After Dina shares crucial information, Ellie prepares to petition the town council, even while she struggles with her deep emotional scars. On the outskirts of Seattle, a religious sect attempts to flee a war - raising questions on what lies ahead.
The episode opens in the immediate aftermath of Joel's death and the assault on Jackson Hole. Tommy washes his brother's body while Ellie screams in pain. It's not from the chest tube that has been inserted into her side either. She remains in that moment of loss. The entire community is paralyzed. They survived. They lost countless loved ones too. The attacks were separated. Yet they are equated because they occurred at the same time. The infected only seek to add to their ranks. That was the sole purpose of the horde attacking the community. Meanwhile, Abby had a personal vendetta against Joel. She needed to kill him for murdering her father. That was a heinous act. She needed revenge. That has motivated her for five years. She finally achieved that goal. It now sets off a new tragic cycle of violence. One where Ellie must be smart before she acts. Yet her decision to hunt down Abby was never in question. She vowed to kill all of the strangers at the lodge for what they did. She still needed three months to recover from the injuries she sustained. She was powerless to stop them. She's blinded by rage. Everyone knows precisely how she will react. The episode offers a debate over whether it's smart for the rest of the community to rally behind her cause.
Dina knows the names of these strangers and where they came from. She wasn't conscious long enough to hear Abby's motivation for vengeance. She didn't hear the warning about staying far away from Seattle. As such, the viewer knows how even more foolish this venture is. Nothing can persuade Ellie against it. She has made up her mind. She's upset that Dina refused to tell her for months. Dina wanted her friend to recover. She thought Abby and her friends wouldn't be going anywhere. They would continue to serve in their known base of operations. The parallels continue to line up between Abby and Ellie. Abby also wanted to immediately hunt down Joel for what he did. Owen stepped in to reason with her. He wasn't dissuading her from her quest. He simply wanted her to be smart about it. They had to regroup. Then, they could kill Joel from a place of strength. It took five years. Abby was eventually victorious. Ellie doesn't have that patience. Dina serves as her voice of reason. She has a strategy. She doesn't try to stop her. It's just the two of them against the world. That connects the show back to its narrative roots. Yet Ellie and Dina traveling the country together is different from the dynamic Joel and Ellie had previously.
It's incredibly powerful when Ellie takes the moments to actually grieve. She walks through Joel's home as it's suddenly empty. The community posted their messages of love in a memorial outside. Meanwhile, Ellie actually ventures through the space. She sees a full life that was lived. The broken watch is treated with care. Joel carried it with him as a reminder of Sarah. Meanwhile, Ellie moves past it to pick up the gun. That serves as her reminder of Joel. She breaks down in tears. She's never deterred from what must come next. But she still must actively be in the moment. She is given the space to process this loss. It's as much for the viewers as it is for the character. This is the closest thing to family Ellie has ever had. Joel died just like everyone else who mattered to her. She doesn't bounce back the same way. She was jaded in her understanding of the world. Her dynamic with Joel was special. As such, it's meaningful that her response is different. It's clear she is putting on a face to fool others into believing she is fine. She continues being her abrupt and vulgar self. It's enhanced to a degree. Ellie delivers an impression of herself. It's more obvious. As such, others aren't willing to buy it. The lies are clear. She convinces herself that she is making a coherent argument. Her selfish desires are at the forefront of her request. It has nothing to do with the health and vision of the overall community.
Ellie has always been selfish. She will break away from the group if she finds a more intriguing prospect to explore. Now, she must rally the community to back her cause. Jesse tells her to write down her argument. She can't convince anyone with sheer anger alone. She believes in the righteousness of her mission. It's false when she says it's for the greater good. She presents herself as an ally to the entire community. Someone who will defend them and pursue justice no matter what. She makes the argument because it's in her best interest. She needs something. She's asking for a lot. The town just doesn't have the resources to share. The proposal is rightly voted down. Again, that doesn't stop Ellie. She is determined. Dina is a fiercely loyal friend. She knows Ellie isn't thinking things through either. Ellie wouldn't survive on her own. As such, she needs a friend to make this plan a reality. The two have allies in town who are supportive of their ambitions. It simply requires relying on Seth after he was previously hateful to them. Ellie can never forgive and forget. Gail sees her self-destructive tendencies. She will plunge head-first into disaster without thinking about the consequences. That's who Ellie is. There is simply no changing her. No one is responsible for her actions either. Joel and Tommy opened up her world. She has stepped into it. This mission was what she was always going to do. It provides the show with narrative purpose. It's more than Ellie being given the freedom to live her life in comfort as Joel probably would have wanted. She has too much importance. That extends across the globe. It can't be contained to Jackson.
Ellie and Dina are natural with each other. Yet things remain awkward following their New Year's Eve kiss. Ellie has a crush on her straight best friend. Dina is confident enough to start the conversation. But it's also toying with Ellie's emotions. They are two young adults struggling to deal with their feelings. They have each other's backs no matter what. They are walking into the unknown. They operate with the assumption Abby's unit is small. They need to believe that in order to keep moving forward. It's far from the truth. It's jarring when the narrative suddenly moves away from Ellie's perspective to a group traveling near Seattle. It's the narrative taking itself out of the emotions of the moment from losing Joel. It serves as the pivot to the action coming next. Ellie and Dina stumble upon the aftermath of these religious travelers being ambushed. They see the massacre. It serves as further evidence to Ellie that Abby is a rampaging monster who kills no matter what. She doesn't see a code or a reason. The audience knows better. It's still compelling to see Ellie fall into this tunnel vision. She can't help herself. This is what she needs to believe in order to survive. She can't reckon with anything else. Dina has her eye on the changing environment. Her expertise is needed in a time like this. Yet the militia they are up against is far more resourced and prepared than they expected. Again, that's the obvious twist. It creates a daunting final image. One that would have been more powerful as the only breakaway from Ellie's perspective. Because it wasn't, the show struggles to maintain its focus a little bit.
