The Last of Us Episode 6: A Haunting Reminder of What We've Lost
I just finished watching The Last of Us Season 2, Episode 6, and it left me with a pit in my stomach—one that's not just about what happened on screen, but what’s been missing ever since Joel’s brutal departure in Episode 2. Honestly, this episode hits like a truck, not because of any shocking twist, but because it quietly and powerfully reminds us of the emotional weight Pedro Pascal brought to the series. His absence continues to cast a long, cold shadow over the show.
Episode 6 pulls us back into the timeline before Joel’s death, using flashbacks that trace Ellie’s birthdays in the safety of Jackson, Wyoming. These moments, intimate and sometimes awkward, showcase the complex, layered relationship Joel and Ellie had. Joel struggles to fully understand Ellie’s identity—her sexuality, her independence, her trauma—but he tries. And that effort, that flawed but heartfelt attempt to connect, makes his eventual death all the more gut-wrenching.
We’re shown a quieter side of Joel here—one that’s worlds apart from the grizzled survivor we met in Season 1. Whether it’s giving Ellie a guitar, introducing her to old music, or walking her through a crumbling science museum, Joel was more than just Ellie’s protector; he was her connection to a lost world, a fragment of the life that once was. That emotional anchor is exactly what the series is missing now.
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The episode also features a touching performance by Joe Pantoliano as Eugene—a character we’d only heard about until now. His final moments, his desperation not for his last words, but to hear hers —Gail’s—cut deep. It’s a haunting reminder of what makes The Last of Us powerful when it's at its best: the quiet, painful moments between people trying to hold onto meaning in a collapsing world.
And then there’s Joel’s tearful confession on the porch: “I’ll pay the price, because you’re gonna turn away from me.” We already know what that price is. We saw it in Episode 2. But hearing those words again, paired with Pedro Pascal’s raw performance, reminds us how much emotional gravity he brought to the show.
Without him, we’re left with more explosions and fewer moments of introspection. The world has grown wider, the action bigger, but the heart of the story feels missing. There’s still time for Season 2 to find its footing—perhaps even to embrace what’s been lost and build something new. But right now, we’re not just mourning Joel’s death. We’re mourning what the show was with him in it.
Joel, we miss you. And The Last of Us feels a little less like us without you.
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