‘The Last of Us’ season 2 let me down — here’s 3 things the finale can do to win me back
I’m a “Last of Us” superfan. The PlayStation duology ranks among my favorite video games of all time, and I was hugely impressed by the first season of the HBO show. Sadly, I’ve had a less enthusiastic response to “The Last of Us” season 2.
I’ve been left feeling largely disappointed by the show’s long-awaited return, as each episode makes more and more significant changes to the source material that, in my opinion, don’t benefit the overall story.
It’s not that “The Last of Us” season 2 has been especially bad, it’s just not hit the heights of season 1, and hasn’t resonated with me in the way The Last of Us Part 2 video games did, and continues to do so to this very day.
Nevertheless, with the finale set for this weekend (airing on HBO and Max on Sunday, May 25), I’m preparing to watch with an open mind and the hope that the season can be salvaged at the death. For that to happen, here are the three things I want to see in “The Last of Us” season 2, episode 7.
But first, a quick spoiler warning: this article contains spoilers for The Last of Us Part 2 game and may contain spoilers for future episodes of the HBO show.
Bring Tommy back into the fold
One of the most curious changes that the HBO show has made compared to the original video game is its handling of the character of Tommy (played by Gabriel Luna in the show).
In the Part 2 game, Tommy is the one who first heads out to Seattle to find (and kill) Abby, with Ellie and Dina following in his wake. Alternatively, in the world of the show, Tommy is a pillar of the community in Jackson and a family man with a young child. He stays behind to rebuild the makeshift town following its attack by a horde of infected, with Ellie and Dina trekking to Seattle on their own to find Abby.
I wasn’t a fan of this change, but with the die now cast, at the very least, I want Tommy to be properly brought back into the mix. The good news is Tommy’s reemergence appears almost certain. We know he’s now on the board, as Jesse revealed in episode 6 that the other Miller brother accompanied him to Seattle.
Tommy’s role should be sizeable in the finale, and that’ll make me very happy.
Don’t change Jesse’s fate
“The Last of Us” as a franchise has never been scared of shock character deaths, and arguably the most out-of-the-blue kill in the series to date is that of Jesse.
There’s no buildup to this murder. Instead, Ellie and Jesse hear somebody breaking into their theater base, sprint to confront this intruder (revealed to be Abby), and in a split second, Jesse is snuffed out via a bullet to the head.
It was a moment that left me nearly breathless when playing the game for the first time. I was initially convinced that Jesse hadn’t just died in such a sudden way. But in the world of “The Last of Us,” key characters don’t always get heroic deaths or dramatic send-offs. This apocalyptic world is much too brutal for every character to go into the dark night with a fitting swansong.
The show needs to keep this important moment intact, and fortunately, I think it most likely will. While season 2 has made a boatload of changes, it has, at least so far, kept the narrative broad strokes the same, and I hope it won’t go as far as to alter a key character’s untimely fate.
Keep Abby’s iconic line
OK, so I’ll fully acknowledge this one is a bit of a nitpick, but I was super disappointed that Joel’s iconic line just before his brutal murder at Abby’s hands (“Why don’t you say whatever speech you got rehearsed, and get this over with.”) was removed in favor of one that lacked the same punch.
The much-anticipated theatre confrontation between Abby and Ellie, which all signs point towards being the bookend of “The Last of Us” season 2, contains an equally iconic moment, when Abby, shocked to discover the person hunting her and her friends down is Ellie and Tommy, spits out “we let you both live and you wasted it” before raising her gun to shoot. Cut to black.
It’s a real fan-favorite line, and I’ll be pretty miffed if this dialogue is also removed (or significantly reworked). Here’s hoping the show opts to keep this intense scene pretty much unchanged.
When you land on perfection the first time, why alter things the second time?
