Severance leave us intrigued, In Stars and Time is gorgeous, and how to support animation in theaters
- Fefe Urresti
- Apr 2
- 7 min read
Hi y’all!
March was a very interesting month, I had to handpick the highlights of the month. So, without further ado, let's get down to business.
And so, Severance season two comes to an end
For those who don't know, Severance is an Apple TV+ series, created by Dan Erickson, produced and with some episodes directed by Ben Stiller. In this universe, a large company called Lumon promotes a procedure called Severance, in which a person's memories are divided in two, separating their professional and personal life. While the employee is on the Severed floor, they has no memory of the outside world, and when they leave, the person does not remember anything that happened inside the office.
I believe this is a series that the less you know about when watching, the better your experience will be, so skip the spoilers section and go to the next topic if you haven't watched it yet or aren't up to date. It is an amazing show, which discusses not only ethical issues of capitalist corporations but also identity and essence, in addition to being very visually and sonically engaging.
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SPOILERS FOR THE SECOND SEASON OF SEVERANCE
This was really a great season. I enjoyed it a lot in general and it ended on a note where I don't know what to expect for the next one.
My favorite episodes are tied between episode 7 Chikhai Bardo (I'll elaborate on it in a moment) and episode 10 Cold Harbor. It was an excellent season finale, which everything that was built during the season culminated very well. I forgot to breathe in several moments, the dialogue between innie and outie Mark was an editing class (in addition to the beautiful detail of keeping the elevator signal when the transition happened), the marching band was over the top and fun, the scene with the goat lady was amazing, the long-awaited reunion between Mark Scout and Gemma that was shattered with Mark S' final choice to stay with Helly. Cinema.
One issue that I saw people criticize about this season was the second half, how the pace slowed down with episodes 7 and 8. I agree, but the show needed to answer essential questions, and honestly, I don't know where else it would fit, because I felt it worked well. Chikhai Bardo was indispensable and, so far, the most beautiful episode of the series, just go ahead and give it all the Emmy's. Until now we didn't know anything about Gemma, and in 50 minutes you fall madly in love not only with her, but with the couple. Jessica Lee Gagné, the director of the episode and director of photography of the series, managed to bring warmth and life to the show, which until then everything was cold and snow that never ends, spectacular. Without this episode we wouldn't suffer so much from the desperate Gemma screaming for Mark at the end of the season, and the transition to the analog camera during Mark and Helly's run brings back the affection and warmth of love.
I'll quickly make my case for episode 8, Sweet Vitriol, which a lot of people hated, but I loved it. Cobel is a fascinating character, and this episode was really cool to get to know her past and have more of world building, also being able to understand why Miss Huang, a child, is assisting the manager of the severed floor. When we found out that it was Cobel who designed and made the severance procedure work and that she didn't take credit for it, we understood much more of her motivation. For now, she wants to end Lumon, but will she come back if they show gratitude and recognize the importance of her work?
As for the other characters, it was very interesting to see the Dylan and Milchick arcs this season. Both were characters that I didn't like much, but their development caught me a lot. I missed Irving a lot, I love him so much with Burt. The scene of the two of them at the train station destroyed me. Irv, for God's sake, come back.
I'm not much of a theorist, but my theory about what Lumon's goal is has always been to bring Kier back. At first, I thought that Gemma actually died and they managed to bring her back to life, but Kier died a long time ago, the body would have already decomposed. But after episodes 7 and 10, when we see what's going on on the testing floor and Cobel explains what exactly macro data refinement (MDR) is doing, my theory still stands. In addition to selling severance as a procedure for you not to suffer anymore in life, by refining humors, it would be possible to make a new Kier, the only one who managed to master the 4 humors. Maybe that's why the most obsessed of the cult keep seeing Kier in others.
Anyway, while I was releasing the second season, I felt I was going through the week just waiting for Friday, now I'll live just waiting for the third season. I just hope it takes much less than 3 years to come out.
END OF SPOILERS FOR THE SECOND SEASON OF SEVERANCE
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So you're stuck in a time loop
This is the premise of In Stars and Time, an RPG game by insertdisc5, developer name of Adrienne Bazir. It's a game with a very beautiful and interesting aesthetic, cartoon character designs blending with the overworld in pixel art, and the grayscale color palette.
You live the story of Siffrin, the leader of the quiet type of the group, who travels with Mirabelle, Isabeau, Odile and Bonnie, on the mission to stop King from continuing to freeze the citizens of Vanguarde in time. The game starts on the day before the epic final battle, in which you have time to get to know more of the village and have a sleepover with your party. The next day, you enter the castle taken by King, but Siffrin doesn't notice a trap in the first corridor and dies. However, he wakes up on the eve of battle, right where the game began. Then we realize that they’re stuck in a time loop.
Not only do the loops serve as motivation to live the adventure, but they are also very well crafted as a game mechanic. It's very interesting how to efficiently progress through the story, you are encouraged to go back and forth between these two days, to unlock secret rooms, find out more about King and get to know your fellow travelers better. It never feels 100% repetitive, because at a given moment, Siffrin starts to go off the "script" to be faster, since he knows what will happen, and the other characters get suspicious. Of course you're not alone, right at the first reset you meet Loop, a star creature from the universe who is the only one who also remembers what you did in each loop. When you need it, they're always available to chat and give you tips, whether it's under the wishing tree in the village or by telepathy, an ability you unlock later in the game.
One point that caught on very strongly for me was the construction of Siffrin as a character. I think this is the video game character that I've identified with the most in my life, which is bizarre. Everything they said and thought about themselves or the situation, I thought "they’re just like me for real". As time went by, playing for 10, 20, 50 loops, I empathized a lot with Siffrin losing hope. But it was also beautiful to see him in some loops connect with his friends, to the point that they become his family, they are all dear, with their qualities and flaws. Without giving too many spoilers, but I really want an Isabeau for my Siffrin.
About the game play itself, overall, it's pretty fun. The rock/paper/scissors battle mechanics are very easy to understand, but some puzzles I had to look for the solution online because I was stuck for a while. The dialogues are well elaborated, with great representation, and despite having few moments of choice of response, it is very interactive and dynamic.
The end of the game was very cathartic. It becomes very clear what story Bazir wanted to tell. In Stars and Time is about the importance of communication and how to deal with the ephemerality of life and its moments. It's a very impactful game and one that I will always recommend. I know that the story started as a comic, so I already know what my next reading will be.
Check out the official website, Steam page, and trailer:
Support animation in theaters!
This April is a good time for you to give animation a boost.
Looney Tunes - The Day the Earth Exploded premieres all over the world. This movie needs your support because the animators at Warner Bros (the production company and owner of the Looney Tunes IP) have had a lot of difficulty distributing their work. Several works canceled near the end of production, titles removed from the MAX catalog, making it impossible to legally watch them, and the end of Cartoon Network in the US give the impression that the company doesn't really care about animation, it just aims at profits (which haven't even been coming). So, the fact that this movie arrives in theaters is a miracle and an opportunity to show Warner's executives that people do like animation.
Let's wait for next month
This issue was longer than expected, but Severance and In Stars and Time really don't get out of my head, I will recommend them at any opportunity. Although I didn't focus much on movies, you can check out my diary on Letterboxd what I watched and if you want, then chat about the movies. I take this opportunity to recommend Mickey 17, Perfect Days and Adolescence (which is a series, but is equivalent to watching 2 2-hour movies, and it's heavy).
To be honest, I don't know what's in store for me in April in audiovisual (besides the Looney Tunes movie which will premiere in Brazil later in the month), so I'll be as surprised as you are.
See you next time!
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