Waypoints 52 - Severance

CW: Discussion of Suicide at approximately 1:31:42

It's been a banner year not just for narrative games, but for games with themes surrounding labor, surviving under late capitalism, and the self, from Norco, to Citizen Sleeper, to Hardspace Shipbreaker. It should come as no surprise that today we're talking about the Apple TV+ show Severance, which slots neatly and expertly into these same themes. Come for Patrick’s Sonos-buying update, stay for our Spoiler-Lite impressions, and then get ready to deep dive in our Spoiler-Full discussion of this excellently constructed dark comedy about separating your work life from the rest of your life—literally.


This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://shows.acast.com/vicegamingsnewpodcast/episodes/waypoints-52-severance
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Was waiting for discussion about how this is an Apple show.

Lumon having a massive, clean, custom built office and an almost religious devotion to their deceased founder felt like it had an obvious real world analogue. Milchick’s corporate smile and tone comes straight from WWDC presentations.

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I guess it’s an interesting coincidence that the show ended up with Apple, but I believe shows like these are developed and pitched to basically all streaming services and TV networks, and where it ends up is just a matter of budgets, timing, and the whims of the executives. Severence feels anti-corporate enough that it feels equally critical of Disney, HBO, or whatever other large market cap corporation that oppresses workers.

The set design is top notch, though. Somebody make an Unreal Engine demo where I can walk around the severed floor.

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