Severance season two draws strong reviews from critics after three-year wait – with one caveat

Adam Scott returns in second season of acclaimed Apple TV+ thriller

Apple TV+ drama Severance is returning to screens this month after a three-year break – and the first reviews suggest it’s been worth the wait.

Adam Scott stars alongside Britt Lower in the series, a psychological thriller that sees Scott’s character, Mark, have his personal memories “severed” from his work life.

The show is directed by Ben Stiller and Northern Irish director Aoife McArdle. With season one having proved popular among viewers and critics, season two will follow characters as they face the consequences of their rebellion against the “severance” at the end of the first season. Writer and producer Dan Erickson told Vanity Fair that the plot is set to get “darker”, warning viewers that the “fallout” will be “dire”.

With viewers’ hopes high after the first season, Severance is returning to mainly positive reviews – but with some critics complaining about the pacing.

Angie Han at The Hollywood Reporter wrote that “the scattered focus can be a bit of a drag to sit through” which “inspires groans of frustration” from the audience. Han writes that while this is not enough to cause an “invested viewer to quit”, it does dull the impact of the show’s wavering plot.

Kristen Baldwin, however, wrote for Entertainment Weekly that Severance’s second season serves to “refine its many themes into a timely, rewarding, and challenging debate about the power of parameters and personhood”.

Variety’s Alison Herman wrote that this new season “dramatises the arbitrary rules and compartmentalised nature of modern work better than anything else on air.” Herman said that even though “real-time viewers have had their patience strained”, this season is worth the wait.

Not dropping the ball: Adam Scott in ‘Severance' (Apple Tv+)

The Telegraph’s Keith Watson rated the show a solid four out of five stars for “the sheer scope of its ambition”, despite the plot requiring a “lot of story explaining” as viewers work to “pick up the pieces”.

Tilly Pearce from Radio Times describes the new season of Severance as “intense, thrilling and unnerving”, maintaining that despite the long wait, it remains a “captivating must-watch” for fans and new viewers alike.

However, it is worth noting that these are based on a limited number of reviews with opinions from fans yet to air. The real test will come when season two drops on Apple TV+ on 17 January.

Two episodes will be released at once, with the other eight episodes dropping weekly on the streaming platform. The finale will air on 21 March.