Bella Ramsey really gave a stone cold performance in The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 5 “Feel Her Love.” We spend a lot of the episode seeing Ellie planning what she’s going to do. Interspersed with that are soft moments that are a reminder that life still goes on. And that means for Ellie too. But by the end of the episode we saw the pure and raw hatred that Ellie has been holding onto for months. Finding Abby isn’t about justice. Maybe not entirely. It’s about revenge. And Ellie is going to get it.
MORE: Need a refresher of The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 4? Read our review.
The Duality of Ellie
Before we talk about the end of The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 5, we have to talk about how it started. In episode 4 of season 2 of The Last of Us, she had revealed her secret to Dina about being immune. In the emotional trauma of Dina thinking that she would have to shoot her best friend, everything shattered around them and when it got put back together, they had decided to live their life together. Episode 5 is the natural continuation of that. Dina is planning, proving she is the truest ride or die. And Ellie has this quiet moment in the theater with the guitar that kind of chilled me to the bone.
A lot of people will look at the final scene of this episode and undoubtedly be like, “That is the moment where I was terrified of Ellie.” But I was kind of terrified of her in the theater. I thought something was going to attack her with the way that she drew into herself, looking as if she was ready to spring. But there was nothing around her. It was just her and us seeing the pain she’s been carrying inside since Joel’s death. And this moment in the theater was just as terrifying as that “I know” she delivered when Nora asked her if she knew what Joel did. Because Ellie is done hiding. She’s ready to tear the world apart.
The fact that Ellie knows what Joel did and still is seeking revenge speaks to the heart of this show. And it’s also a prime example as to how this show is different. I understand that Joel was the boogeyman in Abby’s story. But The Last of Us, at the moment, isn’t interested in the reasons why Abby did it. It only matters that Abby did it. It doesn’t matter what Joel did either. This isn’t a tale of morality or doing what’s right.
If anything, this episode makes me look back at season 1 of The Last of Us with new eyes. Season 1 was what would you do in the name of love. Season two of The Last of Us is what you would do in the name of anger. Two distinctly different journeys. And one thing is for sure, not everyone is going to be happy by the time we get to the end of Season 2.
MORE: Abby’s crew on The Last of Us Season 2 really needs to watch their backs. Ellie’s coming.
Dina, My Queen, My Goddess
Truly, from start to finish, Ellie would be dead without Dina. I understand that Dina herself would also be dead if it wasn’t that Ellie threw her arm in front of that infected and took the bite for Dina. That’s beautiful and I appreciate Ellie taking one for the team. But the way that Dina plans, prepares, and plays to her strengths while also acknowledging Ellie’s, it’s hot. And it’s about time that TV ups the amount of capable people in a room when it comes to these dystopian stories. That’s especially true when it comes to queer people, who disproportionately die sooner than straight characters.
But back to Dina.
Like I mentioned in the section about Ellie, everyone’s got a story to tell and a boogeyman that haunts them. Joel was Abby’s boogeyman and she took him out. And Dina understands that. She understands it enough to share with Ellie a story of her youth. Nevertheless, Dina isn’t here for the forgiveness Olympics. The world has ended, lives have been lost, and if she let the man who killed her family go or if he got away, she would hunt him down until the ends of the Earth even if her people attacked him first. And that’s a different reaction than I expected from her as a character, even if that one is on The Last of Us.
Also, let’s talk about Dina and the pregnancy of it all. Most of the time, when a character ends up pregnant on a show, all of a sudden they are this demure soft and understanding character. It’s like the power of life inside of their womb makes them understand or look at the world differently. (Please note that was sarcasm there.) And Dina is basically like, “Screw that!” At the end of the world there is no jury, there is no judge. There’s only what we do now. And it might be a little lawless and violent. But I’m done with the rage and the fire. Give me women destroying because they’ve been wronged, no matter the other circumstances in their lives.
MORE: What song did Ellie sing in The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 4?
The Evolution of This World
I didn’t want to finish off this review for The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 5 without talking about the character design and development of this world. For those who haven’t played the game, it might seem a little shocking or out of left field that the infected have adapted or evolved. But that’s what fungi do. It adapts to new environments and learns. And this is what the cordyceps infection is doing. It’s learning from its environment and how it can infect even more bodies. And it’s equal parts genius but also terrifying. Case in point the spores and the stalkers. It keeps you on your toes and makes you rethink if you’re truly safe.
Another part of the evolution of this world is that if Jackson, Seattle, or the Scars could organize in the manner that they have done here, there’s no doubt that there are other cities and outposts that have survived the spread of the infection outside of FEDRA. With that realization comes the knowledge that life goes on. People are falling in love, building homes together, and having children. The world might have ended but humans continue doing what humans know. And with the creation of life and community also comes the destruction of each other. Because even at the end of the world we can’t let go of the fact that others think differently and that it isn’t all about us.
At the end of the day, I don’t think Ellie, Dina, or Jesse are going to solve or stop what’s happening between the Scars and the WLF. That’s not the purpose of this show and pain will continue to be reaped and lives will be destroyed. Because there is no happy ending. There’s only what you do along the way, the people that you love, and the homes you build together. The terror, uncertainty, and infighting will never go away. In fact, it makes me connect with the show on a level I never expected but can totally understand. That’s the world of The Last of Us. But it’s also ours as well.
The Last of Us airs new episodes every Sunday.
