The Last of Us Series 1 Review Part 4 - Episode 9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, now its time for the last part of my look at the Last of Us TV series as I will cover the finale of Series 1 and see how it compares to the dramatic climax of the video game. 

So, with that said the usual warning is coming...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!!!

Episode 9 - Look For The Light 

So, the episode begins with a flashback of Ellie's mother Anna (Ashley Johnson) who is heavily pregnant running through the woods trying to escape an infected who is chasing her. Anna tries to bar the doors to prevent the infected breaking but it doesn't hold as the infected bursts through and attacks Anna, who manages to kill it with a knife but sees that she has been bitten on her leg and at the same time she gives birth to Ellie. Later on, Marlene (Merle Dandridge) who is the leader of a group of Fireflies finds Anna, who begs her to kill her and take Ellie, which Marlene hesitantly does. 

In the present day, Joel and Ellie have made it to Salt Lake City in search of the Fireflies secret lab and we find that Ellie is very quiet and subdued and clearly still feeling the trauma of her killing David in the previous episode. However as they travel on, they soon encounter a herd of giraffes much to the delight of Ellie, who feeds one of them some leaves. Joel then suggests they could forget the lab and head back to Jackson to reunite with Tommy but Ellie says they've come too far to not follow it through and says she wants to finish what they started. 

As they move on, Joel opens up about his feelings of loss over his daughter Sarah and how he even tried to shoot himself and failed. Ellie then suggests time heals all wounds but Joel tells her it wasn't time that did it and he gives her a look that says she is the reason his wounds are healed and Ellie after a beat tells him she's glad his attempt didn't work out. After this, Ellie reads some puns to cheer up Joel but then they are suddenly interrupted by a smoke grenade and they are both captured. 

Joel soon comes to and finds himself in the secret lab with the Fireflies and Marlene tells Joel that Ellie is being prepped for surgery and that her immunity comes from her being born with cordyceps within the womb that tricks real cordyceps into thinking she has it and that's why she is immune. Marlene however also explains that the surgeon says that the cordyceps has spread into Ellie's brain and by removing parts of it they can reverse engineer a cure but the process would kill her. Joel insists they find someone else and demands to be taken to Ellie but one of the soldiers knocks him down and Marlene insists she has no other choice and apologies but Joel coldly says "I do". Marlene then has Joel escorted out the building by two soldiers but he manages to kill them and take their guns and kill the remaining Fireflies as he makes his way to the operating room. Once there, Joel kills the surgeon and takes an unconscious Ellie off the table and he leaves with her. 

We then cut to Joel being confronted by Marlene who says they can still fix this despite what he has done and lowers her gun just enough for Joel shoot her with his in the stomach. Marlene pleads to be let go but Joel tells her she would just come after them and shoots her in the head before leaving with Ellie in a car. As Ellie comes round, Joel lies to her that the Fireflies gave up trying to find a cure and that there were dozens like to Ellie and also raiders attacked the hospital and he apologises for what has happened.

And the episode finishes with Joel and Ellie hiking back to Jackson on foot after the car breaks down and as Joel cheerfully talks about Sarah and comparing her to Ellie, Ellie suddenly stops and tells Joel about her best friend Riley being the first one she killed. Ellie also asks Joel to swear to her that everything he said about the Fireflies is true to which Joel says he swears and Ellie, giving an uncertain look says "OK". 

THOUGHTS

As a series finale, Look for the Light is an excellent ending to the season and its good to see it remain faithful to the ending of the game and its a great ending which has split fans right down the middle since the game was released debating whether Joel's desperate acts of violence to save Ellie were justified. The episode itself is ironically the shortest of the entire series at just a mere 43 minutes, it does have a rushed feel to it but at the same time it manages to squeeze what story it needs to in its short run time. However it would have been nice to have had a longer finale episode and an hour long one wouldn't have gone a miss and again there is a disappointing lack of infected in the episode apart from the one at the start who attacks Anna, Ellie's mother. That aside though this episode really is a very solid way to end the series and it has some wonderful moments as well as dark ones. 

PERFORMANCES (Warning spoilers are ahead and strong language!)

As for the performances again the cast here are top notch and give it their all in the finale.

Starting with Pedro Pascal, who is excellent in the finale and he has some great moments with Bella as Joel and Ellie really show how far their relationship as adopted father-daughter has come but he does have the off moment here and there in his performance which I will get to but they don't detract from what has been a great performance throughout the show.

And Pedro's notable scenes include the one where Joel confides in Ellie over his suicide attempt after he lost Sarah. So, Joel sits down and sits to Ellie "I was the guy who shot and missed. There's no story. Sarah died... and I couldn't see the point anymore. Simple as that. And I wasn't scared either. I was ready. I couldn't have been more ready. When I-- When I... went to pull the trigger, I-I flinched. Still don't know why. Anyway, the reason I'm telling you this...". Ellie interrupts him and says "I know why you are telling me this" and Joel says "Yeah I reckon you do" and Ellie says "So time heals all wounds, I guess" and Joel looks at her says "It wasn't time that did it" and they share a silent moment and Ellie says "I'm glad that didn't work out for you" and Joel tearfully says "Yeah, me too". 

And then there is the scene where after Joel has been captured by the Fireflies he comes to and sees Marlene who says to him "Welcome to the Fireflies". And Marlene says to Joel "You are the last person I want to be in debt to you but I owe you one, we all do. How did you do it?" and Joel says "It was all her. She fought like hell to get here" and Marlene says "She would have been dead on day one". Joel then asks "Where is she? Can I see her?" and Marlene says "You can't, she's being prepped for surgery" and Joel confused asks "What do you mean surgery?". Marlene tells Joel about the surgeon discovering the cordyceps infection has spread into Ellie's brain but they can take samples of her brain to make a cure but it dawns on Joel that it would kill Ellie. 

Joel then says "Cordyceps grows on the brain..." and Marlene regretfully says "It does" and Joel says "Find someone else" but Marlene tells him "There is no one else. We didn't tell her, there will be no fear and we won't cause her any pain" but Joel angrily says "No, no. You take me to her! You take me to her NOW!!" and one of the Fireflies hits him in the chest and he goes down and he pleads with Marlene "Please, you don't understand". Marlene however emotionally says to Joel "I do understand. I've know Ellie her whole live, I made a promise to her mother to look after her, I promised! So, I do understand, I'm the only one who understands. I'm sorry but I have no other choice here" but then Joel looks at her and says in a foreboding tone "I do". 

Then there is the scene where Joel drives Ellie away from the hospital after killing the Fireflies and she comes around from her sedation. So, Joel lies to Ellie about what happened and says "They were running some tests on you and some others. Turns out there's a whole lot more like you. People that are immune. Dozens of them. And the doctors, they couldn't make any of it work. They've actually... They've stopped looking for a cure". Joel then explains "Raiders then attacked the hospital and I barely got you out of there" and he says sadly "I'm sorry". And this is followed by the flashback to Joel having shot Marlene in the underground car park of the hospital and she pleads with him and says "Please! Let me go!" and Joel says to her "You'll just come after her" and shoots her in the head.

And last of all is the scene at the end of the episode where Joel and Ellie hike back to Jackson and he cheerfully talks about Sarah and how Ellie would have liked her. So, Joel says to Ellie "You know, Sarah and I used to hike like this all the time. I wouldn't say it was her favorite thing. She wasn't a fan of the mosquitoes and such. But she was such a big climber... or scampering. That's probably the right word. That girl... she'd see a big rock, and just... pew. She would liked you. Not to say the two of you are the same. Definitely different kids". Ellie asks "How so?" and Joel says "Well Sarah was more...I don't want to say girly not that you're not girly" and Ellie says "I'm not" and Joel admits "No, you're not". Joel then says "She was taller, she had a killer smile" and he nervously says to Ellie "I'm not saying you don't. But you know why I think she'd like you?" and Ellie asks "Why?" and he says to her "Because your funny".

And then there is the final moment between Ellie and Joel as Ellie tells him about Riley dying and how she regrets how Tess and Sam followed and Joel says "None of that is on you". Joel then says "Look, sometimes things don't work out the way we hope. You can feel like... like you've come to an end... and you don't know what to do next. But if you just keep goin'... you find something new to fight for. And maybe that's not what..." and Ellie interrupts him and says "Swear to me. Swear to me everything you said about the Fireflies is true" and Joel after a moment says "I swear" and Ellie looks at him uncertainly and says "OK".  

Bella Ramsey next is also great in her final performance of the series as Ellie and here we see a different side of Ellie as she is no longer playful as before and has become more sullen and subdued after the trauma of her harrowing, violent encounter with David. However Ellie does cheer up in the episode as she encounters some giraffes and reads some puns for Joel to cheer him up before it all goes south. 

And Bella has her share of good scenes her such as the one where Joel suggests they just forget about the lab and just head back to Jackson but Ellie refuses. And Joel says to Ellie "We don't have to do this" and Ellie says "What do you mean? What else are we supposed to do?" and Joel says "Nothing. We head back to Tommy's and forget the whole damn thing" but Ellie says "After all we've been through... everything I've done... it can't be for nothing. I know you mean well. I know you wanna protect me. You have. And when we're done, we'll go wherever you want. Tommy's, sheep ranch, the moon. I'll follow you anywhere you go. But there's no halfway with this. We finish what we started" and Joel nods. 

Then there is the scene where Ellie tries cheering up Joel with her pun book and Joel says to her "You know what I'm in the mood for?" and Ellie asks "What?" and Joel smiles and says "Shitty puns" and Ellie perks up and says "Oooh!" and gets her book out. And Ellie reads from a page "People are making apocalypse jokes life there's no tomorrow" and Joel groans and Ellie asks "Too soon?" and Joel says "No, its topical" and she laughs and reads another "Why do space rocks taste better than earth rocks? Because their meateor!" and Joel says "That was terrible, that was a zero out of 10!" and Ellie says "That was good! How about this one. What did the green grape say to the purple grape? Breath you idiot!" and Joel says "That was a three" and Ellie protests "Three that was a seven!" and Joel says "A five! I'll give it a five out of ten!" before they are interrupted by a smoke grenade and captured.

And last of all is the scene where Ellie and Joel hike to Jackson on foot at the end and as Joel cheerily talks about comparing Ellie to his daughter Sarah, Ellie stops him and tells about her best friend Riley. And Ellie says to Joel "Back in Kansas City, you asked me about the first time I killed someone. When I got bit in the mall, I-I wasn't on my own. My best friend was there and she got bit, too. We didn't know what to do, and she says, we can just wait it out... be all poetic and just lose our minds together. And then she did. And I had to-- Her name was Riley... and she was the first to die. And then it was Tess. And then Sam..". Joel tells her "None of that was on you" and Ellie says "I know that but..." and as Joel tries to tell her things don't always work out the way we want she says to him "Swear to me. Swear to me everything you said about the Fireflies was true" and Joel after a moment says "I swear" and Ellie looks at him uncertainly and finally says "OK". 

As for the other cast members, Merle Dandridge does an excellent job as Marlene, the leader of the Fireflies who takes in Ellie for surgery but has some bad news to share with Joel about Ellie's survival which leads to Joel making a drastic choice.

And Merle really only has a few scenes in the episode, so I will mention two of them starting with the one Joel and Ellie are captured by the Fireflies and Joel wakes up on a bed in the hospital to see Marlene stand over him. And she says to him "Welcome to the Fireflies. You know I'm amazed you made it here, I had five guys protecting me and I almost got killed. How did you do it?" and Joel slowly gets up off the bed and says "It was all her, she fought like hell to get here" but Marlene says "She would have been dead on day one. You know you are the last person I wanted to be in debt to but I owe you. We all do". Joel then asks "Where's Ellie?" and Marlene tells him "She's fine" and Joel says "Can I see her?" and Marlene says "You can't, she's being prepped for surgery" and Joel puzzled asks "Surgery". And Marlene explains that Ellie was born with coryceps while in the womb and that the real cordyceps was fooled into thinking she had it and that's why she is immune. 

Marlene then tells Joel "The surgeon says that he can look at parts of her that infected that are sending out chemical messengers, remove them and multiply those cells in a lab. He thinks it could be a cure, Joel. A cure!". Joel however realises that Ellie might not survive this and asks "Cordyceps grows in the brain?" and Marlene grimly says "It does" and Joel after a pause says "Find someone else" but Marlene says "There is no one else. We didn't tell, we won't cause her any pain or fear" but Joel defiantly says "No, you take me to her. You take me to her RIGHT NOW!!" and one of the soldiers butts him in the chest. 

Joel gasps on the floor and says "Please, you don't understand" and Marlene tells him "I do. I was there when she was born, Joel. I promised her mother that I would save her child. I promised! So I do understand. I'm the only one who understands. I'm sorry. I have no other choice" and Joel gives her a defiant look and says "I do". After a pause, Marlene tells her soldiers "Walk him out of here to the highway, give him his pack and this" and she holds out Ellie's switchblade "If he tries anything...shoot him". 

And last of all is the scene where after Joel has killed most of the Firefly soldiers, he carries an unconscious Ellie as he arrives in a lift in an underground car park where Marlene waits for him with her gun pointed at him. And Marlene pleads with Joel "You can't keep her safe forever. No matter how hard you try no matter how many people you kill she's gonna grow up, Joel. And then you'll die. She'll leave. Then what? How long till she's torn apart by Infected or murdered by raiders? Because she lives in a broken world that you could have saved". Joel however says "That's not for you to decide". Marlene then says to Joel "So, what would she decide, huh? Because I think she'd wanna do what's right. And you know it. It's not too late. Even now even after what you've done. We can still find a way" and Joel for a moment ponders over what she says but then shoots her in the stomach. And then we see Marlene lie on the floor, pleading for her life "Wait! Let me go!" but Joel looks at her and says "You'd just come after her" and he shoots her in the head. 

And last of all is Ashley Johnson who makes an appearance as Anna, Ellie's mother who gives birth to Ellie in her main scene where being attacked by an infected who bites Anna on the leg but Anna manages to kill the infected with a switchblade (presumably the same one Ellie uses later on). 

And I will mention her main scene where Marlene finds Anna in the abandoned house a short while after she gave birth to Ellie And Anna pleads with Marlene to shoot her and look after Ellie and says to Marlene "How long have we know each other?" and Marlene says "All our lives" and Anna pleads with her "Please you have to take her and shoot me" and Marlene tearfully refuses at first but realises she has little choice. So, Marlene takes the baby outside and gives it one of the Fireflies and says "Cover her ears" and Marlene goes back in and shoots Anna. 

SUM UP

So, to sum up Look for the Light is a great ending to the series which remains very faithful to the original ending of the game. The episode all features great performances from the two leads as well as solid performances from Merle Dandridge and Ashley Johnson in her brief role as Anna, Ellie's mother. It also features some charming moments between Joel and Ellie such as the giraffe scene, Joel opening up on his suicide attempt over losing Sarah and the puns scene. 

There are one or two complaints however such as despite his performance for the most part being great, Pedro does deliver a couple of lines in a lame way and the main one being when Joel says to Marlene "You'd just come after her" before shooting her as he says it in such a flat lifeless way that doesn't work. Then there is the line at the very end of the episode where Ellie asks Joel to tell her that what he said about the Fireflies is true and Joel says "I swear" and again he delivers it in a flat way with little conviction. But these are minor complaints and Pedro's performance over all as Joel has been excellent throughout the series. 

Another issue is to do with of course the lack of infected once again as there is a moment in the video game where Ellie and Joel take out some infected before they reach the Fireflies lab and we only get that one infected at the start that attacks Anna. So, viewers really do get short change once again with the lack on infected, who were intrinsic part of the game and the world. 

The episode is also a bit too short as well given it is a finale as I mentioned earlier, it has the shortest run time of all the episodes in the series, which seems a bit puzzling given a finale should by all rights be longer. So, this definitely gives this episode a rather rushed feel particularly in the moments such as the pun scene, which could have had more time to breath than it was given. 

Regardless of all that, this is still a strong closing episode of series 1 and it bodes well for series 2, which might not be for another year or two yet. 

So, I will give Look for the Light:

9 out of 10 

So, that's it for this one guys and I will be back at some point with a non Last of Us related post.

Until then its bye for now.

The Last of Us Series 1 Review Part 3 - Episodes 7-8

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, now its time for the final part of my review of The Last of US TV show based on the acclaimed video game and here I will look at episode 7 and 8 of the series and see how they compare to the game. I was going to do the finale episode together with 7 and 8 but I figured I would do that as a single post of its own instead, so that will possible on from this.

And the usual warning is coming...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!!!

Episode 7 - Left Behind

So, episode 7 is based on the game's DLC of the same title, Left Behind and is primarily a flashback story surrounding Ellie's last night with her best friend Riley as they sneak out and find an abandoned shopping mall. 

And the episode begins with Ellie looking after Joel, who was badly wounded in the previous episode with a stab wound. And Joel pleads with Ellie to leave him and travel, which Ellie considers as she moves to the door but then she thinks back to the events that lead up to her being infected. 

So, the story shifts back by 3 months to when Ellie was in a military boarding school run by FEDRA and in the school, Ellie get's into a fight with one of the cadets. Ellie is later taken to Captain Kwong (Terry Chen) who tells her she should follow the rules as she could become a leader one day of FEDRA. 

Ellie later on that night encounters an intruder sneaking into her room, who turns out to be her best friend, Riley (Storm Reid) who had run away a few weeks ago previously. Riley tells Ellie that she joined up with the Fireflies (who are opposed to FEDRA) much to Ellie's surprise but also says she wants to take Ellie somewhere special which turns out to be an abandoned mall. In the mall, Ellie to her delight has some first experiences of a using an escalator, riding a carousel, a photo booth and finally an arcade where they both play each other at Mortal Kombat II.

However during their time there, Ellie discovers Riley has some homemade bombs and Riley tells Ellie that the Fireflies are moving her to Atlanta and that she took Ellie here to say goodbye for she leaves. Ellie storms off in a huff but soon returns on hearing a scream, which just turns out to be a ghoul puppet in the mall. Riley asks Ellie to forgive and to lighten the mood, Riley puts on a song and they put on some Halloween masks and dance. Afterward they remove their masks and share a moment where Ellie tearfully asks Riley not to go and Riley agrees and they both kiss. 

However, they are then interrupted by an infected stalker, who attacks them both and between them they manage to finally kill the infected. Riley however indicates to Ellie that she has been bitten on her arm, much to Ellie's horror and Riley herself has been bitten on her hand. Together they tearfully sit with one another and decide what they should do before they turn into infected themselves and Riley suggests they should wait it out and lose their minds together and sit and hug each other. 

The story then moves to the present where Ellie makes her decision to stay and save Joel as she desperately rummages through some drawers to find something to help Joel and she discovers a needle and thread. Ellie then runs back to Joel and holds his hand tight and begins to stitch up his wound with the needle and thread in an effort to save him.

THOUGHTS

Left Behind is easily one of the best episodes of the series so far and it is beautifully played by both Bella Ramsey and Storm Reid who plays Riley as they bring the DLC perfectly to life on the small screen. And their story is charming, funny and heartbreaking all at once as these two best friends have a great time and even discover their love for each other before it all comes to a tragic end when they are bitten by an infected who was in the mall. Pedro this time takes a back seat in the episode given the main focus is on the story of Ellie and Rilley and that Joel is gravely wounded there isn't much for him to do anyway. But this episode definitely works really well and given the DLC is part of the game, it certainly deserves its own episode here. 

PERFORMANCES 

As for the performances they are superb in this episode and both Bella Ramsey and Storm Reid are terrific here and share a great chemistry with one another as Ellie and Riley. 

Starting with Bella, who easily gives her best performance here so far in the series as she shows a whole range of emotions here from anger, joy, fear, love and sadness all rolled perfectly into one episode. 

And Bella has numerous highlights in this episode that include the scene where Riley sneaks into Ellie's room at the FEDRA school. And Riley sees Ellie's scar from her fight earlier on and Riley says "Tell me who did it and I'll fuck them up!" and Ellie tells her "I already fucked them up!". Ellie than asks Riley "Tell me where the hell you've been these last 3 weeks!" and Riley admits "I joined the Fireflies" and she shows Ellie a tattoo on her stomach and Ellie surprised says "Holy shit! You actually did it!!" and Riley says "I said I was going to wasn't I?". Riley then says to Ellie "I want you to come with me and have the best night of your life".  

Then there is the scene where Ellie enters the mall and Riley turns the power on and lights up the mall for Ellie to see it properly. And Riley says to Ellie "Tonight I'm going to show you the wonders of the mall!" as Ellie looks on in amazement. And then after this, Ellie rides the escalator and says "Shit! What is this?!" and Riley tells her "Its called an escalator" and Ellie says "Wow! This is so fucking cool!" as she runs up and down it. 

And then there is the scene where Riley gives Ellie a book of puns (the one Ellie has on her throughout the series). So, Riley produces the pun book and says "Ta-da!" and Ellie excitedly says "Shut up! They made a second one! Where did you get that?" and Riley reads from it "What did the frustrated cannibal do?" and Ellie says "Lay it on me" and Riley says "He threw up his hands" and they both laugh. Ellie then says "Gimme. I want a go!" and she takes the book and reads one "What did the triangle say to the circle?" and Riley feigns uncertainty "Oh...." and Ellie says "You're so pointless!". Ellie then reads another "How does a computer get drunk? It takes screenshots!" and they laugh and Riley asks "What are screenshots?" and Ellie says "I don't know!". 

Another great scene is when Ellie finds out that Riley has been making bombs for the Fireflies and she storms off in a huff and shouts "None of this shit was about me was it?!". Riley then goes after her and says to Ellie "Tonight's my last night in Boston" and Ellie angrily asks "Why did you bring me here? and Riley says "Because I wanted to see you" and Ellie asks "And..." and Riley tells her "And I wanted to say goodbye. This isn't easy, Ellie" and Ellie spitefully says "It is, you just said it. Goodbye!" and she storms off.

And last of all is the scene where Ellie and Riley both dance with one another wearing their masks and they take them off and share a laugh and a moment as they stare at each other. And Ellie emotionally looks at Riley and says to her "Don't go" and Riley smiles and says "Okay" and Ellie suddenly kisses Riley and they both smile and Ellie says "I'm sorry" and Riley just smiles and says "For what?" and they both giggle. Ellie then asks "What do we do now?" and Riley smiles and says "We'll figure it out" but then they are both interrupted by the infected who attacks them both and after a struggle they kill the infected but soon discover they are both bitten. And this gives us the best moment from Bella Ramsey in the entire series up to this point where Ellie looks down at her bite mark on her arm and screams "No, no, no, no!! NO!!!!!!" as she frantically rubs her arm and looks in horror at Riley who reveals the bite on her hand. Its a great moment without a doubt and worthy of an Emmy nomination alone for Bella, who if she isn't nominated for one next year, it will be a total insult!

Storm Reid next up is great in her role as Riley, Ellie's best friend who has joined the Fireflies and comes back to share one last night with Ellie before she leaves but their night ends with tragic circumstances. And Storm is easily up to the task of holding her won with Bella in her role and makes Riley a likeable rebel and their friendship is both funny and heartbreaking all at once.

And Storm has her share of great scenes that include the one where Rile first sneaks into Ellie's room and she tells Ellie she joined the Fireflies. And Ellie asks Riley "Why didn't you tell me about any of this?!" and Riley says "I don't know. I just panicked. And I ran and the longer I was away, the harder it was for me to come back, does that make sense?". Ellie then says "No, I get it. I wouldn't have gone back to ya know" and Riley smiles and says "You know, you're the one thing I missed from that fucking place...if that makes a difference" and Ellie smiles. 

And there is the scene where they enter the mall and Riley asks Ellie "What did you think?" and Ellie looks on amazed and says "This is...Wait what about the lights?" and Riley reassures her "Its alright, this is basically just a big bunker. No one can see shit but us and besides its just me and you. And you ain't seen nothin yet! Tonight I'm gonna show you the four wonders of the mall!". 

Then there is the scene where Ellie discovers the homemade bombs that Riley has made and she makes to leave angrily. So, in the scene Ellie says to Riley "So you leave me. I think you're dead. All of a sudden, you're alive. And you give me this night... this amazing fucking night. And now you're leaving again. Forever. To join some cause I don't even think you understand. Tell me I'm wrong!". And Riley says "I think... that you don't know everything. You don't know what it was like to have a family. To belong. I mean, I didn't have them for long, but I had them. I belonged to them. And I want that again. Maybe the Fireflies aren't what I think they are, but they chose me. I matter to them" and Ellie tells her "You mattered to me first!". And Ellie asks Riley "Why did you bring me here?" and Riley says "Tonight is my last night in Boston and because I wanted to see you...and this isn't easy Ellie" but Ellie says "It is, you just said it, goodbye!" and she storms out.

And last of all is the emotional scene where after Ellie and Riley have both been bitten they tearfully sit with one another. But before that, Ellie smashes the glass in some display cabinets as she screams "GODDAMN IT!!!!" and finally collapses and Riley calmly tells her "There's some more shit over there if you want to break something else". Ellie then sits down next to Riley and Ellie asks "What are we going to do?" and Riley says "Well the way I see it we have two options. One...we take the easy way out. Its quick and painless. No, no, I don't like option one. Option two is that we just keep going". Ellie tearfully says "What are you talking about?! Its over" and Riley says "It will be...but not yet but whether its two years or two minutes, we don't give that up" and they hold each others hands. Riley then tearfully says "We can be all poetic and shit and just lose our minds together" and Ellie asks "What is option three?" and Riley in tears says "I'm sorry" and they both hug and I'm getting sad just typing this!!!

As for Pedro, well he doesn't have much to do in this episode as he mainly just lies on the floor and his one notable scene is where he tells Ellie to abandon him and leave him behind but Ellie refuses to and later of course stitches up his wound with a needle and thread. 

SUM UP

So, to sum up, Left Behind is a great episode, which is beautifully funny, touching and tragic all at once and its emotional pay off with Ellie and Riley is another big one that packs a real punch. It also showcases two superb performances by Bella Ramsey and Storm Reid and this is definitely some of Bella's finest work in the series so far and it will be criminal if she doesn't get an Emmy nomination for her work on this series as she just gets better and better as it goes on. And there are some minor differences from the game DLC here and there but for the most part it is faithful to the DLC's story and is easily one of the highlights of the series so far. 

So, I will rate Left Behind

9 out of 10

Episode 8 - When We Are In Need 

So, episode 8 sees things carry on from where the previous one left off with Ellie taking care of Joel, who is badly wounded from his stab wound and she runs into a seemingly benign person named David, who offers her to come back to religious group but he's not all he seems.

And the episode begins with Ellie hunting for deer to get something to eat as she also cares for Joel, who's wound has now turned infectious. Ellie soon encounters two men David (Scott Shepherd) and James (Troy Baker, who voiced Joel in the games) and David offers to help her as Ellie asks them if they have medicine for infections and David says they do have penicillin and Ellie offers them half the deer in exchange for the medicine and David tells James to go back for it. David in the meantime sits with Ellie and reveals that one of his men were killed by a man traveling with a girl, which makes Ellie immediately suspicious and James soon returns with the penicillin and David allows Ellie to leave. Ellie then returns to give Joel the injection to save his infection.

The next day however, David then heads back out with his men to find Ellie's whereabouts and to get revenge for the death of the man, Alec, that Joel killed in episode 6 that stabbed him. Ellie on hearing them coming, draws them away from their hideout riding horseback but she is shot off her horse by James. David takes Ellie back to his community, which is run as a religious cult and locks her in a cage and she notices a severed ear lying on the ground and from this we see that David has been feeding his group the dead bodies of their group, which they are not aware of. David also offers Ellie to join their group and even lead it with him but Ellie refuses and breaks David's finger and he angrily leaves. 

Meanwhile Joel awakens and has slowly recovered from his wounds and kills one of David's men who enters the hideout. Joel then knocks out and brutally interrogates two more of David's men and forces them to show where Ellie has been taken to on a map and as one of the men shows Joel on the map, Joel stabs the man to death and the other terrified man says he wont tell him anything and Joel coldly says "Its ok. I believed him!" and he beats the man to death with a pipe. 

Back at the community, David drags Ellie out of her cage and prepares to kill her with a meat cleaver but she tells him that she is infected and shows her the bite on her arm and warns him that he is infected too now as she bite his hand. Ellie manages to escape and kill James with the cleaver in the process and David follows her. Ellie sneaks into the steakhouse and throws a broken piece of wood on fire that sets the house alight, David tries to reason with Ellie who attacks him but he pins down her down on the ground. David then tries to rape Ellie but she manages to grab his cleaver and viciously stabs him to death with it in a blind rage. 

Ellie later on stumbles outside, traumatized by the experience, Joel runs into her and she screams at first until she sees it is him and then sobs and hugs him and Joel holds her and says the words "Its OK baby girl! I got you. I got you" as Joel gives Ellie his jacket and they walk away from the smouldering steakhouse. 

THOUGHTS

When We Are In Need for me is hands down the best episode of the series as it is a very powerful, at times disturbing but unquestionably gripping episode that sees some superb performances especially from Bella Ramsey and Scott Shepherd who as Ellie and David engage in a psychological battle with each other throughout. And yes the episode does yet lack the presence of any infected, which did upset some fans particularly as there is a scene in the game where Ellie and David work together and fight off some infected when they first meet and he gains her trust before showing his more sinister side whereas here Ellie mistrusts David from the start. However, I think the battle of the minds works so well here in the episode that you don't really need the infected scene and the series tries to push the angle that infected wouldn't be found in more isolated areas unlike the game where they are everywhere. 

They also decided to go with the idea of David being something of a religious cult leader who has found God and preaches to his community even though most of them are unaware that they are being fed the flesh of the dead bodies in the group. And you could maybe argue the religious themes feel a bit cliched but the idea of David hiding the cannibalism from his community is altogether a better and more twisted idea than them just being cannibals in the game. 

PERFORMANCES

As for the performances, starting with Bella Ramsey, this is hands down her best performance in the whole series as she gives her absolute all in this episode showing Ellie's raw emotions from anger, fear to absolute blind rage as she fights for her life against David.

And Bella has so many highlights in this episode that include the scene where David having locked her up in a cage, returns with some food on a plate, which slides through to her. David tells her "For what its worth, its just deer meet. I swear" and Ellie notices the severed ear on the floor and she says "You're gonna chop me up into little pieces" and David says "I'd rather not. Please tell me your name. If you want to judge me..." and Ellie shouts at him "Judge you?! You're EATING PEOPLE! You sick fuck!" and she kicks away the plate. And they talk for a bit and David then rests his hand on the cage and Ellie reaches out her hand and puts it on his as David tries to get her trust. However then Ellie breaks David's finger and he cries out and steps back and angrily says "You little cunt!" and Ellie says "Ellie." and David asks "What?" and Ellie says "Tell them all Ellie was the little girl that broke your FUCKING FINGER!!!" and David threatens her "What was it you said? Tiny little pieces??!".

And this is followed by the scene where David and James drag Ellie out of the cage and put her on a table and prepare to kill her with a butcher knife. And Ellie screams "Wait!!! Wait!!" and James tells her "Shut up!" and Ellie begs "Wait, wait, wait!! Please don't do it! Please don't do it!" but David says to her "You had your chance!" and as David lifts the cleaver into the air, Ellie yells "I'M INFECTED!!" and she says to him "Look at my arm, roll up my sleeve! Look at it!!" and they do and see the bit mark on her arm. Ellie then says "I'm infected and now are you" as we see the bite mark on David's hand and Ellie says "Like you said, everything happens for a reason right?" 

And then there is the brutal scene where David pins down Ellie and tries to rape her and she manages to grab his cleaver and stabs him with it 22 times screaming with rage and terror and grief all at once before she finally stops with her face all covered with blood. We then see Ellie emerge from the smoking steakhouse only to bump into Joel and she screams "NO! GET OFF OF ME!! GET OFF!" and Joel tries to calm her down and says "Its ok! Its me! Its me!!" and Ellie sees him and calms down a little but she can barely speak and only manages "He..." as she sobs and hugs Joel and Joel warmly holds her and says "Its ok, baby girl. I got you, I got you". Its easily one of the most powerful and emotional moments in the show when Joel calls her "baby girl" the same as he did with his daughter Sarah as he now sees Ellie as his own daughter. This is the stuff that Emmy and BAFTA award winning performances are made of, just incredible stuff from Bella throughout.

Pedro Pascal is also really good once again here although he doesn't really appear properly toward the end of the episode as Joel still recovering from his stab wound and thanks to Ellie treating his wounds with penicillin, he makes a recovery and begins his search for her. 

And Pedro has two notable scenes in the episode starting with the one where he brutally tortures two of David's men to find out where Ellie is being held. And I actually have to say I really felt sorry for the men Joel tortures here as the creator of the show Craig Mazon does a good job at making these men basically human and fearful for their lives in live or death situations similar to when Joel kills Bryan in Episode 4. 

And in the scene one of the men, Marco says to Joel "Please leave him alone" and Joel threatens him "You're next" and the other man, Timothy says "Please, I don't know any girl" and Joel then stabs him in his knee and Timothy screams "FUCK!! Jesus! Marco!!" and Joel hits him on the face and says "He can't help you. Focus right here. Or i'll pop off your fuckin knee-cap". Timothy manages to say "She's alive" and Joel twists the knife in and asks "Where?" and Timothy in great pain says "The town" and Joel yells "WHAT TOWN????!!!" and Timothy says "Silver Lake!" and Joel pulls out a map and Timothy says "Its not a real town. Its a resort". 

Joel then pulls the knife out of Timothy's knee and shoves the handle of the knife into his mouth and points to the map and says "You're gonna point to where we are and where your resort is. And it better bet the same exact spot your buddy points to". Timothy leans forward and points the knife to a spot on the map and releases the knife from his mouth and he pleads "That's where we are. Go ask him. He'll tell you. I'm not lying!". Joel then plunges the knife deep into Timothy's chest and Marco shouts out in horror "JESUS!!! Why the fuck did you do that?! He told you what he wanted!!". Joel then walks over to Marco and grabs a lead pipe and Marco tearfully says to Joel "You motherfucker. Fuck you. I ain't telling you shit!" and Joel says "Its OK. I believed him!" and he swings the pipe down on Marco and we cut to black.

And last of all is the memorable scene at the end where Ellie having just brutally killed David, stumbles outside into the snow in a daze, Joel then runs up to her from behind and she screams "NO!! GET OFF OF ME!! GET OFF!". Joel then tries to calm her down and says "Its OK! Its OK! Its me! Its me!" and Ellie begins to sob and tries to tell Joel what happened with David "He..." and she hugs him and Joel warmly holds and comforts her saying "Its OK, baby girl. I got you. I got you" and the two of them leave together. It certainly is one of the most powerful scenes in the series and indeed the game as it packs quite an emotional punch and its just a pity that it took such extreme circumstances for them to finally truly bond as adopted father and daughter. 

Scott Shepherd next up is terrific in his role as David, the creepy leader of a religious group who appears to be benign but is in reality a predatory cannibal who wants Ellie for his own depraved ends. And Shepherd does a phenomenal job in the role even better than Nolan North did in the game as his David is even more creepy and sinister than the David in the game given that he deceives his group into thinking they are eating deer meat but are in fact eat the flesh of dead bodies while preaching the faith of God to them all at the same time! 

And Shepherd has his share of great scenes in this episode that include the one where David and Ellie share a fire together not long after they first meet and David sends James off to get medicine for Joel and he explains that their meeting is not by chance. So, David tells Ellie "See I believe everything happens for a reason. For example, one of our group, Alec was a man with a family and a little girl and he was killed recently by a crazy man, who was also seen with a little girl" and Ellie suddenly flinches and David smiles and says "You see? Everything does happen for a reason". 

Another great scene is where David has Ellie locked in a cage and he talks of his group and that he is a preacher and Ellie says "Is this some weird cult thing?" and David smiles and says "Well you got me there. I am a preacher but just pretty standard bible stuff". Ellie says "The whole world ended and you still believe that shit?" and David says "I actually believed it after the world ended. Before that I was a math teacher. Math. Taught kids your age". David then says "Well...I found God after the apocalypse, which is either the best time or worst time to find him". 

Then there is the great scene where David tries to reason with Ellie while she is locked in the cage and tells her "You see a lot. So do I. And you know what I see when I look at you? Me. You remind me of me. You're a natural leader, you're smart...you're loyal. Violent" and Ellie unsettled by this says "You don't anything about me". David however tells Ellie "I do. If I let you out that cage right now and put that knife in your hands, you'd stick me in a second. You have a violent heart. And I should know, I've always had a violent heart". And as he approaches her, he puts his hand on the cage bar and Ellie seemingly puts her hand on his as he tries to convince her to join him but she twists his hand instead and tries to grab his keys and he pushes her back. David then gets up and says "You little cunt!" and Ellie tells her name to him "Ellie" and David asks "What?" and Ellie says "Tell them Ellie is the little girl that broke your FUCKING FINGER!!" and David threatens her "What is it you said? Tiny little pieces?!". 

And lastly there is the great scene where Ellie narrowly escapes being cleaved by David and runs away into the steakhouse and David tries to find her. So, David says to Ellie who is hiding "Ellie! Ellie... I know you're not infected. No one infected fights this hard to stay alive. So... how did you do it? What's the secret? Or are you just that fucking special? No one likes being humiliated, Ellie. You don't know how good I am! You don't know what I could've given you! If you had just LET ME!". David then continues as the fire spreads around him "Well, I have news for you. Neither one of us is dying today. You see, I've changed my mind. I've decided you do need a father. So I'm gonna keep you... and I'm gonna teach you. Ellie. Ellie...".

Ellie then charges at him and hits him in his side with a knife and David pushes her to the ground and he whinces as he grabs his side "Ah fuck!". Ellie then desperately goes for David's meat cleaver and David kicks her in the stomach and turns her over and pins her down and sits on top of her and says "Oh, I thought you already knew! The fighting is the part I like best!" and Ellie screams and David leers at her and says "Don't be afraid. There's no fear in love" and he moves to undo his belt and Ellie manages to grab the cleaver and hit him with it and she then goes to town on his face and stabs him 21 times with the cleaver in a blind rage. 

And last of all is Troy Baker who does a fine job with his somewhat smaller role as James, David's second in command who is aware of the cannibalism in the group. I won't mention any of his scenes here though for time but his performance is pretty good all the same and his character is more keen to kill Ellie and get rid of her than take her back as James says to David "She'd just be another mouth to feed, David". And later on of course, Ellie kills James with the same meat cleaver she butchers David with although instead James literally gets it in the neck, which apparently was a scene they need to shot quite a few times! 

SUM UP

So, to sum up When We Are In Need is my favourite episode of the series and it really sees the cast all on top form and Bella Ramsey at her peak in the show and she should win an Emmy on the strength of this episode alone. The episode is of course quite dark and disturbing in its tone even more so than the others in the show but it doesn't detract in any way from its power or its raw emotion. If I did have one criticism however, it would probably be the brutality of Ellie's murder of David as she stabs him twice as many times in the show as she does in the game but then Joel stops her in the game after 10 stabs as he gets inside the steakhouse but here he doesn't as David says he locked the doors, so Ellie had no one to hold her back. So, it definitely remains easily the most shocking murder in the entire show and indeed the game.

You could also argue if you are purist fan of the game that the lack of infected is also another issue with this episode as Craig Mazon seems intent on diminishing their presence in the world as the series continues to the point you have to wonder is it worth trying to get a cure for the infection anymore especially there are no infected to be seen!! 

However all that aside, this is still a fantastic episode and a very powerful piece of drama that is hard to watch at times but is also undoubtedly compelling viewing and the best the series has to offer. 

And I will rate this episode: 

10 out of 10

So, that's it for Part 3 and I will be back soon with the final part and the final episode of the series.

Until then its bye for now! 

 

 

  

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Last of Us Series 1 Review - Part 2: Episodes 4-6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, now onto Part 2 of my review of the acclaimed HBO TV adaptation of The Last of Us starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey in their iconic roles of Joel and Ellie and here I will cover episodes 4 to 6. 

So, let's take a look at how the mid series episode fair compared to the first three.

And the usual warning is coming up...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD THROUGHOUT!!!

Episode 4 - Please Hold To My Hand

So, episode 4 begins with Joel and Ellie driving toward Wyoming to find Joel's brother Tommy, who is concerned for his safety. However after some rest in the woods, they re-embark on their journey until they come to a roadblock which Joel is forced to drive around and as they drive on, a man suddenly appears begging for help but Joel refuses to and drives the truck toward and we soon see its an ambush as the truck runs over spikes taking out the wheels and overturning the truck. Joel and Ellie manage to flee into a launderette where Joel manages to kill two men but a third attacks him by surprise and very nearly chokes Joel to death but Ellie at the last minute appears and shoots the man in the back. The man, Bryan, begs for his life as Joel takes the gun off Ellie and he takes a knife from Bryan and warns Ellie to get behind the broken wall, which she does just before Joel fatally stabs Bryan.

Later, Joel admits his guilt for forcing Ellie into the position of shooting Bryan and he apologizes for it but Ellie also tells him that it wasn't the first time she shot someone. Joel then gives the gun back to Ellie and shows her how to grip it properly and allows her to keep it much to her delight that he trusts Ellie enough to use it. 

Meanwhile, the story then shifts to the leader of the bandits that Joel attacked, Kathleen (Melanie Lynskey) who is out to find one man, Henry, who ratted out her brother to be executed. Kathleen questions some other collaborators on Henry's possible whereabouts and one of them confesses his possible location. Kathleen however then orders her second in command, Perry (Jeffrey Pierce) to kill the collaborators and burn their bodies when finished. 

Back to Joel and Ellie they break into a building in order to find somewhere to sleep for the night and Joel breaks some glass, so he can hear anyone coming. Before they go to sleep however, Joel questions Ellie over what she meant by not her first time but she refuses to talk about it and Joel admits that killing someone is something that never gets easier when you get older. Ellie then to break the gloom tells Joel a pun that makes him laugh and the two of them share the moment laughing together. However not long after, Ellie and Joel are awakened by Henry and his young brother Sam, who hold them at gunpoint...

THOUGHTS

Please Hold To My Hand up to this point is actually my favourite episode of the show so far and its mainly because this is where Joel and Ellie start to cement their bond and it also features some fun moments from the game. Not only that but the episode has a slightly lighter feel to it despite some of its more dramatic moments. Joel also starts to show signs of caring for Ellie as he apologises for putting her in a position where she had to shoot the raider that attacked him. We also get some welcome moments of humour that include Ellie's pun book, which makes Joel cringe and finding Bill's somewhat gay magazine in the back of his truck! 

PERFORMANCES

As for the performances again the two leads are great here and they ably supported by its supporting cast too.

Starting with Pedro as usual as Joel once again he provides some great moments in his performance here. And the first one I will mention is the scene where Joel tells Ellie a bit about Tommy and he says to her "You keep going for family" and Ellie asks him "Am I not family?" and he tells her "No, you're cargo". 

And then there is one of my favourite moments is in the scene where he Ellie saves Joel from being killed by the raider and he turns to her and takes the gun and the raider's knife and he says to her in an intense voice "Get back behind the wall!". Then there is the scene where Joel shows Ellie how to grip a gun properly and as he gives it to her she is about to put it in her jacket pocket but he stops and says "Put it in your pack. You'll shoot your damn ass off!". 

And last of all is the moment where Ellie tells the cheesy pun about how "Did you know that diahorrea is hereditary. It runs in your jeans" and Joel turns around and looks at her and turns back and tries not to laugh and says "That is so goddamn stupid!" and Ellie smiles and says "You laughed motherfucker!" and Joel says "I didn't laugh!" and Ellie says "You did!" and Joel says "Jesus, I must be losing it!" and Ellie smiles and says "You're losing it big time!" and they both laugh together. 

And Bella really starts to shine here in this episode as we get to see her not only deliver the cheesy puns every fan of the game loves but also shows her guilty and sadness over the loss of her best friend Riley, which she hints at but doesn't tell Joel about but also the shock of Joel's murder of the raider. And Bella perfectly delivers the puns in the scene where Joel refuels the truck and she gets out the book and Ellie reads one of them "No matter how hard you push the envelope, it will always be stationary!" and she grins while Joel doesn't look amused. Ellie then reads out another "What did the mermaid wear to her math class? An alge-bra!" and she laughs out loud and reads another "I waited up all night for the sun to rise and then it dawned on me!" and Joel says "Feel free to wait in the truck" and Ellie says "OK but just so you know, you can't escape Will Livingstone (the pun book author). He'll be back!". 

This is then followed by the scene where they camp out in the woods and get in their rucksacks (which belonged to Bill and Frank) and Ellie says of her rucksack "This one is nice and clean" and Joel says "That would be Frank's then!". And as they try and sleep Ellie asks Joel "Joel, can I ask you a serious question?" and Joel says "Sure" and Ellie then asks "Why did the scarecrow get an award?" and Joel turns to her and says "Because he was outstanding in his field" and Ellie surprised says "You dick! Did you read that?" and Joel smiles and says "No, go to sleep". 

And later on there is of course the scene where Joel and Ellie try and get some sleep in an abandoned building and Ellie shares yet another pun. So, Ellie asks Joel "Joel, did you know diahorrea is hereditary? It runs in your jeans!" and Joel says "That is so goddamn stupid!" and Ellie laughs and says "You laughed motherfucker!" and Joel says "I didn't laugh. Jesus I'm losing it!" and Ellie laughs and says "You're losing it big time!" and they laugh together. 

As for the supporting Melanie Lynskey does not too badly with her role as Kathleen, the leader of the raiders who is out to try and find Henry, who betrayed her brother to be executed. Although I do have to say I found Kathleen's character to be somewhat redundant in a way and not really necessary to the story and just a generic, crazy leader who has a ruthless streak in her and will kill anyone who opposes her. 

And last of all is Jeffrey Pierce who is pretty good in his role as Perry, Kathleen's second in command, who also voiced Tommy in the video game as well as in the sequel. Jeffrey isn't given a great deal to do here but his small role still works well within the frame of the episode and he makes for a bit more interesting a character than Kathleen is. 

SUM UP

So, to sum up, Please Hold To My Hand is definitely one of the strongest episodes of the series even if some fans might be divided on the inclusion of the character Kathleen, who does seem a bit pointless in a way to the plot. But this episode definitely begins to cement Joel and Ellie's relationship bit by bit and the puns and the lovable moment they share together laughing near the end makes it worth watching alone. Not only that but it also shows the powerful impact of Ellie's choice to shoot the raider and the guilt it makes her feel later on, which begins to show Joel care for her that makes their characters so watchable. 

So, with that I will rate Episode 4:

8.5 out of 10 

Episode 5 - Endure and Survive 

So, episode 5 begins where the previous one left off with Henry (Lamar Johnson) and his younger deaf brother, Sam (Keivonn Montreal Woodward) holding Joel and Ellie at gunpoint. However despite their rocky start, Henry persuades Joel and Ellie into helping them as he says he can provide a way for them to get out of the area via the tunnels. Ellie quickly bonds with Sam as the two of them play together and read comics, which Ellie has been collecting. Henry meanwhile talks to Joel about escaping Kansis City but he also reveals that he was a collaborator, who gave up the brother of the city's resistance leader, Kathleen, who is out for revenge. Joel is initially not happy hearing this as he doesn't work with "rats" as he puts it but Henry insists he is their best chance of getting out of here. 

After they navigate and leave the tunnels however, a sniper gets a drop on them and with Joel killing the sniper (who is a bad shot!) it alerts Kathleen's men nearby who soon converge on them. Kathleen orders for Henry to give himself up, which he does but before Kathleen can shoot him, a hoard of infected emerge from the ground and attack everyone, which ends up with Kathleen being killed by a child clicker and her second in command, Perry being torn apart by a heavily mutated infected known as a bloater. Henry and Sam along with Ellie eventually escape with the help of Joel providing sniper support nearby as the infected rampage through the city. 

Later on, the group seek refuge in a motel and Henry accepts Joel's offer to join them on their trip to Wyoming. However that night as Ellie and Sam are together, Sam reveals that he has been bitten on his leg and Ellie cuts her hand and smears some of her own blood on Sam's wound in an effort to treat it and Sam asks Ellie to stay awake with him and the two hug. However in the morning, Ellie wakes up and finds Sam sitting on the bed lifeless until she goes near him and he attacks her having become infected. Henry stops Joel going for his gun and after a moment finally shoots Sam, leaving Henry devastated and as Joel pleads for him to give him the gun, Henry turns the gun on himself. Not long after, Joel buries both Henry and Sam's bodies and Ellie sadly leaves a note for Sam saying "I'm sorry" before they leave. 

THOUGHTS

Endure and Survive is another fine episode in the series that sees the introduction of two more popular characters, Henry and Sam, two brothers who are fugitives running from the resistance group Henry betrayed. And in a change to the video game, Sam is now younger and deaf and communicates through sign language and uses a board to write messages on and this is an inspired change as it makes him even more innocent than in the video game where I felt that Sam came off as being a bit whiny but here Sam is so more sympathetic and likeable. And this also leads into one of the most heartbreaking, tragic moments from the game which happens at the end of the episode. 

PERFORMANCES 

As for the performances, the cast are all excellent here for the most part.

Starting with the regulars as usual, Pedro does another fine job again here as Joel and he does very well at conveying his mistrust of Henry at first when Henry reveals he is a collaborator and Joel says "I don't work with rats!". Pedro also gets an amusing moment during the scene where a sniper tries to kill Joel, Ellie and the others but he has poor aim and Joel says to them "I'll try and distract him as he's got shitty aim!". Its almost like a storm trooper moment in Star Wars as they infamously has crap aim in the films! ;-). One thing I would have to say is that Pedro doesn't have many standout moments in this episode though and he will stronger moments in the next episodes.

Bella Ramsey once again really shines here as Ellie and has the most highlights of anyone and Ellie's bond with Sam is very touching and poignant especially given the tragic ending. It also shows more of Ellie's kindness and compassion after seeing much cheek from her up until this point even though Bella's performance has always been likeable. 

And Bella's best moments are when she is with Sam and particularly the scene where they sit and ask each other questions via Sam's writing board and Sam writes "What are you afraid of most?" and Ellie writes jokingly "I am afraid of..." and shows him the board "Scorpions!" and Sam doesn't react and Ellie writes again "I am afraid of ending up being alone". And Sam then writes on the board "If you turn into a monster, is it really still you inside?" and he shows Ellie the bite mark on his leg he got during the infected attack earlier. Ellie then hurriedly writes on the board "My blood is medicine!" and she takes out her switch blade and cuts her hand and rubs some of her blood on Sam's wound in an effort to save him. Sam then writes on the board "Stay awake with me" and she hugs him. 

As for the supporting cast, Lamar Johnson is excellent in his role as Henry, a collaborator who is on the run from the resistance group lead by Kathleen after he gave up her brother in exchange for medicine for Sam, who has leukemia.

And Johnson has some great moments in his performance such as in the scene where Henry tells Joel that he isn't a violent person. And he says to Joel "Pointing a gun at you is the closest I've come to being violent" and he notices Ellie and Sam play in the background and Sam laughs and Henry says "Its been a long time since I've seen him smile". 

Then there is the scene where Henry admits to Joel that what he said earlier about him not being violent ever was not entirely true "When I said I had never been violent before, well that's not entirely true. See I'm the most wanted man in Kansis because I gave up someone".

And last of all is tragic scene where the next morning after Sam is bitten, he attacks Ellie and they burst through into the next room where Joel and Henry are and as Henry fires a warning shot at Joel before he can get his gun, Henry finally shoots his brother. Henry then looks on in horror at what he's done with tears on his face he says in a shaken voice "What did I do?! What did I do?" and Joel pleads with Henry "Henry, give me the gun!" and Henry then turns the gun on himself and fires and Ellie shouts "No!!" with tears in her eyes. 

Keivonn Montreal Woodward is also great in his role as Sam, the young deaf brother of Henry and Keivonn himself is deaf in real life and uses sign language. And he shares a nice bond between Lamar and you really buy their relationship and its all the more sad and tragic given that Sam is such a likeable, innocent character. He also shares some lovely moments with Bella as Ellie and Sam bond together in their scenes nicely. 

Melanie Lynskey also returns in her role as Kathleen, the resistance leader who is out for revenge to kill Henry for what he did to her brother. And she does not too bad here but the only problem is her character just feels redundant to the story and it feel like the Sam and Henry narrative could easily have worked without her being in the show. No offence to Lynskey herself as its more her character that is the problem here but she does well enough with her role regardless.

And last off Jeffrey Pierce also makes a return here as Perry, Kathleen's second in command and here he get's the honor of being a victim to the one and only bloater we see in the entire series (yep that's right!). So, yeah in the scene, Perry tries to defend Kathleen and give her time to escape while the bloater basically rips his head off! 

SUM UP 

So, to sum up, Endure and Survive is a really good episode and perfectly deals with some of the more touching and tragic characters in the show, Henry and Sam who really do get a heart wrenching ending. I also thought it was good how they did not show Henry shoot himself and cut away to Ellie instead and finality of seeing them being buried by Joel and Ellie leaving Sam's board with the words "I'm sorry" on it made this all the more poignant and tragic. Its also good to finally have a big action scene with the infected running amok and we also see the one and only bloater in the show killing everything in his path. Sadly after this, the infected's appearance in the show is much reduced. 

So, in the end I will rate this episode: 

8.5 out of 10 

Episode 6 - Kin

So, episode 6 begins with Joel and Ellie resuming their journey to Wyoming to find his brother Tommy and by now, the story has shifted to winter time and at the start, Joel intrudes on an elderly Asian couple and forces them to ask for directions on how to reach the destination of where Tommy would be. The couple are somewhat eccentric and seem unfazed by Joel's threat and in the end Joel accepts what they say and leaves with Ellie. However after they leave, Joel has a panic attack as he fears that Tommy might be dead, which leaves Ellie worried about Joel's health but he brushes it off as the cold air affecting him. 

However as they travel further west, they are soon surrounded by a group on horseback lead by Maria (Rutina Wesley) who has a dog sniff out Joel and Ellie to see if they are infected. The dog tries Joel first and registers he is not infected but Ellie nervously awaits her turn as the dog sniffs her but ends up playing with her and licking her face, much to her delight and relief. 

Maria then takes Joel and Ellie back to her community, which is safe zone and Joel finds his brother, who is alive and well, as he calls out to Tommy, the two of the reunite and hug. Joel however soon also finds out that Maria is Tommy's wife, which makes him feel resentful and jealous of their happiness. Joel then confides later in Tommy about Ellie's immunity but also how vulnerable he feels and he fears that will end getting Ellie killed just like his daughter Sarah did and he insists that he take Ellie to the fireflies instead to which Tommy eventually agrees although he also tells Joel Maria is expecting a baby.

Ellie in the meantime gets her haircut (which seems to annoy her!) by Maria, who tells her about Sarah being Joel's daughter but Ellie becomes defensive when Maria tells her to be wary of Joel because of his checkered past. Ellie later on having overheard Joel's conversation with Tommy confronts him over why he won't take her and that everyone else she cared for has died or left her except him. However when Ellie mentions Sarah, Joel immediately cuts her off and says that he isn't her dad and that they are going their separate ways in the morning.

In the morning however, Joel changes his mind and gives Ellie the choice to go with him or Tommy and she immediately chooses to go with Joel. As the two of them leave Jackson, they begin to bond more as Joel teaches her how to shoot a rifle and they talk about baseball (I think!) and Joel tells Ellie how he used to be a contractor and built homes and stores years ago. 

As they arrive at the site of the medical facility however, they find it has been abandoned and some monkeys scampering around inside. Joel also finds a map that suggests that the Fireflies have moved to Salt Lake City in Utah. However at this point, men appear outside and Joel and Ellie quietly leave and get back to their horse but are soon ambushed by one of the men, who Joel kills but he is stabbed in his side during the attack leaving him badly wounded but they narrowly escape the other men nearby. After they escape however, Joel gravely wounded falls off the horse leaving Ellie pleading for him to get up as she cannot carry on without him. 

THOUGHTS

Kin so far is my favourite episode of the series without a doubt and features some real highlights between the two leads and it also sees the welcome return of Tommy to the show. We also get to finally meet Maria, Tommy's other half and in contrast to the game, her character is black instead of white although this does make you question Joel's reaction a little as if he is a bit prejudiced towards Tommy's decision to marry a black woman at least that's kind of what I got from the episode but I could be wrong. Regardless this episode again is a great one and it also does a great job at showing Joel's vulnerable side and his intention of ditching Ellie is more out of fear of getting her killed rather than selfishness which is what we appear to get as Joel's motivation in the game. It also sees some really charming and even adorable moments from Ellie's character and her bond with Joel really begins to deepen here as its clear that Ellie is no longer just "cargo" to Joel as he told her in episode 4. 

PERFORMANCES

As for the performances, they are absolutely top notch in this episode and the two leads particularly give their best performances so far in the series right here. 

Starting with Pedro (as usual), this is arguably his best performance in the series and he really shows Joel's vulnerable side and that he does care for Ellie but is scared of losing her like did his own daughter Sarah and insists that Tommy take her instead. But he also enjoy some really charming moments with Bella as Joel and Ellie's bond reaches a new level.

And Pedro's highlights include the scene where Joel and Ellie near a dam, and Ellie says "Dam!" and Joel tells her "You're no Will Livingstone" and Ellie says "Who is? So that's the dam" and Joel says "Yeah, it provides electricity but don't ask me how it works as I don't have a clue!" and Ellie says "Its OK. You could have just made something up, I would have believed you!" as she teased him for not knowing how siphoning petrol works earlier in episode 4.  

Then there is one of Pedro's best moments in the entire series when he admits to Tommy his vulnerability and how feels scared that he will get her killed. And says to Tommy "I have dreams every night. I'm failing her over and over again" as he refers to Sarah and he says of Ellie "I'm just gonna get her killed, I know it! You have to take her!" and Tommy relents and says "I'll ride her out by dawn".

And this is followed by the great scene where Ellie confronts Joel as she overheard him talking to Tommy about leaving her. So, Ellie asks coldly "Why are you here?" and Joel says "I came to talk to you" and she asks "No, why are you STILL here?" and Joel after a beat says "What did you hear?" and Ellie tells him that she heard him say to Tommy that he has take to her. Ellie then angrily asks Joel "Do you give a shit about me or not?!" and Joel says "Of course I do!" and Ellie says "Then what are you so afraid of?!" and then "I'm not her you know. Maria told me about Sarah" and instantly Joel becomes angry and says "Stop! Don't say another word!". Ellie then approaches Joel and says "I'm sorry about your daughter, Joel but I've lost people too" but Joel angrily tells her "You have no idea what loss is!". Ellie then angrily tells Joel that everyone that cared for her has died or left her except him and if he palms her off to Tommy she would just feel more scared. Joel then says "You're right. You're not my daughter and I sure as hell ain't your dad! And come dawn, we're going or separate ways!" and he storms out. 

However the following morning, Tommy takes Ellie to the stables where Joel is standing by a horse and Ellie says scornfully to Joel "Did you come here to say goodbye or something?" and Joel says "No, I came here to steal one of these horses and go" and Tommy says "I would have gave you one" and Joel says "I know". Joel then says "Anyway that was 30 minutes ago and..." and he goes up to Ellie and says "You deserve a choice...you still think you'd be safer with Tommy?" and Ellie instantly throws her bag to Joel and says "Let's go!" and Joel taken by surprise says "OK". 

This is then followed by the funny scene where Ellie practices with Tommy's rifle and she can't shoot straight as she flinches when firing it. So, Joel says to her "You're flinching!" and Ellie "I'm not flinching, the rifle just sucks! The target is too small!" and Joel says "I made it bigger than I should have, eject the cartridge" and Ellie says "It doesn't aim right!" and Joel says to her "Give it here" and he takes the rifle. Ellie says to her "It doesn't aim right, you'll see!" and Joel carefully aims with the rifle and says "You need to hold it like you love it, aim careful slow, nice and easy..." and Ellie interrupts and says "Are you gonna shoot this thing or get it pregnant?!". And as Ellie says "It doesn't aim right!" Joel fires a perfect shot and Ellie looks through binoculars and says "You...dick!" and smiles as Joel give a little smug smile himself.

And last of all is the scene where Joel tells Ellie about how used to be a contractor and build up stores and homes in his previous job before the infection breakout (I think!). And he says to Ellie "Yeah I used to built home and stores that kind of thing. We were called contractors" and Ellie mimics his voice "A contractor. That's pretty cool" and Joel says to her "Yeah we were cool" and Ellie says "Nice" as they ride on and Ellie affectionately rests her head on Joel's back, which is nice little moment in itself. 

Bella Ramsey also is superb in this episode as she once again nails Ellie's character and she has some really adorable moments here as she shows Ellie's sense of humour at its best maybe in the whole series but she also does very well at showing Ellie's fear of being alone and the prospect of being abandoned by Joel.  

And Bella's great scenes include the one where Joel falls asleep while they camp out for the night and he wakes up to find Ellie standing by him carrying a rifle. And Ellie tells Joel "I took second watch while you were asleep. I checked around and did as you told me to, what can I say man? I'm a natural." and Joel says "You should have woken me" and Ellie said "You were tired" and Joel says "I'm not supposed to go to sleep, I'm supposed to protect you" and Ellie says "Then don't fall asleep" and Joel takes the rifle from her and nods. 

Then there is the scene where they approach a dam that is near the community where Tommy is and Ellie makes a cheesy pun and says "Dam!" and Joel says "You're not Will Livingstone" and Ellie says "Yeah but who is?". And as Joel tells Ellie the dam must provide electricity to the nearby areas he tells her "Don't ask me how, I haven't a clue" and Ellie says "That's ok, you could have made something up, I would have believed you!". 

And then there is the great scene where Ellie confronts Joel over him abandoning her for Tommy to take her to the Fireflies. So, in the scene Ellie says to Joel "Why are you here?" and Joel says "I came here to talk to you" and Ellie says "No, why are you STILL here?" and Joel after a pause says "What did you hear?" and Ellie says "That you have to take her". Joel awkwardly then tells Ellie "You know, i made this decision for your own good. You'll be way better off with Tommy. He knows the area better than I do" but Ellie stands up and asks "Do you give a shit about me or not?!" and Joel says "Of course I do!" and Ellie says "Then what are you so afraid of?!". After a pause Ellie says "I'm not her you know. Maria told me about Sarah" and Joel instantly says "Don't! Don't say another word...". Ellie then approaches Joel and says to him "I'm sorry about your daughter, Joel but I've lost people too" and Joel angrily says "You have no idea what loss is!". Ellie then says to Joel "Everybody I've cared for has either died or left me. Everybody FUCKING EXCEPT FOR YOU!" and she pushes him back angrily and shouts "So, don't tell me I'd be safer with somebody else because the truth is I'd just be more scared!". And Joel after a pause says "You're right. You're not my daughter and I sure as hell ain't your dad. Come dawn we're going our separate ways" and he storms out.

And the following morning Joel changes his mind and offers Ellie as choice to go with him and she quickly accepts and throws her bag to Joel and says "Let's go!" and Joel surprised at her quick decision says "OK" and she goes over to the stable horse and pets it as Joel looks to Tommy who nods accepting their decision. 

Then we have the scene which I've mentioned already in Pedro's paragraphs where Ellie practices using a rifle with Joel. So as she misses the target, Joel says to her "You're flinching!" and Ellie "I'm not flinching, the rifle just sucks! The target is too small!" and Joel says "I made it bigger than I should have, eject the cartridge" and Ellie says "It doesn't aim right!" and Joel says to her "Give it here" and he takes the rifle. Ellie says to her "It doesn't aim right, you'll see!" and Joel carefully aims with the rifle and says "You need to hold it like you love it, aim careful slow, nice and easy..." and Ellie interrupts and says "Are you gonna shoot this thing or get it pregnant?!". And as Ellie says "It doesn't aim right!" Joel fires a perfect shot and Ellie looks through binoculars and says "You...dick!" and smiles as Joel give a little smug smile himself.

And then there is the scene where Joel and Ellie ride their horse near where the medical facility is they are looking for and Joel says "There we go, we made it, five days" and Ellie says "Yeah, I don't know what Tommy was so worried about". Joel then warns her "There's still time to find out" and Ellie mimics his voice again and says "Still time to find out" and in a zombie voice says "The contractor!" and she smiles at Joel who turns round and almost smiles, which is another great little moment from Bella. 

And last of all the scene is where Joel is attacked by a man who carries a baseball bat and he kills the man but realises after that he's been stabbed in his side by a broken off piece of the bat and they narrowly escape the other men on horseback. However Joel afterward falls off the horse and Ellie pleads with him to get up "Joel! Joel! Joel, open your eyes! Open your eyes! I can't fucking do this without you! I don't where the fuck I'm going or what the fuck I'm going to do! Please...Joel".

Gabriel Luna next up is also very good in his role as Tommy, Joel's brother who despite Joel's fear for his brother's safety discovers that Tommy lives within a thriving community and is married to Maria who has their baby on the way too. 

And Gabriel's notable scenes include the one where Joel first tries to get Tommy to take Ellie to the Fireflies instead but he tells Joel that his wife is pregnant. So, Tommy says to Joel "Look, I need to be more careful now. Maria is expecting our first" and Joel gets the message and says "Alright. I'll get some supplies and we'll be out of your way in the morning!" and he storms off. 

And later there is the scene where Joel tells the truth about Ellie's immunity to Tommy and says to him "She's immune. I mean she got bit but didn't get sick. She's immune" and Tommy shocked sit down and says "OK, from the beginning". And Joel explains what happened and how Tess promised him to take Ellie to the Fireflies and he says how he is scared of getting Ellie killed and Joel tearfully tells Tommy "You have to take her!" and Tommy quietly says "OK, I'll ride her out at dawn". 

And last of all is the scene where Joel changes his mind and decides to take Ellie with him and he says to Tommy before they depart "General direction?" and Tommy tells him "Head west, go off the Interstate 5, you can't miss it. There's a place for you both here, you know that" and they both hug and Joel asks for Tommy's rifle. 

Rutina Wesley also does very well in her role as Maria, Tommy's wife, who is black instead of white like she is in the video game and it makes for a good change-up. Rutina also does quite well at showing Maria to being quite stubborn just like the Maria in the video game. 

And Rutina's most notable scene comes when Maria cuts Ellie's hair for her and they have an uneasy chat about Joel's past and that she was also formerly an attorney but also about Sarah. And in the scene Ellie says "I'm sorry about your kids" as Maria lost her child and she says "That's OK and just kid. Sarah was Joel's daughter" and after a beat Maria says "Oh, I've said too much" and Ellie says "No that's OK, its starting to make sense". Maria then goes to warn Ellie about Joel's checkered past but Ellie becomes defensive "Oh that he kills people! I know that! Didn't Tommy kill people too?".  And Maria puts down her scissors and says to Ellie "There's a whole lot you're not telling me. Good. Therein lies the point. Be careful who you put your faith in. The only people who can betray us... are the ones we trust". 

SUM UP 

So, in summing up, Kin is definitely my favourite episode of the series so far and its features great performances from the two leads in Pedro and Bella who play one of the most iconic scenes from the game to perfection and they also do a great job at showing Ellie and Joel's growing bond, which has a sad moment just at the end of the episode. Its good to see the return of Tommy and Pedro and Gabriel Luna share some nice brotherly moments in the episode and not quite as antagonistic as their scenes in the video game at this point. The episode also features a neat Easter egg in the scene where Ellie tells off a girl for staring at her while she eats at the community in Jackson and the girl is supposed to actually be Dina, who later on becomes Ellie's romantic interest in The Last of Us Part II.

So, with that all said, I will give Kin a rating of:

9 out of 10

So, that's it for now and I will be back soon with the 3rd and final part of my review of the Last of Us TV show.

Until then bye for now!

The Last of Us Series 1 Review Part 1 - Episodes 1-3

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, I've recently finished watching the finale of the HBO TV series adaptation of the acclaimed video game, The Last of Us and I decided it was time to do my own review of the series. 

Now there are 9 episodes in total for the series, so rather than do 9 separate posts, I thought I would combine episode reviews into three parts, so I will cover 3 episodes each per post and will try and not to go to deep into each one to avoid making the posts too long. 

So, with that all said, let's take a look at the first three episodes of the series and see how they compared to the game itself.

And the usual warning is coming...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD THROUGHOUT THIS POST!!!!

Episode 1 - When you are lost in the darkness

So, the first episode sets the scene with an intro scene in 1968 where a epidemiologist called Newman (John Hannah) goes on a debate show and talks about the dangers of fungus that could one day grow in humans. Newman further suggests that if any such fungus could mutate into humans then there simply wouldn't be a cure possible that would ultimately lead to the extinction of humanity. 

After this we move forward to the year 2003 in Austin, Texas where we meet our main protagonist, Joel Miller (Pedro Pascal) who lives with his 14 year old daughter, Sarah (Nico Parker). And there are reports of strange incidents breaking out with people showing signs of infection and one such person turns out to be an elderly neighbour, who one night Sarah discovers has killed her family and moves to attack Sarah who runs out. Joel soon turns up however and kills the lady with a wrench and he flees the scene in a truck with his brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) and Sarah. During a chaotic scene on the streets we see people fleeing for their lives as infected run wild and Joel's truck is overturned and they are forced to run on foot. Sarah however injured leg in the crash, so Joel carries through the streets but they soon encounter a soldier, who is ordered by radio to shoot them, Joel survives and is saved by Tommy, who kills the soldier but Sarah is fatally wounded and Joel inconsolably sods as holds her in his hands. 

The story then moves forward 20 years to 2023 where humanity has been ravaged by the Cordyceps fungal infection and the world has become a dystopian state with human survivors being rounded up into quarantine zones throughout the world. By this time, Joel is now a bitter, middle aged man who works as a smuggler along with his partner Tess (Anna Torv) as they live in a military controlled quarantine zone in Boston. Joel and Tess are on the hunt for a black market dealer named Robert (Brendan Fletcher) who sold them a car battery but double crosses them as he gave it to the fireflies, who are a resistance group who are opposed to FEDRA who run the QZ's. 

On their hunt for Robert they soon encounter the leader of the Fireflies, Marlene (Merle Dandridge) who tells them she wishes to trade the supplies in exchange for smuggling a 14 year old girl named Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and taking her to a hospital to which Joel and Tess agree. 

And from here Joel, Tess and Ellie embark on their dangerous journey....

THOUGHTS

As intro episode for the series, this is a very good start to the series and remains largely faithful to the game although it does offer an introductory scene with the epidemiologists discussing the dangers of a fungal infection breakout, which did not feature in the game. But this episode perfectly sets up the grim tone for the series and just how harsh and cruel a world people now live in after the outbreak the cordyceps infection. 

PERFORMANCES 

As for the performances, the cast are all excellent and the casting is just about perfect. 

Starting with Pedro Pascal who is excellent in his role as Joel, who is haunted by the death of his daughter and in the present has become a hardened man and a smuggler who trusts no one (except Tess of course!) and is reluctant to take on the task of smuggling Ellie. Pedro also has some really powerful moments in his performance and the standout one without question is the heartbreaking scene Joel's daughter, Sarah dies after being shot by a soldier and he breaks down in tears. Its an unforgettable stark moment and it packs a huge emotional punch. 

Bella Ramsey is also terrific in her role as Ellie, the 14 year old girl who is to be taken to a Fireflies hospital in Boston although she remains tight lipped as to why she is going but we find out soon enough. Bella also has an amusing scene where Ellie being held captive is asked to count to ten and she counts slowly "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8..." and she then holds up her a middle finger and says "...fuck you!". It shows early on just how defiant Ellie can be and her somewhat hot temperament but it also shows her trust in Marlene, who has looked after her since birth. 

Anna Torv is also great in her role as Tess, Joel's partner and a smuggler who works with him to recover a stolen battery but later agrees to smuggle Ellie in exchange for supplies. Anna's casting did receive some criticism from fans but she is really good in her role and plays the part very well as Tess is a tough bird and Anna shows that perfectly. 

Nico Parker is very good also in her role as Sarah, Joel's daughter, who is of course an innocent, likeable kid and sadly dies early on in the episode however to the show creators credit, they did expand on her scenes a bit more for the TV show as her appearance is all too brief in the game before she dies. Although one criticism I did have with Nico's performance is the scene where she stands in horror looking at the infected lady who has killed her family and doesn't move FOREVER until the infected woman is about to run at her! I mean come on, it were me I'd be running ages before that! 

And last of all is Merle Dandridge who reprises her role as Marlene, the leader of the Fireflies who was the voice actor for the role in the video game. And Merle does a fine job here with her performance and shares a good scene with Bella as Marlene and Ellie discuss what needs to be done. 

SUM UP 

So, overall this is a very good episode and good intro to the series although the pacing for it is a bit slow at times, so I don't quite think its a perfect one but its solid nonetheless and does its job for setting the scene of the show. 

So, I will give it:  

8 out of 10

Episode 2 - Infected

So, episode begins where the first left off pretty much with Joel, Ellie and Tess making their way toward the state house. However as Ellie is revealed to have a bite mark on her arm after they are held at gunpoint by a FEDRA soldier, Joel overpowers him and beats him to death, haunted by the death of his daughter to a soldier. Ellie reveals that she is immune to the infection as she was bitten 3 weeks ago and nothing has happened to her since and that she is to be taken to a medical facility out west run by fireflies who hope to crate a vaccine from her blood. Joel is reluctant to take her but Tess persuades him that they should as they will get supplies as a result. 

However before they can get anywhere near the state house, a pack of infected block their route, so they instead proceed through a nearby museum, which unfortunately also has some infected known as clickers moving through it. The clickers attack the group but Joel kills them although Ellie reveals that she has been bitten again in the struggle. On arriving at the state house, the fireflies there are already dead and Tess reveals that she herself has been bitten in the neck and pleads with Joel to take Ellie with him to the medical facility, which he agrees to and he leaves with Ellie just before the place is overrun with infected and Tess meets her end...

THOUGHTS

Episode 2 of the series is another very good episode which continues to show the slow development of the characters but also continues to highlight the tragic tones of the series after we discover that Tess has been bitten and Joel stands to face personal loss once again in his life as Tess was his romantic partner as well as business partner. We also start to see shades of Ellie and Joel's relationship slowly begin albeit at this stage, Joel is highly suspicious of Ellie's so called immunity and is reluctant to take her any further. We also get what is a rather controversial scene near the end of the episode where one of the infected that breaks into the state house, french kisses Tess with their fungus coming out its mouth! Its a pretty gross scene it has to be said without any doubt! 

PERFORMANCES

Performance wise again the cast are all on excellent form.

Pedro Pascal once again does a fine job in his role as Joel and does very well at showing his mistrust of Ellie's so called immunity. Pedro also get's some funny lines in this episode where Ellie asks him some questions about where he's from and his past and he keeps saying "Pass!" and "No more questions about me!". And then there is the amusing line where from Joel where Ellie keeps asking for a gun and she says "I have a spare hand" and he says to her "Congratulations!". 

Bella Ramsey also again shows why her casting as Ellie was inspired as she shows a more playful side to Ellie's personality as they progress through the area to the state house. And Bella has a funny moment where she finds a reception desk and puts on a Southern accent as a receptionist as she wades through the water to move a unit and Joel says to her "You're a weird kid!" and she says to him back "And you're a weird kitten!" but then a skeleton pops up out the water and she says "Sorry!". 

Anna Torv is excellent once again also as Tess, Joel's partner who unfortunately gets bitten by one of the infected later on in the episode and meets a tragic end as she is forced to blow up the house as it is overrun with infected and one of them plays tonsil hockey with his lips on Tess! Anna also has a good scene where she reveals her bite mark and she desperately pleads with Joel to take Ellie to the Fireflies facility and grabs Ellie's arm and shows her the healed bite mark she got earlier and says "This is real!" and tearfully asks him to "Save who you can" before Joel and Ellie run out. 

SUM UP 

So, again this is a pretty good episode with fine performances from Pedro, Bella and particularly Anna Torv here who poignantly plays Tess's end out very well and meets a rather disgusting controversial end with the now infamous infected "kiss" scene. Its also really good to see the clickers at last in the show as they are a key part of the game although we would later not see much more of them in the series, which is a pity. However again there are still better episodes yet to come and this is another solid one but still not one of the standouts.

And I will rate episode 2:

8 out of 10

Episode 3 - Long, Long Time 

So, episode 3 begins with Joel and Elle travelling on foot to Lincoln, Massachusetts where Joel intends to meet up with Bill (Nick Offerman) to get some weapons and supplies. Enroute, Joel discovers a small housing unit where he stashed supplies of his own, however on exploring inside, Ellie sneaks down in the basement and finds a trapped infected, who she stabs in the head to kill them before they move on.

The story then shifts back 20 years to where the breakout has just taken place and as occupants of Lincoln are evacuated from the area, one of them Bill hides out in a bunker until they have gone and he afterward proceeds to ransack weapons stores and arms supplies and builds himself an electric fence and trip wires to keep out any infected or raiders.  

A few years later as Bill continues to live alone, he one day encounters a man named Frank (Murray Bartlett) outside who bargains with him for a shower, meal and some clothes, which Bill reluctantly agrees to. However after the meal, Frank finds Bill has a piano and he plays a song "Long, Long Time" that is dear to Bill and the two men kiss and sleep together.

Three years later, Bill and Frank still live together as a couple and Frank befriends Joel and Tessa, who offers to work out a smuggling operation and Bill reluctantly accepts as he mistrusts anyone except Frank and Joel warns Bill that raiders will break through his fences before long. This then cuts to a fight scene where Bill fights off raiders and is shot as a result. 

The story then skips forward by ten years where Frank is terminally ill and with not long left to live, he chooses to die by being given a lethal dose of sleeping tablets by Bill, who spikes his drink also as he doesn't want to live without Frank and the two men after dinner retire to the bedroom as they await their deaths. 

The story moves back to the present where Joel and Ellie arrive at Bill's place and discover a letter written by Bill, which details their deaths and also he leaves all his supplies and truck to Joel. Joel and Ellie soon gear up and leave the scene. 

THOUGHTS

This episode was considered by many to be the best out of the entire series but for me personally, I thought it was weakest episode and I felt that it was somewhat disappointing that they opted for the romantic story over the scenes between Bill, Joel and Ellie which I really enjoyed in the game and missed seeing them banter together. However I guess the series to its credit was trying to do some things different and they opted for trying to deepen Bill's character and explore his homosexuality more which is implied in the game judging by the hanging corpse he cuts down which he claims to be a "brother" of his and later Ellie finds a men's magazine belonging to Bill found in his truck. 

PERFORMANCES 

Performance wise again the regulars are on good form here with Pedro providing some good moments and notably the scene where Joel tries to explain the origins of Cordyceps spread and he believed it to be in food supplies such as dough and rice. Its good that they tried to put some theories in the show rather than just leave it to the viewer's imaginations as it is more vague in the video game. Pedro also has a good scene where Joel and Tess have a dinner outside with Bill and Frank and Bill keeps checking his gun and putting it away out of habit. Joel talks with Bill about supplies but as Bill keeps checking his gun, Joel tells him "Keep that gun out of my face" and Bill finally puts it away.

Bella also does a fine job again here as Ellie and in this episode as the two of them hike together they slowly begin their bond although it is in its early stages here. Bella gets interesting scene where Ellie stumbles along an infected trapped under rubble in a basement and she uses her flick knife to kill it. She also has an amusing moment where she reads from Bill's letter and gives a creepy "heh heh heh" laugh as she reads part of it. 

As for the supporting cast, Nick Offerman does a fine job in his role as Bill, who is a lone survivor that lives alone after the infection breaks out but later meets the stranger Frank and begins a romantic relationship with him. Offerman's dialogue is more sparse here than it is in the game for Bill but he nonetheless does a good job at showing Bill as a loner and his connection with Frank is the only meaningful link he has in his life. 

Murray Bartlett also does very well with his character Frank, a stranger who later becomes a couple with Bill and he is the positive counterpart to Bill's negativity as the two of them start their relationship. And although I was a bit uncomfortable watching their sex scene, I have to say they still played their relationship nicely and Bartlett does a fine job at showing Frank's humanity and warmth and his terminal illness near the end makes it all the more devastating and sad. 

SUM UP

So, to sum up, Episode 3 is a good one but I personally found it was a bit overrated however Bill and Frank's romance did have its moments of charm but I still missed the original banter we got between Bill, Joel and Ellie in the video game. Perhaps though it was easier for them to do this as Bill's scenes in the game are pretty action heavy and that's something this series to an extent avoids for character development. I also found the episode to be pretty heavy going towards the end with the double suicide of Bill and Frank being a real downer even if it was well played by both actors. 

So, suffice to say to say that Episode 3 is my least favourite of the series even though it has its moments, it takes you out of the main story at the same time and I still prefer Bill's interactions and his personality in the video game than here.

So, I will rate Long, Long Time:

7 out of 10.

So, that's it for this post guys and I will be back soon with Part 2 where I will look at episodes 4-6.

Until then bye for now!