Item from Severance by Dan Erickson
Lumon's ultimate employee reward — a private ceremony involving waffles, masks representing the Four Tempers, and a ritualistic performance that is deeply, deeply unsettling.
The Waffle Party is what Lumon offers instead of dignity. It is the ultimate perk — a private celebration awarded for exceptional performance. The employee receives waffles (actual waffles, which in the context of the severed floor's deprivation is genuinely exciting) and a ritualistic performance by four masked figures representing the Four Tempers. The ceremony is bizarre, sexualized, and deeply uncomfortable to watch. It is corporate reward culture pushed to its logical extreme — when you can't offer your employees money, freedom, or context for their own existence, you offer them waffles and a fever dream. Dylan was in the middle of his Waffle Party when he chose to leave it and activate the Overtime Contingency switches instead. He traded the only reward his world offered for the chance to give his friends five minutes of freedom.
A private room with a table of waffles and four masked figures performing a choreographed ritual. The masks represent Woe, Frolic, Dread, and Malice — Kier's Four Tempers. The performance is part dance, part ceremony, part something that defies categorization. It is presented as the highest honor an innie can receive.
Also known as: The Waffle Party