The Last of Us season two
Alongside Netflix’s Arcane and Prime Videos’s Fallout, Sky’s The Last of Us proved that it wasn’t just possible to make good video game adaptations but that they could be exceptional television. Showrunner Craig Mazin and game director Neil Druckman look to be continuing this trend for the second season of The Last of Us. Although access has only been granted for the first episode, the duo once again appear to be aiming to enrich the source material to lend more weight to Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel’s (Pedro Pascal) story.
Following the bleak conclusion of the first season, the second picks up five years later with the pair having made new lives for themselves in Jackson, a large settlement filled with other survivors of the cordyceps outbreak that causes the infected to transform into zombie-like creatures. As Joel works tirelessly to maintain the settlement, a now 19-year-old Ellie spends her time going on patrols with best friend Dina (Isabela Merced), with little regard for the rules or her own safety. With Ellie still angry at Joel for his actions at the Firefly hospital, a schism has formed between the two. The first episode puts most of its focus on their fractured relationship, particularly how it’s affecting Joel. It’s a smart amendment to its game counterpart, which is bound to add more weight to the tragic events that are to come.
This isn’t the only shuffling that the show makes story-wise at this early stage. Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby appears much earlier this time around and makes her intentions known from the outset. Although the character isn’t given enough screen time at this point for viewers to gauge what Dever’s portrayal of Abby will be like, the change in narrative framing is enough to stimulate curiosity about what this could mean going forward.
Much like the last season, the quality of the production is excellent. There’s an impressive sense of scale to this post-apocalyptic world, with the creature design being as fittingly grotesque as before. Reuniting with Pascal and Ramsey is a joy, however, it’s Merced’s charming performance which steals the show here.
While it’s too early to tell how successful Mazin and Druckman can adapt The Last of Us 2 for the small screen, a mixture of solid performances, cinematic production values and intriguing alterations to the source material put the show on track to be as great as the previous season.
Andrew Murray
The Last of Us season two is released on Sky on 14th April 2025.
Watch the trailer for The Last of Us season two here:
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
RSS