My 5 biggest 'Severance' questions heading into season 2 episode 9

"Severance" season 2 is heating up going into this week's episode "The After Hours."

As the penultimate episode of the season, it's got a lot riding on it. Especially after last week's episode dropped the biggest bombshell of the series so far.

Unsurprisingly, I also have a lot of questions going into these final two episodes. The past three episodes of the Apple TV Plus thriller have been so revealing, but I still find myself with more questions than answers.

So with "Severance" episode 209 just mere days away, here are my five biggest questions heading into "After Hours."

Spoilers for "Severance" season 2 episodes 1-8 ahead

What is the Wintertide Fellowship?

Before last week's episode "Sweet Vitriol," we had heard mention of the Wintertide Fellowship once before. In a conversation with Miss Huang (Sarah Bock), Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) told her that he ultimately controls whether or not she's "Wintertide material."

That was an eyebrow-raiser at the time, but now we know more about what "Wintertide" is. We know because Ms. Cobel (Patricia Arquette) was a Jame Eagan Wintertide Fellow when she developed severance for Lumon.

These two characters have some commonalities. Both have worked for Lumon since they were a child and both were at one point on track to be a Wintertide Fellow. This also likely means that Miss Huang also attended the Myrtle Eagan School For Girls, just like Ms. Cobel.

But we still don't know what the fellowship actually is, what arcane ceremony accompanies induction, etc. We could get these questions answered this week, or they could be reserved for the 76-minute-long season finale "Cold Harbor."

Will Ms. Cobel successfully integrate Mark?

After episode 8 of season 2, we now know that Mark's (Adam Scott) struggles with reintegration might not be entirely his fault. Upon learning that Dr. Reghabi (Karen Aldridge) was the one reintegrating Mark, she expressed her surprise that Reghabi hadn't managed to already kill Mark.

So now it seems that Ms. Cobel is headed to Mark and Devon (Jen Tullock) to fix what Reghabi has done so far. But will she be successful?

And, just as importantly, is Ms. Cobel a friend or foe? She certainly seems intent on getting revenge on Lumon tossing her aside, but we don't know if she has had the wool pulled off from over her eyes or if she merely views the current Lumon leadership and Jame Eagan (Michael Siberry) in particular as a cancer corrupting Kier's vision.

If it's the latter, then maybe the enemy of my enemy isn't my friend after all.

Will Mark find Gemma this episode?

After episode 7, we know a lot more about what's happened to Gemma (Dichen Lachman).

We know she joined Lumon at least somewhat willingly. And we know that when she's not in one of the severed rooms, she's still her Outie persona, rather than permanently severed, a clone, etc.

We also know she now wants out, and that when Mark S. completes Cold Harbor she will no longer be needed on the severed floor. But until then Lumon will thwart any and all attempts to get her back to the outside world.

So will Mark manage to find her this episode? My guess is that's being saved for the season finale given its episode title is "Cold Harbor." I believe that Mark S. will eventually complete this project and he wouldn't do that if he found Gemma and got her to safety.

However, Apple TV posted a teaser for episode 9, "The After Hours" on X (Twitter) and it shows a plate picturing two women fighting over a man.

There are theories about this floating around. One is that it's foreshadowing a Gemma vs. Helena Eagan (Britt Lower) fight for Mark (h/t Mashable).

But I think it's foreshadowing, Helena vs. Helly R. fighting for Mark instead. I think it's a real possibility we get to explore that particular conflict in "The After Hours" and that all things Gemma are saved for the season finale.

Why did Ms. Cobel develop severance?

We know Ms. Cobel developed severance and that Jame Eagan took credit for it. But we still don't know exactly why she created the procedure.

Hopefully, we get an explanation this episode. Perhaps a fun conversation topic for Ms. Cobel and Devon to discuss while the former fixes Mark?

Will we see Irving B. again?

Finally, the question that's on everyone's mind — is Irving B. dead?

We know that we probably haven't seen the last of John Turturro. In episode 206, "Attila," we saw Irving's Outie enjoy an awkward dinner with Burt (Christopher Walken) and Burt's husband Fields (John Noble) and discuss the finer points of how severance intersects with Judeo-Christian theology.

But Irving B. is, in theory, no more. Irving's Innie was let go after threatening to drown Helena Eagan unless Lumon restored Helly R. in episode 204, "Woe's Hollow."

So will we see him ever return to the halls of Lumon? Or was the funeral for Irving B. the last we saw of this beloved member of Macro Data Refinement? My guess is we see Irving B. again, but not in this episode.

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