Severance

Mark Scout works at Lumon Industries, where a surgical procedure keeps employees' work memories separate from their personal lives. Outside the office, Mark has no recollection of his shift. Inside, his working self has no access to the life that might explain why he agreed to it.

Dan Erickson's series, with Ben Stiller directing and executive producing, turns that arrangement into an unsettling workplace mystery. The office is bright, orderly and full of instructions. The people expected to be grateful for it have very little say in how they live.

I liked season one, and having finished season two I rate Severance more highly. It built on the first season well, with performances and character relationships that made the expanding mystery more involving. The deliberate pace suits it: I enjoy the awkward conversations and everyday office behaviour as much as the bigger questions about Lumon.

Read my full Severance review