Skip to main content

The Last of Us finale makes a subtle change from the game to set up season 2

HBO viewers were rocked Sunday night by the finale of The Last of Us, which brought the iconic ending of Naughty Dog’s critically acclaimed game to life in live-action. It was an extremely faithful adaptation, with no huge deviations from the source material. However, a key change was made that will help the show more gracefully transition into its adaptation of The Last of Us Part II.

Note: Spoilers for The Last of Us TV show and The Last of Us Part II video game to follow.

Recommended Videos

At the climax of The Last of Us Season 1’s final episode, we see Joel annihilate most of the Fireflies and doctors at the Salt Lake City hospital as they prepare to operate on Ellie to get a cure, which would have killed her in the process. It’s a chilling sequence that hits the same dubious, morally horrifying notes as it did in the game, and little is changed.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

We see Joel kill the surgeon about to operate on Ellie after he picks up a scalpel and says he won’t let Joel take her. Joel shoots him in cold blood, but does not kill the nurses assisting him. As he walks out of the room with Ellie, a shot lingers on the face of the now-deceased surgeon, punctuating Joel’s massacre.

Joel holds the surgeons at gunpoint in The Last of Us' finale.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

That may sound like a small cinematic altercation, but that lingering shot is very meaningful to those of us that played The Last of Us Part II. In the original game, we don’t think much about Joel’s victim; he’s just some nameless doctor. In Part II, however, we meet that doctor’s daughter, Abby, who’s on a quest for revenge. What’s a thoughtless action for Joel becomes deeply personal for someone he’s never met.

By adding in that extra shot, the finale more confidently sets that up. Even if casual viewers don’t know it yet, the groundwork is being laid for something that will be very important in the next season and makes it clear that the show knows where it’s going.

The finale further teases what’s to come with a smart bit of casting. Eagle-eyed fans may notice that one of the nurses during the scene is played by Laura Bailey, who portrays Abby in The Last of Us Part II. It’s likely just the show paying tribute to the game’s cast (as it did in episode 8 with Troy Baker, who voiced Joel in the video games), but it’s also another way to tease what’s to come in the next season. Abby is coming for Joel. Prepare your golf balls.

Of course, when Naughty Dog released The Last of Us in 2013, it didn’t yet know that this doctor would play such a pivotal part in the sequel’s story, so not as much focus was put on him in the game. The developers retroactively tried to correct this with a retelling of the sequence from Abby’s perspective in The Last of Us Part II and updated models in the game’s remake.

Showrunners Craig Maizin and Neil Druckmann have the benefit of knowing this moment’s importance from the start and not being locked to Joel’s third-person perspective. They can now take the time to linger with a shot like this, emphasizing what Joel has done and laying the groundwork for what comes next. It’s a short and subtle shot that slightly deviates from the original game, but it’s also something that could only be done in this TV show and will certainly be hugely important for the show as we head into season 2.

The Last of Us is available to stream on HBO Max.

Tomas Franzese
As a Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
HBO’s The Last of Us show spotlights the series’ best game: Left Behind
Ellie and Riley ride a merry-go-round in The Last of Us.

While the bulk of HBO’s The Last of Us adaptation retells the story of the first game, The Last of Us episode 7 is a special exception. That’s because it dives into DLC territory to bring The Last of Us: Left Behind to the small screen and give Bella Ramsey’s Ellie an hour to shine.

Left Behind is a 2014 expansion for The Last of Us that would later be purchasable as a standalone release. It's set in the middle of The Last of Us, as Ellie hunts for medical supplies for Joel in an abandoned Colorado mall. That setup acts as a frame tale, as the bulk of the game is a playable flashback. In it, we get to see a slice of Ellie’s life before she met Joel, as she explores another mall with her friend and budding love interest, Riley. It was a significant chapter of the series, as it confirmed Ellie’s sexual identity, but its also an important moment for games in general. Lesbian relationships weren’t generally depicted in AAA video games in 2014, and the idea of a tender kiss between two women was especially unheard of.

Read more
5 ways video game adaptations can learn from The Last of Us
video game adaptations can learn last of us the hbo pedro and nick

The first season of The Last of Us on HBO is going down as one of the best video game adaptations of all time, even if it's not perfect. Whether you believe the lousy reputation video game adaptations have is justified or not, these first few episodes of the series serve as the premier examples of how to adapt a game properly. As such, it's worthwhile to break down what other video game adaptations can learn from The Last of Us.
Halfway through the first season, five factors have played a significant part in The Last of Us' continued success on HBO. Thankfully, they are all elements other video game adaptations could learn from, even if they are based on an IP with a significantly different tone. If the quality of this show is any indication, video game adaptations have a bright future.
Be faithful

This one seems like it should go without saying, but it's something a lot of films and TV shows based on games don't get right. Even successful ones like the Sonic the Hedgehog films seem to feel a bit ashamed of the source material when they bring video game characters into the "real world." The Last of Us series works masterfully because it plays into the strengths of the source material, adapting an already critically acclaimed story accurately and respectfully. As a result, a great story is still great.
HBO's The Last of Us isn't a direct 1:1 adaptation (more on that later), but it's still unmistakably a TV version of the video game's story and even gameplay in some segments. That faithfulness shows respect for the game and is more likely to get fans on board with the creation and any potential deviations it might make. Sadly, many video game adaptations seem like they feel embarrassed of the source material, which shows in the quality of the final product and the fan reception to it.
Improve upon the source material

Read more
Even HBO’s The Last of Us can’t fully master the video game adaptation
Pedro Pascal with his finger to his mouth telling someone to be quiet in a scene from The Last of Us on HBO Max.

There's a pretty good chance that your favorite video game will be made into a movie or TV show.

Thanks in no small part to efforts by PlayStation Productions and the success of movies like Sonic the Hedgehog and TV shows like Arcane, there will only be more adaptations of your favorite video games coming. We’ve come to a sort-of apex with The Last of Us on HBO, a prestige TV take on one of gaming's most celebrated titles. It has legitimate stars, a big budget, Chernobyl’s showrunner at the helm, and is raking in viewers. Only three episodes have aired at the time of this writing, but it’s already poised for success, both in terms of viewership and critical accolades.

Read more