Joel unleashes hell and won’t let anyone get in his way (Picture: HBO)
Warning: spoilers ahead for The Last of Us season 1 episode 9.
We’re not going to be forgetting this season finale for a very long time.
The Last of Us TV series, based on the video game franchise of the same name, has been nothing short of a phenomenon since its release, following the treacherous journey being faced by Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) in a devastating, post-apocalyptic world.
Over the course of nine episodes, their bond has strengthened to the point that neither of them can deny that they now view each other as a father and daughter, as they both risk letting down their walls once again to be vulnerable with someone who they truly care about.
Joel calling Ellie ‘baby girl’ in episode eight not only sparked sobs across the globe – as it was the same pet name that he used to give his late daughter Sarah (Nico Parker) – but it also cemented their unbreakable bond. They had become each other’s ride or dies.
While Joel initially tried to deny that he felt any attachment to Ellie earlier in the series, by the final episode, he’s not going to let anyone or anything harm a hair on her head… even if it could mean saving the world.
Joel and Ellie are in it together (Picture: HBO)
For Joel, he has one priority, and that is to make sure that he doesn’t lose Ellie.
So when he finds out that the Fireflies plan on killing her in a surgical operation so that they can extract the Cordyceps from her brain to try and use it in a vaccine, the former smuggler has just one thought – destroy anyone who gets in his way as he embarks on saving her life.
It’s been noted that in the TV show, Joel appears far more weakened than in the video game – a realistic portrayal of a 56-year-old who’s suffered both emotional and physical turmoil.
With partial deafness, which has in the past prevented him from hearing attackers, and a stab wound which Ellie has only just patched up, one might assume that Joel might not be able to take on an entire legion of Fireflies on his own.
But Joel is nothing if not determined when he sets his mind to something, and he doesn’t hold back from unleashing his bloodthirsty, murderous streak in order to achieve his aim.
Ellie isn’t told the truth about Marlene’s fate (Picture: HBO)
The unstoppable force of Joel emerges, killing Fireflies left, right and centre without a single flicker of guilt or shame dawning on his face as he makes his way through the hospital to get to Ellie.
This is the most savage that we’ve ever seen Joel, an episode after viewers witnessed him torture and kill two men who were in the cannibalistic group that kidnapped Ellie.
Joel leaves a trail of bodies in his wake, even going so far as to shoot Marlene (Merle Dandridge), the Firefly leader who he’s known for years, in the head so that she can’t pursue them.
To rub even more salt into the wound, when Ellie wakes up in the car, Joel tells her that the Fireflies weren’t able to create a cure, and that the base was attacked by raiders.
Will Ellie ever find out the truth of what really happened to the Fireflies? (Picture: HBO)
There are so many layers to the brutality of The Last of Us season one finale that we have to unpack. Joel’s ferocious rampage of the Fireflies. His bald-faced lie to Ellie. The fact that he may have just rid the world of a cure for the Cordyceps infection.
But that’s what makes this show so utterly engrossing.
Just like how Game of Thrones left fans gawking when the lead character Ned Stark had his head chopped off in the season one finale, The Last of Us appears to have completely flipped the script on the aim of the show – finding a vaccine.
Viewers will be left asking themselves deep questions of morality – if given the choice, would you rescue a person who you loved, or instead try to save the entire world from catastrophe, even if the latter option wasn’t a 100% guarantee?
Joel and Ellie’s father-daughter relationship has reached a near-unbreakable point, but could the risk of his secret spilling out be enough to break them apart?
All we can say is a huge bravo to the creators of this programme, from the showrunners to the writers, the cinematographers, the cast and everyone else on the crew.
It’s been a horrific joy to experience this tale, among video game aficionados and newcomers to the franchise alike, and we’re already dreading the day that we have to say goodbye for good. But for now, bring on season two!
The Last of Us is available to watch on Sky and NOW.
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MORE : Oscar-winning actor ‘almost played Joel in The Last of Us’ instead of Pedro Pascal
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Now that’s what you call staggering ending.