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REVIEW: ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 Episode 6: And The Award Goes To Pedro Pascal

  • Christopher Mills
  • May 18
  • 4 min read

At the end of last week's episode, Dina and Ellie went searching for the hospital in hopes of finding Abby and her people, only to get cornered by Stalkers. Thankfully, Jesse comes to the rescue and helps them escape before they run into Seraphites who injure Dina and cause them to run once more. After splitting from the group, Ellie finds herself at the hospital, where she brutally tortures Nora in an attempt to obtain information about Abby's whereabouts. The pain and rage that Ellie is letting out are causing her to remember about the good times with Joel and why she's doing all this.

This episode gives us a further exploration of the relationship between Ellie and Joel, how it developed over the years, and we really get a first look at the type of man Joel grew up to be. This is the first flashback episode of the season, similar to Season 1 Episode 3, "Long, Long Time". The episode opens up on a young Joel and Tommy in Austin, Texas, 1983, as Tommy has gotten himself into trouble and worries about getting physically abused by his father. Joel steps up for him and takes the blame to protect his own brother, and this calls back to Joel's behaviour with Ellie and other scenes that will play out later in the episode.

© HBO
© HBO

From the finale of The Last of Us Season 1, the audience is aware of Joel lying to Ellie about what happened at Salt Lake City to protect her, but this episode showcases that hiding the truth in hopes of protecting someone's feelings can only cause more harm than what the initial truth is capable of. Nine months before Season 2, Episode 1, Ellie is seen preparing to ask Joel about what happened all those years ago when she got rescued but gets interrupted when he arrives to take them out on a patrol. While out, they find Eugene, Gale's husband, who has been bitten.


This scene is heartbreaking as Eugene begs to see his wife one more time so that he can hear her last words to him before he succumbs to his wounds. Joel delivers false promises to Ellie of bringing him back to Jackson so he can say goodbye, and you can witness the moment in Ellie's voice and her eyes where she realises that Joel has likely lied to her about the events of Salt Lake City, and you begin to see where their relationship starts to deteriorate. Bella Ramsay gives her best performance in this episode and showcases that she has the skill to play Ellie at her various ages, highlighting the range that Ramsay brings to the role of Ellie and that when the writing is strong, she's able to elevate it further.

Throughout the episode, we get to see Ellie age and how Joel chooses to celebrate her birthday, with the highlight being the trip to the space museum. It's a moment from the game that's almost a 1:1 recreation of one of the most wholesome scenes in the entire franchise. The cinematography in this scene with Ellie in the shuttle is unlike anything the show has been capable of producing beforehand, recreating the lift-off and transporting Ellie and the viewers to that world. What's so beautiful about this episode is the nuance it's able to bring to the table. Every little thing matters in this episode from Joel and Ellie's mannerisms to the little interactions that they have.

© HBO
© HBO

It all comes together in the final scene, which takes place on the night of the Jackson party where Ellie and Dina first kissed. The iconic porch scene. A sequence that players of the video game only got to see just before the credits rolled at the end of the game, so it was shocking to see that Craig Mazin and the creators of this show decided to place it at the end of this episode. With it placed here, it provides a different perspective on how Ellie may treat future characters she comes across and her perception of her relationship with Joel. This scene is a tear jerker, and it shows that although Joel's actions may be selfish, he only ever has the better interests of the people he's trying to protect at heart. They might not be the morally correct choices to make, but they're the difficult decisions that no one else but him would choose to make. It's a beauty to see Pedro Pascal return in the role of Joel once more this season as he delivers a strong and poignant performance worthy of winning an Emmy.

With one episode left, there's still a lot of worry that the final episode may feel rushed, but that doesn't takeway from the fact that this episode, with Pedro Pascal's outstanding performance and Bella Ramsay's immense range, is easily the best episode out of the entire show. If there's one thing The Last of Us knows how to do well, it's really allow for these characters to feel fleshed out and give time for the audience to feel connected to them.


Rating: ★★★★½

About The Last of Us

The Last of Us. © HBO
The Last of Us. © HBO

Premiere Date: April 13, 2025

Episode Count: 7

Executive Producer/Showrunner: Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, Carolyn Strauss, Jacqueline Lesko, Cecil O’Connor, Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan, and Evan Wells

Writer: Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, and Halley Gross

Director: Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, Mark Mylod, Peter Hoar, Kate Herron, Stephen Williams, Nina Lopez-Corrado

Production: PlayStation Productions, Word Games, Mighty Mint, Sony Pictures Television and Naughty Dog

Distribution: HBO

Cast: Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Gabriel Luna, Rutina Wesley, Kaitlyn Dever, Isabela Merced, Young Mazino, Ariela Barer, Tati Gabrielle, Spencer Lord, Danny Ramirez, Jeffrey Wright and Catherine O’Hara.


Synopsis: Five years after the events of the first season, Joel and Ellie are drawn into conflict with each other and a world even more dangerous and unpredictable than the one they left behind.

1 Comment


HB Edit's
HB Edit's
May 19

I agree with your review, best Episode Of The Entire Show 🙌🏻❤️

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