‘Severance’ Season 2 Episode 7 “Chikhai Bardo” Review: Is Gemma Cold Harbor?

When you’re this far into the latest season of Apple TV+’s Severance, it may seem like the stakes couldn’t get any higher and the episodes couldn’t get any better. I’ll even admit that I was worried that since the season has left us with more questions than answers, the story may be trapping itself for the future. But to ease my concerns, “Chikhai Bardo” pushed the boundaries of visual storytelling and molded Severance into a must-see for everyone. Read our review for Severance season 2 episode 7, “Chikhai Bardo” below.

The episode follows Mark mentally reintegrating with his Innie self after falling into a coma at the end of the previous episode. Contrasting with Mark mentally recollecting his relationship with Gemma (Dichen Lachman), we observe the backstory of how Gemma came to be at Lumon. “Chikhai Bardo” is an incredibly fresh take on the “flashback episode” trope, acting as preparation for the penultimate act of the season.

Jessica Lee Gagné, Severance’s director of photography, makes her directorial debut with this episode, bolstering an even brighter career ahead for herself. The episode is packed to the brim with tight editing, clean match cuts, diverse methods of framing, and stellar cinematography that all contribute to the overarching feeling of dormancy set from Mark’s slumber. One sequence even follows a transition from Mark in the MDR office to the basement floor by physically shooting a one-shot through cables. That’s right; zero CGI or effects were involved, as Gagné revealed in an interview with Esquire. Watch a clip of the scene here:

The episode leaves us with quite a couple of answers and theories to fans’ questions over the series’ run. We learn a little bit more about what Lumon is trying to achieve with severance, why Gemma was hand-picked to be a test subject, the events that led to her kidnapping by Lumon, and why she has no contact with the outside world.

One inference we can make from the episode is that the data from the blood drive that Mark and Gemma met at was sent to Lumon, flagging Gemma as the best fit to be a lab rat for the severance procedure. When we learn of the 24/7 lifestyle that Gemma is living at Lumon, we also learn that she’s experiencing multiple layers of severance; furthering our information on how far severance can be implemented. We watch Gemma become severed walking into a Lumon dentist’s office, and again doing busy work writing Christmas cards for a Lumon executive, and again as she attempts to escape from her entrapment only to find herself severing into Ms. Casey.

The objective of Cold Harbor, the project file that Mark spends the season completing, and what Lumon executive Mr. Drummonds stresses as the largest contribution to mankind then becomes a little bit clearer. Lumon wants severance to be commercialized, expanding its utilization for much more and separating your work life from your home life. Imagine a world where you could split your soul multiple times to avoid feeling different feelings of pain. This is the version of the severance treatment that Gemma is currently undergoing.

Lumon’s intentions just became much more sinister, and I have to wonder if Mark will have trouble connecting with Helly again once fully reintegrated. Beyond the love triangle set up between Mark, Helly, and Gemma, once Mark learns how much Gemma has suffered and the truth about his work at Lumon, I don’t believe he could ever see Helly as anyone but Helena Eagan again. To theorize further, this could even lead Helena to be the overarching antagonist in future seasons of Severance. 

With only three episodes left in the season, Severance Season 2 is ramping up to be a monumental story in TV history. Popularized during an unfortunate time of many white-collar workers being abandoned by their employment, I feel like the social climate will only contribute to the statement that the Severance crew wants to articulate. I can’t wait for the last final episodes, and I’m looking forward to seeing which fan theories prove to be right.

Apple TV+’s Severance Season 2 was created by Dan Erickson and is directed by Ben Stiller, Sam Donovan, Uta Briesewitz, and Jessica Lee Gagné. The series stars Adam Scott as Mark, Britt Lower as Helly, John Turturro as Irving, Zach Cherry as Dylan, Tramell Tillman as Milchick, and Patricia Arquette as Ms. Cobel. The first seven episodes are streaming now on Apple TV+.

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