Warning! This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2, episode 9.
Severanceseason 2, episode 9 sees Dylan making a big decision about his Lumon future that impacts multiple characters. After theending ofSeveranceseason 2, episode 8saw Harmony Cobel commit to helping Mark take down Lumon, episode 9 returned to the severed floor and caught audiences up with the MDR crew. However, this episode sawSeverance’s cast of characterssomewhat split apart, with only Helly and Dylan being found on the severed floor amid Mark’s Reintegration storyline and Irving’s developments with Burt.
Mark’s Reintegration inSeveranceled to a reunion with Ms. Cobel, while Irving was told to leave town by Burt, who was revealed to be a driver for Lumon. Where Helly and Dylan are concerned, the former began memorizing the instructions on the note that will lead to the Testing Floor fromSeveranceseason 2, episode 7, but the latter found his world changing for the worse. This led Dylan to make a huge decision inSeveranceseason 2, episode 9, which promises to affect several different storylines and characters.
Why Innie Dylan Quits His Job At Lumon In Severance Season 2 Episode 9
Dylan Lost His Main Motivation For Working
The decision in question was Dylan resigning from Lumon. This came inSeveranceseason 2, episode 9’s latter half due to the fallout of his relationship with Gretchen. Throughout season 2, Dylan has been receiving visits from Gretchen inSeverance’s Outie Visitation Suite, with the two being shown to grow much closer over the episodes. This culminated inSeveranceseason 2, episode 9, with Innie Dylan proposing to Gretchen so that he can be married to her both inside and outside of Lumon’s offices.
However, Gretchen denied Dylan and told him that she could not see him again. The reason for this was the issues the meetings were causing with Gretchen and Outie Dylan; the former told the latter that Innie Dylan reminded her of how he used to be before their marriage became strained. This naturally angered Outie Dylan, as did the reveal that Gretchen had kissed Innie Dylan. This explains why Gretchen told Innie Dylan she would not be visiting anymore, causing the latter to quit.
As alluded to, Innie Dylan’s main reason for working inSeveranceseason 2 has been the meetings with Gretchen.Now that these meetings are over - and Dylan’s heart is broken - he feels he has no more motivation to workfor Lumon anymore. This likely coincides with the loss of Irving earlier in the season, compounding Dylan’s grief and explaining why he decided to quit his job.
Outie Dylan Could Be Conflicted About Innie Dylan’s Decision
Image via Apple TV+
The first person that Innie Dylan’s decision will affect is Outie Dylan. This now means that Outie Dylan is unemployed, which he was shown to struggle with earlier inSeveranceseason 2. For this reason, he could be angry about his Innie’s decision to quit Lumon, and it remains to be seen whether he can force Innie Dylan to continue working if he disagrees. That said,Severanceseason 2, episode 9 also provided a reason why he could be somewhat glad about Innie Dylan’s decision.
Helena Eagan was shown to force Helly into working in season 1, but this could have been because of her status in the company, begging the question of whether Outie Dylan has the same power.
This reason came in the form of Outie Dylan threatening to quit earlier in the episode. After Gretchen told Outie Dylan about her meetings and her kiss with Innie Dylan, he threatened to leave Lumon to put a stop to the strange situation. Now, Innie Dylan has made that decision for him, meaning he could be somewhat thankful. Granted, Outie Dylan did want to quit to stop Gretchen from seeing his Innie, which Gretchen set into motion anyway. As such, the question of how Outie Dylan will react is a big one going intoSeveranceseason 2’s finale.
Why Innie Dylan Wouldn’t Help Helly With Irving’s Hallway Mystery
Dylan Lacked The Need To Fight
The final storyline that Innie Dylan’s decision to quit affects inSeveranceseason 2 is Helly’s. Helly found a renewed sense of fight inSeveranceseason 2, episode 9, thanks to the note in the Break Room that leads to the Testing Floor. Helly wished to follow the directions to the elevator as a means of figuring out Lumon’s secrets and somewhat avenging Irving, who was responsible for the note being placed behind the poster of Dylan. Helly tried to explain the importance of this to Dylan, yet he decided to quit without helping her.
The reason for this is Dylan’s aforementioned lack of motivation. As alluded to earlier, Dylan has uncovered the futility of working for Lumon, given that he does not really have a life. The visitations of Gretchen have allowed Dylan to realize that he is forced into doing a job that he does not even know the result of and that there are more important things in life. Losing these important things, like Gretchen and Irving, led Dylan to question why anything on the severed floor matters, explaining why he did not help Helly inSeveranceseason 2, episode 9.
