I Was Skeptical About The Last Of Us Season 2's Handling Of Ellie's Revenge Story, But Episode 5 Turned It Around

Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Last of Us season 2, episode 5.

So far, Ellie’s pursuit of revenge in The Last of Us season 2 hasn’t felt as intense or narrow-minded as it did in the game, but episode 5 has finally turned it around. In the episodes since Abby killed Joel, Ellie has seemed a lot more passive in her quest for vengeance and not as enraged or singularly focused as she is in the game. It’s often felt more like Ellie is on a romantic getaway with Dina and not thinking too much about Joel. At times, it feels like Dina wants revenge more than Ellie does.

There have been a couple of brief moments that showed the rage simmering beneath the surface, like when Ellie got upset playing the guitar on her own, but they’ve been undermined by her happy-go-lucky attitude in other scenes. In the game, after Joel’s death, Ellie becomes a lot quieter and more subdued as she focuses solely on her grief. The TV show seems to have misunderstood that, because Ellie’s demeanor doesn’t change at all after Joel’s murder. But The Last of Us season 2, episode 5, “Feel Her Love,” finally changed that and showed Ellie’s descent into darkness.

The Last Of Us Season 2, Episode 5 Shows Ellie Becoming More Ruthless & Selfish In Her Pursuit Of Revenge

Ellie Finally Starts Acting Like Her Video Game Counterpart In "Feel Her Love"

In the video game, by her second day in Seattle, Ellie has become so consumed by her desire for revenge that she doesn’t care about anything else. After finding out Dina is pregnant, Ellie is compassionate enough to let her stay behind while she goes after Abby alone, but that’s mainly because she knows Dina would slow her down. She knows, deep down, that they should turn back and go home so Dina can get proper medical attention, but Ellie refuses to call off the quest for revenge.

In the TV show, Ellie starts the second day by joking around about triangulation with Dina. Even when they sneak through a building full of stalkers, they’re still cracking quips and mooning over each other and taking the time to say the L-word. Up until that point, I was unconvinced by The Last of Us season 2’s adaptation of Ellie’s revenge storyline. But then, Jesse swooped in to save them, gave Ellie a reality check, and Ellie’s dark side started to emerge. The show still hasn’t matched the game’s intensity, but this episode was a good start.

We finally start to see how obsessive Ellie is getting in the pursuit of justice. When Jesse tells her they need to abandon revenge and head home, Ellie immediately objects. After Ellie promises to follow Jesse and a wounded Dina back to the theater, she chooses to go to the hospital instead. The show is finally starting to make Ellie more selfish in her pursuit of Abby. She’s ruthlessly chasing the person she hates at the expense of the people she loves. That’s the tragic emotional core of the game, and the TV show is finally starting to get it.

The Last Of Us Season 2, Episode 5 Adapts Ellie's Darkest Moment From The Game & Does It Justice

Bella Ramsey Nailed The Torture Scene

When Ellie ditches Dina and Jesse to go to the hospital alone, she confronts Nora and corners her in a room full of spores. Here, the TV show adapts what is arguably Ellie’s darkest moment from the game — and does it justice. Nora refuses to give up her friend’s location, even as she dies from a spore infection, so Ellie picks up a lead pipe and starts mercilessly beating her with it. This is an almost shot-for-shot recreation of the torture scene from the game, right down to the ominous red lighting, and it recaptures the vibe perfectly.

Bella Ramsey captures the menace in Ellie’s eyes and the coldness in her line deliveries as she brutally interrogates Nora. In the game, this is a major turning point for Ellie; it’s the moment that she finally loses her humanity after this road to revenge has been gradually chipping away at it. And now, in The Last of Us season 2, it’s the moment that the TV show finally starts to match up to its source material.