Last week’s Outdoor Retreat and Team-Building Occurrence (ORTBO) at “Woe’s Hollow” in Severance created a major shift in Macrodata Refinement (MDR). Irving B. (played by John Turturro) was fired from Lumon, which means his innie (the version of himself at work) is now gone forever.
His coworkers will never see him again, making this a heartbreaking moment. The latest episode, “Trojan’s Horse,” marks the middle of Season 2 and confirms a major turning point for the remaining MDR team members.
Also Read: ‘Severance’ Season 2 Episode 5 Recap: Secrets, Betrayal, and a Shocking Discovery
Helly R. Returns to a Changed Workplace
Helly R. (played by Britt Lower) comes back to the severed floor for the first time this season. She feels confused because she does not know everything that has happened since the big event at the end of Season 1, known as the Macrodata Uprising.
Mark S. (played by Adam Scott) now seems more focused on work than ever. This benefits Lumon, but it also shows that ORTBO affected him deeply. His innie has lost motivation, making him seem like a completely different person.
Meanwhile, Dylan G. (played by Zach Cherry) is furious that he will never see Irving again. He demands a funeral for his friend. Mr. Milchick (played by Tramell Tillman) allows it, but something even more surprising happens after the ceremony.
Irving Leaves a Hidden Message for Dylan
During Irving’s funeral, the MDR team watches a strange 8-bit animation of Irving on the screen. The room has custom mugs with Irving’s face on them and even a creepy watermelon carved to look like his head. However, the most shocking part comes when Dylan notices a poster in the Break Room.
The poster has the words “Hang in there,” the same phrase Irving said to Dylan before he was fired. At first, it seemed like a simple message of support, but now it carries a deeper meaning. Dylan realizes that Irving left behind an important clue.
This “Hang in There” poster looks like the common office posters that feature cats hanging from branches. However, this one is different. It shows Dylan holding the two switches that activated the Overtime Contingency in the Season 1 finale.
Behind the poster, Dylan finds something shocking—a drawing of the ominous elevator that leads to the Exports Hall. On the back of the drawing, Irving wrote directions on how to reach this mysterious location.
Irving’s Paintings Reveal the Truth
Earlier in the season, Irving was searching for Ms. Casey (played by Dichen Lachman). He visited Optics & Design (O&D) and made an important discovery. The paintings that his outie (the version of himself outside of work) had been making were not random. They showed a real place inside Lumon.
A conversation with Felicia (Claudia Robinson) helped Irving confirm the location of this mysterious place. He also started to suspect that Helly R. was actually Helena Eagan, a member of the powerful Eagan family who owns Lumon. He knew that this suspicion could get him in trouble, so he hid the drawing and directions somewhere without cameras, making sure that his team could continue their search.
One big question remains: How did Irving’s outie know what the severed floor looked like? Normally, an innie and an outie do not share memories. However, Irving had been at Lumon for a long time. His severance procedure may have caused some of his memories to mix.
This could explain why he had visions of black goo in Season 1. At the time, his bosses punished him for “dozing off,” but now it seems like something much bigger was happening.
The episode opens with an unknown man entering Optics & Design to collect surgical tools. He then heads to the ominous elevator at the end of the Exports Hall. This raises more questions about what happens in this hidden part of Lumon.
Mark Struggles to Move Forward
The search for Ms. Casey had to stop because of ORTBO, but Mark S. still thinks about her. He realizes that Lumon is always ahead of them. He also learns that the CEO’s daughter was secretly spying on them, making their situation even worse.
Mark has changed. He no longer focuses on friendships at work. Instead, he puts all his effort into completing Cold Harbor, an important project at Lumon. This prevents him from getting hurt again by the company’s actions.
Dylan, however, is furious. Losing Irving has made him even more determined to find out what Lumon is hiding below the severed floor. Mark’s new distant attitude makes Dylan even angrier, but he soon learns something that changes everything.
Helly Knows the Truth About Ms. Casey
Helly now realizes that Ms. Casey is actually Mark’s presumed dead wife. This is a shocking discovery. Helly has always been willing to stand up against Lumon, and this new information makes her even more determined to fight back.
This could be exactly what Mark needs to push him back into action. Ms. Casey was last seen entering the Testing Floor, and now they finally have directions to the elevator that leads there.
Each new episode of Severance gives fans small pieces of the bigger mystery. Now, it seems clear that the Exports Hall, the Testing Floor, Ms. Casey, and Cold Harbor are all connected.
Dylan just needs to convince Mark to help him. If they can work together, they might come up with a new plan, just like the Macrodata Uprising in Season 1. Their goal is clear—rescue Ms. Casey and uncover what Lumon is really doing.
All paths lead to the elevator at the end of the dark hallway. Thanks to Irving, MDR now has a map that could change everything. New episodes of Severance Season 2 premiere on Fridays on Apple TV+.
Also Read: Who Is Dieter Eagan in Severance? The Hidden Twin Who Changes Everything
