The final moments of HBO’s The Last of Us closed out the first season in way that almost perfectly mirrored the game. As Ellie says “okay,” the music rolls and audiences are left to wonder what they just saw. Does Ellie really believe Joel? Did Joel do the right thing? Players, and now viewers, bring a lot to the table when they discuss the highly debatable ending of this story.
What would Ellie have wanted, and how much should that weigh in the mind of Joel? While these things are very much worth considering, the finale to the show added an extra wrinkle to this decade-long debate. With the introduction of Anna and how much we now know about her, we have to wonder what Anna would have wanted. Would Anna have supported Joel in his decision?
While we only see Anna for a little while, she leaves a lasting impression. We see her run through the woods to get away from an infected. When she finally finds refuge in a house, she puts her back against the wall, pulls out her knife, and readies herself to fight off the infected close behind.
She struggles with the creature until she finally stabs it in the head, but she’s unfortunately bitten in the process. Ellie is on the floor and Anna quickly severs the umbilical cord tethering them together.
When we see Anna next, she’s singing to Ellie and holding a knife to her own throat. The knife is so deeply dug in that it’s drawing blood. Anna is ready to kill herself at the slightest sign of infection.
She allows Ellie to cry and won’t nurse her because she’s worried about infection. Anna then lies to Marlene, saying she cut the umbilical cord before she was bitten. Anna then forces Marlene to promise her that she’ll take Ellie to Boston and find a family to raise her.
Marlene takes Ellie to Boston, but doesn’t find a family to take Ellie or raise the girl herself. Instead, Marlene leaves Ellie to be raised by FEDRA in an orphanage. While Marlene mentions Anna when talking to Joel, it doesn’t come across as genuine love for this woman who was supposed to be her best friend.
Marlene essentially abandoned Ellie, and only really took an interest in her when Marlene realized she might be immune. If Ellie hadn’t been immune, it’s likely she never would’ve met Marlene.
Through a twist of fate, however, Marlene is responsible for sending Ellie with Joel. While Ellie is already fourteen at the time. Marlene unknowingly makes good on her promise. Joel becomes the closest thing to a parent that Ellie would ever know.
It’s likely that Anna would have fully approved of Joel as Ellie’s guardian, because Anna really only had two concerns at the end of her life. She wanted Ellie to survive, and she wanted Ellie to have some kind of family. Joel guarantees both of these things in a way Ellie has never had before.
To Anna, Ellie was the most special person in the world, and it had nothing to do with her immunity. By the time Joel and Ellie reach the hospital, it’s clear that Joel feels the same way. In fact, Anna would likely have supported Joel’s request that the two just go back to Tommy’s and forget all about The Fireflies.
If the spirit of Anna was with anyone in the hospital, it certainly wasn’t Marlene. If Anna were alive, she likely would have been right behind Joel as he did he deemed necessary. It’s also important to note that Joel, at least in the show, isn’t a man who relishes in cruelty or violence. He’s nowhere near as keen on continuing to live a violent life as in the source material.
When Joel is being escorted down the stairs by the two guards, he doesn’t snap. This isn’t the same Joel who killed the FEDRA guard in episode one of the series. Instead, Joel is cold. When he springs into action and kills the two guards, this is the beginning of a Joel the audience has only heard of.
When Joel visited Tommy, he confided in his brother that he was afraid. His fear and subsequent panic attacks made him freeze. He doesn’t feel like the same man he used to be, because he’s stunned with fear. Joel even tells Tommy about the man Ellie had to shoot, claiming he would’ve torn the guy apart five years ago. Joel hasn’t just let go of this dangerous side of himself, he thinks it no longer exists.
Part of the friction between Joel, Tommy, and Maria has to do with the vague things Joel did in the name of survival. We’re never given specifics, but both versions of the story make it clear that Joel was capable of horrifying acts.
In the show, Tommy reminds Joel that the things they did weren’t just things, they were people. In the game, Tommy claims he still has nightmares and doesn’t even think their survival was worth the price they paid.
In the moment where Joel kills the two guards in the stairway, the old Joel has returned. This isn’t a man full of hate. This is a man with nothing on his mind but survival. He has a mission to accomplish, and nothing is going to get in his way. He also isn’t taking risks.
So, when someone runs away or puts their hands up, it doesn’t matter. They’re a risk, and Joel isn’t taking risks. We see this happen again when Marlene begs for her life. Joel isn’t thinking about the person when he kills her, he’s thinking about the risk.
As Joel kills his way through the halls of the hospital, you won’t hear a heroic crescendo in the music. You won’t see Joel in a heroic light. In fact, the whole thing is tinged with somewhat sinister tones. You won’t see any heroism, because this isn’t the moment for a hero. It’s simply a moment of conflict.
The Fireflies believe they are protecting the girl who can save humanity. Joel believes he is protecting his surrogate daughter. They’re both right, and wrong. The only thing that’s certain is that Joel will kill every last person in his way, and I suspect Anna likely would’ve done the same.
