LAST OF US Episode 9 Breakdown - Ending Explained and Every Easter Egg

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Written and Hosted by Ryan Arey ( / ryanarey )
Edited by Rohail Mistry, Lee Mazzio, Brianna McLarty, and Harriet Lengel-Enright
#LastOfUs #Breakdown #EasterEggs
We open with Anna, Ellie’s mother, running through the woods. This is by far my favorite easter egg in the show. Anna is played by Ashley Johnson. 80s babies might know her as Chrissy on Growing Pains, Marvel fans know her as the Waitress in the Avengers, but a lot of you might also know her from Critical Role, where she role plays d&d with a group of other prominent voice actors on a weekly twitch livestream. [clip].
But last of us fans know her as the actor who plays Ellie in the game. So Ashley Johnson has given birth to Ellie in the game, and in the show.
Doug: That’s so cool!
I know, right? She even looks like Bella Ramsey.
Now all of this is a new sequence that does not appear in the game. Although the backstory-the relationship between Marlene and Anna, was implied in the game and in the American Dreams comic book. Now showing Anna struggling to reach this house-how she falls, outranks the infected-and then her water breaks [clip, 1:20]. All of this is showing that Anna is the first of many people who have fought to keep Ellie alive.
When Anna is attacked by an infected, she fights back with her knife. The same knife that Ellie has used all through the series, drawing one of many parallels to her and Sarah. Remember, Sarah was briefly fascinated by Joel’s knife in the first episode.
And this episode is the first time we’ve seen exactly why Ellie is immune, like Blade, she’s a daywalker.
Doug: What do you mean by that?
Well, Blade is a vampire who can walk in the daylight, because his mom was attacked by a vampire while he was in the womb. In the same way, Ellie's mom was attached the moment she was giving birth. S Ellie's stem cells-maybe?--found a way to control the fungus.
Doug: Science and stuff.
That’s right. So the episode begins with a mother giving her life to save Ellie-and it ends with a father taking life-to save ellie.
Then Marlene shows up to the house, and she’s played by Merle Dandridge-the only actor in the show playing the same character she did in the game. Marlene finds her best friend and her new daughter-and it's hard to not find a parallel here with other Chosen One babies. Moses was discovered floating in a basket. Kal-El was in a rocketship. Tee’s a narrative trope of babies with a special purpose being alone, and then taken in. This is all building up to the idea that Ellie exists for a reason.
Again, the show has been building this idea up in our heads for a long time. [ep 8, things happen for a reason]. Or when Ellie talked about her greatest purpose [clip].
Now I would argue that Ellie did exist for a nobler purpose, but we can talk about that later in the episode. So as Marlene arrives in the house, we hear Anna singing [clip].
Doug: Yeah, what is that, boys to men?
No, that’s “The sun always shines on TV” by ah-ha-and there is a lot of hidden meaning packed into that song. First of all, you’ll remember that Ellie had an ah-ha cassette, and she and Riley had their small adventures set to the song “Take on me.” [clip] Knowing that Anna was an ah-ha fan, this makes me wonder if Marlene found a way to give this cassette to Ellie, because she knew her mom would have wanted that.
So the lyrics that she sings are: Touch me, how can it be? / Believe me, the sun always shines on TV / Hold me close to your heart / Touch me and give all your love to me.
Doug: To me….
There’s a very literal meaning here-a mother is singing to her daughter to hold her close, to get all of her love. But on a more meta level, the song is a deeply ironic statement about how television prepares us for happy endings that never come in the real world. The music video begins with a man singing to a woman, as the man slowly becomes a drawing. And it's a very slow, somber part of the song [cli].
And then comes a “the end” card-in the same way that this prologue is showing the end of Anna's story but the beginning of Ellie’s. So this show within a show depicts a man who is transforming into something else-so he can't be with the woman he love.s in the same way, Anna is transforming so she can never be with ellie.
And then the band performs the song in a cathedral in front of mannequins.

[@ScreenCrush]

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[@Hexodduz]

Well, f.. the idiot doc, on an asumption and a clear misguided trust of his medic expertise, he decides to exhaust the only inmune specimen... if his hypothesis was wrong he just says get me another one I'll try sthelse with the same method, ultimating chances... so Joel did the right thing terminate idiocy. Moreover no studies, no background, no investigation just on a belief they were to terminate Ellie. I understand is postapocaliptic and all research might be lost or exhausted, we are talking about 2003 research and medic tech, so it figures out the stupidity of the method portrayed, same goes for the game it's old enough to present such decision. Now there is this hypothesis about Ellie being infected with another strain of cordyceps, but that is discarded by the intro on this chapter, well compared to blade, thus just to mention that the same thing that evolved the cordyceps in the series/game is the very same thing that makes Ellie inmune or transient to infection. 'til we find out the cordyceps' strain type, they still can state it was engineered or designed, hence prone to evolve and adapt as a symbiote, which can be the case of Ellie. Either she is inmune, symbiote, resilent, etc... or even just an unique case... on the later the doc was an idiot and deserved to die for recklessness. At any point this chapter takes away so many options.

[@Hexodduz]

Would also like to mention the bad standing they give to the fireflies, since the black female character knew a lot of the background of Ellie's birth she could explain that to the movement, then take pregnant volunteers to recreate conditions to spawn another inmune subject, again I understand tech of 2003 was not as merry as nowadays, anyway that speaks about why fedra was right about genocide. If they have had the same information or lucky findings as the fireflies, would they have treated Ellie diferently? Again Joel did the right thing, ultimating a bunch of ignorant cowards willing to kill a posibility of cure on a base preliminar asumption.

[@BthIX]

​@@Hexodduz Lmfao how would that have been any better? The fireflies would then have had to cut open the brains of newborn babies to get the mutated immunity cordyceps out of them. Killing Ellie who Marlene knew would have wanted to go through the operation is far more ethical than killing a baby who doesn't have the mental capacity to make that decision. Furthermore, this scene with Ellies mom is a completely new invention for the show. It didn't happen nor was it alluded to in the game, so this defense of Joel doesn't work in that universe. Also, Ellie's mom lied to Marlene and said the bite happened AFTER she cut the umbilical cord. If the Fireflies tried to recreate the circumstances of Ellie's birth by sacrificing pregnant moms and their newborn babies, they would have failed every time since they don't know what actually happened. Joel is a cold blooded murderer who only saved Ellie for selfish personal reasons of not wanting to feel alone again

[@DeanoDino]

Ugh another one who didn't get every easter egg but says they "did". Onto the next channel.

[@Xenophrenia]

@@DeanoDino do you ? ... I bet you don't

[@nicholasgarrick8855]

Watching Ashley Johnson play Ellie's mom with Ellie's voice gave me such a beautiful feeling of deja vu😭🤧.

[@acidalix]

hearing her voice (Ellie) and Tory baker (Joel) made me so happy.

[@tbknick6703]

Hearing her say in ellies voice: yeah you fucking tell em ellie made me tear up for some reason-

[@ItsEricVenzon]

​@@tbknick6703 Me too. Voice of Ellie telling little Ellie to fucking tell em was full circle.

[@vanfillofrubbish7728]

I knew it sounded weird

[@BigDeepz]

IT FELT SO RIGHT. The episode immediately starts with no visuals but we hear Ashley grunting and running through the woods. I was so confused for a second because I heard Ellie but then saw a random pregnant woman. Only when they showed her face did I realize why I was trippin for a second haha

[@gregjames404]

Sure there could’ve been a bit more focus on the infected, but for me, the beautifully written story about love and grief outshines every other aspect. The show adapted to that depth perfectly. 10/10

[@GeorgeLopez-ml5vw]

You’re right. It is called LAST OF US not ALL OF THEM lol

[@colonelb]

I think this story is brilliant because Joel makes a choice that we all know is messed up and selfish, yet 99% of parents would make the exact same choice, and the morally ambiguous nature and duality of that is what makes this story so powerful.

[@jasonjack7606]

I saw a speech the other day where the speaker said something to the effect of “if you put a button in front of any parent that, if they pushed it, it would ensure their child’s life, health, and happiness yet it would also harm the planet every time it was pressed, there’s not a parent in the world that wouldn’t mash the button so hard it would make their hands bleed. Right or wrong, that’s what a parent will do to save the life of their child. Consequences be damned.

[@TheChiptuner]

​@@jasonjack7606 In The Last of Us podcast, Neil Druckmann says that, for the game, when surveying people who didn't have kids if they agreed with what Joel did, it was 50/50 whether they agreed or not. But when he asked people who had kids, 100% of them agreed with Joel with "absolutely no exceptions".

[@jonahkeeton3206]

That’s because a person has a soul. The planet does not. The planet is merely matter. We are body, mind, and spirit.

[@jaxb.8351]

I am not even a parent, and never plan to be one, but I would’ve done the exact same thing without hesitation.

[@NJGarrick]

Perfectly stated. As a parent of two daughters whether right or wrong I’d burn it all down for them no hesitation. It’s like the director said this is a story about the lightness and the darkness of love. For love your can be the greatest or worse versions of yourself

[@ODDaKilla015]

The Ellie death/life choice was expanded upon in the game with audio logs. The fireflies weren't certain the "cure" extracted from Ellie would even be viable for a vaccine for others, the fact that they didn't tell her it would kill her before they put her under was just the icing on the cake.

[@thanhiclez]

Ellie always wanted to die, Neil cut that line 5 seconds short of her last monologue when she says "when is it my turn" after naming the people who died along the way. She absolutely knew death was a possibility on the surgeon's table. The reason why she's pissed at Joel is because she had that choice taken from her. She has survivor's guilt after killing her best friend.

[@FabioF10]

The vaccine would work. It’s explicit in both games and even Neil confirmed it.

[@ODDaKilla015]

@@FabioF10 There is an audio log near the end of the game that is basically Marlene having her own private struggle with potentially killing Ellie on the operating table, and she talks about how it may be for nothing in the end as they are working with decades old equipment and an untested theory that they can develop a vaccine from Ellie's mutated brain tumor.

[@FabioF10]

@@ODDaKilla015 my friend, its CONFIRMED by the dude that makes the game.

[@JohnKrakatoa]

yeah this

[@bjorn00000]

That one scene where Joel expressed that his wounds were healed by Ellie was probably one of the most touching. However, it felt like Ellie was burdened by this throughout the entire episode (versus in the game) because she realized that Joel would now place her above the mission, even if it meant that she would die as a result. The comment she made that she would follow him wherever he wanted after everything was done even seemed like the promise that you make to spare someone's feelings.

[@minafrota6124]

Honestly, this was the worst finale ever! The explanation of immunity is so boring. What is Ellie's mom was immune too and just passed the immunity on to her? We'll never fucking know because the show executed the mom and fed us this garbage origin story. I am going to save myself the trouble and not watch season 2 because obviously, this show will never get better.

[@chelam31]

​@@minafrota6124 Anna got bit while Ellie was still tethered to her via umbilical cord, perhaps transferring the cordyceps to her but a different/mutated version, sort of like how a mother's antibodies are transferred to her child. That's what made Ellie immune.

[@morningowl43]

@@minafrota6124 if you’re such a genius screen writer tell us what your version of Ellie immunity origin story should be? I bet it will be soooo much better than the booooring finale we got

[@bjorn00000]

@@renaudlemieux1 I certainly didn't understand that word salad.

[@bjorn00000]

@@minafrota6124 There wasn't much of an explanation of immunity, and that was fine. It's the story that mattered, but if you're so frustrated by one scene maybe you should sit the next season out.

[@platypusbunneh]

"Time heals all wounds." "... It wasn't time."

[@noprovh7656]

What'd he mean by that > ?

[@basicallyitsnathan]

@@noprovh7656 it was Ellie that healed him

[@NhatLinhNguyen82]

@@noprovh7656 He is such a great actor so it was clear what he meant from his face, his voice...

[@gaymer6689]

@@noprovh7656 being able to bond and feel secure with ellie was what allowed him to continue on

[@noprovh7656]

@@gaymer6689 Okay yea I get that now, I understood what he meant in the other scenes like when he said ''I was the one who shot'' and all that.

[@BenChanNYC]

Personally, I'm fine with the decision to use the cordies sparingly. It's one thing to keep fighting infected in a game where you might die, but it's different when it's a tv show where you know the main characters won't. Imo, they used their time better building character rather than action scenes to stay alive with characters you know won't die, thus undermining their threat when they do show up. When they have shown up, it's been important.

[@Daniel-zg5mb]

I also appreciate that every time we have seen infected, it's lethal. Someone always dies. I think it makes the opposite point in the video. The rarity, but lethality of the infected we have seen has shown just how serious this apocalyptic threat is.

[@bend-k7695]

It's a fair point. I do think their relative absence does make them seem less rampant and dominant though.

[@quintingoodman1287]

That's what I was thinking too. And I believe they explained in the show why the infected aren't outside the QZs. I believe there was a line that mentioned there wasn't enough for them to eat in the rural areas

[@joshuaduffy9171]

Thank you for mentioning Marlene’s role in all of this. So many people focus on Joel being right or wrong but neglect to admit how guilty Marlene is.

[@minafrota6124]

Honestly, this was the worst finale ever! The explanation of immunity is so boring. What is Ellie's mom was immune too and just passed the immunity on to her? We'll never fucking know because the show executed the mom and fed us this garbage origin story. I am going to save myself the trouble and not watch season 2 because obviously, this show will never get better.

[@icyvolts]

@@minafrota6124 lmao tell me u missed the point of the show 😂. The purpose of this show isn’t to delve into the origins of the virus. It doesn’t matter if she was immune or not.

[@GenghisWanghis]

​@@minafrota6124 she wasn't immune. Nine great episodes and your takeaway is some weird theory no one else is talking about from a 5 minute opening scene of just one episode? Weird take.

[@connorpierce2734]

@@icyvolts some people still just don’t understand this isn’t a zombie show. You’d think the fact that they’ve barely appeared across the 9 episodes would be telling enough, but seemingly not lol

[@fiyahspinnah]

​@@GenghisWanghisSuper weird take lol

[@thegman8119]

Joel carrying Ellie out of the hospital was an homage to Michelangelo's La Pieta. Parent holding a child who is The Chosen One.

[@hannahsargisson7226]

I don't think it was mentioned but I love how the first episode was called "When you're lost in the dark" and the last episode is called "Look for the light" the start and end of the fireflies saying which opens and closes the season

[@KarnaYT]

There is also a part where Marlene says doctor THINKS it could be a cure. So that I think also triggered Joel not to let her die for a "maybe".

[@devielee00007]

FR. You can’t just throw words like that if a life is on the line.

[@camillej4593]

@@devielee00007 he would have killed those people whether it was a “maybe” or “yes” or “no” loll😭😭

[@devielee00007]

@@camillej4593 hahahaha. Wouldn’t you?

[@jakobbauz]

Pretty much everything is a maybe though. And this one is like humanity's only chance as far as anyone can see...

[@wordsinahandle]

Since ellie wasnt given a choice. Thats wrong in itself. She's too young to decide is negated by the growth she's had over the course of the season. She isn't ready to decide because she's still reeling from the events of the last resort simply implies that the fireflies were impatient and unfair. They also had somehow decided as adults that the ONLY immune person would rather be killed for a possible cure without considering doing more research and taking some more time. She's the only possible solution and they decide untested brain surgery is the answer. Joel killing the doctor was harsh. I get he needs it to be a secret but enough paper trail probably exists, medical recording by doc etc could be there that haven't been shredded. He could've knocked them out and just killed the armed fireflies.

[@zknight137]

The doctor was technically armed with a scalpel, and you missed that Joel's bad ear was bleeding from firing his weapon in close quarters

[@flerbus]

yup, if the doctor stood down, he might have lived

[@karmarube]

The surgeon brought a scalpel to a gun fight

[@tboneforreal]

@@flerbus I doubt it because the doctor said he wasn't going to allow Joel to take her, which meant they would likely come after Ellie later if Joel didn't kill him. Same reason he gave Marlene right before he shot her.

[@flerbus]

@@tboneforreal yes, he said he wasn't going to allow joel to leave...as he picked up a weapon if he had just stood down he may have lived

[@BigDeepz]

​@@flerbus agreed, but I think its important to realize that the surgeon standing up to Joel with the scalpel was more of a symbolic stand than an actual threat. It was his way of saying "I believe in this cause and I will put my life on the line to defend it." To which Joel responded with a swift bullet to the head. That scene was hard for me to watch because it didn't look like Joel thought for a second about his actions. But imo, this is what makes TLOU such a great story. Honestly, none of us can truly understand what Joel was thinking or going through without experiencing what he went through.

[@aaronsimpson8258]

The ending brought back Maria's advice to Ellie, that the only ones who can betray you are those you trust

[@JB_Emerson]

Ooh, nice catch there. And Ellie is betrayed by both Marlene and Joel.

[@aaron_carpentr]

I like how Ellie tells Joel about Riley, it’s like a subtle hint that she knows Joel isn’t being fully honest, like how she wasn’t being honest about her first kill.

[@_vhid]

Marlene: We can still find a way. Me: This is the way.

[@elenayame6099]

Oh, NOW she wants to find a way.

[@twentyoneplusvideo0472]

My son wanted him to say that so badly.

[@jpenn9635]

I think the sound is muffled in the hospital scene because Joel’s hearing has been affected over the years, and perhaps mostly affected by attempt to take his own life. There is a loud ringing after Joel fires each of his shots in the hospital. What an amazing sequence.

[@loganlapointe2744]

Well, one Joel is getting old. Hearing loss happens to older people. Two, shooting inside a confined space without ear protection will make your ears ring. Three, years of shooting without ear pro will also give you tinnitus (the ringing). Four, he's experiencing an adrenaline dump.

[@Tirannie]

I actually think its supposed to be him dissociating. He's not *there*, he's deep in his past trauma. The way they showed the physiological effects here was spot on.

[@Laura-kl7vi]

@@loganlapointe2744 hahaha "getting old". Yes, hearing loss happens in some older people but not, lol, when you are 56. Maybe in your 70s is more common.

[@ComeWhatMay24]

This episode was an emotional rollercoaster for me!!

[@minafrota6124]

Honestly, this was the worst finale ever! The explanation of immunity is so boring. What is Ellie's mom was immune too and just passed the immunity on to her? We'll never fucking know because the show executed the mom and fed us this garbage origin story. I am going to save myself the trouble and not watch season 2 because obviously, this show will never get better.

[@xxstexx7450]

@@minafrota6124 the episode was definitely the weakest and not a great finale for many reason. But yours is explained in the episode. The reason you list may just be a small sample size of you as a person but I will still base an opinion. And my opinion is that you're dumb. The sooner you just accept that, the better the world will be. You're a dumb person.

[@shakes.816]

​@@minafrota6124 I think you need a rewatch then. She was not immune, Ellie was because she wasn't fully infected because her cord was cut after birth. Also the explanation isn't boring isn't actually where that fungus grows, it's science lol. now the explanation of, that's the only way to get a cure out of her is lacking, but doctors are in short supply so maybe that's the only way THAT doctor knew how to extract a cure.

[@acidalix]

​@@minafrota6124 and if you look, the wound didn't looks like ellies did after she was bit. mom wasn't immune it was already hurting her

[@bjorn00000]

@@minafrota6124 They didn't need an explanation. The one provided in the show was really only just handwaving to allow Joel to understand that they were going to kill Ellie.

[@bobobo2224]

They could not have cast a more perfect mother. She looks like she would really be her mother.

[@callzz17]

Yup,She looks,and She is the one that played Ellie in the game!

[@robertstarnes6878]

This always felt like a problem that could have been solved with a conversation. I feel like Ellie would have asked important questions like "How do you know this will work? Can't you just biopsy some of the fungus in my brain without killing me? If not, is that because you're a bad doctor. Can we wait for a good doctor then?" Stuff like that. Then if Ellie still wanted to do it, it's her choice. Marlene's to murder a teenage girl, to [maybe] save the world, without involving that girl in the conversation is monstrous. Also it lets Marlene feel like she made the ultimate sacrifice by betraying her best friend and killing the child she swore to protect. Like she gets to live and tell that story & probably be hailed as a hero. As opposed to letting Ellie make the choice, probably the same choice, say her goodbyes to Joel, take a day to pose for the damn statue they'll owe her, and save the world her self. That's what she's stealing from Ellie. Not just her agency, but her valor. If that's how you're going to run the world, you're not worth saving. Joel made choices that also should have involved her, but only because she wasn't awake to make them. And he did that knowing that the consequences may be that he loses her anyway. That's selflessness, not selfishness. I get that the conversation didn't happen so that the plot could, but in general, people that are in too much of a rush to cut up a teenage girl to bother explaining themselves aren't people I would trust to have done the research necessary to be sure that Ellie's death was the only option. More like panicky idiots making hasty decisions. Sorry, Ryan, Joel was right. Maybe just as the result of a plot contrivance, but based on all we saw & all we know, he was right.

[@constantinak7719]

I always thought this was thr ultimate takeaway from that sequence: if the world needs denying a young woman basic bodily autonomy and informed consent to be saved, is it really worth saving? Joel did right by saving her, where I question his choices was killing the doctor - and, in doing so, removing her choice to sacrifice herself for the good of humanity in the future. He could have extracted her while still leaving possibly the last surviving medical specialist alive.

[@abnr1983]

@@constantinak7719 You heard what the doctor said, and he even picked up a knife to fight off Joel. Now, whether the doctor was really about that business is another story, but Joel didn't want to waste to time get Ellie out of there. I guess shooting the doctor at the knee or leg was what I would've done, but at the heat of the moment Joel did what he does best.

[@thanhiclez]

If they had told her she had a chance of dying she would have still agreed with it. Ya'll missed the part where she implied she wanted to die from survivor's guilt. When she named all the people who died in her life she say "when is it my turn" - Neil cut this dialogue short in the show. Neil thinks Lying to Ellie is enough for her to stay pissed at Joel for 5 years. This obviously shows who was the better director for the game and that was Bruce. She wanted to die after killing her best friend and having survivor's guilt. She wanted her death to also have meaning. This is all mentioned in the game when you pay attention to the dialogue.

[@RendallRen]

Well said.

[@pmor4272]

Joel is just as much of a monster as Marlene as he also deprives Ellie of her own choice. And he pretends it’s for Ellie. It’s not for Ellie, if it was for Ellie he would have been able to figure out a way for her to wake up and make a choice, not kill the doctor and the rest of the fire flies and then lie to her. Very selfish.

[@Shogemon]

I've always been a fan of the theory that how the Fireflies, being a rebel faction would have never shared the cure with everyone even if they were able to successfully synthesize a cure. They would just keep it for themselves and become the next regime after Federa looses enough power. The cure itself was never guaranteed to begin with as well.

[@jessicas.8776]

oh, good point! I can see that.

[@DeadInTheFace]

I like to imagine the game was developed based on that hospital sequence. An extreme and literal version of the trolley problem. The pieces fall into place when you start trying to justify that sequence, finding all of the ways that you can fully justify the decision to save one over the world.

[@davidsamollow]

Never trust an MD to do science work.

[@chibiusa4072]

Unless you're a hardline Utilitarian, there are a hell of a lot of ways to justify Joel's choice, starting with the fact that it's unethical to _murder someone and harvest their organs for science_ even if that could save other people.

[@nicholasgarrick8855]

The giraffe moment in the game ,and show was beautiful that scene was so beautiful in the game and show Because its a nice break from the violence ,and it force you to take a deep breath, and take in the nice scenery its also a nice symbolization of there being a fraction of hope ,and humanity in the word its also super rewarding.

[@davidsamollow]

Yeah, but also, giraffes wont survive in SLC Utah, it's too cold. They'd be dead in the first winter.

[@subtlegong2817]

It only took 4 words to significantly change the ending. “We didn’t tell her”.

[@ProQuo360]

I actually recognized Ashley Johnson first in Dollhouse if you believe it. I forgot she was on Growing Pains. She’s had such an interesting career.

[@Daniel-zg5mb]

Wait Dollhouse the Whedon show? Who was Ashley in Dollhouse?

[@vessyYT]

I never played the game so my first experience seeing her was on Blindspot

[@TChalla616]

I used to love Dollhouse, what character did she play?

[@rubensoeteman]

I Just know her from critical role 😅

[@Daniel-zg5mb]

@@acorlite ohhhh yeah! I vaguely remember that. Thanks!

[@KidAstronaut]

I love how poetic Joel’s hospital scene felt. They nailed that scene on a bunch of levels. I’m not sure but I think Joel/(Pedro) smiled for a moment as he was moving through the hospital sensing a part of him loves the violence too - like Ellie.

[@jonahkeeton3206]

He smiled? I didn’t notice that in the show! What’s the time stamp?

[@beaumac]

The show was about love and relationships. The infected only serve to set the circumstances. There’s no reason to have any more action sequences in the show. You can play the video game for those. I think the show had the right amount of infected.

[@GenghisWanghis]

Exactly. Some people are still saying Bill's quest for the battery was the most important part. Love the game but glad that the creators sought out such a great director for television and didn't just make another sloppy video game adaptation

[@Mauro019]

Completly agree

[@ChateauScholt]

I initially thought after this episode that Elli might have known that a fatal operation had to be done to her, and that's because she was so absent at the beginning when they almost reached their destination. And also asked him if everything had happened as he told her to "test" him. But story wise somehow a strange decision that the immediately needed to operate on her, straightly skipping any tests or biopsies.

[@alanensalanens]

Maybe biopsies are tricky without a fully operational medical system.

[@Elements_of_MA]

Ryan how do you crank out such high quality videos so quickly? It's so incredibly impressive. Would love to learn more about your schedule and routine. Hope you get a lot of rest and feel support from people around you. Sending thanks for your hard work!

[@twentyoneplusvideo0472]

Same. All the clips from other movies and tv shows for comedy is crazy. Plus it's so well scripted and clearly thought out. Curious to know how they get all that insight on meanings and symbolism so fast? I would have to watch these 10 times to pick up on all of it. Sometimes these videos make me feel so stupid.

[@Mote.]

I really like this show. All the actors are incredible. The set design is fantastic. The writing is so good

[@dayanvaldes1349]

It was the perfect finale for a brutally great show, beautiful work

[@JustinChastain6]

I’ve looked forward to these breakdowns after every episode! Season 1 was so good and I can’t wait for Season 2!

[@Corneilus1]

Same!

[@fortyozsteak]

Is it confirmed?

[@kinggamer1214]

@@fortyozsteak yes it’s been renewed

[@singleplayer69]

Be careful what you wish for.

[@franciscosanudo4344]

@@singleplayer69 not many will understand this comment lol

[@tatonic0823]

I think the question of whether or not what joel did is right or wrong isn't the question we should be asking but rather do we believe joel would go to these extremes to save "cargo" and for me (as a viewer) to believe he's capable of doing it? Also, big win from the actors, even though I already knew where this story was going, I still experienced these gut retching moments like if it was the first time. Great show

[@BenChanNYC]

I love that Joel goes from thinking of the kid as cargo, to being protective, to trying to transport the child to others, to being a teacher once accepting the child as family. Hmm.... where have I seen that arc ... with Pedro Pascal.... in a show that's also on right now....?? (edit: shoot, I typed that before the video mentioned the similarities.... but, still)

[@Carcosahead]

Lol The Mandalorian, write down the name 😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@Hawk199031]

Some subtle imagery in the beginning of the episode. Anna is giving birth right below a tree painted on the wall. Trees have often been used as a symbol of life, most notable Yggdrasil the world tree of norse mythology, the fact that a baby was born there is a tad more reinforcement of this. However because of the state the house is in the tree is dark, faded and almost looks more like how the fungus grows and spreads on surfaces. Making it also seem like a symbol of death Anna's life & death, the infected's life and death, Ellie's birth and the birth of a "new" strain of the cordyceps being born within Ellie. Life and death coming together to culminate in the creation of the "chosen one"

[@stergianikambouris7481]

Thank you for these awesome break downs, I always look forward to them every week 😁 can’t wait for season 2

[@Adrian_S04]

The shooting at the hospital remind me to The Terminator (1984) when the Terminator massacre the police station. Joel acting with precision and emotionless like a robot.

[@jeffreycarman2185]

19:11 this is actually foreshadowed all the way back in episode 1 when Tess admonishes Joel to “save who you can”.

[@laurencole2937]

Honestly, I don't think it's ever really certain that what the doctor wants to do will work. And they aren't even going to try anything else first. All the current data suggests that there isn't a cure at all. I highly doubt that the dude had all the necessary degrees before the outbreak to be THAT certain. And the fact that they aren't even gonna do any tests at all? It's nuts. Not giving Joel and Ellie the chance to say goodbye is cruel, but only because we know that they've bonded. Marlene has known Joel for a while, and, as far as she is aware, to him, Ellie is still just cargo, so I can kind of forgive her that. Ultimately though, I have been on Joel's side for ten years. The Fireflies were wrong, and they were gonna kill her, without trying anything new, possibly for nothing. And when Joel tried to at least get some kind of closure, to see her again, they threatened to kill him too. So yeah, I don't feel bad about the people he killed. They all tried to kill him first, and all of them were down with killing a child. They can pretend to themselves that they thought it would save humanity, but really? It was impossible to tell without data. So really, they were all just fine with killing a child for no reason.

[@flerbus]

yes this the writers conceit that they could have made a cure because we said so is fine, if you want to admit that you suck at writing and world building.

[@lobecco]

The beginning of The Sun Always Shines On TV video is the end of the story told on the Take On Me vídeoclip. He gets out of the comic page on Take On Me and he returns to be a drawn man in The Sun Always Shines on TV.

[@josephk.8728]

An Easter egg I doubt many will catch can be heard in the elevator scene. If you listen to the background score, it is exactly the same as the Dynamic Theme that came with the deluxe edition of The Last of Us Part II. I know this because I have had that as my PS4's dynamic theme since it released. And that was such an amazing thing to hear.

[@billygilmusic5072]

Just a reminder that the director of the games and the show Neil Druckman has a Bachelor Degree in Psychology from the University of Florida and he's really into the ambiguity and duality of human emotions, and how the decisions that stem from these emotions can be more complex that what we want them to be, and the consequences of the choices we make can get out of control and affect many people. This is a show about exploring humanity's psyche in their most desperate time; not about zombies

[@flerbus]

my god what a worthless degree explains the ham-fisted writing in the second game

[@lgwapo6793]

I felt the muffled hallway assault scene was nice way to involve you in the scene. It Gave me the feeling what things are like after using a firearm, especially in a confined area. And the laser focus a person can have when called upon for something important. Filtering out the extraneous stimuli and heightening the senses needed to accomplish your goal.

[@HasturT]

Two reasons I'm on Joel's side. 1. Marlene said they thought it might work. They were going to kill Ellie on mere chance. 2. They also didn't tell Ellie she was going to die. If she had volunteered (as tribute) it would have been a whole different ball game.

[@nicholasgarrick8855]

Overall this was easily best video game adaptation I've ever watched ,and truly one of the best television show in recent memories I really cannot wait for season 2 ,and bravo to Craig Neil, Bella, and Pedro, and everyone involved in bringing this absolutely wonderful story to an entirely new audience wait til they see part 11!👏🏾👏🏾

[@W4rri0r44]

You missed the part where marlene told the guy to cover ellies ears when she killed her mom where it finally shows ellies hearing loss. which is why she couldn't hear joel multiple times when joel was clearly talking to her.

[@risenempire]

Having had a daughter with health issues I totally get where Joel is coming from.

[@unclejrok9083]

Okay, so... While I totally agree with your take that the addition of more infected would have made for better adhesion to the original, I had a difficult time trying to get my mom to watch the series. As a player of the games, I wanted to share this series with my mom as a sort of explanation as to why I spent so much time with the video games. I lost her halfway through the first episode, citing nightmares of something that could ACTUALLY happen. I was able to get her back must through the season by telling her that the infected were not very present in the adaptation. In the end, we were able to watch the entire series and she finally understood why I had such a fondness for the game. For that reason, I'm okay with the fact that they reduced the amount of infected from the series. It's a great story, we both agree.

[@Alexpowkn]

I'm team Joel on this one. Given everything we know from playing the game and the show. It's more likely that the fireflies would have thrown away this chance at a cure by killing Ellie. You'd think from a scientific standpoint you'd want to keep your test subject alive as long as possible to have the most chances to generate a cure, instead they jumped straight to killing her. Not to mention that the "cure" would only be an immunization, which would stop the spread of cordiceps, but the already infected are screwed.

[@Happymali10]

Laura Bailey also mocapped as one of the nurses for the first game, which is where Neil met her and decided she should apply for the job as Abby.

[@wickamo]

My take on the show is if you want more "Zombie" action and more intrigue...play the game. If you want more emotion and story...watch the show. We have two forms of media for this and it gives us the best of both worlds.

[@Yertle_Turtle]

Youthful hope (trending towards bigger risks & incompetence) vs. jaded wisdom (trending towards caution & skill mastery). This is an axis of tension that wasn't discussed in the commentary I've seen & read. Separately, wishfully speaking, I really wish the show's characters had discussions about the strange tactile experiences they lived through, like having to grab the infected by their bumpy bodies to hold them off, maybe their strange scents or even the feeling of acclimating to living in the rough of the wilderness as they journey across the states.

[@jsteelester]

Marlene killing Anna foreshadows Joel killing Marlene. It’s reluctant, but immediate.

[@carter358]

Even if the umbilical cord was still attached when her mom was bitten, Ellie wasn't connected to her mom long enough for there to be any transfer. Also, her water had already broken. At that point the umbilical cord may still attached, but there's nothing transferring through it. Ellie's immunity has nothing to do with her mom being bitten during birth. Now, she may have been bitten or exposed to Cordyceps by some other means during her pregnancy, and that could explain her immunity, but the bite during birth had no impact on the child.

[@ScreenCrush]

What did ou think of the finale?

[@chickennugget_32]

probably one of the best episodes

[@ilikecinema33]

Pretty rushed but it was alright. I enjoyed a good amount of the show. I’d probably still lean towards the game on which I prefer.

[@ciege5109]

@@ilikecinema33 Same. Felt rushed and some kinda forced. Also, Niel must hate pregnant women. Mel from Part II on the front lines in her 3rd trimester. And now Ellie's mom being left alone without backup or a gun... Good job Marlene. Earned that bullet to the brain box.

[@OmarValenzuela1975]

I cried more than when I played the game. ❤

[@ilikecinema33]

@@ciege5109 dang I didn’t even think about that actually 😂😂 good point.

[@Happymali10]

11:10 There's also the symbolism that Ellie encounters something innocent (giraffes) and the second word out of her mouth is another F-bomb.

[@mauricioalvarez6689]

In the first minutes of episode 1 they explain that there's no cure for a fungal infection and that there's no way of making one. I believe Ellie's death would have been for nothing if they had gone through with the surgery.

[@kendraraffington4947]

All true. I agree 100% that they could not have manufactured a vaccine from Ellie. She would have died for nothing. BUT, in the beginning, they did not know there was anyone who was immune. I'm sure that fact alone would prompt a lot of folks to think that there is some type of treatment.

[@ignacybenjamin]

Whilst watching this episode, I couldnt help but think that Joel is more a force of (violent) nature. I realised that he was always a catalyst, rather than the protagonist.

[@rybread7818]

I don’t think asking whether Joel was right or wrong to do what he did is a fair question. The better question is “If you were in the same situation, what would you do?”. Before becoming a father to a daughter, I think I would have landed on Marlene’s side. As a current father with a daughter…. I would burn the whole world to protect her no matter the cause or cost. Again, I’m not saying I’d be right to do so, but I know how my whole world view shifted when I held that little girl in my hands. I’m with Joel alllll the way.

[@wayneallensallee5114]

Hey, ScreenCrush! Just wanted you to know that I haven't watched any other KZbins. I was waiting for yours.

[@aarong2374]

Love the series. I cannot wait to see more from all the writers and directors of the episodes.

[@Dimacorgan1981]

Totally agree with you Ryan! I am casually getting towards the end of my umpteenth playthrough of the game, and noticed that you get to fight in amazing scenes a lot more! The university, the infamous basement with the generator, the highway tunnel before getting to the hospital are just the first big scenes that come to my mind... I understand that TV is a different medium, and of course I wouldn't have wanted them to add all of those, but maybe one or two big scenes to build up tension and excitement... let's hope they take that mild criticism in consideration for season 2!

[@enderx5]

Thanks for all these Easter eggs and reviews. Love you guys!

[@_Biscuit_Butter]

My thoughts with Joel’s choice is the Trolley Thought Experiment. He chose the many versus the one. Because to him, the one is more important

[@OmarValenzuela1975]

I always respect and watch your breakdowns before others. Thank you! Loved it! ❤😊👍🏼🙏🏼

[@frqnstyn]

I like the meta Easterg egg when Ellie is finishing the punch line for the grapes pun, while the audience holds breath cuz they're watching them get attacked from behind, and she says "breath you idiot".

[@JaviBee]

joel was for sure in the wrong, but they do a really good job of making you understand him. I think you said it best in that both joel and marlenes biggest mistakes were to rob ellie of her choice in the matter because they were scared.

[@joelara3750]

Joel never robbed ellie of her choice. She didnt have a choice period, they were going to kill her and he saved her

[@cliffordgallegos6155]

Eveyone tells a lie to protect feeling at some point. This one definitely hit harder however. Enjoyed the lack of infected. Gave you a sense of fear that there could be infected. That heightened fear was far better than constant action scenes.

[@taylorisdead95]

I’ve been living for these reviews. They’re the best 💜😂

[@edwinplants6317]

You said the doctor was unarmed. Hey, he did have a scalpel. I like the way that scene didn't go the way Hollywood always does with a standoff where he talks to the guy at gunpoint for a while. Joel doesn't mess around, it's like "hey you don't want to help me? BANG!... all right how about you?

[@njorgan]

Ellie wanted to save the world. To Joel, Ellie was his whole world.

[@davidsmall8267]

James Francis Ryan also felt the pressure to live a life of meaning to honor those who died to save him.

[@lw_ackerman]

“A hero would sacrifice you to save the world, but a villain would sacrifice the world to save you.”

[@Marcos0027]

I agree… I wanted to see more suspenseful clickers, stalkers and runners encounters.

[@chrisfox961]

The big mistake was to not allow Ellie to make the decision. I do think that she is smart enough to really make the doctor explain and prove that her sacrifice would work before she would agree. Also, it is a huge risk if that doctor screwed up and killed the only person with a possible cure so I lean a bit more toward team Joel on this decision. One thought that came up when I discussed this with my wife was the "what if" Ellie's mom was also able to survive the infection based on the exchange of stem cells/improved immunity for pregnant women and her death was never necessary. They show the infection had spread some but it also spread and left scars on Ellie so who knows. Maybe the key could have been to not sever the umbilical cord immediately to allow for the immunity to help her too. I wish that they had expanded the episode by 15 minutes and shown some of what happened just after the preacher attack and maybe some of the journey steps before Salt Lake City. The episode at only 45 minutes felt a little unsatisfying. All in all, this was a great adaptation and a terrific season of TV!

[@ItsLaCold]

You literally typed everything i was thinking and bout to type, thank you lol 😂.

[@scottthomas8136]

“Human!” Nice Star Trek reference there. I loved it.

[@afrotastic06]

I think Joel was wrong in keeping Ellie for herself and is punished for it later on. If only he could be redeemed of his transgressions by going into some kind of mystical lake

[@nobodyexceptme7794]

I love the little back and forth promo between here and Heavy Spoilers. We are more powerful together! Get that $$$! Hope to see more collaboration and projects together.

[@markmetz9167]

I understand why people disagree with Joel’s decision but humanity hasn’t done enough for me to sacrifice my daughter for it so I completely get why he did it and don’t disagree.

[@marcamusprime9513]

She seems old enough to have a conversation about it. Maybe she would feel differently.

[@markmetz9167]

Do you really thin the Fireflies would honor her decision if she declined?

[@kalaperr]

When Ellie couldn’t hear Joel i took that as she has suffered so much hearing damage from all the gun shots, especially the one that killed her mom when she was just born when your ears are especially sensitive. Marlene even asked the man holding her to cover her ears while she ended Ellies moms life, and he didn’t. Then it immediately cuts to her not hearing well. Same with Joel’s hearing going out during the hospital rampage. Its from the constant gunshots and battles they have faced. No one can prevent that much hearing damage for very long in real life and it will cause hearing issues. She also just experienced close range gunshot noise when the surgeon was shot and that has a lasting impact on your hearing immediately afterwards

[@kalaperr]

I googled it and even one gun shot is enough to cause permanent hearing damage. I think its less about “zoning out from trauma” and more about the physical havoc of hearing loss that the trauma has caused.

[@jubjub7101]

How does Screencrush get these videos up so quick after the episode premiere? Do they get an advanced copy?

[@CoryAndor]

Yes

[@GhostrareStardust]

I think mention he's related to someone in production

[@ragweedmakesmesneeze]

A question I've had for all his stuff. It's crazy how fast he gets these up after a show premiers. He's got some serious editing chops and/or editors on his payroll. Also, why he can run so many clips where other KZbinrs complain about getting copyright strikes will forever be a mystery to me I think.

[@TheDestroyer73]

i always question that and how some youtubers do that o_o but yeah i heard some get so popular that they do get special advance premiers or something who knows

[@Carcosahead]

Yes, HBO sends early viewing links to some youtubers/influencers, Chris Stuckmann said that in one of his series review videos

[@ashketchum1953]

you can also see the guy slowly crouching up to yeet a flashbang at them

[@nicholasgarrick8855]

Marlene is ride or die ,for better or worse. Killed her friend Anna out of mercy ,and was willing to kill Anna's daughter out of loyalty to the fireflies. She's loyal to a fault.

[@minafrota6124]

Honestly, this was the worst finale ever! The explanation of immunity is so boring. What is Ellie's mom was immune too and just passed the immunity on to her? We'll never fucking know because the show executed the mom and fed us this garbage origin story. I am going to save myself the trouble and not watch season 2 because obviously, this show will never get better.

[@melanieg760]

​@@minafrota6124 how many times are going to post this same comment? You need therapy, no reason this show should have triggered you this much.

[@GenghisWanghis]

​@@minafrota6124 lmao

[@deanthemachine8879]

I didn’t even think about the parallels between Joel and cordyceps, but David even talked about how cordyceps protects its young and I didn’t even think about it

[@jeffreycarman2185]

17:53 the beauty of the score is juxtaposed by the ugly scenes of brutal violence.

[@FeebleSaturn3]

I was thinking her not hearing Joel at the beginning was because they showed in the flashback Marlene giving the order to "cover her ears" before she killed Ellie's mom, then we see that her ears weren't covered at all so I thought it was hinting to some kind of hearing loss she had because of that

[@joelara3750]

Jesus christ some of you fucking people, much like ryan sometimes be reaching like reed richards. not everything is some foreshadowing

[@araisikewai]

The game did one thing on that last scene that was very impactful. When Joel said to find things to fight for and keep on surviving, he instinctively rubbed his watch for a second. When Ellie asked Joel to swear, he was clearly taken aback.

[@elenayame6099]

None of those people died to protect Ellie specifically. Well, exept for Tess in some way, but then again she was in it as much for the battery. Anna and Riley were unfortunate victims of infected, but it's not like they sacrificed themselves to protect Ellie. They happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and would have been bitten anyways. They didn't die for her to survive, they just died, which is still sad, but there's no need to look for the higher purpose.

[@davinery1278]

Just one word to say about this episode: ...Damn

[@camaronshoultz6137]

In Joel’s mind her death was not worth it because it wasn’t a sure thing that it would work and he’s not willing to sacrifice her life for something that may not even work. If we’ve learned anything from this series it’s that humans will lie and do or say anything to get what they want. That hospital was filthy and ill equipped and it’s possible that Ellie would have died for nothing at all.

[@TheDestroyerX]

1:13 she also voice a nurse in the game ‘’oh my god you fucking animal’’

[@jennamore-rice]

The truck she was sitting on in the beginning was sooo similar to Tommy’s truck at the very start of the apocalypse. It even has a Texas license plate!

[@Wholesomewebs]

Episode 3 was STILL speaking to the rest of this story. Bill’s line of “You were my purpose” Joel wasn’t going to fail his purpose, not again. Even if the alternative is best for everyone, I’m not failing again.

[@Hollywood041]

Save the ones you can.

[@godjahmit]

Also “God help any motherfuckers who stand in our way.”

[@vincentlorusso689]

According to Marlene, the cordyceps thinks Ellie is already infected and that is the nature of her immunity. If that is the case, why do the infected attack her like everyone else? It makes no sense. The infected NEVER attack each other.

[@jobanh7ify]

The show stated from the beginning that making a vaccine out of Ellie was a no go, the game hinted that fact with all the notes and recordings you find in the final chapter,( if they didn’t change anything in the remake, I only played the original) so Ellie would have die for nothing anyway. I don’t think Joel doomed humanity by saving Ellie, humanity was already doomed to begin with, that’s why the game and the show it’s called The Last of Us… besides, we all would have done the same, or die trying 😅

[@Davepool_TF-69]

Agree on the lack of zombies. Also wish Joel's rampage at the end was longer and more of a struggle. It all went by too quickly and too easily.

[@wolfgang_scholl]

2:48 I hear you there Ryan.

[@rockindocs5716]

100% agree, needed more infected. I listened to the aftershow podcast so I understand why they were lighter on the infected in some episodes but man, it woulda been nice if they could find a way to keep more infected in the story.

[@godoubidou5461]

But I think there's flaw in it: Since Marlene knew why Ellie's immune, why can't they find a volunteer to do the process again? Then we can have a immune baby who hasn't got too much emotional bonds with anybody

[@flerbus]

anything but what they actually decided would have been an improvement

[@SnakeActual]

It creates more variables, but I don't really see it as a flaw. 'Findings volunteers' to get pregnant, carry to term, and sacrifice both mother and child isn't exactly an easy task, especially since they don't really know the exact circumstances or biology in play that spawned Ellie's immunity in the first place. Who knows if it's even replicable? Never mind the fact that Marlene only knew about the immunity after Ellie got bitten, which has only been for about the duration of the story that the game/show tells (around a year). It might seem like it muddies the proverbial waters, but it fundamentally changes nothing about what we already know and adds a bit of context to boot.

[@Scrappym4]

The scene in 9:40 I thought Joel was going to sing, like how he said wanted to be a singer in a previous episode