‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 review: Joel and Ellie’s return devastates and infuriates

The Last of Us Season 2 is just as moving as its predecessor, but it’s also infinitely more frustrating. Just like in Season 1, series co-creators Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) and Neil Druckmann (creator of The Last of Us game) have crafted a stirring post-apocalyptic tale about the relationship between survivors Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey), one that’s just as likely to fill your heart as it is to stomp it into tiny pieces. However, as the season aims to expand the world of The Last of Us beyond its central pair and the settlement of Jackson, Wyoming, it often falls short of the in-depth world-building that made Season 1 feel so lived-in and complete.

The Last of Us Season 2 is a haunting continuation of Joel and Ellie’s story.

Bella Ramsey in “The Last of Us.”
Credit: Liane Hentscher / HBO

The Last of Us Season 2 picks up five years after the Season 1 finale, when Joel wiped out the Fireflies in Salt Lake City to save Ellie’s life. Now, the two live in the thriving community of Jackson alongside Joel’s brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) and his wife Maria (Rutina Wesley). However, their relationship has frayed to the point that they’re barely on speaking terms. Joel grapples with loss by speaking with town therapist Gail (a wonderfully no-nonsense Catherine O’Hara), while Ellie immerses herself in patrol duty with new friends Jesse (Young Mazino, Beef) and Dina (Isabela Merced, Alien: Romulus). The season’s early episodes spend a lot of time establishing the daily rhythms of Jackson, from city planning and council meetings to community dances and baseball games. The mundanity of the tasks allows us to sink into a post-apocalyptic world where stability is possible. That stability makes Joel and Ellie’s silent treatment all the more heartbreaking, especially given all they went through to reach Jackson in Season 1.

If Season 1’s motto was “endure and survive,” then Season 2 focuses on what happens after those survival attempts. Joel continues to confront his actions in Salt Lake and the resulting lie to Ellie about what transpired. The repercussions of that lie resonate throughout the season, with The Last of Us thoughtfully revealing how it has altered Joel and Ellie’s connection. Pascal and Ramsey are once again extraordinary together, each portraying emotional restraint on the edge of breaking. Pascal exudes guilt and melancholy, while Ramsey simmers with rage, and by the end of the first episode, you’ll long for them to mend their father-daughter relationship. (By the season’s conclusion, forget longing — you might just feel shattered.)

Joel isn’t the only character affected by the events of the Season 1 finale. Firefly Abby (a magnificent Kaitlyn Dever) and her fellow soldiers are the sole survivors of Joel’s rampage, and they seek revenge. Their quest for vengeance pulls the citizens of Jackson into a broader conflict, one that intersects with a war-torn Seattle ravaged by the tyrannical Washington Liberation Front (WLF) and the extremist Seraphites. The Last of Us Season 2 is stunning, though it feels incomplete.

Kaitlyn Dever in “The Last of Us.”
Credit: Liane Hentscher / HBO

The WLF (whose members are known as Wolves) and the Seraphites (whom the Wolves refer to as “Scars”) are significant new players in The Last of Us Season 2. However, despite the anticipation surrounding their introduction, they feel somewhat disconnected from the season, even though Ellie spends much of it in Seattle, their territory. In theory, this makes sense. As a newcomer in this world, Ellie has no idea of the conflict into which she’s stumbled, and she often tries to sidestep these rival factions. Yet The Last of Us frequently cuts to scenes of WLF leader Isaac Dixon (Jeffrey Wright) discussing attack plans or Seraphites worshipping their prophet. While these sequences provide some context, they feel somewhat perfunctory. The show primarily utilizes them to set up Ellie’s subsequent encounters rather than fully immersing us in this new environment. (A torture sequence featuring a monologue by Isaac about cookware stands out as a highlight of the season.) Otherwise, we have very little insight into the nature of their conflict or a deeper understanding of these characters. Like Ellie, we find ourselves as mere observers rather than active participants, with the Seattle episodes diverging significantly from the richly crafted Jackson segments.

The disjointed nature of these Seattle scenes results from the lack of a clear emotional anchor in the WLF or Seraphites. Without one — and with the unfortunate underutilization of Dever, Mazino, and Luna — The Last of Us Season 2 feels incomplete. This sense of incompleteness is by design, stemming from bold and effective storytelling choices in The Last of Us Part II. However, the transition of these choices to the screen can feel jarring, especially after the adaptation’s early choices suggested a different trajectory. It is often unfair to judge what isn’t present in an adaptation — the game and the show are distinct experiences, after all — but throughout The Last of Us Season 2, certain omissions strongly call for inclusion. (The season’s peculiar pacing also stems from its length: seven episodes simply isn’t enough for a show of this magnitude to present a satisfying and compelling narrative.) Yes, much of this season is spectacular, from Joel and Ellie’s heart-wrenching relationship to a snowy Clicker battle reminiscent of Game of Thrones’ “Hardhome.” But ultimately, it’s just one half of a great story — is that sufficient?

The Last of Us Season 2 premieres April 13 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max.

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