HBO’s The Last of Usfeatures a total of nine episodes, covering the entire story of the first Last of Us game. The adaptation follows the game’s source material almost exactly for the central story events, taking a few liberties here and there to expand the world in new ways.
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While some episodes may be rated lower on the list than others, that in no way means they are bad episodes in any way, as every episode from this season was a masterpiece and deserves to be seen by every returning fan and even those just interested in a phenomenal story.
9Please Hold My Hand
This episode centered around one of the more fleshed-out changes from the game, giving the Hunters much more screen-time and exploring their backstory more. For the most part, their interactions with Joel and Ellie dissolve into just being other humans to get past.
This episode also showed some of the first real bonding moments between Joel and Ellie, as he shows her the proper way to hold a gun and lets her keep it despite his previous rule. While the backstory and deeper motivations of the Hunters were interesting, it ends up falling a bit flat as these more fleshed-out characters get little resolution after their backstory is told.
8Left Behind
After the dangerous encounter last episode, Joel is left gravely wounded and out of the episode’s focus while he heals. The majority of the episode focuses on Ellie’s backstory and how she got infected, and the events that led up to her leaving FEDRA.
It’s difficult to build tension in a flashback episode, as we know Ellie’s bite wouldn’t affect her, and Riley’s lack of presence or mention in early episodes can lead people to guess her fate early in the episode. Despite the lack of tension, this episode did have some fun moments showing Ellie being a child in the destroyed world.
7Long, Long Time
Almost all of this episode focuses on Bill, with Frank showing up part-way through.Bill is a survivalist/prepperwho was ready and waiting for an apocalypse to come. This episode follows him during the 20 years of the outbreak, doing incredibly well for himself despite being alone.
There is a bit of action in this episode and some excellent world-building as Joel and Tess meet with Frank and Bill to establish a deal for trading. With the main focus of the episode being on Bill and Frank, we’re only given a few minutes toward the end of the episode that actually furthers the plot of Joel and Ellie’s journey.
Kin finally gives us the reunion between Joel and Tommy and all the awkwardness to follow. This episode is a sharp contrast from what Joel and Ellie, along with the viewers, have been shown in the past few episodes. The city of Jackson also is an excellent place for the show to plant seeds for the future of the show, which it has done multiple times.
Joel is often shown as ruthless, capable, and always sure of his decisions, but with Tommy, he shows us his cracks and the panic attacks that have been happening. We are also shown an incredible recreation of what many consider the most emotional moment of the show as Joel and Ellie yell at each other after Joel almost leaves her.
5Endure And Survive
This episode was the conclusion of the Hunters, Sam, and Henry story that began the previous episode. We are also shown the biggest fight seen in the show, featuring dozens of runners fighting the hunters, with a bloater showing up towards the end.
SamandHenry’s death at the end is a powerful moment in the show, showing the hopelessness of the people still alive and reaffirming the goal of making a cure in Ellie’s head. We also see the naivety of Ellie when she thinks her blood holds the cure, followed by her being shown the harsh truth after waking up the next morning.
4When We Are In Need
The highlight of this show is the different people affected by the apocalypse and how Ellie is shown the harsh reality of the world she is trying to save. This episode showed that Ellie is capable and gave her the hardest hit from reality this show has to offer.
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David is portrayed slightly differently from in the game but is still an incredible skin-crawling villain. This situation also leaves Ellie hurt and conflicted but also makes her grow up really fast, as she thought she had to handle this terrible situation on her own. Her brutality was portrayed as a natural reaction, laying the basis for further character development in later seasons.
In this second episode, there is still only little done to deviate from the game’s original story. The museum shows the threat of clickers and perfectly adapts to familiar stealth gameplay in the TV show. The clickers themselves looked amazing on screen, and the sound of their clicks perfectly added to the scene’s tension.
While exploring the city, Ellie is given a few moments to be a kid seeing the outside world for the first time. Tess is given an incredible sendoff, and Joel’s driven mindset is shown as he doesn’t even say goodbye and just carries Ellie off after accepting the coming death of his closest friend.
2Look For The Light
The last episode in the series may have been a little short, but it still had enough time to cover all the important moments. The cold open also gives us a new look at Ellie’s birth and the possible origins of how she became immune to the virus.
Joel’s march through the hospital to the muted music perfectly set the tone for what was happening on screen while also showing the brutality Joel is capable of when it comes to defending Ellie. Both actors performed their hearts out in the final scene as Ellie convinces herself to believe Joel, and Joel swears on his lie.
1When You’re Lost In The Darkness
The show’s first episode did a lot to build the world, giving much more context to Joel and Sarah’s life before the outbreak. Many scenes from this episode were shot-for-shot remakes in live action from the game, instantly hooking fans from the game.
After the time skips, we are quickly shown how much Joel has changed and howquickly the main journey starts. While so much happens in this first episode, it never feels rushed and left us crying along with Joel after Sarah’s death.
