The Last Of Us Season 2 Episode 3 Live Blog: I'm Talking The Aftermath Of Joel's Tragedy, Ellie's Recovery And More

I'm very thankful to everybody here for taking the time to read along with my reactions to the episode, and for hopefully agreeing with at least three out of every 100 opinions shared, if not slightly more.

And a mental high-five for everybody else out there who recognized the end-credits song as an instrumental version of rock band Finger Eleven's track "Therapy" from their self-titled 2003 album. Gonna have to look up where that song came from shortly.

Until next week, fellow survivors, keep your bricks and bottles handy, and no Chucks during wartime!

"The Path" Rating: 4 Out Of 5 Dead Joels

Okay, that wasn't the classiest way to rank the episode, but I admittedly don't feel very classy after seeing where everyone's lives are at after the three-month time jump. And any time there's even the slightest bit of alteration from the video games, my paranoia gets hiked up as I worry about what late-stage changes might come.

All Those Soldiers

The final shot of "The Path" mirrored the final seconds of the cold open. But instead of the camera panning away to show an increasing number of Jackson's victims, the camera rises to reveal the WLF is far more than just Abby's squad and a few others. Just the one group that's seen patrolling Seattle's streets sported dozens of soldiers on foot, and they followed two functioning tanks.

As it goes with many post-apocalyptic stories, the concept of vehicular fuel is an intriguing one, and the same goes for the TLoU universe. We're not used to seeing trains, planes or automobiles very much, but there's a certain amount of militaristic sense in making an exception out of a heavily armored and weaponized vehicle. It's not the fastest thing on the road, but it can make a bloody mess out of whatever's the fastest thing actually is.

No sign of Abby during this concluding sequence, but we do see Danny Ramirez's Manny in communication with others, so his ties to the villainous group are definitely intact.

Dina's Totally Non-Meaningful Puke

She blames throwing up on the smell of all the murdered bodies, but gamers know that's likely not the entire story. That's all I'll say here, though, just in case it was a red herring.

R.I.P. Unidentified But Seemingly Not Terrible Seraphite Group

Ellie and Dina's seemingly peaceful trip to avenge Joel's murder took an unexpected turn when the stumbled across not just one dead Seraphite, but the corpses of every single Scar that was seen earlier in the episode. Understandably, Ellie is most taken aback by the wide-eyed corpse of the kid.

Interestingly enough, she immediately surmises that Abby's group could be responsible for those deaths, and for killing kids in general, and seems to take comfort in that as further justifcation for being retaliatory. I'm not so sure she's correct, even if the Wolves as an overall faction are likely responsible.

Dina And Ellie Bonding On Horseback And In A Tent

Pretty sure a lot of Last of Us fans beyond me giggled when Ellie so very clearly avoided talking about the first person she killed. Not so much because it was traumatic, but because it would have involved talking about her having a crush on another girl. Perhaps the cutest reason possible to avoid talking about a dead loved one.

Squeeeeee at Ellie and Dina talking about The Kiss! Even if it didn't go all that well for a while, with Ellie rating it a 6, and Dina talking about getting back together with Jesse, despite seeing him as being a sad person. A weird convo to have with a crush. And one that ended on a high note. Or, in this case, a "wasn't that high" note.

Joel's Grave

It seems counter-intuitive to spend a lot of words talking about a scene where nothing is voiced outright, but I have to acknowledge how perfectly sad and meaningful it is to see Ellie make the trip to Joel's grave. And for Dina to hang back on the horse to give them their moment.

I could have just sobbed seeing that gravemarker.

• "Here Lies Joel, Beloved Brother and Father"

I can't believe we got a straightfoward namedrop for Sarah AND the saddest reference possible to him being a dad.

Revenge Plans Are Finalized

Dina is a motherfluffing boss when it comes to organizing shit. She's got maps, supply lists, goals, connections and more. Unsure of how good her cookie-baking skills are, but nobody threw those away. And her thoughts on Ellie's shoe choice is also ideal:

• "Love the Converse. Respect your consistency."

Even when Ellie isn't happy about Dina's decisions, such as recruiting Seth to help them secure a horse, a scope-attached rifle and more, the gal only has everyone's best intentions in mind. She knows that Ellie forgiving Seth will only be helpful for her psyche, even if Ellie herself doesn't know it. Maybe that handshake will lead to clearer paths forward. Or maybe she just knows how hard to yank him towards trouble in the future.

Tommy And Gail Know Ellie's Full Of It

Seeing kids playing sports within Jackson is weirdly heartwarming, especially with Gail and Tommy knocking back a couple of beers as it happened. Smart move keeping all those kids locked up in basements during the big attack, even if watching these games would be boring as hell for random townspeople without kids.

I gotta say, Catherine O'Hara and Gabriel Luna make for great screen partners, and I'm happy that they seem to be on the same page when it comes to Ellie and other things. I'm unsure of what Gail's overarching impact on this story will be, but I have no regrets about this new character continuing to get story prominence.

The Fateful City Councel Meeting

I love Jesse's advice to Ellie to write down her thoughts before pleading her case in front of Tommy, Maria and others, and I can only hope that his advice carries on well beyond this experience. Once Ellie learns to react wisely, instead of angrily, she'll likely avoid more danger than she'll attract.

Weirdly enough, it's Ellie's would-be enemy, the bigoted Seth, who stands up and speaks the most passionately in defense of going out and avenging Joel's death, in the face of previous speakers who voiced unwillingness to hold Joel's death to be more important than rebuilding the town.

Ellie's speech is actually way better than I'd have expected from her, and I have to assume that Dina helped pen that sucker. But goddamn, it was effective. I'd vote Ellie into at least a mayorship just based on her pleas, even if I actually agree with those who voted against her.

And ugh, so many people voted against Ellie, with an 8-3 decision. Was Maria one of the three? I think Tommy and Jesse for sure, but I wonder...

Introducing The Scars

One of the most unpredictable threats in The Last of Us Part II is the Seraphites group, which are coloquially dubbed the Scars because of their highly obvious facial features.

I'm not sure if we're supposed to know these characters from the game or not, but the distinct whistling as a way of primary communication is extremely recognizable. As is their fear of the Wolves.

The man tells the young girl about the prophet the group follows, offering a non-magical backstory for the image of the woman whose murals will no doubt become more commonplace in future episodes.

Revenge Plans Are Made

Isabela Merced's Dina is never going to replace Joel as a counter for Bella Ramsey's Ellie, but she's quickly turning into someone I'm adoring every bit as much as I came to love her in the source material. She wisely waits to give Ellie all the intel she has on Abby's group until she was out and able to actually do something about it without risking her immediate health.

But Dina does have quite a lot of info, including most of their names and where they're heading, as well as the group that they're part of. Ellie's reaction to their logo is priceless.

• "WLF. Wolf. Fucking morons."

Tommy is in such an awkward position, unable to fully appease Ellie's wishes for vengeance despite any urges he may have, for the sake of the greater community. Bue he also has to be mature enough to explain that to Ellie in a way where she won't just go off pissed and half-cocked. But he nails it.

Ellie's Sad, Sad Trip Home

Few things are as depressing as going through someone's home after they died, and I can only imagine how complex Ellie's feelings were as she was finally able to return "home," as it were, after leaving the hospital. From her room to his office and his unfinished owl carving, it was an exercise in unfinished potential.

Similarly, I can relate too well to the moment of Ellie crying while smelling and holding onto Joel's clothes. It's very easy to overdo a scene like that, but this was perfectly low-key and believable.

I also loved that the front of Joel's house was completely covered in flowers and kind notes from Jackson's citizens, which was extremely similiar to how it looked in the game.

I can only hope that Tommy doesn't regret leaving that gun for Ellie, and that she doesn't regret taking it so willingly.

Ellie & Gail 4Ever

Ha. Okay I stand corrected. I would LOVE to be at all of Ellie and Gail's therapy sessions, with Ellie so clearly bullshitting her way through them, and Gail allowing it so long as she can recognize authentic recovery in her patient.

OMG That Title Sequence Change

Shout out to The Last of Us for even using its opening title sequence to squeeze all the heartbreak out of us as possible. As is made evident in the final seconds, we no longer see two characters on the road to survival, but just one.

Someone hand me a tissue to wipe my...bloody nose. And don't question why the blood is all clear and tear-like.

Ellie's Screams Will Haunt Me

Well, if Tommy's grief was sad, then seeing all the PTSD on Ellie's face was downright traumatizing. I would not want to be at her therapy sessions for the next bit. Or ever.

All Those Corpses

Ugh, that's a gut-punch of an opening, with Joel's corpse being cleaned and tended to. It's unclear if that's the first time that Tommy has cast eyes on his brother's body, but the emotion on Gabriel Luna's face makes it a possibility. Though he could have just been looking to fuel his vitriol.

Breaking my heart with this line, Tommy!

• "Give Sarah my love."

Although my heartstrings certainly stretched tighter as the camera pulled out to reveal all the other bodies in that room that aren't Joel.

P.S. I really didn't like the caption "wet rag scraping lightly" popping up as Joel's arm is being washed.

Some of my initial hopes for the episode:

• Joel's death revealed to be a dream.
• Joel's death revealed to be a hoax.
• Joel's death revealed to be a total mistake, and he was just in a weird, non-breathing, open-eyed coma.
• For Ellie to beat the shit out of something as a way to counteract some of her angst.
• More cute Ellie and Dina moments that are completely free from tragic deaths.

I guess I only expect those last two to be actual possibilities. But one can still hope for miracles even after fungi has taken over the planet.