On April 13th, HBO launched the second season of “The Last of Us,” an adaptation of The Last of Us Part II game. The first season, released two years ago, made a significant impact, leaving a strong aftertaste and a divided audience. The wait for the continuation was long, but finally, it`s over—time to assess what has come out this time.
Five years have passed since the events of the first season. Ellie (Bella Ramsey) is now 19, more actively involved in the life of Jacksonville, and distancing herself from Joel (Pedro Pascal). The man who became a father figure to her is struggling with this, partly realizing the reasons: Ellie likely suspects what happened with the Fireflies five years ago. And while Ellie is simply having difficulty connecting with Joel, there are others who are truly angry with him—the children of the Fireflies who died in the shootout, led by Abby (Kaitlyn Dever).
This is the setup for the second season of “The Last of Us,” and on paper, it is not much different from The Last of Us Part II—a sequel that is equally provocative and controversial, literally dividing gamers into two opposing camps. However, we are talking about the series (which you can always read about elsewhere), and how it has changed certain events.
In reality, there aren`t that many global changes, but some are significant. Perhaps the most obvious is that Joel in the post-apocalyptic world has not only “grounded himself” and begun to take a more active role in society but has also started seeing a therapist. The very fact seems somewhat surprising and inappropriate (a therapist in such conditions?), but Craig Mazin, by introducing a specialist, added an interesting intrigue and once again emphasized the central theme of the second part of The Last of Us—the ruthlessness of hatred that breeds a desire for revenge. The thing is, Joel is in therapy with Gayle (Kathleen O`Hara), the widow of Eugene (Joe Pantoliano), who… died at the hands of Joel. This is not even a spoiler—O`Hara`s role was teased long before the show`s release. In the game, Eugene was only present as a photo on the wall, although he was well-developed: it is known that the man was previously a Firefly, was married, but fled from his family after the cordyceps outbreak. And he also managed to befriend Dina and died of a heart attack at 73, becoming a rare example of a person who died not from a bite or other dangers, but from natural causes. Neil Druckmann emphasized in an interview that Eugene`s role has been significantly expanded for the series—we are waiting for appearances in flashbacks.
Another change concerns, rather, the presentation: the opening scene of the series immediately shows Abby`s group, indicating the future conflict. For those who have played, this will not be a surprise, but for viewers unfamiliar with the original, it outlines the situation without nuances. The change is at least interesting: in Part II, Abby`s role unfolded over time, not immediately, which created certain emotional “swings.” Perhaps the change is related to Druckmann`s dissatisfaction: it is known that the key scene leaked online (let`s denote it by the code name “golf game”) greatly spoiled expectations not so much for gamers as for the studio itself. Perhaps, by immediately presenting the conflict, the screenwriter tried to avoid a repeat of the situation.
Finally, another change is the presentation of stalkers, who were removed from the first season. In the game, Joel encountered them, but here they are clearly presented as a new type of threat: Ellie, for example, even considers them intelligent, unlike other infected, but whether this is so is an open question. Only one stalker is encountered in the episode, whose behavior can be attributed to behavioral peculiarities or you could actually think that the new enemy is much smarter than usual. Apparently, we will learn more in subsequent episodes—it`s not for nothing that several key scenes were devoted to this event.
Perhaps the strangest and most unexpected thing in the novelty is the work of cordyceps roots, which actively occupy free space. In the middle of the episode, there is a scene in which a large clump of characteristic but already dead sprouts is found in a broken sewer pipe, but in the very finale, their more active movement is demonstrated. Perhaps we are waiting for the infection of Jacksonville and a more radical departure from the source material? Plus, it is recalled that Druckmann decided to bring back infection through spores—and here it seems like the perfect time for such a gun to fire.
In the rest, the series quite faithfully follows the source material: there is a brewing conflict, a problem in the relationship between Joel and Abby, complex relationships among the youth of Jacksonville, and an increased external threat in several directions at once. The main plot, however, is only just beginning to unfold—the episode rather outlines the world and its structure, which has changed over five years, than sets up specific expectations. It is all the more interesting what the authors want to fit into seven—or rather, already six episodes.
Finley Holt