The Last of Us.Photo: Liane Hentscher/HBO
This post contains spoilers from Sunday’s season 1 finale ofThe Last of Us.
It’s the end of the road for Joel and Ellie onThe Last of Us…at least for now.
The dystopian drama series premiered its first season finale Sunday on HBO, and there was no shortage of emotional moments scattered throughout the hectic episode.
The goal, which has been leading the series: safely deliver fungal-immune Ellie into the hands of the Fireflies in the hopes that she is the key to finding a cure and saving humanity.
Liane Hentscher/HBO
Before the events of the present day, though, viewers got a flashback showing how Ellie came into the world. The dramatic moment featured her mother, Anna (Ashley Johnson, who voiced Ellie inThe Last of Usvideo game), alone and barricading herself from the infected as she gave birth. Despite her best efforts, Anna was bitten while slaying a rogue infected. Still, she managed to deliver Ellie safely and unharmed.
When Marlene (Merle Dandridge) found the mother, Anna swore Ellie’s umbilical cord was cut before she was bitten. Viewers learned earlier — that wasn’t the truth.
Marlene and Anna were close friends, which may be the only reason Ellie was allowed to survive. Marlene shot Anna before she could turn, making Ellie an orphan just moments after birth.
Despite their shared trauma, the depth of Ellie and Joel’s growing connection was at the forefront of the episode. While looking for the highest ground, the pair found an unlikely animal in the wreckage of Salt Lake — giraffes. The pair fed one together before Joel brought up the immediate risk ahead.
“Maybe there’s nothing bad out there, but so far there’s always been something bad out there,” he said. Joel gave Ellie an option: they could forgo the hospital altogether and return to safety in Wyoming.
Ellie’s mind was made up, though. “After all we’ve been through, everything I’ve done, it can’t be for nothing,” she said. Ellie had a compromise, though. She told Joel she’d follow him “anywhere you go” once their research at the hospital concluded.
As they continued their trek, Joel finally opened up to Ellie about what happened with his late daughter, Sarah (Nico Parker). He shared how she’d died early in the outbreak, and confessed to his own suicide attempt just a day later. “I wasn’t scared, either. I was ready. I couldn’t have been more ready,” he said of death.
“So time heals all wounds, I guess,” Ellie responded.
“It wasn’t time that did it,” Joel said, tearfully, as he gazed at the teen.
When Joel awoke, he came face to face with Marlene. She applauded his perseverance in safely bringing Ellie across the country “without a scratch.” “You are the one person I never wanted to be in debt to,” Marlene said. “But I owe you. We all owe you.”
At first, it appeared Joel and Ellie had been delivered to safety at last, but Joel soon learned that Ellie had been swept away to surgery — where her brain would be cut open and studied and she likely wouldn’t survive. Joel immediately became vengeful and went on a killing spree (which, stylistically, was filmed to look very much like a video game), taking down Firefly members throughout the hospital and forcing his way to Ellie before the doctor could make his first cut.
Leaving a sea of bodies in his wake, Joel found the operating room and confronted the medical team with a simple handgun. He shot the doctor but allowed two surgical techs to live. With Ellie under anesthesia, Joel carried her limp body out of the room. But the pair weren’t safe just yet — as they came face to face with Marlene again.
Joel’s tragic past with his daughter Sarah — who died in his arms during episode 1 — was mirrored, as he clung to a lifeless Ellie in his arms. And once again, Joel and his “daughter” found themselves at gunpoint.
When Ellie asked if people were harmed, Joel answered “yes.” However, he claimed the massacre came at the hands of a group of outsiders who came to loot the hospital.
The episode ended with (seemingly) everyone who was wanting to study Ellie’s immunity dead and Joel and his surrogate daughter driving toward a new life.
As they hiked through Wyoming’s wilderness, Joel shared even more about Sarah with Ellie. He spoke of her girly nature and “killer smile.” “You know why I think she’d like you?” he asked Ellie. “Cause you’re funny. I think you would have made her laugh.”
He swore — though viewers know that was, perhaps, the biggest lie he’s told yet.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
All episodes ofThe Last of Usseason 1 are now streaming on HBO Max.
source: people.com
