When all flashbacks take place

WARNING: Spoilers to come for The last of us Season 2, episode 6.

The last of us Season 2, Episode 6 is made up almost entirely of flashbacks through a sprawling chronology. Apart from the last moments, which date back to the theater of Rainy Seattle, The last of us Season 2, episode 6 takes place in the past. He brings together Joel de Pedro Pascal to show how his relationship with Ellie has embittered in the years between his lie on fireflies and the start of season 2. Just like in video games, the flashbacks offer a welcome break in all the darkness In Ellie’s quest for revenge.

In the game, these flashbacks are sprinkled throughout the three days from Ellie to Seattle, but the television show drops all the flashbacks at the same time, consecutive, at the most pivotal moment of Ellie’s trip. When Ellie tortured Nora, her avenging crusade finally claimed her humanity. Flashbacks are jumping back to show how a sweet and innocent child was before losing her father and heading for Washington. The episode presents six separate flashbacks in chronological orderextending from 1983 to 2028. When each flashback takes place and what is their dramatic and thematic meaning?

Young Joel in Austin, Texas – 1983

Joel has a heart to heart with his father

The cold opening of The last of us Season 2, episode 6 dates back to 1983 – two decades before the epidemic – and presents us the father of Joel and Tommy, played by Tony Dalton. After Tommy was in trouble, Joel stretched out with his father to protect his brother from the blows. Joel and his father have a heart to heart on how each generation of fathers is doing a little better than the previous one, and he hopes that Joel will do better than him. This Install the focus of the episode on Joel’s failures as a father in Ellie.

Ellie’s 15th anniversary – 2024

Joel gives Ellie his guitar

The next flashback takes place the 15th anniversary of Ellie in 2024, A few months after the arrival of Joel and Ellie in Jackson. Joel takes a birthday cake from Seth, but he is frustrated to see that Seth wrote the name of Ellie as “Eli“In the frosting. Tommy brings back to the house with a chemical burn on her arm, which she did to cover her cock so that she can wear short sleeves again.

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When Ellie’s arm recovers, Joel shows her the cake and gives her Ellie present: a guitar. Ellie asks Joel to play something, so he plays a beautiful acoustic interpretation of the “future days” of Pearl Jam. This is a direct recreation of the game opening scene, but The distinction here is that Joel made the guitar himself instead of finding it in an abandoned houseHe therefore has an even more personal link with him. This scene explains why playing the guitar makes it turned upside down today, after Joel’s death, and why she played “Future Days” in the theater.

Ellie’s 16th anniversary – 2025

Joel takes Ellie to a science museum

A year later, Ellie’s 16th anniversary, Joel took her to a science museum. It climbs a large T. Rex statue, plays with a model of the solar system and enters a space capsule. There, Joel gives him his real gift: a band recording of the launch of the Apollo 11 shuttle. The closest thing she will never know to realize her dream of going to space. It is an adaptation almost taken from the most comforting sequence of the game, up to Ellie’s space travel fantasy.

Much of the Ellie revenge scenario focuses on Joel’s worst mistakes. But this trip to the museum, with the best birthday gift of all time, is a recall of Joel’s best qualities: it’s a very good dad. Unfortunately, on the return, Ellie remembers her distrust of Joel when she sees buzzing fireflies in the woods.

Ellie’s 17th anniversary – 2026

Ellie enters the garage

Ellie’s 17th anniversary a year later, Joel catches Ellie in a romantic midday meeting with his girlfriend Kat, who gave him a tattoo. Joel manages the situation terribly, which made Ellie move in the garage in an act of rebellion. Joel protests at the start, but ends up giving in. He convinces her to stay in the house long enough to make the garage skillful with heat and electricity, but it should be a good thing for her to have her own space. This shows the rift that begins to form between them.

Ellie’s 19th anniversary – 2028

Joel takes Ellie on his first patrol

Two years later, Ellie’s 19th anniversary, Joel finally gave way and allows Ellie to join the patrol unit. He takes her to his first patrol and they are called to help Eugene, who was bitten by the infected. Eugene wants to go back to town and say goodbye to Gail before turning, and Ellie thinks he has time. Joel sends Ellie to obtain the horses and swear that he will grant the eogene request. But when Ellie returns with the horses, Joel killed Eugene. Ellie sees with how easily Joel can lie to him And realizes that he had to lie about the fireflies.

New year – December 31, 2028

Ellie begins to forgive Joel

The final flashback of the episode takes place during the New Year’s party at the first of the season, nine months after Eugene’s death. This time, We see the scene from Joel’s point of view. After the incident with Seth, Ellie comes to see Joel on her porch. This is a composite scene of two game flashbacks. In the game, Ellie demands that Joel tells her the truth about what happened to the fireflies of the years before promising to try to forgive him the day before his death. But the television show Combines these flashbacks in a single scene.

It was An economic choice to rationalize the narration of the game for its television adaptationBut that probably weakens the two scenes by piling up them together. In the game, Ellie has years to treat the truth before she started the way to forgiveness. But The last of us Season 2, episode 6 condenses this in a few seconds, so Ellie’s forgiveness feels precipitated. However, the scene is beautifully played by Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, just like the other flashbacks of the episode.

The last of us

8/ 10

Release date

January 15, 2023

Network

Hbo

Showrunner

Craig Mazin

Directors

Craig Mazin, Peter Hoar, Jeremy Webb, Ali Abbasi, Mark Mylod, Stephen Williams, Jasmila žbanić, Liza Johnson, Nina Lopez-Corrado

Writers

Neil Druckmann, Craig Mazin