re: The Last of Us S2 E2 | Through the Valley | NO GAME SPOILERS/DISCUSSION

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Stop talking about the game, a-hole

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now this series no longer has Pedro pascal.

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Why is the assumption being made that he will no longer appear?

Plenty of shows kill off a main character in the first couple of episodes and then give you tons of backstory with flashbacks.

So he's no longer a part of the narrative going forward, but that doesn't mean he can't put in a great performance that carries through the rest of this season.

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But the bottom line is you're in this thread, explicitly labeled no game spoilers, talking about the game. Like a real McAsshole.

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I think some context should be welcomed in a polarizing IP like The Last of Us. The story just isn't for everyone, and it brings out its loudest critics and defenders. You can look up reviews of the game and see it has almost equal numbers of 1 stars than it does 5 stars. If you read any of the reviews, they are mostly moronic on both sides.

Me saying it's a brutal story about revenge and anger isn't a spoiler. It's obvious its the tone set from episode 1 of this show. It's obvious in the way Ellie is a character and how she's just so damn angry and reactive all the time. It's how Joel is as a character who really isn't that good of a guy because lord knows all the awful things he done to survive in this new world, only to get a second chance at being some kind of father figure and then blowing that also.

I'm only going to comment on what's currently happening and won't allude to future storylines. To be honest I know this show will change things anyway.

Some top moments from this episode:

1. Abby getting pinned against the fence was a legit terrifying moment.

2. The fight at Jackson Hole was pretty epic and gave me some GoT vibes.

3. The scene where Ellie realizes all her anger toward Joel was so stupid and pointless as she watched him die was some great acting. The actress who plays her gets shite on (most of the time justifiable) but she did a great job here.

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Doesn’t help righteous gemstones is finally having a weak season too. I’m not sure I’ve laughed at a scene this season.

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Season one was pretty bad too. Not much laugh out loud moments.

I really really wanted to like Righteous Gemstones because Eastbound and Down and Vice Principles are two of my all time favorite comedies but it's just not even close to the same level of funny. I had laugh out/crying laughing moments in almost every episode of both of those shows and I can count on one hand how many times I've done that for the entirety of RG.

Regarding the big giant Groot looking fungus guy, I’m just curious if he was a mini-boss in the game. If so, how difficult was it to beat him?

I was pretty down on this episode and was actually falling asleep I was so uninterested just because of how much I hate Ellie. Has nothing to do with her looks, I don't care. She is just awful. But the episode obviously stepped it up a notch.

Pretty shocking ending. Even until the very end I figured Joel would make it out ok. Have to give them props for the surprising ending and probably the first time I felt like Ellie had some decent acting.

One thing that felt odd is now the infected can literally run as fast as horses. I guess now they've gotten like super human powers for some reason.

I get Abby wanting revenge but it kind of makes zero sense that she would have this crew of people that are ok going to the ends of the earth on this revenge tour with her. Especially with her being a boss bitch to them the entire time. I can see it working in a video game, but it didn't work in the show. It just felt dumb that they were willing to do all that.

Despite that being a good episode, I fell like it's a legit problem going forward that you now have virtually zero likable main characters. Tommy is ok and I can see Dina being ok but my god having to rely on the most unlikable main character in recent memory going forward is going to be an issue. They want you to feel for Ellie but she is such a giant bitch why would I care?

I agree. I've never really been a fan of the show but this episode was great. With the only likable character gone though, I'm honestly not even looking forward to the rest. Ellie is just such a bad character, it was an all time miscast

Whelp I was not expecting this. I'm assuming this happened in the game.

Not on the level of Dead Ned or the red wedding but surprising nonetheless. I assumed girl boss was going to (improbably) save him.

I don't find the mousy little villain to be very credible.

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I was pretty down on this episode and was actually falling asleep I was so uninterested just because of how much I hate Ellie. Has nothing to do with her looks, I don't care. She is just awful. But the episode obviously stepped it up a notch.

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Yep, and its not Ramsey's fault. It's Mazin and Druckmann's direction for the character this season. They're trying so hard to sell her as a badass, but it's backfiring. As others have mentioned, having her cuss so often is cringey. She's just very unlikable at this point.