The Apple TV+ workplace drama deepens the lore, explores the Innie-Outie conundrum, and fully establishes itself as the series to beat right now.

Here’s a quick refresher on where things stand with Mark, Helly, and the gang The second season of Severance, which debuts tonight on Apple TV+, proves that the corporate sci-fi drama has still got it.

The hit Apple TV+ series returns Friday with fewer laughs as it tries unravel the mystery of what's happening to its characters.

Fortunately, “Severance” returns to Apple TV+ on Friday, and its makers seem to have used every second of the absence productively. The season takes new turns while remaining the most ambitious, batty and all-out pleasurable show on TV, an M.C. Escher maze whose plot convolutions never get in the way of its voice, heart and sense of humor.

Season 1 ended three years ago on a cliffhanger, with the innies staging a rebellion and discovering disturbing truths about their outies. Season 2 picks up in the aftermath. The innies are still at Lumon.

True to its surreal inclinations, Season 2 often sprints off into what-the-hell-just-happened places — always keeping us off-balance and wondering where it will wind up. Rest assured, we’re good in hands.

Two years and nine months is a long time to wait for anything -- especially for the follow-up of one of the most anticipated and beloved sci-fi dramas on TV that ended its first season on a high with a blistering finale.