Severance Season 2 Episode 9 Reveals The Show's Biggest Monster

This article contains spoilers for "Severance" season 2 episode 9, "The After Hours."

I admit I was a little concerned that "Severance" has been slowly running out of credible monsters. The show's sophomore season has made the surprising (but welcome) choice to start stealthily humanizing several people it previously presented as soulless corporate monsters. It's given us Harmony Cobel's (Patricia Arquette) backstory and showed her switching allegiances in order to help Mark Scout (Adam Scott) instead of hindering him. It's kept adding more and more nuance to Seth Milchick (Tramell Tillman) and his obvious discomfort with the creepier aspects of the Lumon company culture. Even Helena Eagan (Britt Lower) is turning out to be a far more complex figure than the one-note Evil Rich Person the show initially positioned her as. On the downside, this has left the show with the beginnings of a villain problem. Granted, there are incoming bogeymen like Gemma's (Dichen Lachman) jailer/observer, Dr. Mauer (Robby Benson, also the voice of Beast from Disney's "Beauty and the Beast") and Lumon heavy Mr. Drummond (Ólafur Darri Ólafsson), but they've yet to fully establish themselves. 

With another show, this might have been a problem. "Severance," on the other hand, only needs to reach a touch higher on the corporate ladder to uncover the true monsters. Enter Jame Eagan (Michael Siberry), the current CEO of Lumon Industries. It makes perfect sense that a man in his position would rise as the season's de facto Big Bad, but up to now, "Severance" has managed to pull wool over the viewers' eyes by maintaining a laser-like focus on the cult of Kier Eagan and a number of lesser evils. In "The After Hours," Jame finally steps out of the shadows and rises above the rabble by revealing what a revolting, dangerous man he truly is.

"Severance" has offered clues about Jame before. In the season 1 finale, "The We We Are," he confronts Helena in a women's bathroom to first rain somewhat off-putting praise on her and later, after the Helly R. incident, to express his disgust. He likes to drop references to Lumon lore, alluding to a past Eagan he calls The Grandfather (possibly his own father Philip, but more likely the revered Kier Eagan) and mentioning a ceremony called the Revolving. He uses obscure words that would impress even Mr. Milchick, notably dismissing Helena as a "fetid moppet" (a foul-smelling child). "Severance" season 2 episode 8, "Sweet Vitriol," reveals that instead of inventing the severance procedures himself as advertised, he actually commandeered the plans from Ms. Cobel. 

"The After Hours" continues to drop hint after hint that Jame is a dangerous, horrible, and potentially abusive man. We meet him acting like an absolute creep watching Helena eat eggs for breakfast, and later, it turns out that he has an army of secret lovers and children — to the point that the security guard at Damona Birthing Retreat seems to be accustomed to dealing with such cases. What's more, this information comes from former Lumon luminary Cobel, which implies she may have first-hand experience of Jame's lecherous activities. Finally, we learn that the mysterious Cold Harbor — which Jame eagerly supervises and awaits — is going to kill Gemma once it's finished. 

When Jame turns up on the severed floor to confront the innie Helly, it's clear he isn't going to get any less terrifying. Armed with the full might of Lumon and the haughty attitude of a powerful billionaire, the CEO might just be the very worst monstrosity the mind-bending "Severance" season 2 has to offer.