In the April 20 episode titled Through the Valley of The Last of Us season two, fans were hit with a brutal and emotional scene that marked the death of Pedro Pascal’s character, Joel Miller. The moment was intense and deeply heartbreaking as Joel was savagely beaten and impaled with a golf club by Abby, played by Kaitlyn Dever. This violent moment was the direct result of past events from season one, where Joel had killed Abby’s father, a Fireflies doctor, in a desperate attempt to rescue Ellie from being operated on.
For fans familiar with the video game The Last of Us Part II, this death was not unexpected, as Joel meets the same fate in the game. However, the rawness of the scene made it difficult to watch for many, even for those who knew it was coming. What made the moment even more gut-wrenching was the involvement of Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, who was forced to witness Joel’s murder while being held captive by Abby’s group. This added another layer of emotional complexity, as Joel had become a surrogate father to Ellie, and his loss was felt deeply by both her and the audience.
The show’s creators, including co-creator Craig Mazin, have been open about their commitment to staying true to the source material. In an interview with IGN, Mazin emphasized the importance of preserving key elements from the game that are essential to the emotional and narrative core of the story. He stated, “What we try to do is preserve the aspects of canon that I would call load-bearing walls… We just try and make the best show, but we do it with, I think, an enormous respect for the aspects of the game that work so well.”
This tragic moment highlights the emotional depth of the series, with Joel’s death echoing the loss he experienced at the beginning of the outbreak when he lost his own daughter. In a sense, Ellie had filled that void in his heart, making his death even more painful for her. As the show progresses, the emotional fallout from Joel’s death will undoubtedly play a crucial role in the development of both Ellie and Abby’s characters, pushing the narrative forward with profound impact.
