Season 2 of The Last of Us delves into Ellie’s anger at Joel for saving her life, exploring trust, betrayal, and painful choices.

The gut-wrenching world of The Last of Us is back, where survival is a constant battle, and so is trust and the consequences of hard choices. As season 2 of HBO’s adaptation kicks off, the relationship between Joel and Ellie is far from the heartwarming bond we witnessed in the first season. In fact, with the time jump, it’s downright strained.

While Joel’s decision to save Ellie’s life at the end of Season 1 seemed like a no-brainer at the time, it created a more complicated result than we imagined. So why is Ellie, now a young adult, so furious at the man who kept her alive? The answer is both heartbreaking and tragic, setting the stage for a season full of raw emotion and unresolved tension.
A still from The Last of Us Season 2 trailer | Credit: HBO

Why Ellie is so angry at Joel in The Last of Us season 2?

The HBO show, The Last of Us, based on the video game series, picks up five years after the events of Season 1’s heart-stopping finale. When we last saw Joel and Ellie, played by Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, they had escaped the Firefly Hospital to their destination, Salt Lake City. Ellie was meant to die to create a cure with her immunity for the deadly cordyceps infection.

Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us | Credits- HBO

Joel, unwilling to let her go, slaughtered the Fireflies, stole a car, and fled with Ellie. He told Ellie that the mission hadn’t worked out. At that time, Ellie accepted his words. But five years later, that trust has been shattered. While Joel acted out of love, the decision to take away Ellie’s consideration, keeping her in the dark, has left a deep scar.

It’s not about just shielding the truth; it’s the act of robbing her of control over her own fate. Her sacrifice could have saved a lot of lives, and Joel undermined that moral cause, without her consent. Ellie discovered the truth through a tense flashback.

She learns from a recording that the chance to create a cure was lost when the person who could have developed it was killed. This revelation sends Ellie into a spiral of anger as she confronts Joel about the lies. Season 2 picks up on this emotion thread, giving us a fractured relationship and very little screen time between the two characters.

The Last of Us season 2 introduces Joel’s vulnerable side

Pedro Pascal’s Joel and Catherine O’Hara’s Gail in a still from The Last of Us S2 | image: Max

The show also introduces a new narrative element: Joel’s therapy sessions. In an unexpected twist, the series explores Joel’s vulnerability by having him confront the emotional turmoil of his actions in therapy with Dr. Gail, played by Catherine O’Hara. It’s here that Joel admits that he “saved” Ellie yet still refuses to fully acknowledge the harm he caused. Meanwhile, the therapy session also leads to some shocking details.

Episode 1, Future Days, focuses more on these complex bonds than any fast-paced action. The complex nature of Joel and Ellie’s relationship is the heart of the story. While fans of the first season may be disappointed by the lack of joyful moments between the two leads, the emotional depth that Season 2 promises is undeniable.

In the end, the question is not just whether Joel and Ellie can ever truly understand each other again. As we venture further into The Last of Us’s post-apocalyptic world, one thing is clear: the emotional stakes have never been higher.

Watch The Last of Us season 2 on HBO Max.