Every great series has a moment that defines it. There’s the Red Wedding in Game of Thrones, and Breaking Bad had Walter White’s “Say my name.” The Last of Us has two. The first happened in season 1 (or the first video game) when Joel saved Ellie. The second happened in season 2, episode 2 of HBO’s show.
WARNING! SPOILERS FOR SEASON 2, EPISODE OF THE LAST OF US AHEAD!
Let’s get right into it. Joel was brutally killed by Abby. The decision he made to kill the Fireflies and the surgical team left Abby and her friends alone, without a purpose, and the Fireflies extinct. On top of that, the head surgeon on the team was Abby’s father.
After the incident, Abby walked in and saw her dad's dead body, including his brain being splattered on the floor. It’s not shocking that she would become obsessed with killing the person who murdered her father. It’s also not surprising that she lost it big time when she got the chance to get vengeance.
The final moments of The Last of Us season 2 episode 2 explained
One of the things that changed during this scene was switching Tommy with Dina. Instead of Tommy being pistol-whipped and knocked out like in the game, Abby told her crew to hold Dina while Nora (one of her friends) used something to painlessly knock her out. It seemed like a minor change at first until Abby told Joel to cooperate or they’d kill Dina. That was enough to show that Abby wasn't playing around. Then, Abby gets down to business in getting revenge.
Another alteration from the game was how badly Abby beat Joel. It wasn’t just the golf club. Abby pounded on Joel with her fists after beating him with the club. Joel wasn't moving or making a sound. It was like she was punching meat. Despite her friends wanting payback for the people they loved, even they couldn't stomach what she was doing.
When it came to finishing Joel once and for all, it wasn’t the swing of the golf club with a piece of brain on the head. She stabbed him in the neck with the club’s handle. And to add more to the scene, we see Abby crawl over to Joel, pleading for him to get up as Abby and her team leave.
What's next after Joel's death?
This is where things start to pick up even more. Ellie mentioned that she and Joel had tried to become close again after the incident at the New Year's Eve party (season 2, episode 1). And while they weren’t on speaking terms, Ellie still would have been hurt after her father figure’s death. The difference now is that she’ll have regret. She spent so much time hating him, and now she'll never get that time back.
From this moment forward, you’re going to see a different kind of Ellie. There will be moments when she will resemble herself. She will make jokes and be awkward around Dina, but Ellie will never be the same. You’ve been warned.
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