alexis

I've seen a lot of posts and opinions of how terrible or evil helena is, and some refuse to engage with her character completely. She definitely is one of the antagonists of Severance, but writing her off as a one-dimensional evil woman is a disservice. Her (and consequently, Helly's) arc could possibly be one of the most fascinating things we have seen on TV....

So let's ask a few questions:

Imagine you are a young woman with a legacy and name behind her that is even heavier than a crown. You were raised to be the leader-in-waiting, a corporate machine.

How do you feel when everyone simply regards you almost like an object, a chesspiece in the grand Lumon game?

What if your father, the supposed caretaker, violates you and disregards you as his daughter?

What if you only know a world of cold glass and trapped isolation? And everything and everyone around you engages in that cold, isolated way?

What if all the people around you never listen to your wishes? Never give you free will? Always dictates what you wear, do and say for the sake of a greater good...that good being the company you will inherit that does not even treat you like a real human. Does not even treat their employees like real people.

You might not even know what is wrong or right or correct or even what's out there in the world. Your world is Severance, and Lumon, and the Eagan name.

...but then you get severed. Again, likely not totally your choice. What even is choice?

You think: this is what they would all want right? For me to get severed? To be one of Lumon's creations.

Then, your innie fights back. Something you were never able to do. Did you even know it was an option? Your innie strangles you, injures you, threatens you. Maybe, you realize you want to do all the same things.

But then, your innie sees your world. And you see hers. One where she is loved. She is cared for. She has purpose and drive and is emboldened to act on her desires. Someone who is wild and free yet trapped all at the same time. And she is, in a way, you.

Helly has those connections you seek. She is free to be who she wants to be. Do you feel envious? Don't you want to feel the way she feels? Yes, it's selfish but is there a universe, a place where you could be more like her? Where you feel how it feels to be cared for?