The Last of Us – “When You’re Lost in the Darkness” Review
“When You’re Lost in the Darkness” is the series premiere of The Last of Us, that aired on HBO Max on January 15th. Based on the 2013 video game developed by Naughty Dog, the series follows Joel (Pedro Pascal), a smuggler tasked with escorting the teenage Ellie (Bella Ramsey) across the post-apocalyptic United States.
In “When You’re Lost in the Darkness” twenty years after the fungal outbreak ravages the planet; survivors Joel and Tess (Anna Torv) are tasked with a mission that could change everything. Below you will find our review of the episode.
Warning: This article contains spoilers from The Last of Us “When You’re Lost in the Darkness”. Read at your own risk!
The show starts off in the year 2003. As the fungus virus is starting to ravage the country, we are seeing the effects almost immediately. The day began almost normally, but once nightfall arrived, chaos ensued when bloodthirsty victims began attacking people. Joel and his brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) escape with Joel’s daughter, Sarah (Nico Parker), as the fungus starts to spread. During their escape, however, a soldier killed her.
Twenty years later. Joel lives in the Boston quarantine zone managed by the Federal Disaster Response Agency, FEDRA. The Boston Zone is under attack from the Fireflies, an anti-FEDRA rebel group. We finally get our first look at Ellie as she tells a group of Fireflies to go f themselves. The leader of the Fireflies, Marlene (Merle Dandridge) plans on taking Ellie somewhere out west after finding a transmission about her. As Joel and Tess attempt to retrieve a battery that had been sold to the Fireflies; they discover that the deal had gone bad and Marlene had been seriously injured.
Marlene makes a new deal with Joel and Tess, to get Ellie to the State House in exchange for supplies. They waited until nightfall to escape but were soon caught by a soldier. As the soldier moves to test her for infection; Elli stabs him, yet Joel had flashbacks to Sarah’s death and kills the soldier instead. Tess realizes that Ellie is infected, but she swears not to turn. The trio entered the biological contamination area as they fled from FEDRA soldiers.
My Overall Thoughts
First, can we talk about the title sequence?! Seriously gave me Game of Thrones vibes, but I’m in love with it! How they started the episode off with what looks like a talk show and how they discussed the possibility of fungus taking host in human bodies. It was the most foreboding thing I have ever seen in an opening sequence and it gave me chills. I will admit that it was honestly a little terrifying to watch as the infection started and how everyone started to panic.
My heart broke while seeing Sarah die and Joel holding her in his arms begging for her life. I wish it hadn’t happened, but I know it’s a big moment for Joel. I like the little details they added throughout the episode. Like Joel slapping his wrist went he realized he didn’t have his watch on, so Sarah had it repaired. The fact they followed through with the twenty-year jump is a huge plus. As most shows still try to fill in the void before making the jump.
Overall, I think they did an excellent job at seeing up the plotline of the show and sticking close to the game. It will be interesting to see if they will continue sticking close to the game or veer off in a different direction. I’m totally hooked and looking forward to next week’s episode.
When you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light.
What are your thoughts on the episode? Let us know in the comments or on any of our social medias.
