The previous episode of The Last of Us season 2 opened with Sgt. Elise Park of the Washington Liberation Front (or WLF) explaining that she sealed her team in the basement to avoid infecting their team. According to the lead officer (who was also Sgt. Park’s son), the infection was in the air. That means the cordyceps virus has evolved to produce spores. Locking them in the basement was the only way to keep everyone safe.
After the cold opening, Dina and Ellie continued their journey to find Abby, and it almost ended in their death. Thankfully, Jesse showed up in time to save them from the stalkers. The three then got separated after Dina was shot with an arrow, and Jesse took her back to their base. Instead of following them after distracting the Seraphites, Ellie went after one of the people who helped Abby kill Joel: Nora.
The episode ends with Ellie beating Nora for information on Abby. Then, something weird happens. Instead of seeing what happens next for Ellie, Dina, and Jesse, viewers see Joel. And that sets the stage for what is undoubtedly going to be the series' most emotinal episode.
The Last of Us season 2 episode 6 release time on HBO Max
The next episode of The Last of Us will premiere on both HBO and Max on Sunday, May 18, at 9:00 p.m. ET, 6:00 p.m. PT, 7:00 p.m. CT, and 8:00 p.m. MT. Like all HBO shows, The Last of Us will air on the cable network for those who watch linear TV, but it will also be available to stream on the Max platform simultaneously.
With that in mind, if you're watching from outside the US on either Max or a channel that airs it at the same time, here are the release times for episode 6 in each time zone.
- Hawaii: 3:00 p.m. HST on Sunday, May 18
- Alaska: 5:00 p.m. AKDT on Sunday, May 18
- West Coast of the US: 6:00 p.m. PT on Sunday, May 18
- Mountain Time: 7:00 p.m. MT on Sunday, May 18
- Midwest of the US: 8:00 p.m. CT on Sunday, May 18
- East Coast of the US: 9:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 18
- Brazil: 10:00 p.m. BRT on Sunday, May 11
- Portugal and Western Europe: 2:00 a.m. WEST on Monday, May 19
- UK (Sky Atlantic): 2:00 a.m. GMT on Saturday, May 19
- Spain and Central Europe: 3:00 a.m. CET on Monday, May 19
- Bulgaria and Eastern Europe: 4:00 a.m. EEST on Monday, May 19
- India: 6:30 a.m. IST on Monday, May 19
- New Zealand (Neon): 1:00 p.m. NZST on Monday, May 19
What to expect from Joel's return in The Last of Us season 2
Don’t get your hopes up. This isn’t a comic book where the hero returns from the dead to save the day. Joel Miller is still dead. However, The Last of Us hasn’t shown Ellie’s birthday trip to the Wyoming Museum of Science and History, and that will happen in this episode.
Despite the lack of action, Joel and Ellie’s time in the museum is one of this writer’s favorite moments from The Last of Us Part II. And since the creative team on the show has done a nearly flawless job with the content, we can expect the same brilliant storyline adapted in this episode. On top of that, we should finally see Ellie confront Joel about what he did to the Fireflies in Utah. And, like other things from the show, this will likely be different than what happened in the video game.
Either way, prepare for an emotional one!
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