Cold Harbor (Severance)

"Cold Harbor" is the tenth episode and season finale of the second season of the American science fiction psychological thriller television series '' Severance''. It is the 19th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Dan Erickson and directed by executive producer Ben Stiller. It was released on Apple TV+ on March 20, 2025.

The series follows the employees of the fictional corporation Lumon Industries, a company that uses a "severance" program in which their non-work memories are separated from their work memories. In the episode, Mark's outie and innie move forward with their plan to rescue Gemma from Lumon.

Upon its release, "Cold Harbor" was praised for the performances (especially Adam Scott), direction, twists, tension, emotional weight, and closure to the season. The episode is considered as one of the best episode of the series.

Plot

In the birthing cabin, Mark's outie and innie communicate with each other by recording messages with a camcorder and having Mark walk in and out of the severed room to respond.

Mark's outie, Devon and Cobel explain the plan to rescue Gemma from the testing floor and use the evidence of her kidnapping to take down Lumon. Mark's innie argues that reintegration will result in him losing his identity and autonomy; he grows agitated when he realizes that since Helena would never reintegrate with her innie Helly, taking down Lumon would effectively mean ending Helly's life. Cobel reveals to Mark's innie that every MDR file he completes creates a new innie for Gemma, and that Cold Harbor is the last, after which Lumon will extract Gemma's chip from her brain, killing her in the process. When she insists that Mark is merely being used by the Eagans and has no future with Helly, Mark storms off, demanding to reawaken on the severed floor.

The next day, Dylan returns to find that his outie has deferred a decision on his resignation request to him. Mark arrives on the severed floor and completes the Cold Harbor file with Helly by his side. Milchick and an animatronic statue of Kier Eagan congratulate Mark. Milchick performs with a marching band from the Choreography & Merriment department. Helly distracts Milchick and traps him in the bathroom while Mark searches for the elevator to the testing floor. Dylan arrives at MDR and helps Helly hold off Milchick by barricading the bathroom door with a vending machine.

Gemma enters the Cold Harbor room, where her new innie is tasked with disassembling the crib Mark had built for their baby. To the delight of Dr.Mauer and Jame Eagan, this does not trigger any emotions in her innie. Meanwhile, Lorne brings a goat to a secret room across from the exports hall, where Mr. Drummond is waiting; the goat, chosen for how well it embodies Kier's core principles, is a sacrifice that will be buried alongside Gemma. Drummond provides Lorne with a cattle stunner to kill the goat but is distracted by the sound of Mark attempting to break into the exports hall. Drummond tries to strangle Mark but is stopped by Lorne, who threatens him with the cattle stunner. They fight until Lorne subdues Drummond.

Holding Drummond hostage with the cattle stunner, Mark takes him to the elevator down to the testing floor; during the transition to his outie, Mark accidentally activates the cattle stunner, killing Drummond. Mark's outie locates the Cold Harbor room, uses his tie soaked in Drummond's blood to enter the room via biometric authentication and frees Gemma. Upon exiting the room, Gemma reverts to her outie and tearfully reunites with Mark. They escape back up to the severed floor, transitioning again to their severed identities. Mark's innie guides Ms.Casey to the exit stairwell where she transitions back to Gemma, but he decides not to join her, instead returning to Helly. Gemma cries for Mark as he and Helly run off into the hallways, holding hands.

Production

Development

The episode was written by series creator Dan Erickson, and directed by executive producer Ben Stiller. This marked Erickson's seventh writing credit and Stiller's 11th directing credit.

Writing

Dan Erickson said that in an earlier version of the script, they would expand more about the content behind the "Cold Harbor" file. However, they decided to keep it unknown as the answer to its content will lead "into a bigger question of the company's ultimate agenda, and that will remain unknown". Erickson also mentioned, "We talked about whether it was too early to reveal what the numbers are. But I really felt that was one piece of such an intricate, bigger mystery that it felt like it was time. I didn't feel like that was something we needed to kick down the road anymore. Let's give people an answer to this, because it then opens us up to these other bigger questions that I think are just as interesting."

Stiller considered ending the final scene earlier, before Mark chose to run to Helly. Stiller stated that they chose not to end on a cliffhanger, explaining, "We sort of played with the idea of ending on Mark looking between the two, but it felt clear, after having this cliffhanger ending in Season 1, I didn't want to do that to the audience. It always felt this was the natural way that Mark's innie would go." Britt Lower offered her interpretation of the ending, "It's the cocktail of emotions. They've made this decision. So I think there's an elation. The script direction said they were just running. I remember when we were doing it, it felt like we were a couple of wild horses who were just let loose."

Erickson explained Mark's decision to stay and leave Gemma, "It's a painful realization for him in that moment that he just doesn't feel that for her is how he does, but he just doesn't, and the only person that he feels that for is standing behind him and so that's ultimately the direction that he goes. And it's a moment where he, you know, it's a choice between two loves, but it's also a choice between two identities and two wives, and it's him saying, you know, my love and thus my existence is valid and is as important as that of my utie" Adam Scott added, "It just seemed like the logical place to go with innie Mark and outie Mark on this collision course all season. It starts out with their interests aligning and pretty soon their interests start to diverge. But as far as ending the season before he makes a choice, I'm so glad we didn't end up doing that. I think that the season ends in the exact right place."

Music

Stiller said that for the final scene, he was "looking for the juxtaposition of the craziness of that with a hopeful song". The crew considered using "I Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher or " As Tears Go By" by Nancy Sinatra, but they considered the former "too cute" and the latter "didn't make as much thematic sense". They eventually chose " The Windmills of Your Mind" by Mel Tormé, with Stiller explaining "is weird both with its lyrics and sound. It's like a crazy drug trip. It's so strange. Because, really, that's what this whole show is about." Stiller also felt that using "Work Song" by Bobby Darin for the credits was a strange choice, but concluded that they "fit together".

Critical reception

"Cold Harbor" received widespread critical acclaim. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating for the episode, based on 14 reviews, with an average rating of 9.7/10.

Saloni Gajjar of ''The A.V. Club'' gave the episode an "A–" and wrote, "the broader suspense has suffered as a result. This might leave viewers understandably conflicted and lacking in patience about the show's pace, especially with how everything culminates in the 76-minute-long 'Cold Harbor.' If you see the season finale as a character study, though, it's a potent, absurd, and stunning one that, yes, does leave a lot of things open-ended."

Alan Sepinwall of ''Rolling Stone'' wrote, "Season Two didn't always help itself in that regard, devoting entire installments to Cold Harbor and to the origin of the severance process itself. But it ended in a place that leans into the best and most important parts of the series, and that reckons with its core ideas in exciting, surprising, funny, and moving ways. If we somehow have to wait another three years for a new season, those parts feel more likely to stick with both my innie and outie viewers than the material that felt frustrating earlier in the year." Ben Travers of '' IndieWire'' gave the episode an "A" and wrote, "People don't typically respond to reason in the same way they respond to feelings, and 'Cold Harbor' evokes a bevy of conflicting feelings. While it's jarring in the moment to be denied one of our primary couples' long-sought reunions, Mark's innie makes a choice."

Erin Qualey of ''Vulture'' gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "'Cold Harbor' is a captivating hour-plus of television that serves up several palpable gut punches, some cryptic Lumon lore, and a handful of the most visually stunning sequences the show has ever put onscreen. Seriously, if they offered a screening of this episode in a movie-theater format, I'd go see it. Twice." Sean T. Collins of ''Decider'' wrote, "It all felt integrated, to borrow a term. Whether you watched for the plot or the emotions or the themes or the performances or the visuals or the overall tone, you got something good. Good is good! You don't need to be a mindblowing masterpiece for the ages to be worth watching."

Brady Langman of ''Esquire'' wrote, "I don't think any of us expected ''Severance'' to deliver a cliffhanger on the level of its season 1 finale, which is what made the show a sensation in the first place. But here we are. ''Severance'' just told us who this story belongs to: Mark S. This is the story of what it means to become whole again. And what life looks like when you confront the worst parts of yourself and choose to follow what—and who—you love, even if it means spending another day in hell." Erik Kain of ''Forbes'' wrote, "This was a powerful, shocking, perfectly crafted episode of television, though I still think the Season 1 finale, however less bombastic and wild, hit me a little bit harder. Of course, it's almost impossible to top such a pivotal episode, but Stiller and his team have come close."

Jeff Ewing of ''Collider'' gave the episode a perfect 10 out of 10 and wrote, "We still don't know what Cobel's ultimate intentions are, really, and undoubtedly, Mark and Helly aren't safe as long as they remain inside Lumon. For now, our favorite innie Macrodats get a happy ending, and Gemma's free—even if she's really, really unhappy about it." Breeze Riley of ''Telltale TV'' gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Whether you're happy or not with the long sequence at the end showing Helly and Mark running away to nowhere, you can't say the show made the boring choice. The conflict was never just against Lumon but also these independent beings they created when they signed themselves up for severance."

Accolades

''TVLine'' named Adam Scott as the "Performer of the Week" for the week of March 22, 2025, for his performance in the episode. The site wrote, "The episode's final moments served as one last flourish for Scott, too, with him silently conveying innie Mark's confusion and ultimate commitment to Helly as he left Gemma behind in favor of her. Scott has made a career out of playing sarcastic smart-asses who turn everything into a joke—but this was no joke. He dove deep into genuine emotion this week and helped make the ''Severance'' finale one we'll be talking about and debating for years to come."

Notes

References

External links

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{{Severance (TV series)

2025 American television episodes
Severance (TV series) episodes
Television episodes directed by Ben Stiller
Television episodes written by Dan Erickson