Helena’s Dark Identity Crisis

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In a different phrasing: Helena Eagan, much like her unscrupulous family members, is portrayed as a monster. However, the main surprise of “Severance” season two reveals she remains human at heart. Unlike the workers under Lumon’s exploitative regime who have been severed, Helena could not fully divide herself into separate entities. This means that Helena is well-aware of her Innie, Helly R, which also signifies that she recognizes what kind of person she would have become without Lumon’s corrupting influence. This self-awareness has sparked more than just envy in the future CEO; it has led to a profound identity crisis that significantly enhances the show’s central theme about what defines us as individuals.

Mark and Dylan chose to have the severance treatment as they are trying to escape from personal issues. Mark is escaping his sorrow, while Dylan is avoiding his mistakes. It appears that Irv, with his closed-off demeanor and hidden past, may also be fleeing from something similar. However, Helena Eagan did it for publicity and self-advantage. She aimed to endorse the severance procedure so the company she plans to lead in the future could bypass legal obstacles that hinder its sinister objectives. Despite having a completely different motive than her peers, Helena Egan is experiencing suffering just like them, for the same reason.

The other Outies seem unwilling or unable to focus on personal growth in the real world, just like Helena. However, she’s the one who must confront this reality. She’s been closely observing Helly for some time now. Helena’s ability to impersonate her Innie so convincingly suggests that she was already familiar with Helly long before the Macrodat Uprising. (It’s important to note that her mole operation commenced shortly afterwards, leaving little time for extensive research into Helly.) Living alongside Helly has led Helena to explore what she might become in a different life without family. Unfortunately, “Woe’s Hollow” further revealed that Helena’s Innie serves as undeniable evidence of something Helena has long dreaded: her own inherent badness and the misery of her existence.

In the first season, we discovered that Helly R. was a cruel individual when she refused to let another character escape their ordeal on the severed floor. During this same period, Helena Eagan’s Innie pleaded for liberation from her horrific reality, to which Helena responded, “I am a person, and you are not.” However, in the second episode of season two, as Helena watched security footage of Helly kissing Mark, she came to understand that she had misunderstood things. It turns out that Helly R. is indeed a person with feelings and emotions. She is capable of love and being loved, showing compassion and receiving care. People matter to her, just as she matters to them. Despite being confined to Lumon’s severed floor, Helly can be herself genuinely. And it seems that, at heart, Helly is a good person.

Helena, unfortunately, isn’t an individual with personal autonomy; instead, she serves as a mere instrument in the hands of a multinational corporation known as Lumon. Due to her loyalty towards the company, Helena has allowed them to divide her consciousness into two parts. She endured a daily disappearance for eight hours without knowing about her alternative existence. Tragically, even when her Innie (inner self) escaped, her own father wrongly accused her of something she wasn’t responsible for.

Through this ordeal, Helena Eagan came to understand the extent of her entrapment in a wretched existence of servitude. This life is one she detests so profoundly that she resorted to stealing both her Innermost’s life and Mark’s affections.

Helly R. didn’t return to Lumon following the Macrodat Uprising, which Mark wasn’t aware of when they slept together. However, it turned out that when Helly said, “I didn’t like who I was on the outside. I was ashamed,” she was referring to herself, not her Outie, during a personal moment of introspection and vulnerability. By the end of the episode, we realized that Helena was expressing her self-loathing. Interestingly, Helena Eagan, who had just scoffed at Kier’s teachings, implying she knows Lumon’s foundation is nonsense, seems to despise herself.

It’s clear that Helena can no longer hide or deny her true nature. She’s been transformed into a ruthless, uncaring being by her family and Lumon Industries, who treat her more like an asset than a person. However, she’s come to realize that people care about Helly R., someone who isn’t bound by the Eagan family or Lumon’s schemes.

Helena understands that, without being bound by her Eagan persona, she could have experienced genuine joy, love, and meaningful relationships. Regrettably, this is a truth she must grapple with, a reality that resonates deeply with the essence of the story in “Severance”.

Ever since Mark Scout transitioned from sobbing in his car to grinning at work, “Severance” has delved into the themes of identity and the essence of being a person. Since its initial sequence, the show has emphasized the impossibility of splitting ourselves into separate entities. We are who we are, and there’s no escaping that truth, not even for individuals who physically divide themselves in two. However, Helena Eagan’s personal encounter with severance has added a new layer to this concept. She is uniquely defined as an intelligent and competent woman who can discern right from wrong, reality from illusion. With her now forced to confront the harsh truth she attempted to avoid about herself and the person she could have become, the question becomes what choices she will make with this newfound awareness.

Helly helped Helena discover her true potential, and for a while each day, she lived that life as her best self. Now, Helena faces a choice: either she can carry on being a servant to Lumon, hating both her existence and herself, or she can opt to become the person Helly has always had within her. Although the show Severance suggests we’re inherently ourselves, it also reveals that we’re intricate beings who have the power to choose which version of ourselves we wish to embody every morning.

As a film enthusiast and a dedicated staff writer at TopMob, I’m fortunate to work for a company that values teamwork over individualism. In my personal opinion, this approach fosters an environment where creativity thrives. You can find me sharing my thoughts and insights on Bluesky under the handle @burgermike. Additionally, if you’re interested in ranking the Targaryen kings, feel free to join the conversation!

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2025-02-11 23:34