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Severance Recap: You Can’t Go Home Again
The Cobel origin story is wilder than we could have imagined.
Given that the episode title, “Sweet Vitriol,” is slang for diethyl ether, it feels like the pointed focus on the substance is meant to be a stand-in for today’s opioid epidemic, with the Lumon and the Eagans taking the place of . The idea that Lumon would have marketed an addictive substance to a wide audience as non-addictive and then profited off of death and destruction tracks not only with their nefarious vibe but also with the general public’s hatred of the company in the broader world of the show. Arquette is wonderfully unmoored in this scene, showcasing her uncanny ability to access Cobel’s inner rage and sorrow as made manifest by a woman who was never given the space or grace to emotionally mature beyond her childhood years.
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