WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for Severance season 2, episode 8!AsSeveranceseason 2, episode 8 takes a walk back through Harmony Cobel’s (Patricia Arquette) history and upbringing in Salt’s Neck, a major revelation about her work with Lumon is able to finally explain some of her curious behavior from season 1. Though she was arguably the most devout and indoctrinatedKier Eagan followerseen inSeveranceseason 1, Cobel was still keeping her own secrets from the company. Not only was she posing as Mark’s Outie’s neighbor, Mrs. Selvig, but she was also mysteriouslyconducting her own unsanctioned tests on Mark’s Innie and Ms. Casey on the severed floor.
However, after MDR’s Innies enacted the Overtime Contingency Protocol and risked exposing Lumon’s subjugation and unethical conduct inSeverance’s season 1 finale, Cobel was removed from her position as severed floor manager and replaced by Milchick. Though Helena Eagan tried offering her a new role outside the severed floor, Cobel left Lumon, took belongings from her house, and drove to her hometown of Salt’s Neck, where her larger history with the company is revealed. As it turns out,Cobel was integral to originally designing the severance procedure and protocols, explaining her strange behavior with Mark and Gemma in season 1.
Cobel Was Secretly Testing The Limits Of Her Own Severance Creations With Mark & Gemma
Cobel Wanted To Experiment On The Bounds Of Her Own Creation
ThroughoutSeveranceseason 1, Cobel took it upon herself to test how well the severance procedure worked by asking Mark’s Outie peculiar questions while putting his Innie in potentially risky situations. For instance, Cobel would continue to send Mark’s Innie to wellness sessions with Ms. Casey, at one point even putting a candle from their house in the room,to see whether Mark and Gemma would be able to recognize each other. Meanwhile, on the outside, Cobel would ask Mark questions about Gemma, such as whether he ever felt like he still saw her, to test whether those Innie memories would bleed through.
Severance: What Reghabi Means By Cobel Was “Raised” By Lumon
In Severance season 2, episode 7, Reghabi refers to Ms. Cobel as being raised by Lumon, begging the question of what exactly this means.
It initially seemed like Cobel was just curious about the procedure due to her close work with the Innies and role as the severed floor manager. But,Severanceseason 2 reveals there’s much more behind her intrigue. The reason why Cobel was willing to take so many risks whentesting Mark and Gemmawas because she was the one who was responsible for inventing severance itself. The procedure and protocols were Cobel’s designs that Jame Eagan stole credit for, soshe had to conduct further tests on her severance inventions in secret through Mark and Gemma/Ms. Casey.
Why Jame Eagan Wouldn’t Let Cobel Take Credit For Her Severance Inventions
The Eagans Needed Full Control Over & Claim To The Technology
As far as the rest of the world is concerned,Helena’s father Jame Eaganis the person who invented severance and all the protocols and functions associated with it. However,Severanceseason 2, episode 8 reveals thatthese were all designed by Cobel, who had dedicated her life to working with Lumon and supporting Kier’s vision. Once she took these blueprints to Jame Eagan, however, he told her that she had to keep her role a secret because “Kier’s knowledge is for all.”
Cobel reveals that she wrote the severance circuit blueprint, base code, overtime contingency, Glasgow block, and “all of it” associated with the technology.
Ultimately, theEagan familyknew how precious this invention could be to their mission, and they needed to ensure they had full control over it. If Cobel took credit, then the control over, manufacturing, and uses for severance technology would be out of their hands. Lumon needed sole control over this technology, andgiving the full credit for its design to Jame would uplift the Eagan name while increasing their superiority, power, and glorification in society. The severance procedure would become Jame Eagan’s most powerful legacy in his tenure as CEO, whichSeveranceconfirms was all based on a lie.
