What Makes Severance a Brilliant Show - From a TV Writer's Perspective

My favorite show on TV is currently Severance, on Apple TV. It’s beautifully shot and the acting is phenomenal, but what impresses me the most is the writing.

Even though I’m a sitcom writer, and writing science fiction is not in my wheelhouse, I do recognize the trap that many sci-fi movies and TV shows fall into. Sometimes it’s impossible NOT to fall into the trap.

The trap is this: Serving the high concept too much.

Sci-Fi by its nature, requires a high concept premise. The high concept could be:

“A world where AI has enslaved humans.”

Or

“Having destroyed the atmosphere, humans must now live underground.” etc

In the case of Severance, the premise is: