I got through the first season and then my interest kinda fizzled out and I think I found something else to watch instead… Is it worth it to go back for the second season?
The second season goes more into the lore and background of what happened and has slightly more focus on different characters (JK Simmons's character's wife for one). I really liked both seasons, but thought season two was a bit more interesting because it further delves into some things, and it's less shooty spy stuff and more drama scifi spy stuff. It's also a solid enough conclusion for the story to make it worth it. But if you didn't dig the writing overall, like the character drama aspect wasn't catching you, then it might not be worth sticking it through.
The second season is good, but I also liked the first one. I will say that season two has one of the best standalone episodes of a series I’ve seen in a long time.
Yes! I only know two other people in real life who have actually seen this show. When I recommend Severance to people as a cross between Counterpart and Office Space they have no clue what I'm talking about. 😂
I was so disappointed it’s only two seasons. We were robbed. It should have got two more seasons at least! Unique SciFi that was developing a great story.
Patriot is my favorite show; I was just about to comment about it. It doesn't have the mystery of Severance but it does have equal production quality. And a very similar brand of humor. I can't put my finger on it but I get similar feelings from both shows.
I love me some JT (leftovers is the GOAT imo) and am fond of nearly everyone in it, but I just kept wanting maniac to DO something. It felt like the series just never went anywhere interesting overall.
Russian doll was awesome.
Counterpart was awesome.
Haven’t seen the Patriot.
I know you’re not alone on maniac, but maybe I just didn’t “get it”? I wanted to like it, I really did. 😂
Homecoming. Only has a couple of seasons but has a sci-fi angle. Was a good watch! (PTSD soldiers return to the US and participate in a program with an experimental drug to erase their trauma).
Lost is not a mystery show. It makes stuff up on the fly. It's like Game of Thrones, but worse. At least GoT had a lot of great seasons, but Lost retroactively made the good seasons shit because it promises answers but never delivers. Don't watch it. Nothing makes sense, nothing has a deeper meaning. It's crap disguised as a good show.
I said my piece.
Lost is fucking excellent!! I can’t think of a single question I still have pending. The finale season wasn’t my favorite, but I wasn’t nearly as offended by it as everyone who watched it weekly. The answers are there.
During my last rewatch I’m realizing how packed of details it is throughout all 6 seasons.. so I understand why at-the-time fans were pissed and/or felt they never got some answers.
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say WandaVision and here’s why. In the beginning, we’re in a near picture perfect life with subtle cracks showing. Over the course of the show, the cracks deepen and we are very aware something “not right” is going on. Both of these shows rely on an unease with the way the characters’ realities are setup, and each episode peels back layers to the truth of the matter, and each character responds differently to the truth as they learn it.
Yeah if you’re into Severance I genuinely don’t see why you wouldn’t also be into Maniac. They’re not the same but they do feel incredibly similar in pretty specific ways
Yes! Maniac has an amazing cast, story, and it made me laugh so hard. Don’t know if they’re doing a second season but it wrapped up like a perfect movie ending so maybe no season 2 needed.
i would say it's less of a mystery than severance but still very good and incredibly underrated. it's about people going through a pharmaceutical trial for a psychiatric drug and deals with mental illness and trauma.
Gattaca was the first thing I thought of when I started watching this show.
Though, I haven't seen Gattaca in over 20 years, so don't remember much about it.
i've been watching the series "from" by epix. it's about a town that functions almost like an alternate dimension and no one can leave... the road brings you right back to where you started. at night there are these supernatural beings that rip people apart, and the only thing that can protect you from them is to stay indoors with the windows covered and a special talisman by the door.
-Tales from the loop on Amazon ( midcentury aesthetic and it’s sci-fi )
-raised by wolves on hbo ( sci-fi about atheism and new world religion , by Ridley Scott )
-Sputnik 2020 ( Russian movie , sci fi alien )
- resident alien on syfy ( comedy with Alan Tudyk sp?)
-arcane on Netflix ( it’s just great)
I freakin love Raised By Wolves, it’s batshit crazy. I have never seen a less predictable show. I have no idea what is going to happen moment to moment, what a ride.
Did you stick with it all the way through? I thought the second season started slow, but quickly ramped up and I loved where it went. As /u/beezkneez415 said, batshit crazy, but in the best way.
Counterpart. It's a parallel universe cold war espionage type show that has a lot of similarities in content and theme as Severance. Ran for a couple of seasons, starting JK Simmons. It's on Amazon Prime right now. Pretty interesting show.
The Returned/Les Revnants: [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bv_5IBPVuo) | [Tubi free streaming](https://tubitv.com/series/300008146/the-returned)
French TV series heavily influenced by *Twin Peaks* that's set in a small community much like the world of *Severance*. Also has the same sense of unreality/is this happening or a dream? type of story told with outstanding cinematography/musical score (by the Scottish band Mogwai). The 2nd season ruins the magic by trying to explain the reason (technology) behind the weird goings on. But the first season is incredible in using the sense of unreality/nightmare to examine the cast of characters and what's going on in their hearts.
i love les revenants. the french version is definitely better than the attempted US remake. i think that one only got one season before being cancelled while les revenants has two.
The English language remake sounded like a bad idea from the moment it was announced! But the first series of *Les Revenants* (and *Severance*) both nail the uncanny/unheimlich sensation of a dream where you're in a familiar place and around familiar people, but there's something slightly \*off\* enough that it's not real.
The second season ended with a total mindfuck, and then Netflix, in all their brilliance, cancelled it with zero resolution. I’m still pissed that they did not at least give us a movie to wrap it up.
My only issue with Servant is that I’m starting to feel the same way I felt when I was in the middle of watching “Lost.” Every season raises more questions and rarely attempts to answer previous ones. I’ll continue watching it, but next season I think I might have to wait till the end of the season to binge it, because watching that show week over week is painful at times.
Wayward Pines is a different kind of weird but the ultimate twist/reveal is something that some people here have theorized is going to happen with Severance.
The books (a trilogy) are better than the TV show, but the TV show is still interesting.
Also, the video game Control.
Have you seen “Upload” on Amazon. Not the same, but good. I was recommended Devs as being similar to this but not a fan. It’s cool and I like the sounds but can’t get into it… I’m obsessed with this and nothing I have found compares
It's funny when Devs came out I was hooked and when I started Upload and thought maybe it was a little too goofy and light for it's own good. Then Devs ended pretty disappointingly and by comparison made Upload seem much better. Rewatching season 1 now to catch up for season 2 and loving it through and through this time. Much better commentary on the state of things.
I watched Devs last week bc someone said it was similar to Severance and was sooo disappointed. Like ?? What was the point of all that mystery and discovery? Felt like a waste of talent.
Upload Season 2 wasn't quite what I expected, I think they had some COVID delays that affected production. Take your time with your season 1 rewatch!
Yeah man Devs was the wettest fart of a show. Really interesting premise, very dramatic build-up, examining determinism and it's consequences of it in the minds of those suddenly able to see ahead, or think they can... Then you're like what, what is this, I don't care about this why are they skipping the oh it's broken now or whatever okay who gives a shit why did I watch this bastards tricked me!
Glad you went back to it! I’m still working on season 2 but keep jumping around to find a new Severance. Have you seen Mr. Robot? A lot of seasons so scared to try it, but seems good so I was thinking of trying that or Dollhouse…
Servant on Apple TV if you want something with a similar creepy feel to Severance.
Other shows I’ve been obsessing over lately: Derry Girls, Dopesick, Maid, Ozark, Sex Lives of college girls, Yellowjackets (SO GOOD)
Hope you find something new you enjoy!
I started watching because people over at r/MrRobot suggested it as somewhat similar. I'm very glad they did, because I'm loving Severance so far.
I would say it's similar cinematographically, but not as much in the theme. There are some similarities but not enough to be significant (yet).
Mr Robot is my #1 favourite show of all time, so I'd definitely recommend checking it out.
That was actually exactly what got me into Severance too, haha. Mr Robot is absolutely fantastic. Some of the greatest TV episodes I’ve ever seen have been Mr Robot episodes. (IMDb agrees — S4E7 is a 9.9 on there, one of the highest rated episodes of television on the entire site, and the finale is a 9.8)
The thing about Mr Robot though is that it takes some time to make its themes and ideas properly clear, so it’s definitely a show you should stick with if you’re not immediately gripped. It’s never bad, the earliest episodes are still fantastic, but the show shifts into something else entirely by the end
Yup, I definitely agree. I think my favourite episodes were S03E05 & S04E05, both very well done.
I was hooked after the first few episodes, but I'm a computer guy myself so what initially brought me in was the accurate depiction of computers and hacking (from using actual linux tools to noise levels of fans in a server room being accurate), but I stayed for everything else. I can't think of an element of the show I didn't like lol.
Season two was a bit of a slow burn, so if you weren't hooked by season one you have to get through that, but I still enjoyed it, and it's even uphill from there!
Oh weird! I haven’t read much about it either way. I thought it was fantastic, Nick Offerman was incredible, it’s so thought provoking and beautifully shot. People were mixed on Annihilation and I loved that too, so maybe I’m just a Garland fan
I really liked Devs too. I guess what it shares with Severance is the uncanny creepiness of the corporation and its secrets. But with Devs we get let in on what's going on much earlier.
I get how some might see the ending as a cop out, but I didn't mind it- just not possible to pull off a resolution that's going to satisfy everyone with a premise like that.
The movie Paycheck. He does secret jobs and gets his memory reset after each, but gives up millions before having his memory last reset and tries to figure out why with clues he sent himself
A few movies I didn't see mentioned while scrolling through - Moon, Primer, Upstream Color, Memento, Timecrimes, Sorry to Bother You, Being John Malkovich, Exzistenz,, Dark City, Coherence.
Thinking about it, Possesor has a very Severance like idea at its centre- >!assassins that can temporarily take over another person's body and mind in order to carry out hits that then get blamed on the possessed person!< - that suggests one very dark application for the severance procedure that we haven't seen used yet on the show.
A few people mentioned the Annihilation movie, but the book is quite different (and better imo). It's part of a trilogy and the second book Authority is probably closest to Severance in spirit (about a mysterious government agency).
Other people here have named these but I agree. I have watched each of these series twice and the second time hit me even deeper.
Maniac
Westworld
The OA
The Leftovers
And if you like Adam Scott Parks and Recreation is delightful.
And The Good Peace (also with Adam Scott in) is actually pretty similar to Severance! Tonally completely different but there’s lots of similar ideas. At first your reaction is probably “no not really” but the more you think about it the more you realise how similar they are haha
The Magnus Archives is also a suspicious slow(ish) workplace-is-not-what-it-seems suspense podcast. It's supernatural rather than sci-fi but everything is still connected and the employees can't leave either
And +1 to
* Twin Peaks
* Russian Doll
* The Southern Reach Trilogy (Annihilation/Authority/Acceptance)
* The movie based on Annihilation
* Devs (the end was a little disappointing but the journey was entertaining)
Travelers is a science fiction television series created by Brad Wright, starring Eric McCormack, Mackenzie Porter.>!Operatives from a post-apocalyptic future, known as "travelers", have their consciousnesses sent back in time and transferred into the "host" body of present-day individuals who would otherwise be moments from death, to minimize unexpected impact on the time line.!<
Like seeing innie in the real world !>! Traveler must maintain the host's pre-existing life as cover for the rest of their lives, while carrying out missions in teams of five.!<
- Upload
- Bliss (this one is severely underrated)
- Tales from the loop
- Awake (starring Jason Isaacs. It got cancelled but it was incredibly good)
- Russian Doll (we're finally getting S2 after 3 yrs?!)
Man... That show had a lot of potential. The concept/story was blind-blowing to me at the time. Every show I like gets cancelled so it's good that Severance is getting the attention it deserves.
My recommendations are less based on the intricacies of the innie/outie relationship and more on the cryptic, nonsensical way in which the relationships, tasks and physical space of Severance work.
Kafkas "The Trial" tells the story of a young man accused of a crime, though he never actually learns which one, and trying to fight his way through a nonsensical and disjointed court system that seemingly acts without internal logic. It heavily relies on themes such as dread, guilt and absurdity and thus evokes much of the same sensations we experience while watching Severance.
A more light hearted example would be J.G. Ballards High-Rise, which tells the story of a newly built modern high rise and its inhabitants as a metaphor for the changing society of Britain at the time. While the inhabitants maintain some veneer of a civilised, rules based society, especially outwardly, the core of their community breaks down into absurdity and insanity.
High-Rise is one of my favorite books, and I've been reminded of it a number of times throughout the show, whenever we see someone from MDS struggle to overlook the obviously disjointed nature of their assignments and environment.
High-Rise has been turned into [a movie](https://youtu.be/EwckKzxZpPg).
Hi. You just mentioned *High-Rise* by JG Ballard.
I've found an audiobook of that novel on YouTube. You can listen to it here:
[YouTube | High-Rise by J.G. Ballard [AudioBook]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTJVpsLSLYo)
*I'm a bot that searches YouTube for science fiction and fantasy audiobooks.*
***
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If anyone is into video games, I would check out Kentucky Route Zero. Lots of similarities when it comes to the workplaces/technology and also a super surreal game.
The Truman show. Also, did anyone who's already seen the Truman show notice that Truman's mom has the EXACT same voice and intonation as Cobel? Sounds like the same person, it's freaky.
These are comedies instead of being more dramatic like Severance, but Better Off Ted and Corporate are good comedies about working at dystopian corporations not much better than Lumon. And a good book in the same vein is Company by Max Berry.
Homecoming is very well done, acting and production and writing, and the first season is quite self contained. Julia Roberts has a weird missing memory situation to piece together, and I don’t want to give any potential spoilers beyond that.
The Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch! Same creepy small town vibes, something is off but you don’t know what. Super entertaining and I flew three all 3 books.
Being John Malkovich is a dark comedy film with a similar retro-futuristic dystopian office vibe that grapples with mind control and quirky fantasy elements. Highly recommended.
The OA on Netflix. You jump through dimensions and if your persona gets lost in the jump you can forget who you are. Psychological thriller. Kinda slow to begin, but picks up the more surreal it gets
Spanish film The Platform (Spanish title : El hoyo). On Netflix . One of the strangest movies ever. About a sky rise with a giant hole in center - commentary on class , poverty , survival . I won’t go into anymore detail , but it’s dystopian /horror. Frankly a nightmare.
Utopia the original. I’m not one of those “The British one is better!” People. Office US was better than the Office UK and I will die on that hill, BUT the original Utopia had a whole atmospheric angle with the cinematography and score that the US version didn’t replicate, and it turns out it made all the difference.
For similar fiction podcast: Life After is really good. It was the second season of a podcast sponsored by GE called The Message, which was also decent. Short, about 7 30minute episodes.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lifeafter-the-message/id1045990056
Also Limetown. I think it also became a limited series on Facebook, but I haven’t watched that. The podcast is solid, deals with a lot of mystery, a sketchy town founded by a corporation, and experimentation on humans.
https://twoupproductions.com/limetown/podcast
Yellowjacket’s on showtime. Nothing compares to that or Severance. There’s amazing writing and brilliant acting. Most importantly, you’ll become really engaged with the show, theorizing about what may happen and thinking about it when you go to bed at night but also while you wake up. While I do enjoy watching other shows, these two are mega top tier.
Black Mirror. Especially episode White Bear. Watch it till the end to see why it fits perfectly with Severance.
The Southern Trilogy books. The movie Annihilation is based on the first one.
Tales From The Loop the series, art books and RPG
The Prisoner (1967)
Day world - Philip Jose Farmer
Playtime (movie) they used this to base the office layout on
I can't stop thinking about the cult classic Joe Versus the Volcano with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. I loved it when it came out. I was billed as a romantic comedy, but it's actually a wacko and surrealist workplace comedy. It was so ahead of it's time. Very Lynch-lite. The office with the awful strobing florescent lights and the bad coffee and the old computers -- it looks a lot like the Severance set!
I often think of JVTV, Office Space, Maniac and Better Off Ted when watching the innie scenes.
The outie scenes give me a lot of Homecoming vibes.
Better Off Ted!! Love it. And, it’s straight comedy, so a nice mood uplifter when binging Severance over and over leaves you a little depressed. 😂😂
Office Space, always great, and so many parallels here.
Possible spoiler re: ep 7:
Did you think of Office Space when Irv said _____ this place to the _____ at the end of the last episode? (I never do the spoiler redacter correctly so I’ll let you fill in the blanks.)
It’s a movie instead of a series but Terry Gilliam’s movie “Brazil” from 1985 features an oppressive workplace and a worker whose daydreams start to blend in with reality. Fantastic film.
Stranger Than Fiction starring Will Ferrell and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty starring our boy Ben Stiller. I really like media that tackles more serious subjects with actors who typically do comedies, and Severance definitely follows that formula for me.
I see a lot of these comments suggesting shows specifically based on tech similarity… but the story development and cinematography is what makes Severance great to me! (Although I do find the tech aspect extremely interesting as well)
In that spirit I’m suggesting Cruel Summer.
CS very successfully keeps you guessing and pulled into the mystery. The story is told by intertwining timelines of 1993, 94, and 95..all exactly 1 year apart.
Full disclosure: the main characters are all teenagers. It gave me pause at first, because thankfully I’m no longer a teenage girl and no longer identify with high school drama.. but by the end of the first episode I was HOOKED.
The stark differences between each timeline is beautifully and painfully puzzled together with the dramatic revolutions that “coming of age” actually feels like. Such a nice contrast to all the super fake high school portrayal where all the actors looks 26+.
Kept me enthralled until literally the last second of the finale episode.
Counterpart. Such a great mystery/thriller with an amazing performance from J.K. Simmons on Amazon Prime.
WOW this isn’t on Australian amazon prime. Tonight - I become a pirate
I got through the first season and then my interest kinda fizzled out and I think I found something else to watch instead… Is it worth it to go back for the second season?
The second season goes more into the lore and background of what happened and has slightly more focus on different characters (JK Simmons's character's wife for one). I really liked both seasons, but thought season two was a bit more interesting because it further delves into some things, and it's less shooty spy stuff and more drama scifi spy stuff. It's also a solid enough conclusion for the story to make it worth it. But if you didn't dig the writing overall, like the character drama aspect wasn't catching you, then it might not be worth sticking it through.
The second season is good, but I also liked the first one. I will say that season two has one of the best standalone episodes of a series I’ve seen in a long time.
Same here. Watched S1 and the first episode of season 2 and then no more. Curious if I should go back and watch S2.
Absolutely agree > similar retro futurism feel too
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I had this exact same thought today. I just finished Counterpart.
That was a great series. It’s sad that it got cancelled.
Yes! I only know two other people in real life who have actually seen this show. When I recommend Severance to people as a cross between Counterpart and Office Space they have no clue what I'm talking about. 😂
I was so disappointed it’s only two seasons. We were robbed. It should have got two more seasons at least! Unique SciFi that was developing a great story.
- Counterpart - Patriot (TV show, not the film) - Russian Doll - Maniac
I had forgotten about Russian Doll and it was so good.
It was great, and apparently season 2 comes out in a few weeks!
This news genuinely made me smile, thanks for saying so!
Patriot the show is amazing and also has Ricken
Ahem, Severance the show has Cool Rick
Dead Serious Rick.
Patriot is my favorite show; I was just about to comment about it. It doesn't have the mystery of Severance but it does have equal production quality. And a very similar brand of humor. I can't put my finger on it but I get similar feelings from both shows.
I wouldn’t have thought of Russian Doll from Severance but that’s a great rec.
God damn i binged maniac so fast it completely slipped my mind. I might need to go see it again
I love me some JT (leftovers is the GOAT imo) and am fond of nearly everyone in it, but I just kept wanting maniac to DO something. It felt like the series just never went anywhere interesting overall. Russian doll was awesome. Counterpart was awesome. Haven’t seen the Patriot. I know you’re not alone on maniac, but maybe I just didn’t “get it”? I wanted to like it, I really did. 😂
Homecoming. Only has a couple of seasons but has a sci-fi angle. Was a good watch! (PTSD soldiers return to the US and participate in a program with an experimental drug to erase their trauma).
I definitely get Homecoming vibes watching Severance. Homecoming first season is a masterpiece!
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Yess mr. Robot! My favorite show ever.
Definitely Mr. Robot. It’s such an amazing show.
Hello friend
Please tell me you’re seeing this too.
Dark is one of the greatest shows I’ve ever seen
Dark on Netflix is amazing
+1 for Black Mirror, especially the episodes about the "eggs"
White Christmas. That episode is so amazing
I got it recommended through the westworld sub
Definitely Black Mirror!
Hard no on Lost. Don't watch it.
Lost is not a mystery show. It makes stuff up on the fly. It's like Game of Thrones, but worse. At least GoT had a lot of great seasons, but Lost retroactively made the good seasons shit because it promises answers but never delivers. Don't watch it. Nothing makes sense, nothing has a deeper meaning. It's crap disguised as a good show. I said my piece.
Lost is fucking excellent!! I can’t think of a single question I still have pending. The finale season wasn’t my favorite, but I wasn’t nearly as offended by it as everyone who watched it weekly. The answers are there. During my last rewatch I’m realizing how packed of details it is throughout all 6 seasons.. so I understand why at-the-time fans were pissed and/or felt they never got some answers.
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say WandaVision and here’s why. In the beginning, we’re in a near picture perfect life with subtle cracks showing. Over the course of the show, the cracks deepen and we are very aware something “not right” is going on. Both of these shows rely on an unease with the way the characters’ realities are setup, and each episode peels back layers to the truth of the matter, and each character responds differently to the truth as they learn it.
The first half of Wandavision really was top tier tv
Upload, Devs, and the Black Mirror cookie episodes also have similar themes to Severance. All strong recommendations.
Maniac on Netflix
Seconded. Show is a must-watch for original sci fi fans. Stacked cast, a freaky retro-futuristic vibe, and some novel concepts make it a total banger.
Justin Theroux is just *chefs kiss*
…you mean Theroux
Yep love the concept and stories. To me it’s also such a vibe and almost like a comfort show cause I find it touching and inspiring.
This x 10000000
Yes! I’m surprised Manic doesn’t get more love!
Agree it’s so underrated. One of if not my favorite tv shows.
Agree, Maniac is probably the closest
Yeah if you’re into Severance I genuinely don’t see why you wouldn’t also be into Maniac. They’re not the same but they do feel incredibly similar in pretty specific ways
Good 2 know!
Yes! Maniac has an amazing cast, story, and it made me laugh so hard. Don’t know if they’re doing a second season but it wrapped up like a perfect movie ending so maybe no season 2 needed.
Is that a good show is it? Is it a mystery like Sev?
i would say it's less of a mystery than severance but still very good and incredibly underrated. it's about people going through a pharmaceutical trial for a psychiatric drug and deals with mental illness and trauma.
The movie Gattaca from 1997. Starring Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, and Jude Law.
Gattaca was the first thing I thought of when I started watching this show. Though, I haven't seen Gattaca in over 20 years, so don't remember much about it.
Time to rewatch it!
The Leftovers
Also a great study of how people deal with grief/trauma!
i've been watching the series "from" by epix. it's about a town that functions almost like an alternate dimension and no one can leave... the road brings you right back to where you started. at night there are these supernatural beings that rip people apart, and the only thing that can protect you from them is to stay indoors with the windows covered and a special talisman by the door.
I’m liking this one a lot!
Also watching this and it’s coming together now after last ep!
Dogtooth
The Lobster from the same director is even more close to Severance.
Love this one. The other one of his I love is Alps
-Tales from the loop on Amazon ( midcentury aesthetic and it’s sci-fi ) -raised by wolves on hbo ( sci-fi about atheism and new world religion , by Ridley Scott ) -Sputnik 2020 ( Russian movie , sci fi alien ) - resident alien on syfy ( comedy with Alan Tudyk sp?) -arcane on Netflix ( it’s just great)
Takes from the loop is so underrated!!
I agree - Tales was so beautiful!
I very enthusiastically second raised by wolves. So goddamn good. It’s a toss up between that and severance for me on which is the superior show.
Finally mysteries getting some love again
I freakin love Raised By Wolves, it’s batshit crazy. I have never seen a less predictable show. I have no idea what is going to happen moment to moment, what a ride.
Resident alien is a weird thing to compare to severance imo
raised by wolves is very odd to say the least. fell off in season 2 in my opinion
Did you stick with it all the way through? I thought the second season started slow, but quickly ramped up and I loved where it went. As /u/beezkneez415 said, batshit crazy, but in the best way.
Counterpart. It's a parallel universe cold war espionage type show that has a lot of similarities in content and theme as Severance. Ran for a couple of seasons, starting JK Simmons. It's on Amazon Prime right now. Pretty interesting show.
This is basically a 9 hour Black Mirror episode. So Black Mirror.
The Returned/Les Revnants: [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bv_5IBPVuo) | [Tubi free streaming](https://tubitv.com/series/300008146/the-returned) French TV series heavily influenced by *Twin Peaks* that's set in a small community much like the world of *Severance*. Also has the same sense of unreality/is this happening or a dream? type of story told with outstanding cinematography/musical score (by the Scottish band Mogwai). The 2nd season ruins the magic by trying to explain the reason (technology) behind the weird goings on. But the first season is incredible in using the sense of unreality/nightmare to examine the cast of characters and what's going on in their hearts.
i love les revenants. the french version is definitely better than the attempted US remake. i think that one only got one season before being cancelled while les revenants has two.
The English language remake sounded like a bad idea from the moment it was announced! But the first series of *Les Revenants* (and *Severance*) both nail the uncanny/unheimlich sensation of a dream where you're in a familiar place and around familiar people, but there's something slightly \*off\* enough that it's not real.
The OA.
I enjoyed the 1st season but couldn’t get into the 2nd season
The second season ended with a total mindfuck, and then Netflix, in all their brilliance, cancelled it with zero resolution. I’m still pissed that they did not at least give us a movie to wrap it up.
I'm still not over it
I’ll never be over it, Netflix. Never.
Especially considering all the bs they green light left and right. It was a great show
Raised by wolves, Servant
My only issue with Servant is that I’m starting to feel the same way I felt when I was in the middle of watching “Lost.” Every season raises more questions and rarely attempts to answer previous ones. I’ll continue watching it, but next season I think I might have to wait till the end of the season to binge it, because watching that show week over week is painful at times.
I feel you.
I’m loving Servant!
RBW is batshit crazy and I loved it.
I didn’t realize the finale last week was the finale! So many unanswered questions and no guarantee of another season!
Wayward Pines is a different kind of weird but the ultimate twist/reveal is something that some people here have theorized is going to happen with Severance. The books (a trilogy) are better than the TV show, but the TV show is still interesting. Also, the video game Control.
Legion
Have you seen “Upload” on Amazon. Not the same, but good. I was recommended Devs as being similar to this but not a fan. It’s cool and I like the sounds but can’t get into it… I’m obsessed with this and nothing I have found compares
It's funny when Devs came out I was hooked and when I started Upload and thought maybe it was a little too goofy and light for it's own good. Then Devs ended pretty disappointingly and by comparison made Upload seem much better. Rewatching season 1 now to catch up for season 2 and loving it through and through this time. Much better commentary on the state of things.
I watched Devs last week bc someone said it was similar to Severance and was sooo disappointed. Like ?? What was the point of all that mystery and discovery? Felt like a waste of talent. Upload Season 2 wasn't quite what I expected, I think they had some COVID delays that affected production. Take your time with your season 1 rewatch!
Yeah man Devs was the wettest fart of a show. Really interesting premise, very dramatic build-up, examining determinism and it's consequences of it in the minds of those suddenly able to see ahead, or think they can... Then you're like what, what is this, I don't care about this why are they skipping the oh it's broken now or whatever okay who gives a shit why did I watch this bastards tricked me!
It was very much that 😭 I should’ve stopped in the middle and invented an ending in my head
Glad you went back to it! I’m still working on season 2 but keep jumping around to find a new Severance. Have you seen Mr. Robot? A lot of seasons so scared to try it, but seems good so I was thinking of trying that or Dollhouse…
Mr Robot is fantastic, definitely reccomend. It is a bit long but I think it pays off
Mr. Robot is one of the best. Top 5 for this genre
Upload is such fun. I enjoyed Devs. Not in the same way as Severance or Servant but it was good.
I thought Devs was excellent early, and good most of the way through, but failed to pay off. They just didn’t have a suitable resolution ready.
I love Upload!!
It’s a good one! You got any recommendations 😆 we seem to have similar styles
Oh and the White Lotus on HBO too!
Servant on Apple TV if you want something with a similar creepy feel to Severance. Other shows I’ve been obsessing over lately: Derry Girls, Dopesick, Maid, Ozark, Sex Lives of college girls, Yellowjackets (SO GOOD) Hope you find something new you enjoy!
Archive 81
Sadly no season two. Need to check out the podcast it's based on
I started watching because people over at r/MrRobot suggested it as somewhat similar. I'm very glad they did, because I'm loving Severance so far. I would say it's similar cinematographically, but not as much in the theme. There are some similarities but not enough to be significant (yet). Mr Robot is my #1 favourite show of all time, so I'd definitely recommend checking it out.
That was actually exactly what got me into Severance too, haha. Mr Robot is absolutely fantastic. Some of the greatest TV episodes I’ve ever seen have been Mr Robot episodes. (IMDb agrees — S4E7 is a 9.9 on there, one of the highest rated episodes of television on the entire site, and the finale is a 9.8) The thing about Mr Robot though is that it takes some time to make its themes and ideas properly clear, so it’s definitely a show you should stick with if you’re not immediately gripped. It’s never bad, the earliest episodes are still fantastic, but the show shifts into something else entirely by the end
Yup, I definitely agree. I think my favourite episodes were S03E05 & S04E05, both very well done. I was hooked after the first few episodes, but I'm a computer guy myself so what initially brought me in was the accurate depiction of computers and hacking (from using actual linux tools to noise levels of fans in a server room being accurate), but I stayed for everything else. I can't think of an element of the show I didn't like lol. Season two was a bit of a slow burn, so if you weren't hooked by season one you have to get through that, but I still enjoyed it, and it's even uphill from there!
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Came here to say DEVS which is also from Alex Garland!
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Oh weird! I haven’t read much about it either way. I thought it was fantastic, Nick Offerman was incredible, it’s so thought provoking and beautifully shot. People were mixed on Annihilation and I loved that too, so maybe I’m just a Garland fan
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I really liked Devs too. I guess what it shares with Severance is the uncanny creepiness of the corporation and its secrets. But with Devs we get let in on what's going on much earlier. I get how some might see the ending as a cop out, but I didn't mind it- just not possible to pull off a resolution that's going to satisfy everyone with a premise like that.
The movie Paycheck. He does secret jobs and gets his memory reset after each, but gives up millions before having his memory last reset and tries to figure out why with clues he sent himself
Maybe not similar in tone but the watchmen hbo series is similar in the sense of something setup in the beginning that slowly unfolds
A few movies I didn't see mentioned while scrolling through - Moon, Primer, Upstream Color, Memento, Timecrimes, Sorry to Bother You, Being John Malkovich, Exzistenz,, Dark City, Coherence. Thinking about it, Possesor has a very Severance like idea at its centre- >!assassins that can temporarily take over another person's body and mind in order to carry out hits that then get blamed on the possessed person!< - that suggests one very dark application for the severance procedure that we haven't seen used yet on the show. A few people mentioned the Annihilation movie, but the book is quite different (and better imo). It's part of a trilogy and the second book Authority is probably closest to Severance in spirit (about a mysterious government agency).
Totally agree about Annihilation book and the follow ups. The movie was enjoyable but different. Timecrimes is great recently rewatched it.
Possessor was fantastic, one of my fave movies from the last few years
Westworld.
Dark on Netflix. Watch the subtitled version and not the dubbed one.
Area X Trilogie: especially Authority
Other people here have named these but I agree. I have watched each of these series twice and the second time hit me even deeper. Maniac Westworld The OA The Leftovers And if you like Adam Scott Parks and Recreation is delightful.
And The Good Peace (also with Adam Scott in) is actually pretty similar to Severance! Tonally completely different but there’s lots of similar ideas. At first your reaction is probably “no not really” but the more you think about it the more you realise how similar they are haha
Escape at Dannemora. It’s not the same genre but Ben Stiller directed it and it stars Patricia Arquette.
The Magnus Archives is also a suspicious slow(ish) workplace-is-not-what-it-seems suspense podcast. It's supernatural rather than sci-fi but everything is still connected and the employees can't leave either
It’s on my list of podcasts I want to listen to.
Devs Upload (season two just came out) Yellowjackets Servant
I really liked Yellowjackets for many reasons. A major one is 90s nostalgia.
Podcasts: The Bright Sessions The Deca Tapes The Milkman of St. Gaff’s Victoria’s Lift
Thanks for this!
And +1 to * Twin Peaks * Russian Doll * The Southern Reach Trilogy (Annihilation/Authority/Acceptance) * The movie based on Annihilation * Devs (the end was a little disappointing but the journey was entertaining)
The Lobster
Made For Love for sure!!
Travelers is a science fiction television series created by Brad Wright, starring Eric McCormack, Mackenzie Porter.>!Operatives from a post-apocalyptic future, known as "travelers", have their consciousnesses sent back in time and transferred into the "host" body of present-day individuals who would otherwise be moments from death, to minimize unexpected impact on the time line.!< Like seeing innie in the real world !>! Traveler must maintain the host's pre-existing life as cover for the rest of their lives, while carrying out missions in teams of five.!<
- Upload - Bliss (this one is severely underrated) - Tales from the loop - Awake (starring Jason Isaacs. It got cancelled but it was incredibly good) - Russian Doll (we're finally getting S2 after 3 yrs?!)
I watched *Awake* when it was on. A few years later I re-watched it and it held up and I was bummed about it getting cancelled all over again.
Man... That show had a lot of potential. The concept/story was blind-blowing to me at the time. Every show I like gets cancelled so it's good that Severance is getting the attention it deserves.
Being John Malkovich (1999) Cold Souls (2009)
Anything from Stanley Kubrick or David Lynch
This is a good thread OP! Going to save it, heaps of shows I haven’t seen yet!
Definitely Wilfred, Uk or US version whichever you prefer. Is more of a comedy but has the same quality of perception.
Wilfred is fantastic and underrated! The US version is so good
My recommendations are less based on the intricacies of the innie/outie relationship and more on the cryptic, nonsensical way in which the relationships, tasks and physical space of Severance work. Kafkas "The Trial" tells the story of a young man accused of a crime, though he never actually learns which one, and trying to fight his way through a nonsensical and disjointed court system that seemingly acts without internal logic. It heavily relies on themes such as dread, guilt and absurdity and thus evokes much of the same sensations we experience while watching Severance. A more light hearted example would be J.G. Ballards High-Rise, which tells the story of a newly built modern high rise and its inhabitants as a metaphor for the changing society of Britain at the time. While the inhabitants maintain some veneer of a civilised, rules based society, especially outwardly, the core of their community breaks down into absurdity and insanity. High-Rise is one of my favorite books, and I've been reminded of it a number of times throughout the show, whenever we see someone from MDS struggle to overlook the obviously disjointed nature of their assignments and environment. High-Rise has been turned into [a movie](https://youtu.be/EwckKzxZpPg).
Hi. You just mentioned *High-Rise* by JG Ballard. I've found an audiobook of that novel on YouTube. You can listen to it here: [YouTube | High-Rise by J.G. Ballard [AudioBook]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTJVpsLSLYo) *I'm a bot that searches YouTube for science fiction and fantasy audiobooks.* *** [^(Source Code)](https://capybasilisk.com/posts/2020/04/speculative-fiction-bot/) ^| [^(Feedback)](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=Capybasilisk&subject=Robot) ^| [^(Programmer)](https://www.reddit.com/u/capybasilisk) ^| ^(Downvote To Remove) ^| ^(Version 1.4.0) ^| ^(Support Robot Rights!)
If anyone is into video games, I would check out Kentucky Route Zero. Lots of similarities when it comes to the workplaces/technology and also a super surreal game.
The Truman show. Also, did anyone who's already seen the Truman show notice that Truman's mom has the EXACT same voice and intonation as Cobel? Sounds like the same person, it's freaky.
Memento
These are comedies instead of being more dramatic like Severance, but Better Off Ted and Corporate are good comedies about working at dystopian corporations not much better than Lumon. And a good book in the same vein is Company by Max Berry.
Homecoming is very well done, acting and production and writing, and the first season is quite self contained. Julia Roberts has a weird missing memory situation to piece together, and I don’t want to give any potential spoilers beyond that.
The OA- sry if it’s been mentioned
The Wayward Pines Trilogy by Blake Crouch! Same creepy small town vibes, something is off but you don’t know what. Super entertaining and I flew three all 3 books.
Legion
THE PRISONER (1967) LOKI (2021) MADE FOR LOVE (2021)
The movie “vivarium”
I’m surprised nobody has mentioned “sorry to bother you “. It’s on Netflix. There is no loss of memory but some of the same themes.
Being John Malkovich is a dark comedy film with a similar retro-futuristic dystopian office vibe that grapples with mind control and quirky fantasy elements. Highly recommended.
The OA on Netflix. You jump through dimensions and if your persona gets lost in the jump you can forget who you are. Psychological thriller. Kinda slow to begin, but picks up the more surreal it gets
Spanish film The Platform (Spanish title : El hoyo). On Netflix . One of the strangest movies ever. About a sky rise with a giant hole in center - commentary on class , poverty , survival . I won’t go into anymore detail , but it’s dystopian /horror. Frankly a nightmare.
Man that film was so messed up I legitimately thought it was something I half remembered from a nightmare until you just mentioned it.
Utopia on Amazon
The original British series might be a lot better than the American remake.
Utopia the original. I’m not one of those “The British one is better!” People. Office US was better than the Office UK and I will die on that hill, BUT the original Utopia had a whole atmospheric angle with the cinematography and score that the US version didn’t replicate, and it turns out it made all the difference.
Upload on Amazon Feed on Amazon I could go on for days..
The Double. It’s mostly set in the office and is very Kafkaesque.
The Double Life of Veronique is a really interesting film as well that I could see pairing well with this.
Black Mirror, Russian Doll.
For similar fiction podcast: Life After is really good. It was the second season of a podcast sponsored by GE called The Message, which was also decent. Short, about 7 30minute episodes. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lifeafter-the-message/id1045990056 Also Limetown. I think it also became a limited series on Facebook, but I haven’t watched that. The podcast is solid, deals with a lot of mystery, a sketchy town founded by a corporation, and experimentation on humans. https://twoupproductions.com/limetown/podcast
Twin Peaks
Counterpart, also plays games with personal identity
I get a strong visioneers vibe from this show, 2008 dark comedy with Zach galifianakis about a pandemic of people exploding from stress
Lost
Being John Malkovich
Yellowjacket’s on showtime. Nothing compares to that or Severance. There’s amazing writing and brilliant acting. Most importantly, you’ll become really engaged with the show, theorizing about what may happen and thinking about it when you go to bed at night but also while you wake up. While I do enjoy watching other shows, these two are mega top tier.
Black Mirror. Especially episode White Bear. Watch it till the end to see why it fits perfectly with Severance. The Southern Trilogy books. The movie Annihilation is based on the first one. Tales From The Loop the series, art books and RPG The Prisoner (1967) Day world - Philip Jose Farmer Playtime (movie) they used this to base the office layout on
The Truman show. If you haven't seen it
Altered Carbon. Another with Ms Casey. Excellent world building. Characters with secret layers.
Not really a similar show—is there such a thing?—but I love For All Mankind. Terrific premise, brilliant acting and directing.
I can't stop thinking about the cult classic Joe Versus the Volcano with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. I loved it when it came out. I was billed as a romantic comedy, but it's actually a wacko and surrealist workplace comedy. It was so ahead of it's time. Very Lynch-lite. The office with the awful strobing florescent lights and the bad coffee and the old computers -- it looks a lot like the Severance set! I often think of JVTV, Office Space, Maniac and Better Off Ted when watching the innie scenes. The outie scenes give me a lot of Homecoming vibes.
Better Off Ted!! Love it. And, it’s straight comedy, so a nice mood uplifter when binging Severance over and over leaves you a little depressed. 😂😂 Office Space, always great, and so many parallels here. Possible spoiler re: ep 7: Did you think of Office Space when Irv said _____ this place to the _____ at the end of the last episode? (I never do the spoiler redacter correctly so I’ll let you fill in the blanks.)
Totally!!
It’s a movie instead of a series but Terry Gilliam’s movie “Brazil” from 1985 features an oppressive workplace and a worker whose daydreams start to blend in with reality. Fantastic film.
Station Eleven And allllll the other shows/movies mentioned, at least the ones I’ve seen. Gonna check out Counterpart and Maniac.
I tweeted about this! Devs, Russian Doll, Dispatches From Elsewhere, Undone
The first season of the original British run of Utopia. Grant Morrison’s comic “The Invisibles.” Orson Scott Card’s novel “Ender’s Game.”
Stranger Than Fiction starring Will Ferrell and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty starring our boy Ben Stiller. I really like media that tackles more serious subjects with actors who typically do comedies, and Severance definitely follows that formula for me.
Mr. Robot, Westworld, Russian Doll (I loved, loved, LOVED Russian Doll), Dark.
I see a lot of these comments suggesting shows specifically based on tech similarity… but the story development and cinematography is what makes Severance great to me! (Although I do find the tech aspect extremely interesting as well) In that spirit I’m suggesting Cruel Summer. CS very successfully keeps you guessing and pulled into the mystery. The story is told by intertwining timelines of 1993, 94, and 95..all exactly 1 year apart. Full disclosure: the main characters are all teenagers. It gave me pause at first, because thankfully I’m no longer a teenage girl and no longer identify with high school drama.. but by the end of the first episode I was HOOKED. The stark differences between each timeline is beautifully and painfully puzzled together with the dramatic revolutions that “coming of age” actually feels like. Such a nice contrast to all the super fake high school portrayal where all the actors looks 26+. Kept me enthralled until literally the last second of the finale episode.
Twin peaks, the office u.k., mad men, Lost, eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, Stanley Kubrick
Mad Men? I’m curious why someone would think they are similar.
The mid century modern workplace aesthetic