Severance S2E8 Review – The Cobel Episode

Here’s my Severance S2E8 review folks and I will say up front this was not a fan favourite episode from what I see online. I myself enjoyed the Cobel episode as I’m sure it will be known. Though, I can perhaps empathise, if not agree with some of the disappointment fans are expressing.

As always, this will be a FULL SPOILERS review. I will discuss plot points from today’s episodes. If you just want my quick thoughts on this one without spoilers?

Episode 8 will be divisive. After the major events of Episode 7 fans may feel frustrated. Episode 8 see’s the story moving completely away from the main cast and towards Cobel (Patricia Arquette). This a slower episode which explores a little of Cobel’s past and present. I personally enjoyed it. It’s shorter this week and I feel like there’s really important reasons why this episode had to happen exactly where it did. There are revelations also and I think Arquette is brilliant this week as are the all new supporting cast around her. 

** Full SPOILERS Below**

Let me add on now to what I said above, I’ll start with the online fan hype after last week. I’ve never seen so many theories popping up from fans. It seems like hundreds of people were posting theories all akin to, ‘I know what MDR does!, I know what Lumon is planning!, I know what Cold Harbor means!’ etc. I personally read all of those theories without much input myself. However, my point is that Episode 7 had everyone in a fever. So many theories, so much anticipation for Episode 8, and then…

As said above Episode 8 barely touches on the events of Episode 7. In fact it is made clear, that the events of Episode 8 are happening concurrently with last week as Devon’s missed call are shown on Cobel’s phone. I do empathise with fans who were a little bummed. However, this episode was absolutley the (almost)perfect episode in the perfect place.

Consider the end of Episode 8. Cobel answers the phone, which means Devon called back again, after Mark awoke. Now, I also want to add all the theories last week that Devon was either suspicious or stupid for contacting Cobel. Yet, I think it’s abundantly clear that Cobel will be heading to Mark, Devon and maybe Reghabi in Episode 9.

It’s clear therefore, that we needed an episode in between which shows us that Coble won’t just turn them into Lumon. Episode 8 develops Cobel’s character enough that we understand she has really walked away from Lumon, for now. We also now know why Cobel is needed because we’ve discovered it was her that invented severance.

Add all this up and it’s clear we needed Episode 8 as is, and it needed to be where it is in the Season 2 order.

Yeah but was it any good?

I’ll admit this is my least favourite episode of Season 2. It is a little slow, despite it’s short run time. There are some moments that were odd to me also I’ll discuss. Ultimately though this is about Cobel going home to where her Aunt (I think) was taking care of her dying/now deceased mother to find something. That could be 3 minutes of episode, but we learn a lot about Cobel here we didn’t know before. It was important we did that for the show to make sense where it’s going.

I liked the pacing being slow. I liked how the episode shows and not tells us about what life was like working in this town. How the Egan’s controlled it with their Ether factory. The symmetry of Ether’s development in our history to how severance is being used in the show is not lost on me. Ether was the first effective anaesthetic that would allow surgery without having the patient wake up and remember the event. You can see the theme lining up with severance itself. I assume it’s what gave Cobel the idea?

RELATED: Severance S2E7 Review – The Gemma Episode

However, I also thought the middle section a tad, strange. Cobel find the key to her mother’s room and goes in. She is consumed by grief and falls asleep on her mother’s old bed. Then her ‘driver’ old friend just waits outside until it gets dark and suddenly decides to come in and get her waking Cobel up. Then in a panic about finding ‘something’ Cobel and her friend get high on Ether. This gives her an idea of where to look.

Ultimately, whilst I was fine with all around this scene on both sides, something just didn’t work for me. I can only imagine the passage of time was necessary to allow for the events of Episode 7 i.e. Mark waking up later. This allows for some time between the Devon phone calls Cobel never answered and the one she does at the very end. Not my favourite two scenes of Season 2.

Still….

Yet still, I was entertained. I enjoyed being able to make the connections between Cobel’s childhood, Egan’s cult and how Ether is connected to severance thematically. Plus, finding out Cobel is actually a genius and it was her that came up with severance, the OTC, Glasgow Block, everything was worthwhile. Cobel now comes back to the main story armed with vital knowledge and a seemingly largening grudge against the Egan’s that effectively stole her work.

Yes, the very idea of severance coming from Cobel may make her a monster. However, given she was essentially brainwashed into child labor with the Egans, I do have empathy for her. We also now understand why Cobel is so reluctant to give up running the Severance Floor. We also learn how dismissive it was of Lumon to take her off a project she owned from inception.

Ultimately, Episode 8 was 80% really good even if a bit of a detour from Episode 7. I just wish they had tweaked the scene mentioned above a little to make more sense. I’d have been at an A again if not for that, or at least A-. However, as it is…

Well, let me just reiterate, I’m not complaining. Correct episode in the correct place for the flow of the story as a whole. I just didn’t love it as equally as Keir would wish this week.

GRADE: B+

Still better than most TV you’ll see this week, but if you were expecting Episode 7 part 2, I think you’ll have to wait for Episode 9 next week.

What did you think of my Severance S2E8 review? Alternatively leave your own thoughts on S2E8 below as always.

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