Summary
Spoilers are ahead for The Last of Us Part 2 and, potentially, The Last of Us season 2.When I heard thatThe Last of Usseason 2 would be shorterthan the show’s first outing, I felt relieved.The Emmy-winning HBO series' slim 7-episode order — and the way co-creator Craig Mazin has talked about the abridged sophomore installment — indicate a carefully plotted storythat spans multiple seasons. Set to adapt some of the material in Naughty Dog’s bestselling video game,The Last of Us Part II, the post-apocalyptic drama’s second season has a lot more to juggle in terms of both the game’s inventive narrative structure and nuanced world-building.
Plus,The Last of Usseason 2 is not just a continuation of Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie’s (Bella Ramsey) story, it’s a complication of their dynamic.The Last of Usseason 1’s endingsets up their messy relationship. While Joel safely delivers Ellie to the Firefly hospital, he realizes that the doctors' research for a cure will kill Ellie. Unable to lose another kid, Joel goes on a violent rampage, rescuing the unconscious Ellie.To me — and, later, to Ellie — the most frustrating part of Joel’s decision is that he hides the truth from Ellie when pressed.
Ellie Discovering Joel’s Secret Is A Perfect The Last Of Us Season 2 Finale Cliffhanger
Ellie Reckons With The Fact That Joel Took Away Her Ability To Choose
The second game opens with Joel telling his brother what happened, but the two withhold the truth from Ellie. Later, during an extendedTLOU 2flashback sequence, we learn that Ellie found some incriminating evidence while on a run and fled to the Firefly hospital. Joel catches up with Ellie at the scene of his crime, and she isn’t interested in avoiding hard truths any longer.“If you lie to me one more time, I’m gone,” Ellie threatens.Feeling angry, Ellie tells Joel they’re done. While I could also justify saving Ellie in the first game, her realization is a gut-punch.
…the crushing scene opens up another arc: Will Ellie forgive Joel?
The deeply emotional,chillingLast of Us 2momentserves as an appropriate echo of the first game’s (and the first season’s) ending. In a weird way, it provides a measure of closure to that cliffhanger feeling at the end ofThe Last of Us, and, more importantly, resolves the tension around when, exactly, Ellie will discover the truth. Instead, the crushing scene opens up another arc: Will Ellie forgive Joel? WithThe Last of Usseason 2boasting just 7 episodes,telling the story in chronological order, so the sophomore season concludes with Joel’s confession, is the perfect path forward.
The Last Of Us Season 2’s Villain Casting Proves Just How Big Abby’s Story Will Be
HBO’s The Last of Us has made an exciting new casting announcement, showing just how prevalent Abby’s divisive narrative will be in season 2.
The Last Of Us Season 3 Could Begin With TLOU 2’s Major Death
Ending TLOU Season 2 With Ellie & Joel’s Conflict Sets The Right Tone For Season 3’s Themes
Ellie’s discovery of what really happened alters her relationship with Joel in a huge way. InThe Last of Usgames' timeline, the resentment lingers for years. Although Joel still tries to be a protector and father figure of sorts, Ellie isn’t ready to trust him again. One night in Jackson, Ellie visits Joel to tell him that she wants to be able to forgive him — one day. “I was supposed to die in that hospital. My life would’ve f*cking mattered,” Ellie tells Joelbefore even mentioning the potential for forgiveness. “But you took that from me.”
By the end of season 3’s first episode, the show could kill off Joel, setting the rest of the season into motion.
IfThe Last of Usseason 2ends with Ellie realizing the extent of Joel’s betrayal — the way he took away Ellie’s ability to choose her own fate — thenThe Last of Usseason 3 can open much like the second game. The third HBO outing can tease Ellie and Dina’s (Isabela Merced) budding relationship and the fact that Ellie’s still at odds with Joel before introducing Abby (Kaitlyn Dever). By the end of season 3’s first episode, the show could kill off Joel, setting the rest of the season into motion.
The Last Of Us Already Proved It Can Handle Season 2’s Most Important Relationship
HBO’s The Last of Us season 1 already proved that its team has what it takes to portray the franchise’s most important romantic relationship.
[Ellie is] grieving Joel, but still unable to completely forgive him.
Better yet, the series could save the porch conversation forThe Last of Usseason 3 finale. Doing so would leave viewers wondering about the context and content of Ellie and Joel’s last real conversation. That kind of structure also hammers home just how frustrated Ellie feels — grieving Joel, but still unable to completely forgive him.As Ellie tracks Abby down, Ellie is haunted by this complicated mix of feelings about Joel, and I think this is one of the most effective ways for the show to capture that.
The Last Of Us Seasons 2, 3 & 4 Plans: What It All Means
The Last of Us creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann have thought about the show’s future, but what do their plans for seasons 2, 3, and 4 mean?
Telling The Last Of Us: Part II’s Story Chronologically Avoids Season 2’s Pedro Pascal Problem
The Beloved Joel Actor Can Stick Around For At Least 3 Seasons Of The Last Of Us
The update regarding the series' second season is ahuge relief for Pedro Pascal’s Joel. Although it’s unclear where season 2 will leave off,The Last of Us' commitment to taking its time is apparent. That not only works to the benefit of the larger narrative and its themes, but to the benefit ofThe Last of Us' cast of characters. For newcomers,the pacing allows for more backstory and characterization — but, for Joel, it means a longer stint on the series. That is, if HBO’sThe Last of UsfollowedTLOU 2exactly, Pascal would have little screentime.
The Last of Usseason 2 is expected to premiere in 2025.
The Last Of Us
The Last of Us is a post-apocalyptic drama series set two decades after a global catastrophe. It follows Joel, a seasoned survivor, who is tasked with escorting Ellie, a teenage girl, across a desolated United States, transforming into a harrowing journey of survival and companionship.
