot, moment by moment
rewatch of season two. We've dug into every detail. Now
it's time to figure out the importance of this new
file and room called Cold Harbor. Episode ten. Cold Harbor
was released for download on March twentieth of twenty twenty five.

(00:58):
This one was longer than most of the season two episodes.
So far this season, the episode run times have ranged
anywhere from the very short Sweet Vitriol at thirty seven
minutes up to Who Is Alive at fifty three minutes.
Most episodes were in the upper forty minute range at
an hour and fifteen minutes. This isn't quite a double episode,
but it is giving us about thirty more minutes of

(01:19):
content than we'd normally find in a chapter from season two.
This one was written by a series creator Dan Erickson
and directed by executive producer and lead director Ben Stiller.
It sounds like this is going to be Ben's last
episode of the series as director. In recent interviews, Ben
has said he will be stepping away from the day
to day operation of the show for season three. He's

(01:40):
not leaving entirely, of course, but he won't be directing
during S three. The directing duties have been shifted off
to other directors Throughout this second season. Ben only directed
half of the ten S two episodes. The other five
were handled by the very talented Sam Donovan, Uda Bresowitz,
and jessicaal Iganie. Unfortunately, it sounds like JLG is also

(02:02):
headed off to other projects. Thankfully, we will still have
directors with knowledge of the previous seasons leading us into
the new territory of season three. Before the episode even begins,
we get a minute and forty five second recap of
S two. Much of it is dedicated to the Cold
Harbor File and Gemma. The footage we're seeing is mostly
from the last three episodes. They of course had to

(02:23):
drop in a shot of the season one kiss between
Mark and Helly got to remind us why we're all
committed to what's happening down on the severed floor. The
flashback ends with Mamaco Bell and all her glory standing
in front of the Berthing cabin fireplace. Flames are dancing
around her silver main. There's no cold open. This episode
begins with silent production Company tech screens that lead right

(02:44):
into Extra Eggs Emmy winning S two opening animation. Much
of this animation is making more sense now that we
are at the end of the season, although a lot
of it is still pretty trippy and hard to decipher.
The heads in the fields are still freak and weird
to me. After the animation in Black, we hear Mark's
sister Devon with some overlap from the last episode.

Speaker 3 (03:06):
Do you remember the last thing that you said to me?

Speaker 2 (03:08):
The answer, of course, is the screamed She's alive from
the season one finale. After Mark answers, the very scary
Cobell gets in on the conversation.

Speaker 3 (03:16):
Have you finished Cold Harbor?

Speaker 2 (03:18):
She's brusque and commanding in her tone. She's using her
any voice. Devon has been treating Marcus with kid gloves,
trying to help him acclimate to this place that isn't
the severed floor. Cobell has no such feelings of sympathy.
You can tell she has switched over to any mode
with her authoritative delivery. Mark ignores Cobell's harsh questioning in

(03:39):
favor of continuing his conversation with Devon.

Speaker 4 (03:42):
What is this?

Speaker 2 (03:43):
Mark? As has now visited Devon's home, Woe's Hollow, and
this birthing cabin. He's becoming quite the well traveled Any
sure coming to in a place you don't recognize has
to be a little off putting, But any Mark seems
to be handling things pretty well.

Speaker 3 (03:58):
It's a cabin for giving Bertha.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Any Mark's perspective, this information is probably adding to his confusion.
Mark as why he's here? Then he looks over at Cobell.

Speaker 5 (04:07):
Why are you here?

Speaker 2 (04:08):
Cobell is not going to be distracted by chit.

Speaker 3 (04:10):
Chat col Harbor, have you finished it?

Speaker 2 (04:14):
Aggressive? No nonsense? If she ranny closer to him, I
think she'd slap him across the face. There's a quick
long shot here, in the transition, it gives us more
of a look at this very amazing second floor to
the Berthing cabin. As mentioned last time, this upstairs room
is entirely a creation of the Severance production team. They
built this second floor in York studios where they could

(04:36):
really expand it and make it something cool and intimidating.
In this long shot, you can see hanging wooden lamps.
According to Jeremy Hindall in an interview with Marie Claire,
these are Scarpa hanging wooden lamps from Italy. They were
originally designed by Carlos Scarpa in the nineteen seventies. Hindle
said most of the pieces you see used for set
decoration were purchased outright, but some things are either long

(04:58):
term rentals, or like the braun Fsad TV, they are
on loan from a museum. The close ups on Cobell's
face are a bit freaky. It looks like her head
is floating in space with the fire flickering off her hair.
Mark pauses for a long time. He knows the answer
to her question about the file, but he's not sure
if he should be sharing it with this person. Cobell

(05:19):
was dumped from the severed floor. All any Mark knows
about whatever happened to her is Cess Thropple story. Whatever
it is that's wrong with Cobell and Luhman's eyes and
he Mark isn't sure if it should be a concern
for him as well. He finally decides maybe she can
be trusted. For whatever reason, His sister seems to be
cool with Cobel, so Mark decides he can be too.

(05:41):
No no details, but at least she knows the status
of the file if it's not finished. This means she
also knows the status of Gemma.

Speaker 3 (05:50):
She's still alive.

Speaker 2 (05:52):
Cobell then adds a surprising capper to her statement.

Speaker 3 (05:56):
We can save her.

Speaker 2 (05:58):
This seems to be a major chain change of heart
for Cobell. Saving Gemma was never on the agenda back
when she was running the downstairs. Remember the wellness session
where Miss Casey gave Mark far too many details about
her life. It was after that when Cobell told Milchik.

Speaker 3 (06:14):
Sharp Black Tom, there's a testing floor place.

Speaker 2 (06:19):
I'm certain Cobell has always known what the testing floor
had in store for Gemma's future. Until recently, it didn't
seem to bother Cobell that Miss Casey's entire arc of
existence is leading to certain death at the hands of Lumen.
Now that she's been booted, sure she wants to put
a stop to it. She's on the outside now. Instead
of helping, she's looking to cause some trouble for her

(06:39):
new enemy, Lumen. Saving Jemma from her testing floor fate
was not Cobell's attitude when she was running the show.
That was, of course, back when she had the blessings
and backing of the Evil Empire. Any Mark, guess is
not up to speed on the topic of certain Gemma death.
After hearing Weekend save her, Mark looks confused. Cobell is

(07:01):
still talking to Marx any Miss Casey. Devon tries to
be helpful here. Jemma, which got to remember this name
does not mean a thing to any Mark. Gemma only
has meaning for Audi Mark. Cobell knows that any Mark
would only recognize this person as the wellness director Ms Casey.
Cobell is laser focused on any Mark. She's talking about

(07:21):
things Devon could never know.

Speaker 3 (07:24):
There's a hallway down there. It's different than the others.

Speaker 2 (07:28):
It's not one of the bright, white and happy hallways
like we're used to most places on the severed floor.
This one is very different.

Speaker 3 (07:35):
It's long and black and hidden.

Speaker 2 (07:37):
And it's been the subject of everything from paintings to
drawings to whispered discussions in the kitchenette. Yeah, the Innis
are very aware.

Speaker 5 (07:45):
Of this hallway from Irving's drawings.

Speaker 2 (07:48):
I figured Luhman would know all about Irving's drawings. They
seem to spend a lot of time in Irv's apartment.
Shouldn't someone have reported the existence of Irving's paintings by now,
I guess not. Mark fills in the details.

Speaker 5 (08:01):
With an elevator going down.

Speaker 2 (08:04):
Yes, sir, that would be the one. Cobell looks a
little shocked at what Mark is saying, we know where
it is, well kinda, you have directions starting from O
and D. We'll see if you can actually find it.
There's another look at Cobel's face as she takes in
this new bit of information. The music swells and we
cut to down on the severed floor. Helly, in a
continuation from episode nine, is responding to the arrival of

(08:26):
creepy Jame Egan. He's snuck up behind her in the
MDR room. Jame is Helena Egan's father, this is Inny
Helly R. Sitting here in MDR. Helena might live with Jame,
but Helly's only met the man once. She whirls on
him with a sharpened take of breath. The creepyzoid who
startled her has stopped in the main MDR doorway one

(08:47):
Flish feature, Jame knows he's talking to any Helly R.
He's referencing Helly's on stage outburst at the lumin Gala
from the end of season one. There's an inset shot
of Helly's left hand. She slowly closes it over a
pen that's sitting on her desktop. Britt Lauer told Delight
her there was no weaponized pen in the script. This
additional bit of business happened on the day of the shoot.

(09:09):
Britt told Ben Stiller she felt like Helly's gut instinct
would be to grab for a weapon. Dylan grabbed a
stapler to fend off Bird, Helly went for a pen.
It could be plunged into the neck of a slow
and feeble attacker quite easily. Britt said, this is how
Helly reacts to things. When a situation presents itself. She
doesn't hesitate. She's like, here we go let's go. Helly

(09:30):
doesn't respond after turning, she sits silently looking at Jame
as he continues in that breathy whine of.

Speaker 5 (09:37):
His Who's cross with you?

Speaker 2 (09:39):
After we cut to a close up of Jame how
mad at Helly.

Speaker 5 (09:44):
Was he through till the candy's which.

Speaker 2 (09:46):
Is a real tantrum when you're a thousand years old.
Helly is frozen in her seat. She looks at Jame
for a few seconds after he mentions throwing the candies.

Speaker 4 (09:55):
God, you're fucking weird.

Speaker 2 (09:58):
No argument there. We cut to an close up of Jame.
The lights are still off in MDR, so he's backlit
from the hallway. This lighting adds to the overall creepiness
of this scene. Jame advances on Helly slowly. The reverse
shot reveals the clock on the far wall. It looks
like it's about three minutes after six pm. Helly remains
seated watching Jame advance. He gets maybe ten feet inside

(10:20):
the door of MDR and pauses again. I do not
love my daughter, meaning Helena. Ritt said. This was the
first time Helly had any idea or gave any thought
to how strange Helena's life must be. Jame is really
opening up to this any. I think his hatred of
Any's might be more for show than anything. Jame continues

(10:42):
to talk about his disappointing daughter Helena.

Speaker 3 (10:45):
I used to see kier enough.

Speaker 2 (10:48):
Which, according to a sissy, is the same thing he
said about harmony. I think James sees cure in them
when they're young, but he loves her as she grew.
Jame might be a pedophile, no proof for anything, but
I wouldn't be the least bit surprised. He makes my
creepmeter redline. James seems way too interested in these young ladies,
but only when they are very young. Ms Wong is

(11:10):
a perfect example. She aged out and they're shipping her
off this falbard. Even when confronted by Captain Weird in
the creepy darkness, Mdr Helly is still able to dish
up the sarcasm.

Speaker 3 (11:21):
Sound like a great dad.

Speaker 2 (11:22):
Jame ignores this obvious barb. He keeps opening up to
this any.

Speaker 6 (11:27):
Shot others in the shadows.

Speaker 2 (11:29):
Where's that word sire again, although this time it's being
used correctly. This habit of James siring offspring might explain
Harmony using the term one of James when she was
sneaking Mark into the Demona Birthing Center. Jame and his
sirings must be, or at least have been, frequent guess
of the DBC. Again, I wonder if Demona is its

(11:51):
own entity or a subsidiary of luminet Er Prizes. We'll
get back to creepy Jame and his discussion with any
Helly in just a minute. Right now, it's time for
you to wash your hands. Refiner Severed will be right back.

Speaker 4 (12:06):
Hi.

Speaker 7 (12:06):
I'm Adam Scott. I play Mark s on Severance, which
you likely already know since you're listening to sever did
the Ultimate Severance Podcast.

Speaker 2 (12:17):
It sounds like james sirings in the Shadows weren't just
about him being a PERV. He claims these dalliances had
a purpose, at least that's how he's justifying things now.
He says he was searching for kre in these other offspring.
I'm also wondering where exactly these various young mothers along
with their offspring who do not possess kure are located.

(12:41):
Did he ship all of them off this Fallbard too?
Maybe he's placing the infants with families who visited the
Bootsman Fertility center. But what is he doing with all
those unwed mothers? Is there a mass grave hidden somewhere
on the Lumen grounds. James doesn't tell us how many,
but I get the feeling his sirings number two more
than a handful. He also doesn't tell us how exactly

(13:01):
he would be able to recognize Keir, even if he
saw the founder. Kere died in nineteen thirty nine at
the age of ninety eight. If Jame was alive at
the same time as Kierrie couldn't have been more than
an infant. I don't know how he would be able
to recognize Kir in these other children. Maybe Jame believes
he possesses some divine vision bestowed upon Eagans, which allows

(13:23):
them to recognize the spirit of Kerr. Helly remains seated,
but she's breathing heavily. You get the idea she could
spring at any moment. Jame is rambling.

Speaker 5 (13:33):
Tell us on him again.

Speaker 2 (13:34):
You'll never guess where Refiner meaning in Helen is any
Helly are. This sets Helly off. She lunches out of
her chair, rushing towards James. Jame doesn't move. Helly stops
before she reaches him. She's crouched in a battle stance
as she shouts in his face.

Speaker 3 (13:51):
You and your family created Helen.

Speaker 5 (13:52):
You're going to burn in it.

Speaker 2 (13:53):
It was a great silhouette side shot happening here. Jame
is on the left, Helly on the right. The sidewall
lights are on, but the overhead lights in MDR are off.
This creates a wall of light behind them and some
very cool silhouettes. You can see the outline of the
Weaponi's pen still in Helly's trailing hand. She's ready to
use it if need be. Jame is taking in this

(14:14):
fire and intensity. This is what he'd seen fade in
his daughter. Is nothing about James expression or delivery changes.
He is as weirdly calm and creepy now as he
was when he walked in. He then seems to change
the subject completely.

Speaker 6 (14:30):
Tomorrow is a special day.

Speaker 2 (14:32):
As abruptly as he arrived, James turns on his heel
and walks out of MDR. Hey. He ignores her and
keeps walking.

Speaker 5 (14:39):
Why did you come here.

Speaker 2 (14:40):
To mess with your head? I think, what do you
want from me? Some allegiance to the family. Maybe if
tomorrow should somehow present you with a choice, Maybe knowing
you and body Kere will cause you to choose on
the side of Lumen. Between the age and the creepy voice,
there's almost a mystical aura about Jame. Helly doesn't get
any answers back from the hallway. We cut to a

(15:01):
shot from behind her, looking towards the door. As Helly
turns towards the camera, there's a cut to Mark also
making the same turn back towards the camera.

Speaker 7 (15:10):
Wait, when I finish Cold Harbor, they do a test
and then they kill her.

Speaker 2 (15:16):
We're back on the second floor at the Demona Birthing Center. Yeah,
I'm with Mark. I had the same question about finishing
the file. As evil as Lumen has proven to be,
this seems like a huge escalation. Unpleasant torture scenarios in
the various rooms are one thing. Killing a human test
subject feels like we're going to a new level of
brutal extreme. I also don't understand if it's the test

(15:38):
itself that will kill her, or will she be killed
after the test. If she's to be killed after the test,
who's going to kill her? Mauer could never do it.
Drummond is going to be busy sacrificing a goat. This
made me wonder if the room itself might somehow kill Jemma.
Considering the underlying message of the room, the reminder of
their failed attempts at parrohood, I thought she might be

(16:01):
driven to take her own life. Suicide seems like a
plausible end to this demoralizing cycle of multiple traumas they've
put her through. Finding out Gemma dies as a part
of this process seemed strange to me. I don't understand
what the experiment has accomplished if the test subject is dead.
Volunteer Producer of NP had a more pragmatic answer for

(16:22):
why Luman might decide they need to kill her. They
can't have a thought to be dead person running around
out in the world. She could also make a huge
case against Lumen for kidnapping and repeated torture over the
course of more than two years. Rather than run the
risk of a mad Gemma on the loose, since she's
already considered dead, they decided they might as well make
it real. The oracle known as Kobell continues to speak,

(16:45):
once that file is done.

Speaker 3 (16:47):
You'll need to quickly get to the Black hallway, then
down to the testing clock.

Speaker 2 (16:52):
Sure, no problem if only somebody would memorize those directions.

Speaker 3 (16:56):
I'll not let you leave emptyo toll. That file is complete.

Speaker 2 (17:00):
This sounds like a mountain of obstacles. Any Mark isn't deterred.
He's already onto the next thing.

Speaker 5 (17:05):
Okay, but how do I find her once I'm down there?

Speaker 2 (17:08):
That's this spirit. Don't worry that you might not make
it down there. Mark gues is already trying to figure
out how to find her once he's there.

Speaker 5 (17:15):
You won't, I won't.

Speaker 2 (17:16):
I figured there had to be a twist. This is
a doozy. Thank you very much, mister Erickson.

Speaker 3 (17:22):
Your chip is only a tune to your floor.

Speaker 2 (17:25):
The severed chip in Mark's brain only works on the
severed floor well, and also in this Berthing cabin. I'm
wondering if the Berthing cabin is designed so you can
accept a wide range of different chips. You wouldn't want
to exclude someone from using the cabin because they had
the wrong series or the wrong frequency of chip. Remember
many Hdmi I still carry adapters with me just in

(17:48):
case I need to hook regular HDMI to many or
make many work with USBC. I think the Demona cabin
would have the same issues with different chip frequencies. You'd
want to be able to adapt to all possible chip scenarios,
so everybody can be switched here in the birthing cabin.
Cobell is certain any Mark will switch in the down

(18:08):
elevator on his way to the testing floor. Knowing what
Cobell knows about the operation of the chip, I'd believe her.

Speaker 3 (18:15):
Once you get down to testing, you'll be her audi again.

Speaker 2 (18:18):
This makes it sound like Mark's chip is a binary switch.
It's not. I've got some new info from the creator
himself that explains the function of Mark's chip. It operates
differently than how I've always figured it would work. We'll
get more into it in a few minutes. It's also
true Mark's chip is not equipped to accommodate switching to
individual rooms the way Jemmas can. Devon is standing to

(18:40):
Cobell's right. She's chiming in like she and Cobell hatch
this plan together, and.

Speaker 8 (18:46):
Then he'll find Jemma and take her up to the
separate floor.

Speaker 2 (18:48):
Sure, no sweat, It's not like any doctors or nurses
or guards of any kind might be down there to
get an outie Mark's way. Devon and Cobell are like
a duet. As soon as Devon ends a line, Cobell
picks right up with the next one.

Speaker 3 (19:02):
For you got her to the exit stairwell.

Speaker 2 (19:05):
The you in this statement is referring to any Mark.
Any Mark is responding to these instructions with the same
attitude as I am right, okay. He has a look
on his face like these two are nuts. He runs
a hand through his hair and paces the second floor space.
Devon follows him across the room. She can sense the
tension this is causing.

Speaker 3 (19:24):
I know, this is a fucking lot man, for.

Speaker 2 (19:27):
An any with no knowledge of any of these people
you're talking about, Yeah, it's a lot.

Speaker 3 (19:32):
But if we can prove that she is alive, if
we can prove that they fucking kidnapped her, it will
lend them.

Speaker 2 (19:40):
Those are some pretty big ifs. We know that Luman
already has the press and the authorities in their pocket.
The way they control society anywhere around here makes these
revelations seem unlikely. We are looking at Mark head on.
Devon is over his shoulder making her points. Mark gets
a troubled look on his face before turning back towards Devon.

Speaker 5 (19:59):
H what happens to us.

Speaker 2 (20:01):
There's a cut continuity reversing over Devon's shoulder. The background
is so dark in these shots it's almost like we're
in a black box. Devin may have forgotten she was
talking to any Mark. The US in this question includes
any Mark. I mean ouch, Sister Devon is not showing
the least bit of concern for a large chunk of
Mark's brain. Mark lays it out for her.

Speaker 7 (20:24):
Well, if Luman ends, then what happens to every inny
on the severed.

Speaker 2 (20:28):
Floor, including him? No more lumen means no more severed floor.
No more severed floor means none of the anies get
to emerge ever again, and unless, of course, they come
here to visit the Demona Birthing Center. Let's talk chip function.
Dan Erickson mentioned an important operational fact about the severance
chip in a recent interview. I've been giving quite a

(20:49):
bit of consideration to what he said. I want to
discuss this implementation for a moment. It changes my understanding
of some things. I've always thought the chip was switched
by the action of passing through through a severed barrier.
The doorway Helly used to exit her first day as
a good example, I pictured going through one way switched
you over. Going through it or any other severed barrier

(21:10):
switched you back. I believe the action of passing through
the barrier was what caused the switch, and once you've
gone through, you remain switched until you pass through another
severed barrier. Turns out, I've been thinking about this all wrong.
Dan's explanation for how severed spaces work is different. I've
come to think of his way using what I call
the bumper car analogy for the operation of the severance chip.

(21:33):
If you've ever ridden the bumper cars at the fair,
you know the entire ceiling of the place is wired
for electricity. Those poles that run up the back of
the car and in a curved piece of bare metal,
that's your car's connection to the juice. Sometimes if you
look up while you're driving, you can see the metal
sparking against the ceiling. Imagine a bumper car is a
severance chip. Whenever it's within the powered area of the

(21:56):
bumper car arena, the car is working. If you were
able to drive the car out of the bumper car arena,
it would immediately stop working. Same it turns out, with
the severance chip it's not the act of passing through
the barrier that causes the switch. Instead, it's the fact
the severed chip has either left or entered an area

(22:16):
of active control. The severed floor is exerting some sort
of active control over the chip the entire time any
severed employee is within the boundaries of the floor. Once
they leave the floor via the elevator, the control over
the chip is released and the AUDI returns. I don't
believe this chip control is as direct as a pole
touching the ceiling. I'm guessing it's more subtle and wireless,

(22:39):
like bluetooth or a cellular signal being broadcast throughout the
severed floor. When I was in college, we had a
campus radio station that was broadcast through the electrical system
in all the dorms. You could only pick it up
if your receiver was inside one of the wired buildings.
I'm picturing something similar for the severance chip control signal.
Dan's explanation solves some riddles in my mind, but it

(23:00):
also creates other operational questions. For instance, why even have
severed and unsevered elevators providing access to the severed floor
if it's the floor itself that does this switching, it
shouldn't matter how you get there if you have a
chip in your head, no matter what elevator you ride,
Arriving on the severed floor means you would switch. If

(23:21):
you don't have a chip, you could ride either elevator.
I guess even if they don't cause the switch, the
severed elevators do make concessions for switching. They're narrower. For
one thing, the severed elevators were designed for one rider
at a time. Waste high railings allow the severed rider
to steady themselves during the chip transition. Miltchik pointed this
out to Helena right before her chip procedure. So maybe

(23:43):
the unsevered elevators are bigger than the severed versions. They
can probably accommodate multiple riders. Unsevered elevators also don't have
code detectors installed in them. This is why Harmony was
able to bring Rickens's book down with her to the
severed floor. One of the big questions of bumper car
type chip might answer is how things worked when the
MDR crew is out at Woe's Hollow. Knowing Dan's explanation,

(24:06):
I now believe Woe's Hollow is a severed space the
entire place. It's giving off the same severed chip control
rays as the severed floor. There have to be severed
chip controlled generators of some type. I'm picturing something like
electric power turbines or commercial radio transmitters. These might be
housed underground at various points around Woe's hollow, or more likely,

(24:29):
these severed control rays are broadcasting into Woe's hollow via
large antennas. It wouldn't be that difficult to pull off.
In the OUDI world, we have this same kind of
coverage right now with cell towers. If the severed chip
control signal is analogous to a cell phone signal, LUMAN,
generating a web of severed chip control beams that covers
a few hundred square miles wouldn't be that difficult. This

(24:52):
would explain how they were able to switch HERV from
any to AUDI while he was just walking into the woods.
He didn't pass through a barrier. He was switched remotely
because all of the Dieter Egan National Forest is a
controlled severed space. Same with being able to switch Helena
to helly R while she was being drowned. She definitely

(25:13):
didn't pass through a barrier. Still, somehow they were able
to switch off the Glasgow block being used to keep
Helena's chip from switching to her any there has to
be a control room somewhere tracking the Woe's hollow space
and all of the severed chips moving around in it.
This control room can enable or disable any one of
the chip states while these chip owners are in the

(25:35):
active space. You remember how the former Security Office had
a lot of these control systems in place. The only
chip protocol we know about that can be used outside
of the severed control area is the OTC. I think
throwing the switches like DYLANDD turns on a power source
that amplifies the beam into Kure and the surrounding area.

(25:55):
The OTC can only be maintained while it has this
extra broadcast power. Keep the bumper car analogy of chip
control in mind as Mark makes his heroic dash tomorrow.
We'll return to Mark and Devon's conversation in just a moment.
For now, Refiner, you should be refilling that coffee cup.
Severed will be right back.

Speaker 5 (26:18):
Hey, this is Ben Stiller.

Speaker 4 (26:20):
Thanks for listening to Severed, the Ultimate Severance Podcast.

Speaker 2 (26:26):
After Mark asks Devin what happens to every Inny on
the severed floor. There is a long pause. We reverse
cut to Devon, with Cobell out of focus over her shoulder.
Devon looks down nervously at her hands. Yeah, sorry, bro,
the innies are going to die. She turns to look
at Cobell. The rack focus reveals Cobell still with that

(26:48):
crazy determined look of hers. Cobell is no help. Devon
looks back around at Mark. She can't say the word.
She sort of bows her head a bit. There's a
reverse cut to Mark. No words necessary. It turns out
he got the message. Oh, if this works, any Mark
becomes a casualty of the plan.

Speaker 7 (27:07):
You want me to give my life, No, the lives
of everyone down there.

Speaker 2 (27:11):
I'm not sure how Devin thought she could throw a
no in there. If Luman is gone, so are the innies.
It's pretty obvious. Devon continues to deny the fact.

Speaker 3 (27:20):
No, it's not that simple.

Speaker 2 (27:21):
Mark is seeing this is all for one without any
of the one for all part.

Speaker 5 (27:26):
Just to say, if one person you happen to care about.

Speaker 2 (27:28):
Take note, any Mark doesn't know this, Gemma person, this
will be very important in an hour or so. Finally,
Cobel the oracle speaks.

Speaker 3 (27:37):
It doesn't have to end your life.

Speaker 2 (27:39):
Devon looks back in her direction. Mark is hesitant, not
sure he should believe this person who has lied to
him so often in the past, really Devon is still
acting in cahoots with Cobell chimes in. What Cobell is
alluding to is reintegration. Ideally, a reintegrated patient is able
to access and maintain all of the memories of both

(28:00):
entities Any and Oudy Timeline. Somehow both remain intact. The
promise of reintegration says combining the memories into one consciousness
is a way to keep both personas alive. I think
offering to keep any Mark alive through reintegration might be
a bit premature on Kobell's part. Does she really know

(28:20):
if reintegration works. I'm sure she knows it's feasible since
she invented the chip. Does she have any experience with
it in the real world. I don't think so. Would
she work with Regabi?

Speaker 4 (28:32):
I think it's choiceable to Regabi Cobby.

Speaker 5 (28:36):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (28:36):
Maybe, now that she's on the outside looking in. In
a bit, Marks Any is going to bring up a
very real possibility regarding reintegration. Won't the OUDI become the
dominant If these two personas are inhabiting the same consciousness
in the same timeline, most likely the persona with the
most in the way of memories and life experience will dominate.
The Audi persona will have opinions and thoughts about everything

(29:00):
because they have a wealth of life experiences to draw from.
The Any persona with just a couple of years of
memories and very restrictive knowledge about the world will eventually
be cast aside and forgotten. Devon and Kobell have devised
a plan.

Speaker 3 (29:15):
There's somebody else wo wants to talk to you.

Speaker 2 (29:16):
Actually, rather than having a non severed person try to
convince any Mark, they decided maybe severed Audie Mark should
do the honors. This is it, Refiner. This is the
scene that should have won Adam Scott an Emmy. Audie
Mark is about to have a heated and far reaching
debate with his Inny. They're gonna do it via video camcorder.
Any Mark is staring intently at Devon. I think he's

(29:39):
waiting on a name who wants to talk to him.
In a long shot from beside Mark, we see Devin
produce the camquorder sometimes when researching the show, either of
any p or I will become fixated on a prop
or piece of set decoration. I spent way too much
time trying to identify that cool stereo system seth Miltchik
has practically hidden in in his office. Vinnie got hooked

(30:02):
on identifying this camquorder. Do you know how many camquarders
were produced between about nineteen eighty five and twenty ten
that all looked pretty much the same? Vinnie thought he
found it. After an extensive search, he concluded this is
a Sony Handicam DCR PC one fifteen. Was he right? Yes,
he was. We confirmed it with propmaster Kat Miller. The

(30:23):
Sony Handicam line was introduced in nineteen eighty five and
continues today. This particular model appears to be from two
thousand and one. With supplied battery, it could record anywhere
from one hour up to one hundred and ten minutes.
It did include a feature called night Shot, which allowed
the user to shoot in very low light situations, like
what you might find outside a secluded berthing cabin situated

(30:45):
on a quiet lake. Adam Scott has given this camcorder
to practice these various scenes on his own. How do
you describe a camcorder to someone who's never used one?
Start with the basics, Okay, any Mark stares after her
as she turns and walks away past Cobell. Cobell steps

(31:05):
forward like she has something to say to any Mark.
The shot cuts to Devin, who pushes open one of
the second floor balcony doors. This is quite the birthing cabin. Oh,
so Cobell does have something she'd like.

Speaker 3 (31:17):
To say, which.

Speaker 2 (31:19):
Is what will happen if Mark does in fact hit play.

Speaker 3 (31:22):
Recorder response and step outside.

Speaker 2 (31:27):
They're giving any Mark a lot of credit when it
comes to his knowledge regarding early twenty first century videotape recorders.
Miltchik does have one, and he's used it down on
the severed floor, so I guess Mark as is at
least familiar with the concept. Cobell steps away. Marcus looks
down again at the foreign object handed to him by
the woman who is his Oudie's sister. We'll just be okay, okay,

(31:51):
he says, okay, but he's still looking at the camcorder
like it's some kind of tablet loaded with hieroglyphics. As
Mark wanders the cabin, space. We get a bit more
of a look at the far reaching set that makes
up this second floor. It's still pretty dark in here
other than the light flickering from the fire. Any Mark
makes his way over to the roaring fireplace. We can
see a shot of the camcorder control screen and the

(32:12):
video playback screen, silhouetted by the fire. Any Mark presses
play on the right hand display before we see what
Audi Mark has to say. I've got some behind the
scenes info about this unique conversation. This is one of
the first scene shot after the strikes were concluded and
they were back to work. That would have been January
or early February of twenty twenty four. They took about

(32:33):
two and a half days shooting this exchange, according to
Ben Stiller. Stiller told Indy Wire in an interview that
he and Jessica Ligane set up some simple rules for
the blocking of this scene. Any Mark is always to
the right of frame. Audie Mark always appears on the left.
As the conversation intensifies, the shots get tighter and tighter.
Ben said he tried a lot of different angles, but

(32:55):
always made sure to keep the inny and outy framing consistent.
From memory to It's also helpful that any Mark is
inside the cabin, Audie Mark is outside. I'll fill in
Moore as we go along. Right now, we need to
hear what Audie Mark has to say to his any
Any Mark meander's over in front of the fire. He
finally pushes play. Audie Mark appears on the tiny screen.

Speaker 4 (33:19):
Hey, I'm I guess you know whoam.

Speaker 2 (33:24):
The shots within the camquorder keep the subject fairly well centered.
Adam Scott was actually shooting each of these messages. He
didn't worry about the right left blocking when framing himself
in the cam quorder.

Speaker 9 (33:35):
I think you've spoken with Devin and missus.

Speaker 4 (33:37):
Silver, miss gobell Inni.

Speaker 2 (33:39):
Mark's face as he is looking at this message is priceless.
He's full of wonder. Too bad, all that barely contained
happiness is going to crish and burn in just a
few minutes. Ben Stiller said it was Adam Scott who
decided there should be some manipulation going on here. Audie
Mark is a little too sure of himself. His plan
is to coerce any Mark in the nicest way possible.

(34:02):
Of course, I'm sure Audie Mark has some awareness of
the naive nature of the annies. Taking advantage of an
any winning him over to your cause shouldn't be too hard.
The stereotype being peddled by Lumen is that an easer
clueless and pliable. Audie Mark gets right to the heart
of the matter.

Speaker 4 (34:19):
So y, you know what it is that we're asking in.

Speaker 2 (34:24):
A thumbnail, any Mark will help Audi Mark free his
still living wife from the testing floor. In the process,
any Mark will be ending his own existence. Audie Mark
decides maybe he can smooth things along with an apology.
I see it as more manipulation.

Speaker 9 (34:39):
But the first thing I need to say to you
is that I am so sorry.

Speaker 2 (34:46):
I don't think several employees ever really consider the fact
they are creating another person when they first undergo the procedure.

Speaker 9 (34:53):
Now, I created you as a prisoner and as an escape.

Speaker 2 (34:59):
I think if Luman offered up an accurate description of
the existence of the person that will be doing the
audi's job eight hours a day, not as many people
would want to be severed. Audeas don't seem to fully
realize the fate of their any until after they've been
living the severed life for a while. Of course, luhmen
is more than happy to perpetuate this idea that innies

(35:20):
love what they're doing.

Speaker 9 (35:21):
Lumen told me you'd be happy that innis are content.

Speaker 2 (35:25):
Sure they did. Luman will tell you whatever they think
you want to hear if it furthers their own agenda.
Lumen is long on tradition and industry short on ethics.

Speaker 9 (35:34):
And because I took their work for it, you've been
living a nightmare for two years.

Speaker 2 (35:38):
Nightmare seemed a bit harsh, bleak, depressing and soul crushing maybe,
but not so nightmarish.

Speaker 4 (35:46):
Terrific what they've done to you.

Speaker 2 (35:47):
Okay, so maybe Audie Mark is laying it on a
little thick here. Horrific. Any Mark wears a suit to work.
He does his job in a quiet and appealing space
where temperature and humidity are controlled for maximum comfort. He's
seated in an ergonomically designed office chair. There are regular
breaks for coffee, snacks, and even a provided lunch. He
has access to a nice bathroom. Man works with people

(36:09):
who are interesting and enjoyable to be around. Sure, it's
not a full life when you never get to leave
the floor where you work, but as any Mark told
Helly in the first episode, there is a life to
be made here. Describing that life as horrific might be
a bit.

Speaker 4 (36:25):
Much, And part of the reason I'm here is to
make it great.

Speaker 2 (36:31):
The hero and the white hat, writing in on his
trusty steed, He's here to save the hapless and helpless.
Any come on now, Audie Mark, is making it right?
Really part of the reason you're here? Or did you
just throw that in because you think it's what you're
in He wanted to hear from you. Audie Mark then
invokes the hey, we're all part of the same person argument.

Speaker 4 (36:51):
I hope now with all we have a common you'll
give me that chance.

Speaker 2 (36:59):
It is very cool being able to see each of
these characters with such contrast. I've always known any Mark
is a different person than Audie Mark. I've just never
had both parts of Mark put so side by side
for comparison. Adam Scott is killing it with the shades
of character between these two. Audie Mark asks for a chance.
His initial message is finished, the video shuts off. We're

(37:22):
gonna hear back from any Mark in just a moment,
but before we do, how about you use this extra
token to the vending machine. Refiner severed will be right back.

Speaker 1 (37:34):
Hey, there, this is Hailey Ericson Gelzer Dan Ericson's sister,
and thanks for listening to Severed, the Ultimate Severance Podcast.

Speaker 4 (37:42):
I do.

Speaker 2 (37:46):
Now it's up to any Mark to respond by recording
his own return message. When he's done with his recording,
he's supposed to step out onto the deck. The deck
is outside of the active control area of the chip.
Going out there will switch Mark to his OUDI. Any
Mark considers what he's just seen. There's a great down
angle overview shot of the room. Here. You can really

(38:07):
see the scarpe wooden lamps and the impressive fireplace. Any
Mark has a seat on the bench next to the fire.
As he gathers his thoughts, he looks over to the fireplace.
There's a reverse angle that gives us a great view
of the two statues standing on either side of the hearth.
They represent Kre and Imogen only both of these figures
are visibly pregnant. When we talked to Penko, the sculptor

(38:30):
Platinkonov who created these statues, he said kir was pregnant
with industry. Imagen is just pregnant with regular old offspring.
The fireplace grates in front of the statues were also
fabricated for the birth and cabin. Jeremy Hndele mentioned these
grates in an interview. If you look closely, you can
see the silhouettes of young children throughout the design. Any

(38:51):
Mark has formulated a response to Outye Mark's message. He
flips the lens of the handicam around so it's in
selfie mode. We look at any Mark's face, then cut
to a close up of his finger on the record button.
As he presses the button, we are pulled through the
barrel of the handicam lens. There's a great transition here,
utilizing the elevator along with a free standing Zali effect,

(39:15):
we get the head on view of Mark's eyrol and
distortion that tells us Mark has switched over to his audi.
This next sequence starts with the camera in the fireplace
room looking out. Our POV is from behind Mark, who
is now out on the deck and has switched to
his audie. He's looking down at the camcorder in his hands.
He looks back over his shoulder as though he thinks

(39:37):
he might see his Inny there in the cabin. The
camera follows as Mark walks to the railing of the
deck out on this balcony. There's a cut to a
reverse angle looking at Mark from the front. The camera
backs over the railing and then goes up, pulling back
into a flyaway shot. Definitely check out this flyaway shot.
And as you do think about this, we are in

(39:57):
a studio. The deck is really there. The room visible
through the doors is also really there. Pretty Much everything
else is being created by industrial light and magic. The lake,
the snow, the rest of the cabin, it's all being
generated by a computer, but it looks so real. Adding
to the realism of this outdoor shot is the Emmy

(40:18):
winning Severance sound crew check, the howling wind and the
wide open, spacious sound mix. When Mark goes out on
the deck, it sounds and feels like he's really outside.
A breeze even blows his hair around. Audie Mark gets
play to see if there's a return message, and there
is any. Mark looks more boyish, more naive than Audi Mark.

(40:40):
Audie Mark is also blown away by what he's seeing.

Speaker 4 (40:44):
Wow, I never expected to actually speak to.

Speaker 2 (40:46):
You because inns and out he's talking like this just
never happens. Helly had the video exchange with Helena her
second day of work. Other than that, We've never seen
innies interact this way with their out any Mark certainly
didn't expect to get an apology.

Speaker 4 (41:04):
Thank you.

Speaker 2 (41:05):
Any Mark then responds to specifics from Audie Mark's message.

Speaker 4 (41:09):
In nightmare is the wrong word.

Speaker 2 (41:12):
Actually, their situation is unpleasant enough to incite an uprising
like the OTC. But for the most part, any Mark
is saying, it's not so bad.

Speaker 4 (41:21):
Because we find ways to make it work to feel whole.

Speaker 2 (41:27):
Sure, it's not great, but it's something, and it's all
the innies have given the choice of something versus nothing.
They will stick with this very limited something.

Speaker 4 (41:37):
Which is why what you're asking scares me.

Speaker 2 (41:39):
Any Mark sounds very plaintive. He claims, whatever this life is,
it's all we have and.

Speaker 4 (41:47):
We don't want it to end. Can you understand that?

Speaker 2 (41:51):
Audi Mark looks frustrated. He paces back and forth a
bit on the deck, considering this message he's just heard.
Getting this other part of himself to go along with
the plan may not be as easy as he thought
it was going to be. Adam Scott has a seat
before he responds he's still in manipulation mode as to
reassure the freaked any before continuing to lay out the plan.

Speaker 5 (42:12):
Of course, I can such a good point.

Speaker 2 (42:15):
I've mentioned before how a phrase like this sounds like
some of the objection counters I was taught during sales training.
I can certainly understand and appreciate how you might feel
that way.

Speaker 5 (42:25):
But I'd say the same thing in your position.

Speaker 2 (42:29):
However, different wordings, same intent. So what stunning feature can
Audie Mark offer that might make any Mark change his mind?

Speaker 5 (42:38):
Woman doesn't have to be your whole life, say what now?

Speaker 2 (42:43):
Freeing himself from the overwhelming constraints of lumen is something
that might get any Mark's attention. Here we cut to
Audie Mark in the tiny cam quarter screen. We're now
watching any Mark as he plays this message back. These
overlaps from recording to playback allow the conversation to continue
without a break. It also allows the editor to compress
the total time being taken up by the scene. Audie

(43:04):
Mark continues to try to sell this wonderful option known
as reintegration.

Speaker 4 (43:09):
Now, and they have.

Speaker 9 (43:11):
Been seeing flashes lately, images from my world out.

Speaker 4 (43:15):
Here up and seeing yours too.

Speaker 2 (43:17):
A subtle reminder that they both share the same brain.
Audie Mark continues as any Mark is staring intently at
this other part of himself, talking from the camcorder.

Speaker 4 (43:27):
It's a process called reintegration.

Speaker 2 (43:30):
Reintegration, tell me more, Audi Mark.

Speaker 9 (43:33):
It's way to recouple memories so we can be one person.

Speaker 2 (43:38):
And it can be all yours for three low payments
of only thirty nine ninety five. Audi Mark uses the
term recouple memories like it's a common thing people do
all the time. I'd like some more detail about this
recoupling process in regard to memories, please, Audi Mark must
have had an extensive discussion with Kobel before recording this mesa.

(44:00):
He was not nearly so positive about the reintegration process
the last time he was sitting in the treatment chair
in his basement.

Speaker 7 (44:07):
I started this because I see now how unfair this
all is to you, and once my wife is free,
I swear I will finish the process.

Speaker 2 (44:16):
Audi Mark, You liar. You started this process because you
discovered your wife was still alive and you want to
free her from wherever she's being held. Be honest, The
fate of your Anie was never a part of your
decision making process. Now that your any has become an
integral part of your plan, sure you're all about any
rights in freeing the innies. Now, this promise Audi Mark

(44:38):
made to finish the reintegration process after his wife is
free should be a big red flag to any Mark.
Get that in writing, sir, don't accept the confident claims
of this smiling shister in your camcorder.

Speaker 4 (44:51):
Was this life? Our life belongs to both and I
don't want to share.

Speaker 2 (45:00):
He is so moving and sincere. I could almost hear
the swell of patriotic music coming in under this last
piece of Auti Mark's speech. Just like with nightmare and horrifying,
He's still laying it on a bit thick. We cut
from a close up of Audi Mark looking quite satisfied
with his message to any Mark who is concerned.

Speaker 5 (45:22):
Okay, but what that mean exactly?

Speaker 2 (45:25):
Random aside, did you notice how any Mark has a
reddish tint thanks to the fire? Audie Mark is very
blue due to the reflections from the lake. Any Mark
is thinking about things from a very pragmatic point of view.
What would recoupling memories mean exactly.

Speaker 5 (45:41):
That you get the right side and I get the left?
Or is it like a top bottom situation. I'm honestly
trying to understand. Oh no, it wouldn't be like a
top bottom situation.

Speaker 2 (45:53):
At this point, the editor overlays the response to the question,
just like they were having a real back and forth conversation.
Audi Mark says, no, no, it's not a top bottom situation.
He tries to elaborate, but things aren't getting any clearer.

Speaker 5 (46:06):
It's like both of us like one person combines.

Speaker 2 (46:10):
Sure, you can say that, but how does it physically
manifest itself? Outi Mark continues, he's doing a lot of explaining,
but he's not really answering the original question, Like.

Speaker 9 (46:20):
My memory is and yours, and my trauma and yours,
but they can't that good stuff too.

Speaker 2 (46:26):
Okay, that's great, but again, how would these two sets
of memories and two sets of traumas and two sets
of good stuff be contained in a single person. Any
Mark is also very aware of the differences in life
experience between these two entities.

Speaker 7 (46:43):
Okay, but I mean, you've been alive for what twenty
times longer? So whoever this new hybrid person is seeks
like he'd be way more youth than me.

Speaker 2 (46:57):
Any Mark is making some good points. Out e Marke
doesn't have any good counters to these points.

Speaker 5 (47:03):
I just don't think that's how it works.

Speaker 2 (47:04):
The underlying attitude here is how could this any dare
to be questioning his Audi? What happened to the superiority
of the Audi. The AUDI used to be this very
revered other in the eyes of the innis at least
they were down on Kobel's severed floor. Audi's choose the
innies lunches for the week because they know what's best
for the overall body. As an INNIE, you were very

(47:27):
aware that your AUDI dressed you every morning. They chose
your hairstyle and your shoes. Your AUDI could stop you
from retiring, even if you really wanted to. Under Cobel's
severed floor leadership, it was the AUDI who made the
important life calls. The Innie was forced to meekly accept
these decisions. Audi Mark is displaying this old school attitude

(47:47):
in his responses. It's probably because he was prepped for
this conversation by Cobel. He seems a bit shocked at
the pushback. Shouldn't the NIE be in awe of their Audi,
ready to agree with whatever the all knowing has to say.
I think after Helly's resignation attempt her second day and
the video message Helena delivered to her, the innies started

(48:09):
to question the divine superiority of their oudies.

Speaker 5 (48:13):
Okay, how does it work?

Speaker 2 (48:14):
Audi Mark stares at the camcorder for a long time.
It's his simple question, but he can't explain how it
does work. He decides to take another tack. Look, there's
a pause. How to get into this? He starts to
explain about Gemma and what losing her has done to
his life.

Speaker 5 (48:32):
I mourned Jemma for two years.

Speaker 2 (48:37):
Mourned doesn't seem strong enough to convey the trauma of
the past two years. Audi Mark elaborates, I lost.

Speaker 7 (48:43):
My job, my teaching job, because I fucking started showing of.

Speaker 2 (48:51):
Drunk, which isn't even a term anis really no Remember
how Dylan asked Mark if he might be drunk. Dylan
somehow knew of few details, but this concept of drunkenness
seemed a bit outside of the innis awareness. Audie Mark continues,
he's using his any like a therapist, opening up about
what he's gone through since the car accident.

Speaker 4 (49:13):
You know, he hit all the first stuff in my
basement because it was easier protecting that never existed.

Speaker 2 (49:20):
In the shots are cutting from any Mark reactions to
close ups of the tiny blue tinted screen. Audie Mark
then tries to throw another carrying bone to his inny.

Speaker 4 (49:29):
I thought I was protecting you from that pain?

Speaker 2 (49:32):
What now, come on, Audie Mark, you think this snow
job is going to work? You never gave a thought
to protecting your any from anything. You got severed because
you were running from the pain you were experiencing. As
an Audie, I'm pretty certain escaping grief was your only
driving motivation for severing. There's an awkward pause here Audi
Mark seems to drift in his thoughts, then skips to

(49:54):
a new topic.

Speaker 7 (49:55):
Oh hey, uh, mis, Google told me you like someone done.

Speaker 2 (50:00):
The term like someone is very minimizing. It makes Markus's
relationship experience down on the severed floor sound very junior highish.
We get a reaction shot from any Mark here. He
gives us his solid eyebrow.

Speaker 5 (50:14):
Raise Helena Egan.

Speaker 2 (50:15):
Right, you got that part right, and now it's time
for you to stop talking. But he doesn't stop. Hey, Mark, scout,
how are you not learning from the assault Helena Egan
made on you in the Chinese restaurant? If you're going
to refer to the significant other, get the name right?

Speaker 5 (50:31):
Any names Heleni, oh so close.

Speaker 2 (50:35):
Thank you for playing our game. I'm afraid you won't
be going to the lightning round. We get another any
Mark reaction shot. He doesn't say a thing, he doesn't
have to. His eyes tell the whole story. Audi Mark,
oblivious to his big gaff with Helly's name, continues to
destroy his credibility in the eyes of any Mark without
even realizing it. Audie Mark could not be more condescending.

(50:57):
It's like he's talking to a preschooler who held hands
with a girl at recess.

Speaker 9 (51:02):
Honestly, I loved that experience.

Speaker 2 (51:05):
After offending any Mark, Audi Mark then tries to draw
a horribly insulting comparison.

Speaker 4 (51:11):
Now you can.

Speaker 9 (51:13):
Imagine like would you and Heleny have, but multiplied like
thousands of.

Speaker 4 (51:19):
Days of joy and arguments and passion.

Speaker 2 (51:24):
By continuing to talk, Audie Mark is making the case
for why reintegration won't be fair to the any What
you had was cute, It's also tiny and insignificant by comparison.
What I have is real, and it's lasted so much
longer and been so much deeper a relationship than anything
you could possibly imagine. When faced with this incredibly imperious

(51:45):
and condescending attitude. Why would any Mark even want to
consider an unproven procedure that would basically make him some
kind of mental Siamese twin With this offensive audi, Audie,
Mark thinks he's taking his argument home.

Speaker 9 (52:01):
Then you can see why I have to get my
wife back, and I have to have her.

Speaker 2 (52:05):
Back, have to, and I'll do it at the expense
of your precious heleny and whatever the hell else you've
got going on down there. Any Mark considers this latest message.
We can see the firelight flickering in his eyes as
he decides what to send back. Finally, he flips the
viewfinder around with purpose.

Speaker 5 (52:23):
Kelly, Actually, Kelly, ever.

Speaker 2 (52:26):
Seen a western where the very soft spoken guy corrects
the bully just before beating him senseless? Any Mark is
being very soft spoken here.

Speaker 5 (52:34):
It's a person I'm in love with you.

Speaker 2 (52:36):
Notice how he chooses the word love, not like there's
the wind up, which you know if.

Speaker 4 (52:41):
You'd ever taken an interest in my life.

Speaker 2 (52:43):
Oh, and a sharp slap right across the face. Innies
ain't dumb, Mark, as cans he right through out he
Mark's selfish request.

Speaker 5 (52:51):
Before tonight when you need something Ooh.

Speaker 2 (52:53):
And the backhand leaves a big welt on the other cheek.
Any Mark is also very aware of the stakes of
this game he's being asked to participate in.

Speaker 5 (53:02):
She's the person I'll lose if I do what you say.

Speaker 9 (53:06):
Because you know as well as I do that her
out he won, would will reintegrate.

Speaker 2 (53:11):
A whole lot would have to change in the outside
world before Helena Egan would ever consider reintegration. Quite seriously, though,
I don't think Helena Egan would be at all upset
about a relationship with either Marx Any or Outy, even so,
I don't see her allowing Helly to be a part
of that situation. Any Mark then engages in a little

(53:31):
healthy paranoia for all he knows he's dealing with an
Egan operative. He mentions Helena not wanting to reintegrate, but
then he tacks on a hunting little.

Speaker 4 (53:41):
Codas even real.

Speaker 2 (53:43):
He hasn't seen these flashes out e Mark mentioned maybe
this whole reintegration thing is just a lie designed to
get him to agree to destroy the severed floor and
kill himself in the process. The shot of any Mark
in the camquarter screen is tight. The more he thinks
about it, the more he's questioning his Audi's whole story.

Speaker 9 (54:02):
Assuming every word out of your mount isn't a line.

Speaker 2 (54:05):
When volunteer producer of NP prooved this section of the
podcast script, he reminded me about the flash we saw
in the cold open of episode six Attila from season two.
It's the one where any Mark opens the kitchen at
refrigerator and sees the contents of Mark's apartment refrigerator. We
get flickers back and forth between any Mark's view of
the refrigerator and Audie Mark standing in his townhouse kitchen.

(54:27):
This may have been a quick look at the Audi
world presented to any Mark and he didn't know what
was happening, or it may have been the cold open
was a memory Audie Mark was retrieving from the severed floor.
The scene ends without letting us know if what we
saw was real or a memory. We also don't know
if it is a memory, which side was retrieving the memory.

(54:50):
The cut then goes into the opening animation. We've seen
this same mistaken look at a memory when Mark had
his nosebleed. He thought he was talking to him as
long while he was down on the severed floor. The
scene felt like he was really there, but in reality,
he was viewing any memory as his Audi ms Wang
faded into the background and he was left sitting in
the basement treatment chair with Regabi. Audie. Mark is shocked

(55:14):
by this accusation. We see his wide eyes as he
watches this clip. Come on, Mark, this can't be that
much of a surprise. You haven't talked to the guy
in two years. The first thing you say to him is, oh, hey,
I want you to help me save my wife and
destroy your life your apology aside. I understand why he's
not having the most positive reaction to your request. Audie.

(55:37):
Mark is going to try to smooth things over with
this cantankerous any Before he does, you should refill your
coffee cup refiner. Severed will be right back.

Speaker 6 (55:48):
Hello, refiners, this is your beloved leader, Ker Egan. Actually
it's Mark Keller, who plays Ker Egan on Severance for
the latestn Stopping the MDR Rebellion. I like to check
in with Severed the Ultimate Severance Podcast.

Speaker 2 (56:07):
Audi. Mark is trying hard to smooth things over after
he sees this lie message.

Speaker 7 (56:12):
WHOA, I'm sorry, I didn't haint.

Speaker 2 (56:15):
It didn't mean to what you're throwing This guy's whole
existence into a tailspin in a single night. Here in
this rather foreboding cabin, Audi Mark drops the shister presentation
and tries to get real.

Speaker 5 (56:28):
Dude, I'm just trying to save my wife.

Speaker 2 (56:31):
Okay, therein lies the problem. It's your wife. If any
Mark had any kind of stake in this situation, he
might be more willing to help. As it is, he
doesn't know you, and he doesn't know this Jemma person.
He's aware of Ms. Casey, but he'd rather not burn
down his whole world to save the wellness director. Audi
Mark tries to reason with his any plead with his INNY.

Speaker 4 (56:54):
I can't abandon her and it help me.

Speaker 5 (56:58):
I won't abandon you.

Speaker 2 (56:59):
I'm amish, so says the guy who dumped you down
here on the severed floor in the first place. You
really think he's gonna be back once he gets what
he wants? Any Mark doesn't. He jumps to his feet
this time before addressing the camcorder.

Speaker 5 (57:13):
You know what I think.

Speaker 7 (57:13):
I think the second you get your wife back, you
forget I ever existed.

Speaker 2 (57:17):
Audi Mark's done a pretty good job of forgetting any
Mark existed up to this point, So why shouldn't that
situation continue.

Speaker 7 (57:24):
I think that I disappear along with every any down there.

Speaker 2 (57:28):
When we cut back to Audie Mark, he also jumps
to his feet before returning fire.

Speaker 5 (57:33):
What do you want from me? We are in this together.
Can't you just trust me?

Speaker 2 (57:38):
Any Mark takes a long pause before responding to this one.
I'm betting you already knew the answer. Now I want
you to take note of these guys jumping to their feet.
Ben Stiller discussed the blocking of this scene with Indy Wire.
Ben said for him as director, it would be easiest
to both characters Any and Audi Mark were to stay
seated the entire time. Ideally, as a director, it would

(58:01):
be best if nobody moved around the whole scene. It's
too easy to make continuity mistakes if you have to
start remembering which lines are said well standing and which
are performed sitting. Ben then discussed the scene and the
various character motivations with Adam Scott. Ben said he wanted
Adam's input as an actor. What would be his character's

(58:21):
response to the various parts of this conversation. Adam, of course,
felt the character needed to move around a bit. He
said there would be points where he must get up
and physically respond. This camquarder conversation turns into a frustrating
and emotional back and forth. Also, since these two are
so similar, they would respond in the same way to
certain situations. That's why when any Mark stood out of anger,

(58:45):
Audie Mark popped up right behind him at the same spot.
Both any and Oudy exhibit the same instincts. They started
shooting these scenes on a Monday. Writing and rewriting this
scene was happening up until the previous Friday night. Dan Ericson,
Bo Willeman, and Mark Friedman all contributed to the scene
as writers. Since they shot all of one side of

(59:05):
the conversation then all of the other, the script had
to be locked once shooting started. It would be almost
impossible to change one side of the conversation once the
other side was in the can. From the point where
any Mark hit play until he says no is nine
and a half minutes. This conversation is just about to conclude.

(59:25):
Before it does, I have a bit more from Ben Stiller.
Collider asked him if once this was shot, did he
know he had it. Ben said no, he definitely did
not have a sense if this conversation between Marx was
going to work at all. Jeff Richmond, who did the
primary editing on this scene, cut together a rough He
told Ben it was like eighteen minutes, which was absolutely unacceptable.

(59:48):
Ben said, watching the rough cut, even with it being
so very long, he got into the conversation. After both
reading the scene and then shooting it, he decided it
was a good sign that he could still get caught
up in the performance. The writing was making sense, the
acting was working. They needed to tighten up the edit
a bit, but Ben knew after seeing the rough cut

(01:00:09):
they had a workable scene. How does Audie Mark deal
with any Mark's flat out refusal to help Devin. I
don't know what she's going to do about it. If
Mark can't convince himself, I don't see how anybody else
is going to be able to do it for him.
Audie Mark continues to loudly complain as Cobell and Devon
hustle back up to the second floor.

Speaker 5 (01:00:30):
He's a fucking child. He won't listen.

Speaker 2 (01:00:32):
Oh, I'd say he's listening pretty intently. The fact he's
listening might be your problem. Cobell thinks she's got this.
She does have experience talking to Annie's that may speak
to Mark is still preaching to them from out on
the deck.

Speaker 7 (01:00:46):
I mentioned reintegration and he basically called bullshit.

Speaker 2 (01:00:49):
Well is not wrong, right, exactly what I was thinking.
They are hanging a lot of any Mark's future on
this process that nobody has really seen an action. He
had a great discussion on the Severed Patreon page about
this episode. If you aren't on the Severed Patreon page yet,
you really need to come check it out. It's Waldwall
stuff about Severance and the Severed podcast. Patron refiners even

(01:01:13):
get to proof the podcast before it's made public. Go
to patreon dot com slash Severed Pod. It's only five
bucks a month and you'll love it. So anyway, patron
refiners Stepfers thought Audie Mark really missed an opportunity here.
Why didn't he bring up pet? Any Mark would love
to get an update on his old friend. Plus p
D is an example of a successful reintegration. I don't

(01:01:36):
think he should tell any Mark everything about p D.
The fact he died probably wasn't Ragabi's fault and shouldn't
be blamed on the procedure. Telling any Mark about PD's
successful reintegration might have helped sell it. After Cobel says,
let me speak to him, she gives Devon a sidelong glance.

Speaker 3 (01:01:55):
Uh huh, okay, yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:01:59):
Devin doesn't hesitate or question it. She just turns and
walks away. Autie Mark is standing in the doorway. He
shuffles his feet a bed and mutters okay, then takes
a step into the room. We get the free standing Zalie,
and now any Mark is standing in front of Cobell.

(01:02:20):
There's a slow push in on the very intimidating looking Cobell.

Speaker 3 (01:02:25):
The numbers are your Why any.

Speaker 2 (01:02:26):
Mark considers this statement not really his wife, his Audi's wife?
Maybe he furrows his brow. Cobell starts to back away
from any Mark.

Speaker 3 (01:02:36):
The MDR numbers tem me a console.

Speaker 2 (01:02:40):
Cobell moves back to have a seat at the table
in the middle of the room. Any Mark hasn't said
a word. He also sits at the table across from Cobel.
This stuff, Cobell is saying is huge. A lot of
us kind of had an idea that the numbers were
somehow connected to people, but they were some vague connections.

Speaker 3 (01:03:00):
Their doorway into the mind of your Audi's wife, Jemascow.

Speaker 2 (01:03:04):
Even though she keeps talking, I'm still not having any
big breakthroughs when it comes to my understanding of the
refining process. Mark sits he's having the same kind of reaction.
I don't understand, Glad, I'm not the only one. Cobell
starts to analyze the INNY. I get the sense Cobel
is a researcher more than anything. She's interested in the

(01:03:24):
effects this technology has on those who use it.

Speaker 3 (01:03:28):
What do you see every day when you look at them?

Speaker 2 (01:03:30):
Mark looks like he's starting to answer, but then pauses.
He reconsiders what does he see every day when he
looks at those MDR numbers. We get a flash back
to an MDR screen. Mark is picturing a group of
numbers as he corrals them. He's still trying to parse
this statement, but we.

Speaker 5 (01:03:50):
Field things.

Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
We get a monitor I view of any Mark in
his suit and sitting at his MDR workstation.

Speaker 3 (01:03:57):
What do you feel?

Speaker 2 (01:03:58):
Mark considers the question. Cobell is such a commanding presence,
there's no thought of not answering different things.

Speaker 7 (01:04:05):
Sometimes sadness whoa.

Speaker 2 (01:04:09):
The numbers are fading in and out superimposed over Cobell's face.
Then over Mark's eyes. When Cobel says Whoa, there's a
brief shot of the dancer from the waffle party who
was portraying Whoa. Harmony continues to list the tempers. We
are so very familiar with.

Speaker 3 (01:04:28):
Maude.

Speaker 2 (01:04:32):
As she's listing the temper names, we can see cross
dissolves of more dancers, keys being pressed, and the bins
being filled on the refining screens. Any Mark then sums
it all up.

Speaker 5 (01:04:43):
So you're saying the.

Speaker 2 (01:04:46):
Clusters are any Mark just looks at her with a
bit of a slight jaw expression. Cobell continues, trying to
make him understand.

Speaker 3 (01:04:56):
The building blocks of her mind.

Speaker 2 (01:04:59):
Cobell says, this was such a flourish in her voice,
but the import of what she's saying is not landing
with any Mark or with me for that matter. Kerr
believed in the tempers. The Luminites are strongly devoted to
the study of the tempers, but in the real world
you just don't get any temper info from the world

(01:05:19):
of science. Maybe kier knew what he was talking about
in the rest of us, or trying to catch up.
Something seems to be happening in response to all of this,
refining what.

Speaker 5 (01:05:30):
Am I building?

Speaker 4 (01:05:31):
Good?

Speaker 2 (01:05:31):
Question?

Speaker 3 (01:05:32):
Every file you've completed.

Speaker 2 (01:05:35):
As she speaks, there is an overlay of the animated
Rolodex file selector. Some new names flipped by we've never
seen before, as we discovered during the episode Chee I Bardo.
If they aren't on Mark's list, they really don't impact
our story. The sad Men consciousness for the dissolve over
is of Gemma in the dentist chair. We get a
visual reminder about how wonderful Jemma's days are down on

(01:05:56):
the testing floor. Oops, there she is on the christ
plane and now in the Christmas room a new inny.
As we deduce during chicai Bardo, every time Mark completes
a file, Gemma gets a new any adventure.

Speaker 4 (01:06:12):
I've completed twenty four files?

Speaker 2 (01:06:14):
Yes, you have, and the C suite is very aware
of this number. You've got one more to go, sir.

Speaker 3 (01:06:20):
Cold Harbor is the last.

Speaker 2 (01:06:22):
And it's sitting at ninety six percent because you're out
here messing around in the woods when you should be
in the office. Quickest side here, Why twenty five files?
This number seems random? Sure, it's five squared, but this
doesn't have any connection to the testing floor. They've been
pretty dedicated to fours down there for refiners and all

(01:06:42):
the fours supporting them. If numerology has any impact on
these things, twenty four seems like a more spiritual number.
It's divisible by both three and four. If you add
two plus four, you've got six, which is divisible by
magic number three. I guess the significance of the numbers
didn't matter. Twenty five is the count. Whatever this experiment is,

(01:07:04):
it's about to conclude.

Speaker 3 (01:07:06):
Tomorrow will be your final day.

Speaker 2 (01:07:08):
Absolute We've already been told several times Jemma is going
to die. We don't get any details about Mark's fate.
Is he also going to be killed after finishing the file,
or does he get his walking papers and return to
everyday life not knowing anything about what he did while
working down in the lumen severed basement.

Speaker 3 (01:07:27):
You will observe to your purpose.

Speaker 2 (01:07:30):
So you're definitely about to be disposed of Mark. I'm
just not certain how permanent that disposal might be. We
need to pause for a moment and talk about Cobell's
big revelation. It's not news that the refiners have been
working on the tempers. We were kind of figuring that out.
During season one, there was also a lot of conjecture
that said maybe the refiners were improving the consciousness of

(01:07:53):
the subjects being refined. Cobel is telling us all these
theories are pretty much on the right track. She's not
telling us is how this is being accomplished. It's easy
to say the numbers of the building blocks of a
person's mind, but how does that translate to a real
world connection. There would have to be some physical connection

(01:08:14):
between Gemma's head and Mark's workstation in order for Mark's
refinement work to be making any changes to Jemma's consciousness.
Has Luman figured out how to digitize the contents of
a human brain, It seems like they would have to
be converting thoughts to digits and then back to thoughts.
In order for these adjusted numbers to have any impact

(01:08:35):
on a human test subject, there has to be some
real world physical connection between the numbers and the test subject.
If the severe chip is controlled by something along the
lines of a cellular signal, this signal might provide the
connection to Jemma's brain. I have yet to hear a
nuts and bolts description of this consciousness altering connection. Cobel's
explanation fits with what we've believed, but it is not

(01:08:59):
bringing me up any closer to a physical understanding of
what's going on. Any Mark is starting to get suspicious.
This is Cobel. He doesn't have a lot of faith
in her to begin with.

Speaker 6 (01:09:11):
Where are you telling me this?

Speaker 2 (01:09:13):
Cobell remains still in silent.

Speaker 5 (01:09:15):
What are you doing here?

Speaker 4 (01:09:17):
Really?

Speaker 2 (01:09:18):
Oh, she was just driving back from Saltsnak and thought
she'd dropped by this clearing in the woods on her
way to Kere. I'm pretty sure Cobel has her own agenda.
Mark situation happens to dovetail into her needs right now,
so she's fine with appearing to help out. I don't
know how far I'd trust her, but if she's gonna
help Mark and Devin can use it. Cobell sounds very

(01:09:40):
Selviig like in her response. Also, like Selvig, she doesn't
provide him with any actual answers or information. She does
advance this happy little observation, there'll be.

Speaker 3 (01:09:55):
No honeymoon ending for you and Helly.

Speaker 2 (01:09:57):
Are both any and AUTI? Mark Mark are aware of
the reason why Cobell says it? Anyway, She's an che Yes,
they know if any of this works out. I see
Thanksgiving in the glass Cube being very uncomfortable.

Speaker 5 (01:10:12):
You're nothing to ah.

Speaker 2 (01:10:14):
Now, maybe to them in general, but I think Mark,
both Any and Audi means something. To Audi Helena she
can never admit it around the Lumin offices, but she's
definitely fallen for at least one side of Mark's personality,
and possibly both. Cobell is intentionally trying to get any
Mark riled up. I don't know what her objective is,

(01:10:35):
but she certainly gets him agitated.

Speaker 5 (01:10:38):
No, nothing, No, I don't believe you.

Speaker 3 (01:10:41):
They're using you.

Speaker 5 (01:10:43):
No, I don't believe you.

Speaker 2 (01:10:44):
Mark jumps up from his seat in front of the
fire and heads for the exit. Cobell continues to hector
him as he's running away. Scott akinsk if she wanted
him mad, Cobell certainly accomplished her objective.

Speaker 5 (01:10:56):
I think you're using me.

Speaker 2 (01:10:58):
Mark goes storming down the cabin steps. Devon is waiting
for him at the bottom of the stairs. He sweeps
right by her. Man. That is a great picture of
Mark Geller portraying Cure Egan. He's right over Devon's shoulder.
As Mark enters the frame, Cobell is still shouting after
him from upstairs. You Jack, Cobell is thoroughly sold on

(01:11:18):
the benefits reintegration. She must know more about it than
we do. Devon is rushing after any Mark as he
crosses the first floor of the cabin. He shouts back
at her when he gets to the outside door. Do
you love your brother concern? Devan says, yes, of course
she loves her brother. You think she'd be out here
in the woods with Harmony Cobell when she has a
newborn at home. She really loves her brother.

Speaker 7 (01:11:40):
Well, then you tell him that the next thing I
see had better be the severed floor, or I swear
he will never see his wife again.

Speaker 2 (01:11:47):
Cobell has come running from upstairs. She's standing alongside Devon
as any Mark is making his exit.

Speaker 3 (01:11:53):
I care for you.

Speaker 2 (01:11:54):
It sounds weird, but Mark, I think she really and
truly does. Otherwise, why would she have gotten the house
right next to yours to keep an eye on your audie.
Why would she be out here in this birthing cabin
trying to explain to you what's happening in her own
weird way. I think Cobell does actually care for you.
Mark can't take all the caring ah. Devin steps toward

(01:12:16):
impleting look. Any Mark ignores Devin and turns. He steps
through the door to the outside, where he will become
his OUDI. We stay with any Mark's perception. When he
steps through the birthing cabin door. The river shut reveals
marks on the severed floor elevator. He's just at the
end of his ride. Now any Mark is wearing his
worksuit and seems to be arriving for a normal day

(01:12:38):
of work. Down on the severed floor. Devin and Harmony
took his any threats very seriously, and he Mark s
didn't see another thing until the elevator's doors opened. On
the severed floor, Marcz is about to begin his very
storied final day at Lumen, or at least what he
thinks is his final day. It might turn into a
lot more than that. This is where we're going to

(01:13:00):
leave Mark for today, Refiner. We'll pick up with the
file Cold Harbor right here next time. For now, you
need to put things away at your workstation and shut
down your computer. As always, a big thanks to Volunteer
Researcher producer vinnyp for his contributions to this week's podcast.
Also a big thanks to those of you who are
supporting the podcast with your positive words. Thank you for
your comments on the Facebook page, Reddit or as an

(01:13:23):
Apple podcast reviewer, I do read all the comments and
your kind words and encouragement are greatly appreciated. Your glowing
reviews on Apple Podcasts are also bringing new listeners to
the podcast as you're putting things away. A quick reminder
get to the Severed Patreon page. Support the Severed podcast
by pledging five dollars a month. We talk all things

(01:13:43):
Severance and keep you updated on this Severed podcast and
the Severance production schedule. Signing up is easy, go to
patreon dot com slash Severed pod. That's patreon dot com
slash Severed Pod. We'll dig into even more cold harbor
next time. We've still got a lot to get to,
make sure to join me. Until then, it's time for

(01:14:04):
you to get to the elevator refiner. Thanks for being here,
and as always, please stagger your exits.

Speaker 8 (01:14:10):
You've been listening to Severed, the Ultimate Severance Podcast. Severed
is written, produced, and hosted by Alan Stair.

Speaker 1 (01:14:17):
Severed is not endorsed by Red Hour Productions, DVOR Content,
or Apple TV Plus. This podcast is intended for entertainment
and informational purposes only.

Speaker 8 (01:14:27):
Severance, the Severance logo, and all video and audio of
Severance and Severance characters are registered trademarks of Red Hour
Endeavor Content, Apple TV Plus, or their respective copyright holders.

Speaker 1 (01:14:39):
Please make sure to leave a five star rating and
review for Severed at Apple Podcasts.

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S2E37 - REWATCH10-PT01 - Cold Harbor

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