Why Helena's Face Glitches Into Gemma's In Severance Season 2 Episode 4

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2's episode 4.

Helena's face briefly glitches into Gemma's in Severance season 2's episode 4, raising many questions about what is happening to Mark. Before the Apple TV+ sci-fi show walked through the strange MDR workers' team outing in season 2's episode 4, it showed how Mark finally decided to reintegrate himself to find his wife, Gemma. However, in Severance season 2's episode 4, Mark initially shows no signs of reintegration and seems a little too invested in Helena.

As the episode progresses, Mark only gets closer to his fellow MDR worker, having no memories of his outie despite being reintegrated. Much later in the episode, however, Mark suddenly sees Helena's face morph into Gemma's for a few seconds, making him wonder what is happening. While the Severance season 2 episode does not explain this eerie development, it seems evident what it tries to convey.

The Gemma/Helly Glitch In Severance Season 2's Episode 4 Proves Mark's Reintegration Was Successful

The Glitch Proves Mark Is Gradually Reintegrating

As if it were a glitch, Ms. Casey's (Dichen Lachman) face appears instead of Helly's in Severance Season 2 Ep 4

While Severance does not explicitly explain why Helena's face briefly morphs into Gemma's, it seems to be a reflection of how the reintegration is working. Based on the details Severance has offered so far, reintegration creates an overlap between an individual's innie and outie personas. As seen in Petey's case, complete reintegration allows an individual to retain memories from their innie and outie lives instead of having them compartmentalized. Even though Mark was reintegrated in Severance season 2 episode 3's ending, he initially seems normal in episode 4.

The glitch scene highlights that the more Mark reintegrates, the more he experiences similar feelings for two different women.

However, the fact that he sees Gemma instead of Helena for a few brief moments hints that the reintegration is in process. The glitch scene highlights that the more Mark reintegrates, the more he experiences similar feelings for two different women. Since the innie has romantic feelings for Helly and the outie is in love with Gemma, the scene represents an overlap between the two, paralleling the reintegration scene in which the two waves in the oscilloscope align as Mark's two personas merge.

Mark's Reintegration Means He Will Have To Face A Tough Choice In Severance Season 2

He Will Have To Choose Between Gemma and Helly

Even in the final moments of Severance season 2's opening credits sequence, Helly glitches into Gemma as she stands in the elevator at the end of the "Exports Hall." This scene in the opening seems to hint that Mark's primary conflict in season 2 will revolve around choosing between Gemma and Helly. Given how he will be in love with both Gemma and Helly after complete reintegration, he will feel compelled to save both from Lumon.

His innie's newfound attachment to Helly will prompt him to ensure that Helly's outie does not harm or terminate her. Meanwhile, his outie's feelings for Gemma will encourage him to look for Ms. Casey in the Lumon building. This could eventually lead to a conflict of interest between Mark's two merged personas in Severance, forcing him to choose between one of the two women. It is interesting and funny how Ms. Cobel was accused of seeking a "throuple" with Mark's innie and outie, but Mark will actually end up in a "throuple" situation with Ms. Casey and Helena.

Severance

TV-MA

Drama

Mystery

Sci-Fi

8/10

241

9.2/10

Release Date: February 18, 2022

Severance is a psychological thriller series featuring Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries who undergoes a "severance" procedure to separate his work and personal memories. However, as work and life personas mysteriously begin to collide, it quickly becomes clear that not all is as it seems. Created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle.