From SRP author Taylen Carver:
Spoiler alert! If you haven’t seen Season 2, Episode 2 and don’t want your heart smashed, maybe don’t scroll.
But since you’re here…
So I dove into Season 2 of The Last of Us, feeling that same rush as I did in Season 1: post‑apocalyptic, creatures that are definitely lightning‑fast zombie–adjacent, and above all, the emotional trope of “one lost soul saves another.” Joel and Ellie felt like that symbiotic knot — he the wounded protector, she the bright spark carved from trauma. I loved Season 1 for that.
Then – wham – Episode 2, “Through the Valley” (aired April 20, 2025) gutted me. Joel’s murder felt unearned and vicious: a golf‑club ambush that wasn’t merciful or meaningful, just sorry violence. Even critics admit it landed like “The Red Wedding times a million” for non‑gamers. I’m with them – I was staggered, appalled, grief‑stricken.
The showrunners apparently leaned into the brutality to echo the game’s tone, and while some applaud its narrative boldness, others saw it as a shock tactic that undermines the character bond. HBO did get points for emotional tension – the clash between the Jackson attack and Joel’s murder is beautiful, in a Greek tragedy sort of way – but it left the core emotional dynamic amputated.
Plot-wise, this choice was too soon. Joel was the heart of the show. Killing him before we’d gotten another beat with him felt like self‑sabotage. The ratings tanked 31.5 % after that episode – viewers just didn’t come back.
I get it. I’m already queasy at the idea of a revenge‑quest Ellie solo, facing armies as a thirty‑something young woman jacked up on emotion. It feels like echoing The 100’s tired tropes, not surprising given the second game struggled to land the same way. And yet HBO goes there.
I know sometimes a shocking twist—killing a beloved character—can relaunch a show. It can puncture complacency. But not this time. They knew the source material was controversial; they knew the game’s second half didn’t land so well. Yet they pulled the trigger anyway. It may be faithful, but it’s narratively self‑mutilating.
So yeah, I’m out. No snark about season‑long montages of Ellie in blackface or Ellie’s inevitable arc of single‑handing a militia. It’s not just the violence that bothers me—it’s the emotional erasure. The quiet chance for Joel to atone, for Ellie to find her feet, now replaced by a vengeance engine. I loved it because Joel got his second chance, and Ellie got herswith him. That’s gone.
TL;DR:
- Loved Season 1 for emotional grit between Joel & Ellie.
- Horrified by brutal and early Joel death (Episode 2).
- Viewer drop-off proves the choice alienated many.
- Now? Ellie’s path looks like a revenge cliché, not a dynamic duo journey.
- My verdict: This twist didn’t relaunch the show—it assassinated its emotional core.
Maybe I’m just old-fashioned. Maybe I get too attached to fictional men with guns and tragic backstories. Or maybe—just maybe—there was something truly special in the Joel-and-Ellie bond that made The Last of Us more than another grim survival tale. But now that magic’s gone, and I’m stepping off the ride.
If you’ve watched Season 2, I’d love to hear what you thought. Did Joel’s death work for you? Is Ellie’s arc enough to carry the show forward?
Drop a comment and let me know—I promise not to bring a golf club.
Taylen Carver
SRP Fantasy Author
Browse Taylen’s books here.
