Severance enthusiasts are buzzing with theories that a major character might meet their demise in the gripping season finale following some telling clues in the penultimate episode.

The second to last episode of season two, titled The After Hours, ramps up the tension as the severed staff find themselves more cut off than before.

Meanwhile, Mark Scout (portrayed by Adam Scott) teams up with Ms Cobel (Patricia Arquette) in a desperate plan to save his wife, Gemma (Dichen Lachman).

In another subplot, Lumon's fresh-faced recruit, Miss Huang (Sarah Bock) is coldly turned away by Mr Milchick (Tramell Tillman), but not before she demonstrates her dedication to the establishment.

She does so by crushing her beloved ring toss game - which features a figurine of the company's progenitor Kier Eagan (Marc Geller) as a swimmer - against a bust of Lumon CEO Jame Eagan (Michael Siberry).

This sequence has set tongues wagging on social media, with several fans suspecting it's a dark omen for Helly's alter ego, Helena (Britt Lower) and possibly even for both facets of her existence, forecasting doom by the season's conclusion.

One Reddit user expressed their dread bluntly: "Helly is f***ed," pointing out the juxtaposition between Helena's early-episode swimming and the later destruction of the swimming figure.

"Her swimming in the beginning of the episode, and then Miss Huang smashing the swimmer in the ring game using Jame Eagan's bust...Excellent foreshadowing!" they noted.

Another chimed in with agreement, acknowledging the symbolism: "Woah you're so right... Helena doesn't even realise she's a pawn in this company and not as powerful and in control as she thinks she is."

Fans of the hit series Severance have been buzzing with theories and interpretations after a recent episode.

One viewer was impressed by another's analysis, commenting: "This is suchhhh good interpretation, I was interpreting this scene as Lumon forcing Ms Huang to destroy her own childhood but I like yours better."

Another fan speculated about her fate: "It looked like just the legs getting smashed, so I'm thinking she gets disabled from whatever attack goes down."

Agreement came from another, who added: "Totally missed that, but I am sure you're right."

On X (formerly Twitter), a different twist was proposed by a fan: "And what if Helena 'dies' but Helly takes over her body. Best thing that will happen in Severance."

Yet, some viewers believe the moment in question was more about drawing visual parallels between characters rather than foreshadowing plot twists.

One astute observer detailed their take on the cinematography: "Miss Huang and Helly's half covered faces because Milchick and Dylan (Zach Cherry) disregard their feelings + Miss Huang crushing the swimming game with the wintertide statue because Helena feels crushed by the pressure of being a successful Eagan.... how I love the cinematography of Severance."

The speculation doesn't stop there, with several fans even predicting that the ultimate showdown could see Helly confronting her father, Jame, potentially leading to his demise and leaving Lumon leaderless, with her outie left reeling.

As anticipation builds, all eyes are on the season finale, titled Cold Harbor, to see which theories hold water and whether the show will resolve its mysteries or leave audiences hanging with yet another cliffhanger.

Severance season 2 concludes Friday, 21st March on Apple TV+.