The Helly is out of the bag. Now Lumon’s severed employees are dealing with the fallout of finding out they had an Eagan mole in their midst. How did Severance handle that in season two’s fifth episode? What else did we learn about both Innies and Outies in “Trojan’s Horse?” And what new mysteries are we now left to wonder about? Here are episode five’s biggest revelations and questions.
Revelations From Severance Season 2, Episode 4, “Trojan’s Horse”
Mark Hasn’t told Devon about Gemma or (His Incomplete) Reintegration
Mark’s sister Devon still thinks he’s trying to burn a question into his retina for his Innie to see because Mark hasn’t told her he knows for a fact Gemma is alive. He also hasn’t told her he underwent reintegration, which is currently making him sick just as it did Petey.
His reintegration isn’t complete, either. For security reasons, Dr. Reghabi is living with Mark while they continue working together, but she’s taking things slowly after Petey died. The procedure has started to take, though. At episode’s end Mark Scout finally saw his Innie’s world, and after first hearing her voice, it was the first time he personally “saw” his not-dead wife as Ms. Casey.
By keeping Devon in the dark, Mark is playing a dangerous game with his life. If anything happens to Reghabi, not only will his reintegration remain incomplete, no one will even know he underwent it.
Mark S. Won’t Tell Helly R. He Slept With Helena
Devon isn’t the only person Mark is keeping secrets from. Helly—the real Helly—is back on Lumon’s severed floor against Helena’s wished. Jame Eagan and the Board is using Helena once again.
It wasn’t the reunion Helly wanted. Mark was a total asshole to her. He’s angry at Lumon and Helena for lying to the Innies, but he’s also confused and embarrassed. He thought he slept with Helly R. during the ORTBO. How can he trust himself to ever know if Helly is who she says she is? And how can he possibly explain to Helly R. that Helena Eagan managed to trick him that badly?
Maybe he shouldn’t anyway. How will Helly feel learning her Outie, whom she hates, slept with the man she kissed moments ago? Remember, Helly has barely been awake since the Macrodat Uprising. How would she react to learning what really happened?
The whole experience has also made Mark S. want to give up on everything. Lumon knows everything he knows, everything he was planning, and everything he did. How can he possibly beat them?
Irv B. Left Directions to the Testing Floor for Dylan G.
Dylan G. wasn’t even done mourning Irv B. when he realized what his “dead” friend had done for him. After Irving threatened to drown the fake Helly, Dylan apologized for not listening to his friend sooner. Rather than scold him, though, Irv told Dylan, “Hang in there.” That turned out be a secret message, because the “Hang In There” poster at work is where Irving had hidden directions to the Testing Floor elevator.
The instructions actually came from Felicia in Optics & Design. She wrote the note from “O&D” on the back of Irv’s drawing of the Testing Floor, which Felicia knows as the Exports Hall. (The episode opened with a mysterious figure taking dental tools there, something we’ll get into below in our “Questions” section.)
Irv B. might be gone, but thanks to his clever coded message to Dylan he’s still helping his Innie colleagues in their quest to unlock the truth. Now Dylan just has to make his way down to the Testing Floor to find out why it receives such strange exports.
Bonus Revaltion: Dylan G. gives a hell of a eulogy. (And begrudging kudos to Milchick for that great line about Dylan adding “a little sugar” with his usual salt.)
Miss Huang Is Developing An Identity as Her Own Person
Miss Huang is the weirdest severed floor employee since Ms. Casey, but like the former Wellness director, the strange young woman is becoming more human and normal. She mixed up a question with an opinion, but the fact she could even form her own independent thought and question her boss’ judgement shows she’s developing as an individual. (And a musician!)
Like Gemma/Ms. Casey, Miss Huang might be a “dead person” Lumon resurrected. (Reghabi said Lumon has contacts in the morgue, just like it does all over the town of Kier.) That would explain why Huang’s so….unnatural. It would also explain how and why the company is employing a literal child. But whatever the truth, she’s becoming more independent at a place desperate to stop Innies from being people with their own thoughts.
Lumon Is the Worst Place to Work Even For Outies
Natalie’s face said everything she wouldn’t dare utter when Seth Milchick asked her about her own reaction to Lumon’s offensive paintings. Milchick’s reference to their similar struggles at the company also indicates this isn’t the first time Lumon has made its Black employees uncomfortable. Clearly even high ranking officials of color, people entrusted with vital jobs, aren’t treated or even seen as individuals at the company.
Even if they were, though, it would still absolutely suck to be a non-severed employee at Lumon. Milchick’s pretentious, hours-long, monthly performance review included some of the most absurd complaints ever. Mr. Drummond, who has his own fondness for obscure vocabulary, dinged Milchick for using big words. He also criticized Milchick for putting paperclips on backwards.
Why anyone not named Eagan works for Lumon is a total mystery, which indicates both Milchick and Natalie must have deeply personal reasons for being there.
Milchick Is “Tightening the Leash” Because Everything Depends on “Cold Harbor”
There are genuine reasons for Drummond to criticize Milchick’s performance as the severed floor manager. (His failure to put together a new MDR team in 48 hours was not one of them. Nor were the kindness reforms, especially when they’ve given Milchick leverage over Dylan.) The disastrous ORTBO was all Milchick’s idea. It’s only fair to mention during a performance review that the future Lumon CEO almost died during your stupid team building exercise.
Drummond’s criticism worked. As did his manipulative pep talk when he told Milchick, “I think it’s time to go back to the basics, Seth. To remember these severed workers’ greater purpose, and to treat them as what they really are.” That directive made Milchick agree to stop treating Innies like actual people with actual emotions. He’s going to “tighten the leash” on them and treat them like tools Lumon made them to be. Milchick started doing that when he got in Mark S.’s face on the elevator. Milchick threatened the smart aleck Mark by suggesting he’ll tell Helly about Mark’s sexual exploits with Helena.
Mr. Drummond also convinced Milchick to get strict by appealing to both his ego and his professionalism, with a statement that revealed “Cold Harbor” isn’t just important, it’s everything Lumon is working towards. “Mark Scout’s completion of ‘Cold Harbor’ will be remembered as one of the greatest moments in the history of this planet,” said Drummond. “It will take place under your stewardship. That’s quite a legacy you will leave.”
Mark Scout completing his not-dead wife’s “file” is the whole ball game on Severance. It’s also something some high-ranking employees* who are growing disillusioned with Lumon know about.
*Not even Dr. Reghabi is aware of what’s really going on there. She has no idea if Lumon is “torturing” Gemma or not.
Ricken Is Full of Crap
Nat’s charm worked so well on Ricken he’s writing Lumon Innie propaganda while lying to himself that his compromised work will serve as a rebellion-causing “Trojan’s horse.” Devon knows that’s garbage, and ultimately Ricken does, too. He simply doesn’t want to turn down the money or the notoriety. He might present himself as some enlightened life guru, but he’s no different from everyone else.
Burt and Irving’s Outies Don’t Already Know Each Other
Despite having Burt’s Outie address marked on a map of severed employees, Outie Irving does not actually know Burt outside of work. Burt has been following Irving ever since the latter showed up at Burt’s door screaming his name. When Irving finally confronted Burt, the two pieced together their Innies might have had a romantic relationship.
Irv is going to Burt’s house to have a ham and an expensive red wine dinner. Burt’s husband Fields will be there despite cancelling their planned trip to Milwaukee cause of Irv. That seems really strange, but it might be the only way for any of them to figure out what is going on.
When I Die I Want a Lumon Innie-Style Funeral
This is more of a personal revelation, yes, but it’s no less important. I want as many people as possible to know my funeral should include both a 16-bit video of me dancing and a watermelon carving of my head. Nine seconds of silence probably isn’t enough. However, I’m fine with that if the watermelon comes from Malaysia.
Please respect my wishes.
Questions From Severance Season 2, Episode 4, “Trojan’s Horse”
Who Is the Whistling Man Delivering Dental Equipment to the Testing Floor?
Felicia told Irv that O&D used to make deliveries to the Exports Hall, which is what they call the Testing Floor. But then Lumon made it so someone came and picked up deliveries. The episode opened with that person taking what appeared to be dental equipment to the mysterious level where Ms. Casey disappeared to. Only, Severance did not show us his face.
Who is it? Someone we know? A person we’ve seen but didn’t know works at Lumon? A clone? A character we believed dead? Or an entirely new character? Severance didn’t show us his face for a reason, and they similarly didn’t tell us why he took dental equipment to a floor holding Gemma. What is going on with him and why?
Who is Irv Really Calling?
Irving isn’t leaving messages for Burt, so who is he calling about Lumon andhis work to bring it down? Does he have a mole inside Lumon’s executives? Does he know one of his Innie colleague’s Outies? And why won’t that person answer him?
Is it possible Irving is calling…..himself? We know that might sound wild, but there are clues Irving might have been severed more than once. What if he’s communicating with a third version of himself?
On this show it can’t be ruled out.
Is Dr. Reghabi Telling the Truth About How Often She’s Done Reintegration?
Reghabi talks about reintegration like she’s done it more than once. Mark didn’t pick up on that. He even made a comment about how she’d only ever performed the procedure on Petey. But even the way she spoke about Petey not following her instructions indicated he wasn’t the first person to undergo reintegration.
Was he? Or are there others? If so, who else did Reghabi reintegrate? And what are they doing with that information?
Even in an episode with so many revelations, these are still major questions that both Innies and Outies alike will want answers to.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist, a company that does not believe in severing employees. He thinks…. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.