Here’s how Severance was billed before its release: a science fiction drama-thriller about a biotech corporation that implants consciousness-controlling chips into the brains of its employees, directed by Ben Stiller and starring Adam Scott. Could the respective Little Fockers and Step Brothers frontmen truly handle such ambitious source material? Indeed they could. The show follows Mark Scout (Scott) and his fellow “severed” employees, all recipients of the chips that separate their minds into two halves—one that functions while in the office, one that functions while outside of it. Why did these employees agree to get “severed” in the first place? And why does their employer prefer they undergo the procedure? After a three year hiatus, the long-awaited second season is here. —Jack Sullivan