Hey guys! Today I will be getting into my first TV show review. I’ll be reviewing the hit show, The Last of Us, Episode 7.
If you don’t know what The Last of Us is about, here’s my little synopsis: The Last of Us follows a man and a girl who stick together to survive as they travel west in a post-apocalyptic world.
Initial Thoughts
In episode 6 the last thing we saw was Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, trying to help Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, as he had just been stabbed. In the ending scene, he fell off his horse and Ellie was freaking out… rightfully so.
So initially, I thought that in episode 7, Joel was either going to be dead or Ellie would get him back to his brother Tommy, played by Gabriel Luna, just in time to save him.
*The way I was wrong about both assumptions. LOL*
What I Enjoyed
I enjoyed that this episode gave more light on Ellie’s backstory. She mentioned in previous episodes having a friend while growing up with FEDRA, but she never went into detail. I liked that this episode was dedicated to that backstory.
It was also really enjoyable for me to see more of Ellie’s vulnerable side. For a lot of the show, she has put up a tough front, as if she’s somewhat numb to emotion almost? But in this episode and even in episode 6, we see those walls break down. We were able to clearly see that she has an emotional attachment to her best friend, Riley, played by Storm Reid. As well as Joel.
Also, the internal conflict that Ellie juggled when it came to Riley added to the intensity of the episode. As the episode progressed, we could see through small moments and gestures, that there were some romantic nerves that Ellie had to fight through. I dare say that Riley was struggling to keep it together as well.
However, if nothing else, their relationship was based on a genuine love for one another. The fact that Riley made sure to meticulously plan Ellie’s rebellious night out, so that there were different levels of excitement, spoke volumes. From bringing her to the mall in general, the carousel, the arcade, and everything in between, it was clear that she cared about what Ellie thought. The moment they kissed, there was a visual relief on both of their faces from the built-up tension.
What I Would Have Changed
Although I enjoyed the intimacy and innocence of this episode, I did miss the action.
Once Riley revealed that she had been missing because she joined the fireflies, I thought that the two girls would go meet up with her new friends. I think it would have been cool to see Riley immerse Ellie into the life that she had been introduced to and the people that made her feel comfortable to do so.
It also would have been nice to see Ellie have internal conflict after seeing why the fireflies are so passionate about being Anti-FEDRA. They could’ve had her join in on a small mission for the night. Maybe she didn’t help them blow anything up, but she could have helped them do something mundane but effective in agitating FEDRA.
The scene where the infected person entered the room, felt incomplete to me. There could have been more tension buildup. I think if the infected person would have came in more abruptly it would have added more intensity. It seemed as if he just calmly walked in at first.
During the period that he was aggressively attacking them, it would have been interesting to see Ellie get bit at first and Riley didn’t. Riley would become standoffish with Ellie, in a frightened way. Her hesitance towards Ellie would begin to both scare Ellie and make her angry because they are supposed to be best friends.
In the final moments of the scene, the infected, who they thought was dead, would get up and bite Riley. Ellie would stab it to death and there would be a loud silence after. Riley would then feel both scared about dying and ashamed for icing Ellie out initially.
Final Thoughts
The episode was great for character development purposes but was lackluster when it came to action. I’ll give the episode a rating of 7.
