The Last of Us, series two: 'post-apocalyptic television at its peak'

Second instalment of hit show is just as 'gutsy' and 'thoughtful' as the first

Pedro Pascal in season two of The Last of Us.
Pedro Pascal as hardened survivor Joel
(Image credit: HBO)

Showrunners Craig Mazin and original game writer Neil Druckmann created something "thrilling" and "profound" with "The Last of Us", said John Nugent in Empire. Based on the 2013 post-apocalyptic video game of the same name, the hit HBO show was a "masterclass in adaptation". Now, the duo are "tempting fate" with a second instalment and, "against considerable odds", they've managed to pull it off.

The new season kicks off five years after hardened survivor Joel (Pedro Pascal) and teenager Ellie (Bella Ramsey) made their cross-country trek through a "devastated" America. Joel's plan was to deliver the "seemingly immune" Ellie to a rebel group who believed she could hold the key to a cure for the deadly fungus-based pandemic.

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Episode two, in which the town is assaulted by a horde of infected creatures, rivals the "most visceral and goriest" battles from "Game of Thrones", said Jack King in GQ. It's not just about "flashy effects and violence" either; the episode has high "emotional stakes", and you care about what happens to the characters. In all, it's the "certain Emmy play – sure to go down as a TV all-timer".

But the series goes "awry" when Ellie and her love-interest Dina (Isabela Merced) embark on a "dangerous" road trip, said Caryn James on BBC Culture. The "harrowing" zombie attacks come "too regularly and predictably", and however much you're "rooting" for the pair to "acknowledge their attraction" to each other, their relationship is "no match" for Joel and Ellie's. An "eloquent" flashback episode about what happened in the five years between seasons is a welcome addition – but it also draws attention to how much the series relies on the "dynamic" between Pascal and Ramsey.

Irenie Forshaw is a features writer at The Week, covering arts, culture and travel. She began her career in journalism at Leeds University, where she wrote for the student newspaper, The Gryphon, before working at The Guardian and The New Statesman Group. Irenie then became a senior writer at Elite Traveler, where she oversaw The Experts column.