Warning: Spoilers ahead for The Last of Us season 2, episode 3!
The Last of Usclarifies that while Ellie has stepped into Joel’s role in the two-person trip of the season, her actions have nothing to do with her late father figure.The Last of Usseason 2 episode 3highlighted Ellie’s complicated grief, which she suppresses even as her fraught history with Joel prevents her from fully processing it. For all that,The Last of Usseason 2, episode 3’s endingfinds her embarking on a mission to avenge him, mirroring his impulsive and almost suicidal choices at the end of season 1.
Ellie’s complicated reaction to Joel’s murder clearly unsettles Tommy, who sees shades of his brother in his adopted niece and fears she’s lashing out and losing her sense of right and wrong. Notably, what drives the new main figure inThe Last of Us' season 2 cast of charactersis no longer survival or reuniting with loved ones, but revenge, a far darker path. Though season 2 stresses the parallels between Ellie and Joel, it also carefully underscores their differences, making it clear thatEllie’s choices are her own, not an echo of her father figure’s legacy.
Tommy Reveals That He Worries That Ellie Will Become Like Joel In The Last Of Us Season 2
Tommy Thinks Ellie Will Lose Her Sense Of Morality Like Joel Did After Sarah’s Death
Being Ellie’s father figure after Joel’s death,Tommy is clearly concerned about the dangerous and dark path she’s headed down. In episode 3, he approaches Gail at a baseball game, interested to hear her assessment of Ellie’s state of mind after witnessing her proposal for the mission to track down and kill Abby.Catherine O’Hara’sThe Last of Usoriginal characteragrees that Ellie is lying about wanting to seek justice for Jackson, while, in reality, she’s after revenge. Worse yet, the therapist notes Tommy might not be able to do anything to stop her.
Clearly recognizing the emotional walls and impulsive tendencies Ellie shares with Joel,Tommy fears she will lose herself to grief just as his brother once did. Although Joel didn’t seek revenge for Sarah’s death, he became numb to others' suffering, choosing survival over morality, even killing innocents during his years as a smuggler. It was this hardened, ruthless mindset that ultimately drove a wedge between him and Tommy — and now, what threatens Ellie’s place in Jackson and her bonds with characters like Dina, Jesse, and even Tommy himself.
Ellie & Joel Are Similar, But It’s Because Of Her Backstory In The Last Of Us
Ramsay’s character is the Joel replacement as she has become the grumpy and hardened figure, whileDina joins the quest to find Abbyby adopting the lighter role Ellie once played, trying to keep things light with jokes and games. Though Tommy hints Joel would absolutely go on a revenge mission, it’s evident that he wouldn’t want Ellie to follow that journey. Accordingly, Gail’s remark that Joel didn’t set Ellie on a dark path, but merely joined her on one she was already on, makes sense. Notably, Ellie’s tumultuous past makes her clinging to anger and violence tragically understandable.
The Last of Usseason 2 will have a total of seven episodes, with its finale releasing on May 25.
Ellie’s story makes her more willing to risk her life, and that of everyone she loves, than Joel ever was. Growing up as an orphan in the FEDRA military school,she never knew safety or love and had to deal with violence and loss from an early age. Additionally, she’s always felt alienated because of her immunity. WithJoel’s prematureThe Last of Usdeath, she’s lost the closest thing she had to a family. In contrast, Joel had a stable and loving life with Sarah and Tommy before the outbreak, which explains his rule to “keep going for family.”
Gail Is Right About The Nurture vs. Nature Point Regarding Ellie
Ellie’s Sense Of Right Remains A Part Of Her Nature, Despite Violent Tendencies
While Tommy worries that Ellie picked up violence and deception from Joel, and her harsh upbringing hints she learned it as a child,Gail notes that it’s likely always been in her nature.She suggests that the father-daughter pair were “walking side by side,” precisely because they shared a similar, complex inner makeup. Joel was willing to kill innocents to protect those he loved, and nowEllie’s revenge storysuggests she’s ready to do the same for justice. Their responses to trauma and loss mirror each other, but the series continues to hint that there are crucial differences between them.
Despite how committed she seems to revenge, her deeper nature, rooted in selflessness, may steer her in a different direction.
Episode 3 hints that Ellie carries more light than Joel ever did. When she learns thatseason 2’s Washington Liberation Frontmay have massacred an entire community, she clings to the belief that stopping them is the right thing to do. This sets her on the course to understandingThe Last of Us' Abby, whose community was killed. While Joel cared to protect those he cared about, no matter the cost, Ellie once chose to sacrifice herself to save humanity. Despite how committed she seems to revenge, her deeper nature, rooted in selflessness, may steer her in a different direction.
