(HBO Max)
Welcome back survivors to our penultimate analysis and review of TLOU: The HBO Series. This time, we are in the present after last week’s episode “Left Behind,” explored the back story of Ellie and her attachment to Joel and the people close to her that either died or left. In this episode we see Ellie cross paths with a group of people led by a preacher known as David. Here we find out that Joel killed a member of David’s group back at the university and he is looking for revenge.
The acting in this series has always been top notch but this has brought it to the next level. Bella Ramsay brings her A-game as she maneuvers the fine line between being strong yet soft at the same time. David, played by Scott Shepherd, is perfectly casted in his calm sense of evilness and toned down anger. A massive standout is also Troy Baker, the actor who played Joel in the game, as David’s right hand man, James.
This episode was a powerhouse of emotions as many aspects from the game such as Joel’s interrogation scene and David’s final fight with Ellie were pretty much copied and pasted perfectly from the pixels to the screens of many televisions around the world. You can see every visceral cut and shot and drop of blood as the violence forces you to pay attention at all times. Not even the horse was safe, RIP Callus.