Apple TV’s 10/10 Sci-Fi Series Is A Dystopian Masterpiece That Keeps Getting Better

Although dystopian TV is enjoying a huge cultural moment right now, one blackly comedic sci-fi satire from Apple TV takes a very different approach to the subgenre than most. For many readers, the phrase “Dystopian sci-fi” might conjure up images of the Blade Runner franchise or other futuristic cyberpunk thrillers featuring rain-soaked cities populated by humanoid androids.

For others, “Dystopian sci-fi” could call to mind the post-apocalyptic wastelands of the Mad Max series, or the totalitarian futuristic settings of the Hunger Games movies, the Divergent series, or the movie adaptations of the Maze Runner novels. However, Apple TV’s masterpiece Severance instead pictures dystopia as a non-descriptive corporate workplace, and anyone who has seen the series knows it’s just as nightmarish.

Apple TV’s Severance Isn’t Like Most Dystopian Sci-fi Shows

With a staggering 41 Emmy Nominations to its name, it is fair to say that Severance is one of the most acclaimed dystopian sci-fi shows of all time. However, when the series starts out, the show feels more like a version of Office Space directed by Jordan Peele than Silo, The Last of Us, or TV’s other many popular dystopian sci-fi shows.

Severance focuses on the workers in Lumon Industries, a biotech company that has pioneered a production as unsettling as it is theoretically useful. Lumon’s big innovation is the show’s titular process, “Severance,” which allows people to leave their work self in the office—quite literally. Without giving away too much, suffice it to say, this technological wonder comes at a high human cost.

The many twists of Severance ensure that the show is as much a paranoid conspiracy thriller as a traditional sci-fi series, but the show’s premise is as unsettling and prescient as an earlier entry into the dystopian sci-fi subgenre. When viewers learn what is really going on at Lumon, the revelation is as horrifying as it is queasily believable.

Severance’s Long Gaps Between Seasons Make The Sci-fi Series Even Better

Like an episode of The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror that has been stretched into a full-length series, Severance dives deeper into exploring the show’s central creepy conceit with each new episode. While a lot of shows would be content with simply introducing the twisted premise of “Severance,” the show’s success lies precisely in its decision to looks further into the implications of the eponymous procedure.

While Severance has a superb ensemble cast, this does mean that the series takes lengthy breaks between its seasons to facilitate the busy schedules of its stars. However, this is no bad thing. Seasons 1 and 2 of Severance left viewers with plenty of knotty, morally complex sci-fi concepts to gnaw on, making these long breaks a surprisingly welcome pacing choice.

Release Date

February 17, 2022

Network

Apple TV

Showrunner

Dan Erickson, Mark Friedman

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