So we’ve finally made it to Seattle proper, with Ellie and Dina getting started on their journey as they become acquainted with the city and get started on the insurmountable task of finding Abby and her friends.
The episode builds its atmosphere beautifully with shots of the city interspersed with hints of a growing danger. Early on, Ellie and Dina find evidence of FEDRA soldiers who’d killed each other in a shootout and they start to realise the Wolves are a much bigger operation than they had hoped, making their task significantly harder.
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| "Day One" - THE LAST OF US. Pictured: Isabela Merced as Dina. Photo: Liane Hentscher/HBO ©2025 HBO |
One of the most haunting moments is their discovery of Wolves strung up by ropes with their intestines hanging out, along with a symbol that matches that worn by the massacred religious group they encountered previously. It’s a visceral and gory image but part of the reason it worked so well in the game is because we don’t know anything about these people at this moment. The game built a sense of unease and fear, making you wonder what kind of people could really do this.
The show ruins that suspense and that element of the unknown by already giving us solid introductions to different sects of the Seraphites in both the third and fourth episodes. In this episode we get an introduction to Isaac in a couple scenes that give Jeffrey Wright more to do than he ever really got in the game and in one of those scenes, we see him torturing a devout Seraphite for information.
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| "Day One" - THE LAST OF US. Pictured: Jeffrey Wright as Isaac. Photo: Liane Hentscher/HBO ©2025 HBO |
It’s a chilling look into Isaac’s character especially when paired with his murder of his FEDRA squad in the opening scene. Though he does save the fresh-faced kid in the squad, who goes on to become one of his staunchest long-time supporters in the present day storyline. It works well to show Isaac as both ruthless but with a glimpse of some sort of moral code but it feels oddly placed in the season outside of a way to set up the factions and conflicts of Seattle for what I assume will be a big Season 3 payoff.
Fortunately, it’s not so prominent as to take away from Ellie’s personal storyline in this episode. You can feel Joel haunting the narrative while she plays the guitar for Dina, which showcases how Bella Ramsey and Isabela Merced are both doing an excellent job balancing the levity and the drama. Even in all the darkness they're heading towards, you can't forget they’re still just teenage girls.
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| "Day One" - THE LAST OF US. Pictured: Bella Ramsey as Ellie. Photo: Liane Hentscher/HBO ©2025 HBO |
I really love the way they did Ellie’s immunity reveal in the show. It changed things up a little form how it played out in the game and it led to a really intense scene where Dina confronts Ellie and her fear and her horror is palpable. There’s a great extended moment when Ellie wakes up and you can’t see Dina’s face behind the glare of her light which was an awesome and atmospheric choice.
The high emotions of the scene culminate in a moment of intimacy that feels earned from all the horrors this episode - and this season - has put them through, sending their relationship from strength to strength as they bask in the tender reprieve that their moment of intimacy grants them. It’s a scene that speaks to the show’s strongest and most important themes that will hopefully carry the characters through when things get darker and bloodier - when you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light.
What did you think of the episode? Sound off in the comments below!
