It’s time. The Last of Us season finale. “Look For the Light.” Here goes…
Birth | A pregnant woman named Anna (Ashley Johnson, who played Ellie in the video game) runs through the woods and into an abandoned house. Her water breaks as she makes her way into a bedroom as an infected attacks her and bites her just as she gives birth. She tearfully holds the baby and as it cries, she says, “You tell them, Ellie.” In the dead of night, Marlene (Merle Dandridge) and two men arrive at the house, looking for Anna. They find her holding Baby Ellie with a knife to her own throat and Anna begs Marlene to take Ellie to Boston with the knife that Ellie will later use. Anna also asks Marlene to kill her, but she refuses- but shoots Anna regardless as Ellie cries.
Life | In present day, Joel (Pedro Pascal) finds a game of Boggle for Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and offers to teach her how to play guitar, but Ellie is still traumatized from the David incident. They arrive at Salt Lake City, and end up inside a building, where Ellie sees a giraffe eating leaves from a hole in the wall. Joel and Ellie feed leaves to it in a peaceful moment and Joel offers Ellie the chance to go back to Tommy’s and live a good life. Ellie promises she’ll go with him anywhere he wants after they finish their mission.
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They venture into a medical camp, where Joel admits to Ellie that he was in one after trying to kill himself after Sarah’s death and flinched when he pulled the trigger. Ellie tells him that she’s glad he didn’t kill himself, after which she reads puns to him- before two soldiers toss a flash grenade at them and knock Joel out.
Death | Joel wakes up in a hospital with Marlene standing over him. She says that Ellie is fine and is being prepped for a surgery that would remove the Cordyceps from her system and be used to make a cure for the infection- but it would kill Ellie. Joel protests, but Marlene orders her men to escort him from the building and gives him Ellie’s knife. Joel takes the gun from the man guarding him and slaughters the entire army inside the hospital to get to Ellie. He kills one of the doctors about to operate on Ellie and takes the unconscious Ellie down the elevator.
He heads to the parking garage and is met by Marlene, who tells Joel that no matter what, their journey will end badly. She puts her gun down and tells him it’s not too late, as we then cut to Joel driving Ellie away. She wakes up and Joel lies to her, saying that there’s no cure for the infection. We then see Joel back in the garage killing Marlene in cold blood.
He drives her to Wyoming and Ellie confesses that she killed Riley after she got infected. As Joel talks about how all they can do is carry on after loss, Ellie asks him to swear that he was telling the truth about there not being a cure. He swears, and she says one word: “Okay.”
Stream The Last of Us now on HBO Max.