Previously: Ellie and Joel made it to the Fireflies’ hospital only for Joel to learn that Ellie will definitely die in their effort to formulate a cure. He went on a rampage to save her and bring her back to Jackson, and in doing so, lied to her that she was not the only immune person out there and that all the efforts to make a cure were failures.
OMG, we’re back again!! It’s been almost 2 years since season one! These next two seasons are going to adapt Part II of The Last of Us. It’s been five years since the game’s release, and there’s still plenty of division over the story, so I’d imagine we’re in for a new, fresh hell of think pieces. Mandy W. (show-only) and I (huge fan of the games) will be recapping this season once again, so we hope you’ll join us weekly! Let’s dive in.
Apocalypse Now
It’s been five years since Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) settled in Jackson and have ingratiated themselves into the day-to-day life of this growing settlement. Joel is working construction management, Ellie is going on patrols, and they have a whole house (and detached garage apartment) together. But things are no longer copacetic, as there’s been a recent rift in the Miller household that everyone is noticing.
In that aftermath, Ellie seems desperate to keep herself busy outside of Jackson’s walls, volunteering for patrol shifts despite Joel’s pressure on Tommy to keep her benched—I assume he knows she can get reckless when backed into a corner—and taking risks she shouldn’t…which land her, literally, in danger while out with her friend, Dina (Isabela Merced) and a group of smarter people who do NOT get off their horses and run into danger. Ellie fights off a new kind of smarter infected that manages to get a bite out of her before she kills it, and this altercation worries (some of) the Jackson council that the infected are beginning to adapt. (In fact, we get another ominous warning of this as a broken pipe full of roots starts to shoot questioning cordyceps tendrils into the air inside Jackson.)
Maria is pressuring Joel as construction foreman to build and repair faster in response to an influx of refugees, but there’s only so much he can do with the people and supplies they have. They have a philosophical discussion about saving as many as they can versus knowing when to protect your own to avoid being overwhelmed, and, um, Maria, we know you aren’t going to convince Joel about this. In his quiet moments, he seems exhausted and overcome with despair. Ellie is the most important relationship in his life, and the distance is weighing on him.
Everything culminates at the New Year’s Eve dance, where Dina decides she’s over waiting for Ellie to make a move and kisses her on the dance floor. It’s a lovely moment that’s quickly ruined by a bigot. Imagine still being offended by gay people IN THE APOCALYPSE. Joel quickly comes to Ellie and Dina’s defense, but Ellie is still too mad to even accept that from him. Later, he’s out noodling on the guitar on the porch, clearly waiting for her to come home, but she gives him a stony look and walks on. (And ugh, my gamer heart just hurts.)
And now we need to talk about the opening and ending scenes, which feature a few new characters to the show, but most notably: Abby. We open on a flashback to three days after Joel’s hospital rampage, where it looks like he took out thirteen Fireflies (if I counted the crosses correctly). Seemingly there’s only five survivors, but Abby is the only one burning with a cold rage to immediately go after the man who did it. Her friends persuade her to put her revenge on pause while they join up with a crew in Seattle that has more resources, but they promise they will be with her to accomplish her revenge fantasy. Five years later, the same group crunches through snow to step out onto a ledge that overlooks the glow of Jackson city below.
The State Of Us
Of course, one of the strengths of season one was Pedro and Bella playing off each other as trust grew between Joel and Ellie, so to see them barely speaking in this episode is a gut-punch. The details of the argument aren’t revealed, but it’s clear Joel did something Ellie won’t forgive, and it’s tearing him up so much he’s even going to therapy (but not being honest in therapy, so…). Is it about his lie to her about the Fireflies? We shall see.
As this is all a fairly recent development, it makes me assume that some of Ellie’s erratic behavior we’re seeing here (shouting about her immunity, talking back to patrol leaders, withdrawing from the community, etc.) is a result of this and not just her being “immature”. She’s acting reckless and insubordinate, and while, yes, some of that was always in her, I can’t see her spending five years acting like such a pill and not getting that knocked out of her.
It Ain’t All Bad
One bright spot in Ellie’s world is Dina. Isabela as Dina was SO lovely in both bringing the game character to life and just being so winsome and magnetic to watch that you completely understand why Ellie is infatuated with her. Even Joel enjoys her company!
I liked seeing Uncle Joel with Maria and Tommy’s son, Benji. He’s a dad through and through.
Survivor of the Week
In pure terms of survival, Ellie was our only character in true danger this week (of her own making too, sigh). Can we discuss how perfectly dainty that bite on her stomach looked despite that fact that the stalker was clearly going to TOWN until Ellie got her gun out? Do not think I could mutilate myself to hide the bitemark, but Ellie has also lived through way harder shit than I ever will.
Pour One Out For
That grizzly bear, dang! What a way to go. But for real…Eugene, I guess? Catherine O’Hara certainly poured out a few! (I assume we’ll get more of this story eventually.)
Best Time To Cover Your Eyes
Stalkers are some of my LEAST favorite zombies in the games, as you can see why!! They also hide against the walls in the cordyceps blooms and then jump out at you when you walk by, which is just RUDE.
We Must Adapt To Survive
- Ellie’s canvas shoes, Joel saying “I saved her” are all great little moments from the start of the game.
- That dance scene was a shot-for-shot remake of the game, which I loved because it’s such a great moment that did not need any improvement.
- Joel and Dina never interact in the game, so I love that small change. There’s just a bit more of Jackson, like Benji and the council and worrying about how the town runs that was great flavor to include.
- Eugene, at the beginning of the game, was Dina’s older patrol buddy who’d died of a stroke and liked growing weed, so it’s fun to see them incorporate Catherine O’Hara’s Gail into his backstory.
- Whether or not Joel would go to therapy is another “hot-button” change from game to show, but I think it’s already been established that Pedro’s Joel is a bit more open with his emotions than in the game, so I think it tracks.
- The biggest “change” is revealing Abby’s backstory and her motivations immediately. In the game, the first shot of her is the last shot of the episode, and we don’t know exactly who she’s trying to find in Jackson until she and Joel cross paths. It really works in the game, especially because you’ve already spent time playing as Abby, and now you realize she’s the antagonist to your former POV character. I understand that for a different medium this may not have the same impact, and now we have this tension as viewers watching her work towards her goal. I am willing to hang on the fence for now until we see how it all pays off in the season.
Graffiti On The Wall
- Shout-out to Shimmer! The goodest horse girl.
- I have replayed this game at least three or four times since it came out, which is a first for me. Something about the small moments of hopefulness through extreme moments of tragedy; the themes of perspective, forgiveness, empathy, and revenge; and the way the characters’ storylines are told through interwoven storylines, flashbacks, and haunting music – it was all so moving. It still is. I teared up multiple times and felt so hollowed out by the end like I’d been through my own journey through the Pacific Northwest. I can understand if the “darkness” of the story is not for you, but I will never understand the people who think this is a “bad” game or a “crappy” story (the transphobes’ and homophobes’ hate aside, as their opinions are less than nothing).
- All that to say, I am SO curious to see if the show is able to pull on these same themes to hit those same emotional notes. While the first game was also moving and exciting and translated well to TV, it was such a more straightforward story. Already the way the story is unfolding is changing, and I do wonder if the reveals will hit as hard in the same way.
I’ve probably said more than enough! We’ll see you back here next week with Mandy W.’s recap!
– This might be one of the few instances in which a bunch of new characters get introduced that I mostly already like or love. (Too soon to tell with Abby.)
– I’m not as high on the episode as you are, probably because of the Joel/Ellie rift. Knowing the full picture might help, but right now it’s just jarring, even if the conflict was inevitable from the moment Joel chose to save Ellie.
– I’d hope that this show wouldn’t do a devastating child death two seasons in a row, but I am fearful for Benji since he’s a show-only character and now there are freaking CORDYCEPS IN THE PIPES.
Ugh, I didn’t think about that re: Benji. I hope not. It’s like whenever an animal is introduced in a horror / scary movie. Like, DO NOT KILL THAT ANIMAL. I don’t need that to remind me this is dark and bleak!