Mark’s reason for getting the procedure in Severance is sadder than you think

As Severance Season 2 gets ever closer, the reason behind Mark S’s decision to sever his personal and work life is becoming even more dire to examine.

After a three-year wait following Severance‘s stellar first season, Season 2 will arrive on January 17. Until then, fans are reevaluating some of the show’s biggest questions so far, one of which has to do with Mark S himself.

Mark’s Innie is Lumon’s perfect employee at the start of the Apple TV+ show. But as the mysteries surrounding their employer become harder to ignore, he becomes an integral part of the MDR department’s rebellion.

What’s more, his Outie couldn’t be more different. Isolated and depressed, Mark’s decision to undergo severance all has to do with the death of his wife, Gemma. But as fans have now noted, that choice doesn’t exactly make sense.

Mark’s severance doesn’t help him with his grief

Prior to the events of the show, Mark’s wife Gemma allegedly died in a car accident in the outside world. (However, as we now know, Ms. Casey may actually be Gemma, meaning she could still be alive!) This was a huge motivator in severing himself, as Mark struggled to deal with his crippling grief.

However, on Reddit, one fan has noticed that this doesn’t quite add up. Since Mark’s Innie and Outie have no real way of connecting or processing the same things, it doesn’t make sense for Mark to use severance as a way of coping with grief. Ultimately, it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Apple TV+

“Mark decided to undergo the procedure because he wanted some relief from grieving over his wife,” one user pointed out. “But oMark never actually experiences any relief. His innie doesn’t even know who Gemma is, but oMark transitions instantly from outie to innie doesn’t actually forget her, even for a moment.

“You can use his constant drinking as evidence of that. How is the procedure actually helping him get over his grief?”

As other users then pointed out, Mark’s decision to undergo severance wasn’t to help him get over his loss, but rather a last resort solution for having to live with it. On a basic level, it gives him an income and means he doesn’t have to be conscious for eight hours each day, literally making his days shorter. Essentially, it’s avoidance.

“Yeah if you’ve even been in despair about something, really this was just shortening the amount of time between sleeps just to get to the next day,” one replied.

Another added, “By severing, he also grants his mind and body a modicum of relief from actively grieving for 8 hours a day. Plus, combined with his drinking, he has essentially found a way to spend as little time existing as possible.”

“The answer is it is not doing anything to help with his grief,” said a third. “I could argue it is actually worse being as he is not addressing his problem and seeking real resolution. He blacks out for half the day at work and then blacks out the other half at home.”

Severance Season 2 premieres on Friday, January 17 on Apple TV+.

Until then, check out our guides to the O&D Department, everything we learned in Season 1, and all the other TV shows you need to be watching this year.