'Severance' Fan Theory Explains Why Cobel aka Ms. Selvig Is So Bizarre
Seriously, what was her deal all along?
Apple TV 's Emmy-nominated hit 'Severance ' has wrapped up its first seasons with tons of unanswered questions. Pretty much everyone on the show is surrounded by some kind of mystery, and there are few things that are actually understandable; still, one of the most ambiguous and even bizarre characters is Harmony Cobel a.k.a. Mrs. Selvig, one of the Lumon bosses that oversaw main character Mark and his severed department.
Mark and his colleagues had their work memories surgically divided from those related to their personal lives, but Cobel appeared to not be severed, even though her outside world version looked and behaved nothing like her work persona.
One fan theory on Reddit suggested that it might be due to Cobel being in fact an full-time innie, which means she is her work persona, but for the entire time of her life. This way, she basically has no access to her actual past, and that might be something that torments her.
"The shrine that includes artifacts from her school days and the breathing tube/hospital bracelet make sense for someone who is obsessed with her pre-severance life. It explains her obsession with reintegration--she wants access to her own memories," the fan wrote.
Perhaps even Mrs. Selvig is not actually that far away from a person Harmony Cobel used to be outside of work, and her odd performance is just a recreation of something that she subconsciously knows about herself.
"Assuming she was severed as a Lumon employee, she might not even know how normal people behave outside of work," the fan theory went on.
Should that be the case, it would certainly be a game-changer for season two, given that Cobel seemed more like a villain up to this point. However, if she just wants her life back, it might even lead her to an unexpected team-up with Mark and the rest of the refiners.
'Severance' has been greenlit for season 2, but its release date is yet to be scheduled.