The Last Of Us Season 2 Episode 4 Review

In season 2 episode 4 of The Last of Us, we learn more about post-apocalyptic Seattle, and Ellie and Dina strengthen their relationship.

When the Apollo missions were being held, it was mankind trying to achieve something for the greater good. Everything we see throughout this week’s episode assumes we outgrew those ambitions, and the wider world has turned toward hatred and cruelty.

Episode 4 is where we get the most information so far about the WLF, or Wolves, and their war with the Seraphites, whom they derogatorily refer to as Scars. It’s also where we get the introduction of Isaac (Jeffrey Wright, who played the character in “The Last of Us Part II” as well), when he was still a FEDRA enforcer until he abandoned and slaughtered his comrades in 2018. It’s a chilling scene, especially considering how much more ruthless Isaac has become. The episode opens with a soldier recalling how another soldier had taunted some ordinary citizens, aka “voters” – because FEDRA had taken away their right to vote, so they mockingly began to call them voters – and killed them.

We don’t know yet why Isaac turned his back on FEDRA to join the Wolves, which is unfortunate because it would provide some necessary context to how far gone he was from the start. When we see him in that opening scene, he’s not a part of the conversation until he points out the origins of the “voter” nickname, and he seems almost regretful in that moment. It makes his ensuing decision to murder his fellow soldiers lack the proper motivation. Was he at odds with FEDRA as a whole and what they represented, or did he get pulled towards the WLF and their mission within Seattle?

Thankfully we have a steady presence like Wright, who can take even the sparsest character and give them added gravitas. In the scene following the aforementioned Apollo 1-esque corpses, Isaac monologues to a captured Seraphite about how he dreamed of owning a set of Mauviel pots and pans. Once upon a time, he had ambitions to make something of himself – not unlike the NASA astronauts – and prove he was worthy to use the best of the best. Now, he simply uses them for torture.

Elsewhere in episode 4, Ellie and Dina (Isabella Merced) have arrived in Seattle and are finding their footing in the search for Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) and her friends. I’m reluctant to spotlight differences between the game and the show, but season 2 of The Last of Us has taken a different tactic between Ellie and Dina. By this point of the game, the two friends had already slept together, but this week’s installment finally sees them admit their feelings for one another and consummate their budding relationship. I’ve appreciated the show’s slow-burn approach, letting Ramsey and Merced build a rapport together and spotlight how well they complement one another.

Whereas last week was slower and devoid of any major action set pieces, episode 4 contains two of the most thrilling moments of season 2 so far. In a supremely gross visual, our heroes come upon a handful of dead Wolves in a TV station, strung up with their abdomens cut open. Shortly thereafter, they’re chased into an abandoned subway tunnel, where they have to evade both the Wolves and a mass of Infected. But before they can fully escape, Ellie gets bitten in order to save Dina. It’s here where they each come clean to each other and reveal their vulnerabilities: Ellie is immune, and Dina is pregnant.

Episode 3 laid out the themes of season 2 in plain English during the town hall scene, where the people of Jackson debated the merits of seeking out revenge. Why put their own people in danger in order to avenge one person’s death, when the town at large was in desperate need of rebuilding? Ellie had a way out then, an excuse to move on with her life, and she does again in episode 4. Consider how elated she is to learn of Dina’s pregnancy, and the prospect of having a family. When the Wolves’ radio crackles to life and reveals their position, she has another chance to walk away and live in peace with someone that truly understands and loves her. But that radio chatter is like a wake-up call back to reality, and she instead presses onward.

Episode 4 of The Last of Us Season 2 is now available to stream on Max.

The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 4 – Gamer Corner

Changes are inevitable when adapting a video game to television. In this space, I’ll discuss the differences and similarities from The Last of Us season 2, and what it means for the remainder of the season going forward.  Obviously, spoilers ahead:

I know that gamers were salivating once the action shifts in the TV station, and again in the subway. Two of the more difficult and exciting moments of the game play out with similar game-like choreography, and it’s a joy to see such massive action come to life on the screen like this.

We don’t see either Tommy (Gabriel Luna) or Jesse (Young Mazino) this week, so it remains an open question as to whether they made the trip out to Seattle as well or not. I had forgotten last week that Tommy makes the rash decision in the wake of Joel’s (Pedro Pascal) death to go to Seattle alone, which is why we see so many hints of his chaotic presence before Ellie and Dina arrive. We don’t see any of Jackson within episode 4, so it’s not outside the realm of possibility for either Tommy or Jesse to make an appearance within season 2, even if there are only 3 episodes remaining.